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Wildly uneven warp length?
I am tryin to decide if this is “get a grip, girl, and learn how to have even tension at the warping board!” Or if it’s that little voice telling me something is wrong and I should investigate now, because it will be more expensive later…
6yd warp wound in 3 sections on a warping board; 8/2 cotton (most colours are a brand I haven’t worked with before); warping back to front with double thickness of easel paper between layers.
Thoughts appreciated.
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25 Replies
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I had that problem too, along with warps sort of tangling as I wound on. I asked Janet ( those zooms are fabulous) and she thought it might be because I am winding 4 threads at a time and at least 2 of them or coming to my hand from angles rather than straight up. So there is some tension on those which aren’t on the ones with a straighter line to my hand.
Another tip I read was to chain the warp very tightly and to unchain back to a very orderly spot, grab hold and give a shake. Arranges the threads nicely .
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Yeah, my chains are always… kinda hopeless :-/ . But, I was winding on 1 thread at a time, so it’s a question of whether I had enough difference in overall tension to account for the 6 – 8″ difference between the first bouts and some of the later ones.
I guess the fact that all the threads in any given bout are reasonably consistent in length is a confirming sign?
I wonder if I can get a tensioner that would work for winding on a warping board… or if it’s just this particular 8/2 cotton that’s stretchy.
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If you have beamed the warp under consistent tension, the warp should be fine to weave on. Minor tension issues should not be too much of a problem. And yes, there may have been tension differences between the three chains – a chain wound with less tension will tend to be longer; a chain with more tension will tend to be shorter.
So I vote that you go ahead in faith that all will be well. Until it isn’t, and then come back and we can try to work it out.
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Thanks, I think working through the fact that the thread length is pretty similar in any given bout gives me some confidence that the problem really was highly variable tension while winding on the board.
I’ll dive in with some sample weaving this weekend… after I deal with treadle tie up… :^)
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We’re any of the threads winding on top of each other on the warping board? Making a sort of hump which would make some of the threads longer? Also, why worry? It is just a matter of inches.
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Thanks, Joy. No, the threads didn’t pile up on each other on the warping board.
So far, the warp seems to be weaving up okay (I’m slooooow) — but I was a little concerned when it amounted to 8 or so inches between longest and shortest thread. I mean… that’s warp real estate!
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Leslie, When I started winding on, front to back it made a difference in those long and short threads. A friend showed me how she did f2b she makes a chain, but cuts the threads at the ends, (both) but when she gets to her cross, she inserts her lease sticks and goes straight to the front beam of her loom. I use painter’s tape to tape it on and my beam and I have pretty even warp. Winding on 1 thread at a time. Doing more messes my warps up to much. I have a reel I have to learn to use I think that will work better than the board for me. On the board, I skip pegs, you can’t do that on the reel. She has a book message me and I can give you the link if you are interested.
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In case anyone was curious about how this ended… The warp was fairly evenly lined up at the back beam (i.e., where I tied it on). Mostly, I didn’t have trouble with tension variation across the warp as I wove. So, the varying lengths were definitely because of my tension variations when using the warping board.
I’m about to wind another warp using the same yarn. Wonder if I can do a better job of even tension?
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I will tell you what I get told. Laura Fry said to me No Warp, No Weave, she is right I am trying to make friends with my warp. I just finished warping, Sunset Towels by Sarah Resnick. Besides threading mistakes came out good. I get told you got this, don’t give up, from Dena Moses. She has helped a great deal by suggesting Front to back warping. The first warp I did F2B I did my warp threads were perfect lengths, never did it again thou. And if you have access to the videos on Long Thread Media, watch Laura’s course she did or find some of her youtube videos, she has some amazing tips.
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Thanks — you’re right, I should go watch some more helpful videos. My technique can always use improvement!
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You need to get more help from your cat ???? As long as your project came out ok, I wouldn’t worry about the the fact that it’s uneven. I’ve woven some fairly nice things when my warp was uneven.
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Luckily, my cat is always willing to “help” :^) . Here he is, helping me plot out the warping plan for my next set of towels — using the same yarn, so I’m going to try to be better about even tension as I wind it on the warping board, but then not sweat it.
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I have “helpful” cats as well. One likes to help me wind bobbins and the other tests the strength of my woven material by laying on it. He also likes to test the scratchability, but I try not to let him do that. Good luck with your next warp!
