MAINE VILLAGE WEAVER

Here I show a a hand woven bag holding fresh flowers this September . Woven just like a rag rug ! Pretty and each one is unique  I’ll be putting Sunflowers in them soon !  Great for cut flowers  Also could hold a bottle of wine to give as a gift !    

Teal blue off white navy and white beige hand cut cotton fabrics  On a natural white warp  24 x 36  2 feet by 3 feet $120 plus sh  Close up of a section of the rag rug  More of the rag rug  It is called a rag rug here in New England  What it refers to in this scatter rug  Is that there are strips of cloth cut and placed inside a warp or in between the cotton threads while under tension on a loom My particular loom is a floor loom 60 inches wide  I can create different width in size rugs and go for how ever long. the rug needs to be I created this rug 2 feet wide and went 40 inches long  When I cut the rug off the loom it shrunk like a rubber band being released from under tension  So I lost 4 inches as the material and yarn shrunk up immediately  I added at the ends a woven hem keeping all the fabric strips in place . As I sit at the loom I pick out the colors as I go  If you like this rug I have put it up as a listing on ...

https://mainevillageweaver.etsy.com/listing/1387397469/blue-green-hand-woven-shawl-21x-106   https://mainevillageweaver.etsy.com/listing/1387397469/blue-green-hand-woven-shawl-21x-106   

 I am offering a weaving experience in my studio for four days . I will let you use my floor loom already set up to weave!  Two hours each morning weaving then you can explore the Maine coast.Weaving is relaxing and fun to do!You will learn basics and weave twill ,reversing twill and plain weave.when finished you can take home two hand towels. If you need a place to stay I have my two bedrooms set up on Airbnb.Have a look on my website www.mainrvillageweaver.com Maine Village Weaver

Bedspreads all cotton blankets made by  Maine Village Weaver Simple pleasures  Merry Christmas !  

  Denim blue and natural color cotton yarn used to create this yummy hand woven fabric for a bedspread  Traditional way to make a hand woven bedspread is to seam the two pieces together . The hand loom limits how wide you can weave a piece  My loom is 60 inches wide  So two pieces are sewn together seam is in the middle of the bedspread in the denim blue check  Looks fabulous on an antique canopy bedv Here is a close up of the seam . The whole piece came out perfectly  A talented person with lots of experience at weaving to know how to match and get the fabric to shrink at the right ratio when washed  Commissions welcomed  leck@midcoast.com

 Here is a recent railing installed in Boothbay Harbor , Maine  Hand forged iron with glass balls that are called Japanese Fishermen Floats  These are old thick glass balls that are hand blown glass  Glass ball railing Installed in Boothbay Harbor Maine 2020 Hand forged by Scottish Lion Wrought Iron 

Iron tile holder  This is a hand forged iron Shaped to hold a 6 inch tile on the wall Held up with two screws Decorative tile in the holder  Available in my Etsy shop click link  https://www.etsy.com/listing/783984472/tile-holder-iron-wall-hanging-custom?ref=listings_manager_grid

Weaving is a daily activity here at our workshop / home. It all began when my husband was away 4 months at a time fishing in Alaska. We lived in the Seattle area and weaving back in the 1970’s was resurgeing in popularity . I think Handwoven magazine got its start back then . So now Handwoven magazine has come out with an article called Weaving as meditation. I have to say “Yes” that’s it ! It is something I feel compelled to do every day . Now I can point to this article which explains how I feel while weaving . I also think that in this lies some connections to our past . Weavers back in time during all sorts of hardships and struggles found peace in the reassurance of a pattern that they could count on when life was in turmoil. I think of women here living in Maine who’s husbands went to sea for years . Many houses here have a “Widows Walk “ on top of their homes that was used to watch for their return . I know that same feeling . My husband took me up to Alaska for a “season” o...

Mustard Brown Tablerunner Early American enthusiasts and Primitive decorating would love my mustard and brown table runner hand woven this month .Available in my Etsy shop . Click the highlighted name above. Thanks for looking Best and Be Well

Such a wonderful story of a woman named Mary Meigs Atwater  She made it possible for weavers to understand weaving on a loom ,back strap look or inkle loom. Her gift was being able to write about weaving and record the weaving drafts so we could all enjoy the history and the beauty of patterns . This book published by Interweave Press  and compiled by Mary Jo Reiter was for me a treasure to get to know the person behind my most beloved books The Shuttle-Craft Book of American Hand -Weaving  and Byways in Hand -Weaving  Cover of book “Weaving a Life “ The Story of Mary Meigs Atwater  Being a self taught Weaver these books were used constantly while I practiced weaving  Now I would recommend them to folks starting out weaving and adding these to your library 

Weaving cont at Maine Village Weaver this fall/ winter season 2019 come by and check it out . Order a special item for your loved ones . OPEN Saturdays till Christmas.

Two pictures of my work of weaving at the loom this fall . I am making a hand dyed wool rug . The yarn on the loom is 8/4 poly/cotton and the wool strips are sewn together in a random fashion . I am using blues , browns , greens , with a dark red and pumpkin colors .This will be the last of this colorway as the wool strips I have dyed will be all used up to make this rug .  Weaving at the loom this time of year is my favorite as the sun comes in and warms my back as I sit and weave.

Excited to share this item from my #etsy shop: Red rust beige cotton wool table scarf square runner  fringed  https://etsy.me/36PB2er www.mainevillageweaver.etsy.com A beautiful setting for a Thanksgiving table can be made with my unique hand woven table squares and runners 

Textiles available at  JUST A LITTLE BIT COUNTRY  Waukesha Wisconsin  Shown are Maine Village Weaver textiles ,  Mustard table runner and Black and Tan check runners  Contact Kari Miller for purchase 

Then I visited Buckwheat Blossom Farm from Wiscasett, Maine  and found her having her Coop worth sheep  wool dyed with indigo , a calm grey blue ,like fog on the coast . Another great color for my shawls and wraps . Talking with her made me feel confident that we could work together to make beautiful items . Here you can find them on Instagram Buckwheat Blossom Farm  There is so much more to find so I recommend getting there to see for your self ! 

Hand Dyed Skeins  of yarns  ready So excited to be going to this show ! Taking with me are my OPEN WEAVE SHAWLS using the hand dyed skeins of yarn I did last summer They are all dyed with Knotweed  Knotweed is also called Japanese bamboo and is invasive. I mordant with rusty iron found in my husband s metal shop  This gives it a grayed down scale The skeins were dyed in the picture at different times of the growing season making the color different as the plants matured. OPEN WEAVE SHAWLS