Well, I spent all day Sunday working hard at warping up the loom, and managed to get it fully warped – threaded, sleyed, etc. – yesterday evening. I even did a few inches of weaving.
I was worried because I had read online that mohair isn’t really suited to a boat shuttle, as the loose fibers can catch on the bobbin shaft. Turns out the mohair I’ve got weaves just fine with a boat shuttle – a relief since the alternative, a ski or stick shuttle, is much much slower. I wove a bit last night and a little more this morning and now have about nine inches of gold-and-black kid mohair/silk scarf woven.
The pattern is coming out somewhat weft-faced, which I suppose is no surprise considering that the mohair is 2000 ypp (and fluffy to boot) vs. 3000 ypp for the warp. Fine with me since it’s really the kid mohair I want to show off.
Now, I have five days left to weave five scarves. This is not looking good for us heroes – especially since I have to stay late at work tonight for a meeting. I may wind up having to give away the two silk shawls I’ve already woven (I am NOT giving up my floral shawl!). Oh well – no big deal, I can always make more.
I like the way it’s weaving up – the kid mohair fluffs out a bit, but not excessively. I am tempted to take a brush to it and see if I can fluff up the kid mohair a bit more, even if it obscures the pattern (a fairly basic zigzag).
Current plan is to weave obsessively until Saturday morning, then cut whatever I have off the loom and hemstitch/twist the fringes while I’m on the plane. If I get everything done by Christmas, great; if not, I’ll bring along the two shawls I’ve already woven.
Meanwhile, I made it out on the bike for a short (two-hour) ride on Saturday, and will start training in earnest once I get back from Maryland.