I Did It!

I'm getting it!

I got some advice from other weavers (thank you!) and found a video that helped a lot.

It actually looks like inkle weaving now!

I found THIS video and it made all the difference.  I'm a very visual learner and seeing

how she laid in her warp with a little loop on the side that she could pull to adjust after beating

in the weft made a huge difference.  My selveges are really straight and nice now.  Yay!

Also, I decided to try using something with a finer edge (I used a Panera Bread card)

to beat in the weft may have made a difference too.  It seems to work really well.

Although, it's a bit hard on my hand.  I'll be looking for a better shuttle that has a good edge.

Here's the edge of the shuttle I have now.  It's thick and rounded.

I don't think it does a very good job of pushing the weft into place.

I'm so excited to finally be inkle weaving!

I've seen so many great designs and fun ideas of things to make with it.

I think I've got a good start now and it'll be fun to try different designs and projects with it.  

Inkle Irritation!

I was excited to try out my new inkle loom and decided to start tonight.

I watched some videos, compared photos of the same loom, and got it all warped.

It looked great....right?

Well....the video failed to mention how to set the tension before warping and I didn't think it through.  It all looked great and I started weaving.  I realized when I needed to advance the warp that there was no way I was going to be able to.  I had warped it firmly on the loosest setting. So, there was no way to loosen it so the warp could slide.  I had to cut it off and start all over!  Sigh!

I warped it again and did so with threads I'd cut off...trying not to waste them.

That may have been a problem because I think it made my warp thread tension uneven.

I started weaving again and I'm finding it to be challenging.  Weaving on my much bigger floor loom is a LOT easier.  I'm not sure if the uneven tension is the problem but weird lumps are showing up and my right selvage is horrible.  I never have problems with selvages on my floor loom.

Maybe I'm just too tired from working on it so long.

It's 11:30 at night and I think I started this around 6:00.

I'm heading off to bed for some much needed sleep.

I'll try again tomorrow.  Wish me luck!

This is supposed to be fairly easy, right?

A Week on Instagram

I thought it would be fun to post my most recent Instagram photos today.

So, here it goes...

One of my favorite antique shops, Cottage Charm, has a monthly event called,

"Vintage Market".  It's always on the first Saturday of the month.  So, that means today was the day!

I headed down to see what I could find.  I'm sure glad I did!

I found this at a little shop next door...an inkle loom for just $15!

I've been wanting one for a while but didn't want to pay $60-$100 to buy one.

Now, to learn how to use it!  I'm so excited!

(Ooops on the pink background!  I didn't realize I'd done that until I loaded it on here.)

One of the outside vendors had this old oil heater.  I've been wanting one of these for years

but I haven't wanted to pay the prices that are usually on them of around $100.

I was surprised and happy when they said this one was only $20!

The color is perfect for my house.  And, there are no dents on it.  

I like the flower shaped cutouts on it.  So cute!

I created a new version of "egg salad" this week.  

It's gluten free waffles, arugula/rocket, eggs, and salsa.  Yum!

I take so many pictures of my adorable Penelope.

I can't help it...she's so darn cute!

Here, she's waiting near my pillow for me to go to bed.

She likes to sleep up against me most every night.

 A little bit of silliness one evening on her felted bed.

Trying to wake up after sleeping allllll day!

She loves to hang out on the top of her kitty tree that's by the window.

It's warm in the sun and has a great view of the birds in the yard.

Lazy and adorable!

She likes to play in the bathroom sink.  

And, now, she seems to like laying in it.

I'm continuing to work on de-stashing my yarn.

I bought this yarn in Sedona a couple of years ago.  I love it so much and have been 

trying to find the "perfect" pattern for it.  I thought I might have found it but

I'm not quite sure I love it now that it's started.  It's a cowl.  I like the texture and the

pattern but I wonder if it will block out enough to show the pattern. Hmmmm?

We found little eggplants at the market and tried a new way of cooking them.

I drizzled olive oil on them; sprinkled them with salt and pepper; and roasted them in the oven until they were tender.  Then, I sliced them in quarters from the stem down so they could grab onto the sauce.  We dipped them in some homemade marinara.  They were so creamy and yummy!  

We ate them all!

Three X's in the sky!

I love Instagram!  I can't wait to see what pops up to post on there this week!

Have a wonderful weekend!