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I find that I have the best results when I wind evenly sized bouts/groups on the warping board (if I have a 200 end warp, I will wind 2 bouts of 100 ends each, not a 60 and a 140).
I also try to carve out enough time in a day to measure the whole warp.
Through *ahem* “experience”, I have found that if I wind bouts on different days, they tend to end up uneven, as things like sleep (or lack of it), stress, and mood can change the tension that I hold my threads with rather dramatically.
In addition smaller bouts (less ends in each) tend to have less length differential for me, as my warping board is well used, and I sometimes forget to tighten up the pegs, so large bouts tend to flex them a little, resulting in shorter ends on one side of the bout.
If you do end up uneven like this warp, yes, you lose a little length, but as long as the warp yarn isn’t too spendy, it is a small amount. You can also use it for a shaped fringe maybe?
As noted above, as long as the warp went on with good tension, the weaving should be ok.
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Thanks — I think winding chains with fewer ends is going to have to go on to my plan list. I expect “winding all at once” would be a good plan, but my life doesn’t often afford me big chunks of time to work on stuff.
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@kathy I am having issues with the tension. I started warping F2B ok that works ok except I still do not get good tension. I left my lease sticks in a couple of warps it helped but it suggested that I take them out once I have my heddles threaded. Ok, well then I had NO tension on my warp and I finally just cut it. I did not toss it I am going to try putting it back on this winter. In my last warp, I made angel wings sorta, worked ok but I need to sand my dowels the yarn clung to it too much. I am not sure what happened I put my sticks in on my warp while winding and my brake let go and loosened up everything and I thought I got it straightened out but NOPE. I suddenly had a group of ends, with no tension at all. I cut off my towel to put it tight and tie it back on. I really feel it’s not in my DNA to weave. I can not follow a pattern to save my life. It’s the same with knitting. Got more tips ???
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Re leash sticks. I started using 3/4th inch PVC pipe for leash sticks some years ago. They are smooth and the yarns slide easily over them. I take them out once the warp is on the back beam and before I tie onto the front beam.
When I tie a new warp onto an old warp I have the “leash sticks” right in front of where I tie on so the cross is immediately available.
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thanks, I never thought of using the dowels I use as angel wings, for the lease sticks. I do have to sand them and they will be fine. A couple of rubs with Steelwool and I will have them moving smoothly. Thanks for the tip.
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oh, that DOES sound frustrating! Why don’t you try a few smaller, shorter warps? then the time invested is less if things don’t work out, and you can try a few different methods, to see what works best for you.
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I will add to the fray. I just put this warp on the loom. This happens to me occasionally. When it does, it is always shorter on the left side. I have measured everything on my loom to make sure it is square and that it winds onto the back beam evenly. It is a mystery. I think that it is worse, the longer the warp is.
I wound this warp (455 ends 8/2 cotton) all as one chain. So, the only thing I can figure is that the prongs on my warping board may angle in slightly (as in bend?) as the warp grows from the back toward the front of the prongs?? They are not loose nor can I see this visually, and it doesn’t seem that would cause such a big difference in length, but maybe?
And what is more interesting to me is that on this one, I wound two strands together (a light tan and a color strand), and in most pairs one color seems to be shorter than the other. I have never had this happen before! BTW – I tied it all on as is, with even tension, and the weaving is going smoothly, so as someone said, ‘it is only a few inches and not worth worrying about” (but I love a good mystery).
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Interesting! You said you wound it as one chain, but did you wind it all in one session?
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Two sessions, as I recall. Now I am looking to see if there is a clear break. On the right (which is the side of the warp that would have been at the base of the prongs, and wound in the first session) it seems more even. The angle seems to be steeper from the middle to the left, so maybe I would tighter and tighter as time went on?
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Your warp looks really pretty, even if it’s uneven. I just got done winding 798 ends–hope it’s fairly even when I beam it. But we’ll see.
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Shelia – do you remember in the peer session when Kathy told us about the Tangle Teezer? I got one, and used it to smooth out these hanging warp ends after sleying the reed. It is AMAZING. I also used it on a previous project to align the fringe ends before twisting. Love that thing already.
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This happens to me a lot! I also have suspected that my warping board might be off, but it doesn’t seem to make a difference if I change up my path. I think maybe the unevenness sometimes happens when moving the warp onto the raddle. Makes me feel good that others have similar weaving woes.
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