Like most people, I pop around the web. Most of my popping is related to weaving — looking for ‘the ideal’ loom, checking out my favorite weaving bloggers and sometimes looking at their<\/em> favorite bloggers, etc. In doing so recently I stumbled on an idea that I thought I’d turn into a product in my inventory – on a small, trial basis – and see how my customers responded.<\/p>\n Introducing the neck cuff These are 5\/2 cotton & all have vintage buttons. I thought this new product was a great time to try a warping technique I’d read about but not tried – using multiple color threads without a warping paddle or other method to attempt to keep them in order. Instead, simply wind them as a group, then take them as they come rather randomly off the lease sticks. <\/p>\n I liked the ease of winding the warp, and the finished look, but I would not recommend this method for a warp any longer than a few yards. Those unorganized threads do a great amount of twisting themselves into tight, little bundles that require often tedious hand work to untwist in order to advance the warp. Maybe this would work better if I was a front-to-back warper and had spread the threads out in the reed as I warped, but I’m a back-to-front warper.<\/p>\n Anyway, I liked the way I could use multiple weft colors to achieve different looks. These two have a cranberry weft. Interesting how different a tabby\/plain weave and a simple twill look, isn’t it? I did leno with an E bead on one of the the cuffs with a lavender weft. I for sure liked the final result of that beading, and for sure disliked the process of getting it beaded. Putting lots of beads on the yarn after I had it wound it on the shuttle, and then constantly pushing those beads back out of my way as I wove the areas of plain weave was a slow, tedious process. I only wove with beads one other time, inserting them rather randomly throughout the plain-weave scarf. I both loved the outcome & hated the process that time, too. This one used so many fewer beads and was so small, I thought it’d be fine, perhaps even fun. HAH!<\/strong><\/p>\n I closed out the set with a 10\/2 cotton in a sweet lemon chiffon color, with leno (no beads)<\/em> along it’s length.
\n![\"handwoven](\"https:\/\/secondwindjewelry.com\/jewelry-weaving-blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/07\/neck-cuff-1.jpg\" "\\"handwoven-neck-cuffs\\"")
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\nI’ve had the cuffs at two shows now, and have sold both lavenders. I don’t know how many more I’ll make, but a few, anyway. I’ll do some more experimenting with colors, sizes, & buttons or other closures.<\/p>\n