Old-Ladies-With-String Blog

Best Job in the Whole World

noreply@blogger.com (Jane Stafford) — Wed, 24 Sep 2008 18:54:00 +0000

Well I guess the blogs are going to be monthly. Weekly certainly didn't work, bi-weekly didn't work, every three weeks didn't work, so we'll try monthly. Despite the fact that I don't have much time to write these blogs I do feel as though I have the best job in the world. Every day I get to share my passion with weavers all over the continent. By chance, two of my favourite weavers were both in the studio at the same time a few weeks ago. They both brought in exquisite projects fresh off the loom woven in 12 guage bamboo. At right: Josie's husband Philip wearing both scarves.

The wonderful thing about these two women is that they are both 88 years old, vital, creative and so inspiring. Josie has been weaving for more than 40 years and is one of the foundng members of the Salt Spring Island Weavers Guild. Josie is a natrual colourist and she is never afraid to try something new. She took home the Grand Rosette at our last Fall Fair.

Josie and her husband Philip are also very accomplished gardeners. A few years back they sold their ocean-front home with remarkable gardens to new owners. You can see their garden featured in Gardens West Vol 22 no. 8 October 2008, page 7. Josie and Philip are referred to throughout the article.

Here are my gals: Josie is on the left and Pam on the right. Click on the photos to see close-ups.

Josie's scarf was woven in a turned twill pattern at 32 epi, 32 ppi on 8 shafts. Her warp was predominantly soft greens with a crocus weft. Pam's colours were lime, sky, indigo, crocus and sugar plum woven in a 4 shaft huck lace, sett at 28 epi, 28 ppi. The hand and drape on both of the pieces were perfect.

Pam first learned to weave as an occupational therapist before she retired. When she was in her late 60's she decided to take her weaving more seriously and began her very disiplined exploration. She is always dropping in to show me what she is working on and is always striving to make her weaving better. So often I hear my students say: "Oh, I wish I had learned to do this earlier!". Let Pam be your muse because it's never too late! Each project is a step along your weaving path. Keep moving forward along your path, don't dwell on what you haven't done, take positive action by moving forward.

P.S. Pam has a remarkable garden too.

A Few notes and a Joke

noreply@blogger.com (Jane Stafford) — Thu, 18 Sep 2008 16:39:00 +0000

Last week was awesome. On Monday, 7 students participated in a one day seminar called "Honing Your Basic Weaving Skills". We went over making warps quickly, efficiently and most importantly, VERY WELL. Then we dressed
a loom Back to Front and discussed the pro and cons to the many methods of warping looms. Bobbin winding which is often
under-rated was demonstrated and good shuttle handling, posture, and shedding sequence was practiced by everyone.
By the end of the day everyone's selvedges were straigthening out and weaving was much faster and fun and the cloth more
even.

On Tuesday, some of the same gals returned and we added some new ones to look at "Project Planning 101". We went over
all the questions you need to ask yourself when designing your projects, starting with 1. What do you want to make?
2. What do you want to make it out of? and then we went from there. Everyone provided a scenario and therefore we learnt a great deal answering everyone's questions. The math is not so daunting when you think about it in a logical sequence.

Wednesday was a wild and wooly affair. We made a 4 yd. brushed mohair warp and had it on the loom by noon and then we beamed another 45" brushed mohair warp that was 7 1/2 yds. long. That was rolled on by 1 p.m. After lunch we went over
winding bobbins so that yarn doesn't stick and exits the the shuttle easily. Again good posture, shuttle control, shedding sequences were demonstrated and then everyone sat down and wove on the mohair warp. It is amazing how easy it is to
manage difficult yarns when you know a few tricks and are willing to adapt your technique a little bit to suit the situation.
We just can't weave everything one way. Just like cooking, sometimes you have to change 'this a little' and 'that a lot' for the recipe to work.

Thursday was a very special day. Susan Brown and I led 5 women through a day of self-discovery based on readings from
"The Creative Habit", "The Four Agreements", "The Path of Least Resistance" and several others books that have meant a great deal to Susan and I. It was a very powerful and personal day with a goal of addressing our creative needs.
Thank you so much to Sasha, Crystal, Sally, Lynne and Susan.

