Progress on the Mountain Cucumber Coverlet Project

 

Mountain Cucumber Coverlet (4 Panels) - not yet wet-finished, which means it looks kind of flat because the fibers have not bloomed yet.

The panels in this photo are running side-to-side, rather than up-and-down as they would be on a bed.

Please excuse the sunlight towards the bottom of the photo.

Last Sunday was the last day of weaving on the colossal Mountain Cucumber Coverlet Project.  Sigh!

I have thoroughly enjoyed this project --  I see another coverlet in my future!   I waited a week to cut the last panel off the loom.  This weekend, I lined up the panels and see how consistent my weaving was -- How well the panels match up.  According to my notes and record keeping, it looks like I stayed on target -- more or less.  I can't believe how well this is turning out!

Lessons Learned:

• Instead of loading the entire 16-yard warp at once, it might make more sense to do half of it, then tie onto what's left as a dummy warp, pull through the reed and heddles and start over.  I think that will solve some tension problems over such a long warp.
• Make sure there's is sufficient extra warp to test and practice the pattern. 
• Prepare enough bobbins for a single panel at the start of that panel.
• Use the adding  machine tape to stay on track, but only unroll a few inches at a time.  Don't let it roll up with the fabric or there could be some distortion and tension problems.
  

• A Scottish spurtle (or any stick would work) is a useful tool for pulling the nylon fishing line used at the edges for floating selvedges.  Using nylon fishing line was a game changer for straight edges! 

 

• I calculated some overlap when the panels came together -- 12 warp strings, or about 1/2 inch. The easiest way to line things up was to lay it all out on the bed, with a cutting matt underneath.  Then I used a seam guage, marked at the 1/2-inch mark.  I measured the bottom panel, and laid the top panel at the 1/2-inch mark, matching the patterns along the way.

•  Even if things were the slightest bit off, it was easy enough to "fudge" it and make them match close enough.  The hard cutting matt underneath made it easy to insert the safety pins without catching the quilts on the bed.
• 
• Then I stitched a zigzag down the blue (top) side of the panels, and a straight stitch on the white (back side).  Though I might go over the back side with a zigzag, too.

 

   

Here's a detail shot of the seam joining panels. 

 

 

 

I am hoping the seams essentially disappear once it's all wet-finished.   

 

Here it is laying on the bed, while I was still working on it.  You can see, I still have the labels marking which panel is which (bottom center). 

It was much easier to sew the panels than it is working on a bed-size quilt because it's only 1 layer. 

 

Here it is hanging on the banister -- again, not yet wet-finished.  I was so pleased with how it came together--how well the worms matched across the panels-- I just wanted to bask in it. 

You'll have to wait a few more days for the final photo.  I did the wet-finishing today, but it wasn't quite dry by the time the sun set ...  Soon!