Tapestry Diary, Tapestry Weaving
Rebecca Mezoff
Practicing color: a free mini-course

Every year I run a class I call Summer of Tapestry. It revolves around a practice I’ve had for many years of bringing a small loom with me when I’m hiking or traveling and weaving something about what I experienced or saw. I call the practice sketch tapestry because my goal is to capture something interesting about the experience, not to replicate what I saw in a realistic way.

I find that the practice of really looking at something and then weaving about it makes me pay attention instead of just rushing blindly through the experience and more generally, my life. The inspirations I’ve woven something about are things that I remember months and years later.

Practicing color: a free mini-course
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And you think YOU have a yarn stash problem? A visit to Istex where they make Lopi yarn.

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And you think YOU have a yarn stash problem? A visit to Istex where they make Lopi yarn.

Istex is the business that processes most of the fleece in Iceland.* I am quite sure I have never seen so much wool in one place.

There is only one scouring facility in Iceland and it is in Blönduós where I did my artist residency. Istex is the largest wool processing organization in Scandinavia and exists in Iceland in a couple different locations. In Blönduós they do the scouring and at the end of that process, the fleece is baled in 300 kg lots for shipment either to Europe to make carpet in the case of the lowest grade winter wool, or to the next Istex facility to be spun into yarn.

Huge bags of wool arrive from all over Iceland awaiting processing. I have no idea how much wool was here waiting, but countless bays like these full to the ceiling plus shipping containers outside.

The Icelandic Nature: Wild beauty

The Icelandic Nature: Wild beauty

I love being outdoors and Iceland is a place I can revel in amazing views, wildlife, and the wild swings in weather. The first post I wrote about exploring the landscape of Iceland is HERE. It included photos of the Northern Lights.

Since then I’ve enjoyed exploring more of the northern part of the country and wanted to share a few of those adventures. There are a lot of photos here and I hope you enjoy them. I had to choose from so many, but these were some of my favorite spots. I made these trips with the best of friends and though you don’t see them in the photos, know that I was enjoying time with three of the best humans I have ever known.

I love open views, horizon, and feeling like I can see forever. I grew up in New Mexico which is like a warmer Iceland in many ways. I love being able to see the horizon, to view mountains in long stretches, and of course I love being above treeline in my current home state of Colorado. When I visit relatives in places like Michigan and Mississippi where there are a lot of trees, I get lost easily and I feel hemmed in. Many people have commented that the photos I’ve posted on social media of this trip look very stark, but I love that feeling of open space.

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Weaving a black sand beach and a visit to the Gilhagi mini mill

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Weaving a black sand beach and a visit to the Gilhagi mini mill

I am still at my Icelandic Textile Center residency in Blonduos. I’ve had a lot of fun researching and working with Icelandic fleece. Please see THIS earlier post for more details about Icelandic fleece and my project.

Spinning Icelandic fleece

After the sod house tapestry and the woven sample I showed in that post, I kept spinning and finished another small tapestry. The more I spun, the more I could recognize what I needed in the yarn and I’ve gotten closer to singles that I like. When starting out, I was putting very little twist in the single because that is what you’re “supposed” to do when spinning singles that are to stay singles. But for tapestry, I didn’t like it. It was far too bumpy and uneven and more twist allows me to smooth it out to make a more even single.

The first tapestry weaving at my Icelandic Textile Center residency

The first tapestry weaving at my Icelandic Textile Center residency

When applying for this residency, I designed a project working with Icelandic fleece. I wasn’t even sure I would be get my hands on any raw fleece, but I managed to find a source through the friend of a friend and have been playing with the little bits I have. I am looking at how Icelandic works for tapestry yarn and getting a lot of spinning practice in in the process.

I had to work with the fleece I was able to get. A little bit of it is outstanding, lots of it is spinnable but not great, and some of it is not going to make the tapestry cut though I have been considering trying to spin it for knitting.

My tapestry yarn woven test includes these sources. All but the fleece I purchased either at the Handknitters Association of Iceland in Reykjavik or in grocery stores in the rural north. The Plotulopi came from the Kidka Wool Factory Shop in Hvammstangi.

  • raw fleece

  • Einband: a lace-weight singles yarn made by Istex that is quite nice for tapestry

  • Plotulopi: the traditional unspun roving sold in plates

  • Lettlopi: mostly I’m making a pair of traditional mittens from this, but it actually weaves quite well also. Worsted weight.

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Warping for various setts on a peg loom with this one simple trick (plus a discount code!)

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Warping for various setts on a peg loom with this one simple trick (plus a discount code!)

Schacht Spindle Company has a selection of tapestry looms that I use. Their peg looms are sturdy and easy to find in the USA and in some places around the world. While I love their new Arras tapestry loom (reviewed here), their peg looms are great for travel or for small projects at home. These looms include the Schacht Lilli Loom, Easel Weaver Loom, and School Loom. The pegs used on these three looms are all the same and the sett is about 5.5 ends per inch. Most of us don’t want to weave at 5.5 ends per inch when weaving small things because we want more detail, so how do you warp these looms to get closer setts?

Ice, snow, and northern lights

Ice, snow, and northern lights

The nature. On the plane on the way to Iceland (if you fly Iceland Air which I recommend), there are lots of fun videos about this country. Many of them are about how to enjoy and protect THE nature. I love that they use an article to set apart the monumental importance of the landscape and living things here.

One of the most important things for me when I go on an artist residency is that it be somewhere where I can spend a lot of time outside. My work is inspired most often by my experiences in the outdoors. The north of Iceland was a perfect spot for me to spend time away from daily distractions gathering ideas for new work.

Here are some images of what I’ve seen so far (minus the yarn).

Arriving in Iceland

Arriving in Iceland

The Textile Center in Blonduos, Iceland has an artist residency for fiber artists. I have wanted to make my own trip here since my colleague Cornelia Theimer Gardella started coming here for residencies in 2015. I wasn’t sure the residency would happen until not long before we left because of covid, but I am now in Iceland. I’m currently watching the ice float by on the river Blanda and contemplating some designs to turn Icelandic fleece into small tapestries.

I flew into Reykjavik of course and had a couple days in the city before getting a bus north about 150 miles to Blonduos. Reykjavik feels walkable and fairly small though I realize this is just because they have a defined city center and there are extensive suburbs. I enjoyed walking the path along the harbor and watching the Esja massif across the water in the changing light.