Shaft Switching

Hello Cap, good for you, I am a great fan of Peter Collingwood. I have weaving rugh using the shaft switching technique from both father and son on my to do list. I have gone to Peters lectures while still living in Ontario, that is years ago. Of late I have bought Jason's video on how to do this technique. If you can get this video from your library, or better yet buy it. You will get great instructions on how to do it from the horses mouth.

Come back and tell us about how you are making out. You are another push for me to get my act together and start with this project.

Good luck and happy weaving

BTW I do think that they, Peter and Jason have a website that you can go to or that they are both involved with serious exchanges talks with weavers on the internet.

Els

"Els van Dam" skrev i melding news: snipped-for-privacy@dial51.entirety.ca...

Cap and Els! This sounds interesting! I have tried to do a Google, but cannot find out exactly what type of weaving tecnique this is! I understand it has something to do with block patterns. I have read about the Collingwoods, but has this weaving methode another name; have P.C. invented it, or has he made an easier methode(Shaft Switching) for weaving those patterns? Well, exactly: IS this something I have done, but don't know the name???LOL!! Aud ;-))

"CAP"

Hi Els. Thanks for the info. I'm glad you are motivated to do some weaving! Motivation is what I need too! I'm a master weaver and taught weaving for 15 years at the Central Texas Weaving Guild, but the guild disbanded quite a few years ago. In all that time I just never got interested in shaft switchng until now. I'm 85 yrs old and I have done many of Collingwood's rugs of different types, but I think this SS is really a challenge. I will try to find the video, it would be most helpful. Thanks again,

CAP

Hello Aud, it is a nifty way of making use of a loom with say only 4 shafts, but you shift a thread from one shaft to the other while you are weaving. Say a thread sitting on shaft 1 could be moved to shaft 2 through a switch you created on top of your loom. A special thread was installed while you were threading your loom (putting all your threads in order of warping, through the heddles on the shafts, the pattern you are using, indicates), so you can now pull that thread (on shaft 1), through the empty heddle left on shaft 2 for this purpose and weave your next shot or pick, It is complicated enough that Jason has made a video of this method of weaving. "Rug weaving, block weaves and shaft switching" published by the yarn barn. Jason has a website,

This technique is indeed an invetion of Jason's father Peter Collingwood. A giant in the weaving world, and his speciality is rug weaving. I would think that Peter is in his eighties now. He is one of my weaving heros, if there is such a thing. Weavers all over the world admire him for great legacy of weaving information. He has many great weaving books to his name.

I do not know if this is his own website or a store who sells his yarns.

Hope this answers your questions

Els

CAP, am I sorry that you life so far away, I would love to meet you, I am sure you have lots to teach me. I have been weaving for many years, with my eye on weaving rugs. I have done some rugweaving, but like an oilspot on the road, gone sideways in spinning, braiding, and now have picked up knitting again. Knitting fun items for my grandchildren. But, now that I am 69, I would like to focus on the rug weaving. Jason's video ready by the TV. I have Peters books, and have tried many of his patterns and ideas.

Please let me know how you make out, I am really interested in what you will come up with

Happy weaving in Texas

Greetings from Vancouver Island

Els

Good morning Els: It will be slow going on the SS project, but I did find 8 large boxes in my weaving room with wool rug yarns, the yarn is about 260 yards per pound and will be fine for the project. Also, I am just finishing up a persian type pile rug which has been in the loom for about 2 years. I weave early morning for about 4 hours, and I figure that I can finish the rug in about 60 more days. Most of my weaving in the past 30 years has been the pile rugs, but this one is my last. The pile is 100 knots PSI and very slow going. I also went back to Collingwood's rug book and I think I can make the 'mechanism' for mounting on shafts 3 and 4. One of my sons is a carpenter and with some good wood and small nails and eye screws it shouldn't be too difficult to make. I'm looking forward to the project. Do you have a rug in the loom now? I would be interested in what you have planned in the rug department. Have a great day.

CAP

"Els van Dam" skrev i melding news: snipped-for-privacy@dial124.entirety.ca...

Thank you, Els ,You explain very well! I understand the principle! It is an "Colombi egg" I think! ;-)) I have once tried to manage something like that, but very,very simple, with a thread and a "stick", But it was never good , and more an experiment than somthing that could work! It sounds very interresting, because I now saw on a web side, something nearly like a "piano" of tangents in a system from them. The options must be enormous with this system! (But it must be an age to thread the weave!) AUD ;-))

Aud I do not think that it is any more confolutend (spelling) than setting up any other time. It is a way of thinking. Once you have the switching setup on top of the loom it is just threading the loom. I have to go and sit and look at my video, and let you know. I am sure it is not any more complicated than that wonderful jacket you knitted and steeked. You do that with your eyes closed....well nearly with your eyes closed......LOL

Els

PS by the way i have not ried shaf switching as yet.

Hi Els. I got your direct email today and sent a reply, but it was returned by MAILOR DAEMON. The second try was also returned. Would you email me and give me your correct email address? Thanks.

CAP