Yesterday I was at a dollar store and came across some cheap playing cards! These were labeled "Seconds", but hey, they were $1.00 a deck! I grabbed two decks - one red, one blue - to make into tablet weaving cards.
I posted about it on Instagram, and someone asked how to make tablet weaving cards from playing cards, so I made a quick photo set to illustrate.
First you have to square up the cards. I overlap them at right angles, making sure two sides line up, and draw a line.
Cut on the line, and round the corners. Some people purchase a corner rounding punch - apparently there are such things, among scrapbooking supplies at craft stores. I saw some and could not figure out which corner rounder I wanted - they do cut slightly different shapes - so I just judge it by eye and do it by hand with my scissors.
I then use a ruler and mark a set of lines half an inch in from each corner. This is where I will punch the holes.
I punch the holes where the corners are marked.
After that I mark the A-B-C-D on each corner with a Sharpie marker. Some people don't mark the A-B-C-D, but I find it makes it easier for me to follow where I need to stop and start in a pattern, as well as letting me know where I stopped. When I'm doing tablet weaving, I try to stop after one full repeat - so if I start with the A at the top away from me, I want to do my 4 forward, 4 back, and end with the A in the same place. I suppose the card number could serve the same purpose, but it doesn't take me long to write on the cards.
Someone else said she colors the edges to help her keep track in a similar manner.
We've been pretty busy around here lately, and it mostly feels like putting out one fire after another (figuratively, thank God). There hasn't been much time for weaving. I did manage to finish off the Rosepath Plaid towels on the loom, and got them hemmed and washed.
I then started warping for a Goose-Eye Twill baby blanket, in Sugar & Cream worsted weight cotton. The draft & instructions are in the Nov/Dec 2017 issue of Handwoven magazine.
I haven't gotten very far. The draft calls for 286 ends, and I think I ended up with 260-something from the cone I bought. I'll make do with what I have. I have about 100 ends threaded through the heddles so far.
I also cut the scarf off the Structo, rewound that warp (smoothing out the paper separator much more neatly), retied, and restarted weaving. I'm much happier with that one now.
In trying to get back to my tablet weaving project (which is on the tablet loom in the living room), I decided I was unhappy with the 2-inch cards from Palmer Looms (nothing wrong with them, I just wanted something a little bigger) so I decided to cut off the beginning of that project and rethread on cards from Malarky Crafts. This photo shows the size difference between the two cards.
And I started making some cards of my own, using materials I've been saving for that purpose! The ones on the left are made from oatmeal box lids (I'm also considering lids from coffee canisters and raisins). The ones on the right are from gift cards, store loyalty cards, etc. The left ones are 2-1/2", and I used the Malarky Crafts cards as a template. The ones on the right are about 2-1/4" and are the height of the plastic cards cut square.
I got my cards changed out and restarted the Santas band. Unfortunately I also discovered that one part of my loom had come unglued. I blame our cold winter, with its low humidity levels. The glue just dried out, I'm sure. So now it is glued and braced. I may decide to drill a small hole and put a nail in there to keep it in place.
And the Santas are looking good!
In other tablet weaving updates, I ordered Kris Leet's tablet weaving theory video, "It's Not Magic, It's Mechanics" from Taproot Video. It comes with online streaming for 30 days (until the DVD arrives, I assume). I'm already learning a lot from this! I saw that she also has an Introduction to Tablet Weaving video as well. Even though I think I may finally be inching my way beyond the raw beginner phase, I may need to get that one as well. There's always something new to learn!
Speaking of something new to learn, I signed up for two tablet weaving classes with John Mullarkey (of Malarky Crafts!) at Stitches United! These will take place Thursday and Friday, March 22 & 23, in Hartford, CT. I even get to stay overnight, two nights! I am so excited. We rarely go on vacation (last one was Colonial Williamsburg, 7 or 8 years ago now). I got to go to Rhinebeck Sheep & Wool 2 years ago, and last year I went to Pennsylvania to go to the IOLI Convention - another unprecedented move, although I didn't get to take any classes. I am grateful that we can afford the time and money so that I can attend these classes.