This week we are getting revved up for Cheryl Wiebe's "In Pursuit of the Rainbow", dyeing workshop this weekend. Looms are getting squished into corners so dye tables can come out. It should be a very colourful 2 days, even if the sun doesn't shine.

Well, thats what we've been up to in the last few weeks. The studio is a wonderful place to host these workshops so let us know if you want to learn something specific and we'll try to rustle up a workshop for you. Acutally more than a workshop.
We are trying to create wholesome learning experiences that feed the soul on many levels.

My friend Dawn Russell is always sending me great jokes and I have to leave you with this one. Read it with all the theatre you can muster.

----------------------------------------------

A wife was making a breakfast of fried eggs for her husband.

Suddenly, her husband burst into the kitchen.

'Careful,' he said, 'CAREFUL! Put in some more butter! Oh my GOD!

You're cooking too many at once. TOO MANY! Turn them! TURN THEM NOW!
We need more butter. Oh my GOD! WHERE are we going to get MORE BUTTER?

They're going to STICK! Careful . CAREFUL! I said be CAREFUL! You NEVER
listen to me when you're cooking! Never! Turn them! Hurry up! Are you
CRAZY? Have you LOST your mind? Don't forget to salt them. You know you
always forget to salt them. Use the salt. USE THE SALT! THE SALT!'

The wife stared at him. 'What in the world is wrong with you?
You think I don't know how to fry a couple of eggs?'

The husband calmly replied, 'I just wanted to show you what it feels like when I'm driving.'

_______________________________
Have a great week,
Hugs,
Jane

The New Jane Loom vs. the Kombo

noreply@blogger.com (Jane Stafford) — Fri, 05 Sep 2008 19:22:00 +0000

Sorry it has taken so long to get to this. I'm not turning out to be the best blogger in the west. However, I would be happy to tell you the difference between the old and the new. The Louet Kombo has been evolving for about 20 years and the recent modifications are significant improvements.

1. The first improvement is the way the pattern shafts move. The new system was designed for a little table loom that Louet came out with a few years back called the W30. All the cords now run over rollers providing a marvelous action.
Because the rollers move there is never any wear and tear on the cords and no friction. The toggling action on the new loom is far superior to the Kombo.

2. The second improvement has to do with the overhead beater. I believe the Kombo was the first table loom to have an overhead beater which provides a great deal of control while beating due to the long arm action. On the Kombo the beater had to be held back by the weavers hand or with elastic bands on the arms to move it out of the shed while throwing the shuttle. The new Jane has little bumpers that keep it back out of the shed while throwing the shuttle. This has increased the shed size to 3"+ which is remarkable for a small table loom.

3. The loom folds slightly smaller than it did before, but the best part of this is that it locks in the folded position and a warp can be tensioned while the loom is folded so things don't fly apart if you are going off to a workshop. 4. When it is folded it has a great leather handle that allows you to carry it like a brief case leaving your other hand free for important things like a coffee cup or yarn : )

In addition to these improvements the loom still has the greatest weaving distance in front of all table looms. It comes with a built in raddle and the beater swings over the top of the loom for easy threading. It has metal ratchets and cogs, not plastic.

All in all, it is just swell.

Thank you for your interest in the Jane and I hope you are able to wait,
Cheers,
the other jane

A Colour and Design Fiesta

noreply@blogger.com (Jane Stafford) — Thu, 24 Jul 2008 19:20:00 +0000

Last week from Monday through Thursday six lovely ladies descended upon my studio to focus on colour and design theory. 2 were from Salt Spring, 1 from Cedar, 2 from Victoria and 1 dragged 4/5ths of her family from Calgary. Over the four days the girls wove seven different samples out of one style of yarn all in plain weave. The samples were colour gamps, a colour and weave gamp, studies in assymetry, stripes, gradation, analagous colour harmonies, numerical systems - all created as tools to support the lectures. We tore magazines apart and honed our skills of observing. Toni walked in the woods collecting inspiration and now sees the world as a giant grid waiting for colours to be poured into. We shared meals and life stories, laughed and cried and created fond memories on so many levels. This was the first workshop where three of the students stayed and did the B&B thing. We all helped prepare meals and being together in the evenings deepened our bonds.

