Thinking Ahead

The towel warp is still giving me fits - I fix one threading error, only to find another. To alleviate frustration, I've begun some advance work on the next scarf warp.

What I have in mind is a combination of solid stripes, braid ikat stripes, and a central panel that uses the Color By Accident technique (ref. Ann Johnston's books), but on warp chains instead of woven cloth. I've tried all these dye methods in the past, and want to combine them in a scarf series.

It has taken a couple of week's-worth of afternoons to do the braid ikat preparation.

The lower loop is traditional three-strand flat braid, made by hand. The upper loop is a 4-strand Kumihimo braid, which has a more tubular shape. Each warp chain was 11 yards long (enough for 4 scarves) before braiding, which is why the task took so long. The two braid styles should produce slightly different resist patterns.

The solid stripes are already dyed,  and the warp chain for the central panel is wound. All that remains is the dye-work for the braids and central panel.

I'll post photos as work progresses. First, I need to get moving on that pesky towel warp...