DIY Waxed Linen

The students in the spring session of my New Age Looping Basics eCourse have been very interested in learning to paint and wax their own threads.

Last month, I posted a short video I made for them on how to paint commercially produced waxed linen. Here's another short video I made for them showing how I wax my hand-dyed linen thread, and how to wind the waxed thread into a center-pull ball.



As this session of the eCourse draws to a close, students are getting the last of their projects posted and sharing lots of great tips, ideas and inspirations. I'll be sorry to see the class end, and hope they'll continue to share on the New Age Looping Study Group on Facebook.

A new session of the eCourse is scheduled for September 11 - November 1. Registration is open now. I wonder what special interests the next group will have?

Painted Thread

Students in my looping workshops and eCourse are always curious about how I produce the multicolor waxed linen thread I often provide. It's a simple process I learned years ago in a workshop with Lissa Hunter. While preparing for this weekend's Burundi Looping class for Flambeau Area Fiber Arts, I shot a short video.



My apologies for the abrupt end. The phone rang. The dog barked. You didn't miss a thing.

When I post these barely edited videos, I feel compelled to do what, in my family, is called an "aw, honey." That's because my dad, an amazing woodworker, always says (while you're opening a gift wrapped in newspaper and duct tape), "Aw, honey, it's not perfect because of this and this and this...."

Let's just say I work really hard on the videos that are part of my online workshops. This one, on the other hand, got done while leftovers were heating for lunch. Hope you like it anyway!

P.S. I posted a while back on another way of painting thread using Dye-na-Flow fabric paint on non-waxed linen.

Canoe Say 'Spinning Wheel'?

Other than the phrase "whatever floats your boat," it might seem that spinning and canoeing have little in common. But today I couldn't help but think how much buying a spinning wheel is like buying a canoe. A bit of history might help explain.

Back in another life, my husband and I owned a whitewater paddling school and we sold kayaks and canoes. To match customers with boats that would best suit their needs, we needed to figure out what those needs were.We spent a lot of time asking personal questions, doing on-the-water demos, educating buyers.

In February when I decided to buy a spinning wheel, the flashbacks started. Only this time, I was on the other side of the transaction.

Setting Wheels In Motion

In February, I'd never even demoed a treadle wheel. I've made miles of hand-twisted cordage, but I've only spun on a drop spindle and on the great wheel my dad made for me from a recycled bicycle wheel. But I did a little research (mostly based on price), picked a model, and contacted a dealer.

The dealer was Apple Hollow Fiber Arts in Sturgeon Bay, Wisconsin. Owner Kathi Cascio took a couple of rustic furniture classes I taught with my husband at Sievers a few years back. I didn't know then but I do know now: She could sell canoes, if she put her mind to it.

I started by telling Kathi what I thought I wanted in a wheel. In particular, I'm interested in making thread that incorporates my basswood bark. Kathi asked me to send her some of the fiber so she could sample it. I sent her basswood, some basswood-and-wool cordage I twisted, and a small looping sample made from that cordage.

Kathi addressed questions I wouldn't have known to ask. She recommended a couple of choices, in my price range and a little above it. I chose to spend a little more now, but I think this wheel will serve my needs very well for a long time.

I can almost hear spinners out there laughing at the idea of just one wheel. Moving on...

The Plan Comes To Fruition
Today I drove a couple hundred miles round-trip to pick up the wheel and, more important, get the spinning lesson Kathi offered along with it. On the drive home, I felt a list coming on. I think it applies to more than just spinning wheels and canoes.

• Get Good Help. A knowledgeable, experienced dealer can help you gather, sort, filter and interpret the information that will help you make the most informed choice. 
• Spill The Beans. In some ways, sharing information with a dealer is not that different from sharing your medical history with a health care provider. Even House needs a history to make an accurate diagnosis.
• Be Patient. It might take some time for the dealer to fit all the pieces of the puzzle together in a clear picture. Give them a chance to think before you press for a recommendation.
• Be Open Minded. If the dealer suggests something other than what you expected, ask for their reasoning and give it careful consideration. Remember, you're buying their knowledge and experience.
• Be Fair. The dealer who sorts out all that information, helps you make an informed choice, helps teach you -- that dealer has earned the sale. I'll save my soapbox speech on that topic for another time.

I'm off now to read the owner's manual for my new wheel and then to sleep, perchance to dream of sheep jumping over the basswood retting tank. I know. That's baaaad.

Two Green Threads

This week in the studio I haven't had much time for quiet stitching and contemplation. Instead, I've been doing all the prep work it takes to get me to that point -- design work, materials selection, Plan B, stuff like that. For this piece, I needed to paint some fabric. While I was at it, I painted some 35/2 linen thread I need for looping to embellish this piece using the leftover fabric paint thinned with water.

To get two different, mottled thread colors, I leave one thread wrapped on the card and loosely wind another with my ball winder. Then I smush the thread into a Dixie cup and let it soak up the paint. The card takes up less paint, the ball more. Then I stick the card into a crack between floorboards to dry. The ball gets turned several times while drying so the top doesn't get too dark.

I won't heat-set this thread or wash it before I use it. Normally I would try to wait at least a couple of weeks for the paint to oxidize before using the thread, but there isn't time. Past experience tells me I'll have a little color come off on my hands, but it shouldn't come off on the fabric.

I started painting my waxed linen for looping in 1998 after a workshop with Lissa Hunter. Now I paint all kinds of thread. Last year I even did an experiment with some acrylic yarn I inherited, soaking it with straight Dye-na-Flow and leaving the ball in a mesh bag to drip. Once the paint had cured, the hand of the yarn was more like hemp than acrylic.

Now that I know how quickly and easily I can paint thread, I keep more neutrals on hand (including stuff I pick up at thrift stores). Even if I'm not planning something specific for the thread, I'll paint some with whatever fabric paint is left over. While it oxidizes, I have ideas incubating.