On our last evening we went to town for a great dinner and then headed back to Annie's house for a ceremonial "cutting a dog off the loom event". Anne had at that moment a warp that had been on her loom for 8 years.
Due to life's assaults she
had left her loom for quite awhile. We cut that warp off and cleaned the slate for new creations. It was a perfect way to end our week.

On Friday I was definitely tired, but also exhilarated with a magical energy.

Thank-you to Sasha, Mary-Anne, Toni, Sandra, Annie and Susan for such a wonderful experience.

If you would like to
participate in one these events, check out our workshop page on the website. http://www.janestaffordtextiles.com/workshops.html

Happy Weaving,
Jane

In case any body did check

noreply@blogger.com (Jane Stafford) — Thu, 10 Jul 2008 20:01:00 +0000

It has been a busy couple of weeks here at the studio. Sometimes life is hectic. Next week I am teaching a workshop called Colour and Design Principles and will tell you all about it when it's over.
Happy Weaving,
Jane

On creativity:

noreply@blogger.com (Jane Stafford) — Wed, 04 Jun 2008 20:11:00 +0000

This week I thought I would write about my most requested seminar topic. Some of you have heard me drone on and on about this topic, but some of you may not, so I’m writing this for you. It starts with a question I am often asked “How do you get it all done, you seem to do so much!”

I smile, because I don’t get it “all done”. There are a million things I haven’t gotten done but I do seem to keep my nose to the grind stone a keep plodding along. Over the years I have read every self helpbook known to woman or man. Books like, “Helping Your Child Sleep Through the Night”, “Siblings Without Rivalry”, “How to Deal with your acting up Teenager”, “Men are from Mars, Women are from Venus” and I have always planned to write the best seller “You don’t always have to be an Outlaw with your Inlaws” (although I did). Now I’m readiing “Understanding Menopause” and “The Silent Passage” only I’m not being too silent about it.

Of all the self help books I’ve read, one of the best is called “The Creative Habit: Learn it and use it for life” by Twyla Tharp. Found within is a recipe for understanding creativity. I have never really had trouble being creative, my efforts mind you were not always successful, but I always kept going. When I first read “Developing a creative habit” I found out why. It is because I have Discipline which has given me the ability to Focus, they have become a regular Routine and thus have led to Productivity.

These are some of main concepts that Twyla Tharp writes about in her book:
DISCIPLINE
FOCUS
HABIT
PRODUCTIVITY

I was raised by a mother who was 41 years older than me (my whole life). She was a woman who had lived through hard times and she was disciplined and had disciplined habits that she drilled into her children. So, the idea of working hard has never been foreign to me. Hard work, seems to be one answer. I have worked hard to be a weaver for 30 years. I did not learn what I know overnight. I have made every mistake known to a weaver. I have made more ugly cloth than you can imagine (it is hidden away). But every mistake and every piece of ugly cloth has given me an opportunity to solve a problem or to weave it again, only better. I have woven things over and over and over and each time the cloth, the design, the hand, the drape, gets better. I have focused on one thing until I get it right and then I move on to a new problem.

The thing about focusing on one thing: be it weaving mohair blankets for 20 years, or weaving 100’s of scarves in just one structure is that you have the opportunity to interpret with colour or a type of yarn over and over again. This way of creating has allowed me to push the lid off the box, so to speak, on many different aspects of weaving. Many weavers have asked me if I ever get tired of weaving mohair blankets and my answer is always “how could I, I have 50 colours of mohair and in my garden a million different sources of inspiring colour, all of which I create with on the same canvas. That canvas never changes but the colours do, A painters canvas may not change but their colours do. At last count I have woven almost 1000 blankets with almost 300 different graphic designs all in plain weave. 1000 blankie’s to keep people warm and bring comfort. I will always weave mohair blankies.

