tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2670213486548123819.post7617187886158295482..comments2024-03-24T21:42:17.025-04:00Comments on Loose Threads: <small>Yet Another Costuming Blog</small>: The Sprang Project: Boot, and Reboot?Cathy Raymondhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04580681386443534011noreply@blogger.comBlogger10125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2670213486548123819.post-73221087614286386422016-04-03T01:54:50.665-04:002016-04-03T01:54:50.665-04:00Every bit of information I can get counts--and sin...Every bit of information I can get counts--and since I spent so much of March sick, I'm behind on this project anyway. :-(<br /><br />From what I'm reading sprang workers seem to be evenly split between using a safety line, or not. I may try it just because I'm having a hard time finding my shed. Thanks for the comments.Cathy Raymondhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04580681386443534011noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2670213486548123819.post-63228734824269347122016-04-02T17:38:13.126-04:002016-04-02T17:38:13.126-04:00A bit late to the party, but a little thing that h...A bit late to the party, but a little thing that helps me a lot is a pair of loops to stabilize the floating bars while winding. Made from something with no stretch like cotton, one loop or a mini warp of a few on each end of the bars to keep them roughly in place and parallel, I wind between those and remove them once there is enough of the real yarn.<br /><br />That way of winding around a safety line twice always struck me as needlessly complicated. If you're not doing the figure eight like Beth described, why not treat the floating sticks as if they were a solid board, nothing crosses between them. You have to sprang the one row you'd get for free by warping around the safety line, but the process seems so much more straightforward to me, ease of spotting mistakes is important here. Small test things I make on a clipboard, widing the threads around the actual board and afterwards transfering them to chopsticks that get tied to it to allow for takeup adjustments. Same method really. Take this paragraph with a grain of salt, I'm only a beginner myself, there might be a reason to secure something that isn't there yet that I don't know about.<br /><br />Chair or table legs could serve as substitutes for proper warping pegs/clamps if you find a combination that provides the length you need, for trying the transfer version cheaply.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2670213486548123819.post-30433061897616495372016-03-07T15:12:21.389-05:002016-03-07T15:12:21.389-05:00Thanks. Actually, the project is not exactly &quo...Thanks. Actually, the project is not exactly "underway" yet, since I still need to wind the yarn on all over again. <br /><br />So far, the difficulty is arising, not from the working process, but from the set up. I'm learning a lot from the process (as well as from the comments I've been receiving), so I don't regret that part. <br /><br />I hope to have a new progress post soon, but first I have another question which I'll probably ask in my next post.Cathy Raymondhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04580681386443534011noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2670213486548123819.post-74766514965616823522016-03-07T14:46:12.797-05:002016-03-07T14:46:12.797-05:00Wow! It's great to see it underway, though I&...Wow! It's great to see it underway, though I'm sorry it's given you so much trouble. It's obviously harder than it looks in the YouTube videos.Stella Andersonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05469996244394603024noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2670213486548123819.post-18438291215449663912016-03-05T14:03:37.661-05:002016-03-05T14:03:37.661-05:00Hi, Beth! Thanks for visiting, and for your advic...Hi, Beth! Thanks for visiting, and for your advice. I guess I'm going to be experimenting with set-up for a little while longer.Cathy Raymondhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04580681386443534011noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2670213486548123819.post-72366355888588685772016-03-05T12:49:02.204-05:002016-03-05T12:49:02.204-05:00I set up the sprang loom a little differently. Ti...I set up the sprang loom a little differently. Tie the string to the top (adjustable) bar. Bring the ball of string down and pass it around the lower (adjustable) bar from back to front. Pass the string up to the right and around the top bar from back to front. You now have one compete loop and two roughly parallel threads Bring the string down to the right and around the lower bar from back to front. Bring the string up to the right and around the upper bar from back to front. There are now 4 roughly parallel threads. Repeat always passing the string back to front around the bar ... Tie the string to a bar to finish setup. You now have a loom full of threads that have one twist in them. The side view is a figure-eight. The threads are already locked into a parallel order which makes the first row of twist easier to do. Sliding the crossing of the figure-eight up and down with your fingers a few times before beginning to work rows can even out irregular tension without tangling. The first shed stick goes above the crossed threads. I use bamboo skewers as shed sticks and leave them in for several rows before removing the oldest pair. This makes reversing the work easier if I make a mistake. Work the first row, insert an upper and lower shed stick, work the second ow, insert an upper and lower shed stick, ... When confident you started correctly, remove the oldest shed sticks. Do carefully finish the middle before removing the last shed stick. Technically this creates a fabric with one more row of twist in the lower half than the upper half. I find making the setup and first row easier worth the slight asymmetry. Good luck! Regards, Beth SchreiberBeth Shttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17235518409901156695noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2670213486548123819.post-83616229390634472062016-03-03T13:25:12.485-05:002016-03-03T13:25:12.485-05:00Noted. Thanks again.Noted. Thanks again.Cathy Raymondhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04580681386443534011noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2670213486548123819.post-19648873787758486392016-03-03T13:25:02.334-05:002016-03-03T13:25:02.334-05:00The clamp idea is a good one, though I don't o...The clamp idea is a good one, though I don't own suitable clamps. If I get any, I'll try it; thank you.<br /><br />You are right that my description of sprang as "weaving", etc. is misleading; I'll correct the post.Cathy Raymondhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04580681386443534011noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2670213486548123819.post-88625809260709350962016-03-03T03:32:04.176-05:002016-03-03T03:32:04.176-05:00Actually, "warping" is also not the a go...Actually, "warping" is also not the a good term - dressing the frame, or setting up the frame would be better, as warp typically refers to weaving. Unfortunately, I can't edit the published comment...a stitch in timehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14851281042202696086noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2670213486548123819.post-38865228802361194152016-03-03T03:29:45.473-05:002016-03-03T03:29:45.473-05:00I don't warp on the frame directly, but on two...I don't warp on the frame directly, but on two (large enough)bar clamps, then transferring the warp to the frame. I'm also warping with an extra clamp between the two, going over-under-over with one warp and under-over-under with the next one. This basically works the first crossing while warping, and you don't have to make sure the threads don't cross over at top or bottom; carrying that first shed up and down will get them into order again.<br /><br />And a final comment: Please do not say "weaving" when referring to working sprang - there is no weft carried, it's basically a braiding technique. "Working sprang" or "spranging" or "crossing" or "braiding" would all be better descriptions. a stitch in timehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14851281042202696086noreply@blogger.com