Tropical Sunsets 🏖🌴

This is the  sort of image that I saw in my mind when I saw the painted warp shown below.  This picture of the warp is 'borrowed' from Carr Park Artisans (at Etsy) as Christine uses it as her header image.  Her name for it was Dazzling and it didn't disappoint. I sadly didn't take a picture of the warp all chained up before loading it on my loom.

So what goes with all these colours and does them justice? I auditioned many colours from my stash, but only two did the trick.   Black and a touch of gold.   Next up was what pattern would accentuate the warp and pull the eye along?    A twill progression / advancing twill?    I set up a simple 8 shaft point twill on the Megado and let it keep track of an extensive treadling plan.    It worked... the pattern just slowly drifted through the colours.

Here's the draft showing two versions of threading and treadling. I used the point twill and treadling as shown on the right.

These were taken soon after loading the loom and getting started. They show the colour transitions along the warp.  The weaving was always fun as the view was always changing!

A closer shot showing the black and gold border and how the pattern played through the gold stripe.

Ending the shawl got tricky as I got closer to my planned 85 inches. The pattern fell short and so I did one more repeat and then went over.    A case of 'close enough' and it was time to move onto the second shawl. 

Again, I wanted the feeling of movement through the colours and played with this advancing twill.  I simply inserted my draft on the right and took a look at what it looked like.   It resembled flowing raindrops.  Nothing more tropical than a rain shower !   I can recall visiting Fiji many years ago and it rained every day about 4 pm.   It was like clock work!

We had a particularly cold and snowy January and so I had plenty of weaving time.  Next thing I knew I was bumping into the back of my heddles!  I was able to get two full sized shawls plus a bonus table runner from my 8 yard warp.  I decided a runner was preferable to a few samples and lost warp.   I have contented myself with pictures of the shawls and a thread or two of the painted warp  for my sample notes.

Then life conspired to get in my way of taking pictures!   If the sun came out, we always seemed to be away from home.  At home?   it would be a dark and dreary day.  Finally, it all came together a couple of days ago.

Tropical Sunset Feathers

I must admit this one is my favourite of the two.

As my cousin in the UK said "all you would need is a black dress to be totally elegant".    I agree with her completely.

Tropical Rain Sunset

Here it is completely undraped to show the full range of colours.

Now, all swayed up and as elegant as having no arms can do!  

Not the best shot but it does show the pattern and how deep the colours are.

Then we have the bonus table runner!

It was 34 inches before hemming  so that was a lot of left over warp!  I did my usual small turn and hand sewed. After the steam press did its magic, it lays perfectly flat and no obvious stitching shows at all.  It looked kind boring so I plonked a little plant down.

Close up of my favourite part of the colours! 

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I almost have two more scarves woven off on the Spring, so you should see them here soon, and a new 9.5 yard cotton warp for kitchen towels has gone onto the Megado.   In the garden we already have primroses and crocus up, with flowers on the viburnum, and the heather is in it glory. The camellia buds are opening by the front door. Ducks are back on the pond and its definitely lighter out each day.

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