Over the years I have focused on many different weave structures. I think I spent 1 entire year drafting overshot name drafts and weaving them in many different yarn combinations. I have spent several years drafting Bronson Lace starting on 4 shafts, then working on 8 and and then 12 and then 16 etc. and now I sometimes wish I had more than 32.

So my message for the day is Don’t be afraid to weave the same thing over and over. Try to change one element each time and you will learn more than you can imagine. When it is time and you will know, you can move on to another canvas or weave structure and push it until you really understand it. Through repitition we learn so much. Another analogy would be with cooking. When we learn a new recipe, we often have to refer to the cookbook many times. The second time we make that recipe, we proceed with a little more self assurance. The third time we make it we find that we are making subtle changes to the spices and baking times. It is becoming more familiar and more “ours”. After a few more times you have completely re-invented it and you understand it at a whole new level. It works in the weaving world as well. If you need a good self-help book, check out Twyla’s. It was great to have a little more understanding as to why I appear to get so much done.

I’m always looking for a good joke and Susan sent me one this week that had me laughing for days. It is perfect, as I am the third woman in the Sauna.

3 WOMEN IN A SAUNA

THREE WOMEN, TWO YOUNGER, AND ONE SENIOR CITIZEN, WERE SITTING NAKED IN A SAUNA.

SUDDENLY THERE WAS A BEEPING SOUND. THE YOUNG WOMAN PRESSED HER FOREARM AND THE BEEP STOPPED. THE OTHERS LOOKED AT HER QUESTIONINGLY.
'THAT WAS MY PAGER,' SHE SAID. I HAVE A MICROCHIP UNDER THE SKIN OF MY ARM.
A FEW MINUTES LATER, A PHONE RANG. THE SECOND YOUNG WOMAN LIFTED HER PALM TO HER EAR. WHEN SHE FINISHED, SHE EXPLAINED, 'THAT WAS MY MOBILE PHONE. I HAVE A MICROCHIP IN MY HAND.'

THE OLDER WOMAN FELT VERY LOW -TECH. NOT TO BE OUT DONE, SHE DECIDED SHE HAD TO DO SOMETHING JUST AS IMPRESSIVE. SHE STEPPED OUT OF THE SAUNA AND WENT TO THE BATHROOM.

SHE RETURNED WITH A PIECE OF TOILET PAPER HANGING FROM HER REAR END. THE OTHERS RAISED THEIR EYEBROWS AND STARED AT HER.

THE OLDER WOMAN FINALLY SAID; ”WELL, WILL YOU LOOK AT THAT... I'M GETTING A FAX!! “

Have a great week,
Hugs,
Jane

May 28

noreply@blogger.com (Jane Stafford) — Wed, 28 May 2008 19:06:00 +0000

Well, everyone thinks I should have a blog. Apparently I am entertaining, inspirational and best of all, funny. Even the guy who is trying to optimize my website says it is a good idea. Last night as I thought about it, I had brilliant ideas that flowed effortlessly as I sipped my wine. Obviously my brain is like a toilet in a public urinal, flushing every 5 minutes, because this morning I can't think of a darned thing. I plan to keep a pad of paper and a pen inside the liquor cabinet from now on!

I think a weekly blog is something I could manage and that will give me 7 evenings to be witty and informative. I'll start taking notes tonight.

This week I'd like to tell you about my new DVD - done for Louet North America. You can see the ad on page 18 of the May/June issue of Handwoven or go to http://www.louet.com. It is a 2 disc set that demonstrates warping a Louet Spring loom with a second disc running through all the wonderful attributes of Louet looms. If I may say so, it is pretty darn good.

Talk to you next week.
Hugs,
Jane

My First Blog

noreply@blogger.com (Jane Stafford) — Wed, 28 May 2008 18:27:00 +0000

At Christmas time we always exchange magazines. My son Eben bought me an Organic Living magazine. On Christmas morning I looked in my stocking and found this magazine that looked kind of interesting, and then I HAD to make the comment: "Hmmm, this is just full of advertising and marketing!" Eben, slightly offended, retorted with: "Well, gee Mom, I'm sorry but I couldn't find any 'Old Ladies with String Digests' "!

And so we make available to you, all you ladies with string - our blog!

Happy Weaving,
Jane