Day 132: First, a word of explanation. Weaving is all that's keeping me sane right now. It lets me feel I have some small measure of control over my life, watching the pattern develop under my hands. Bear with me, dear readers.
Krokbragd sheep (turned krokbragd, actually) are fun to weave. If you're unfamiliar with krokbragd, it is characterized by being repeats of four throws which use three sheds. Two of the sheds are identical, so it's kinda like creating designs with a nine-pin printer. You don't have a lot of flexibility, but if you're creative, you can come up with some cute patterns. The design is entirely loom-controlled, although it takes some special setup to create the third shed. In this case, the sheep's legs are created by the repeating shed while the face is a different shed and the space between the sheep is another. The order of the sheds goes 1-2-3-2. No matter how wide your piece is, that's all you have to work with lengthwise.
My draft is a spin-off from one I found on line which had sheep which were rather too tall and skinny. I mean, I want wool on my critter, and I want lamb chops in my freezer, right? A sheep needs to be fluffy and plump. It didn't take much work to fatten up my ewes, and at the same time, I felt they should have a nice pasture, so I planted some daisies. I've woven many sheepie bands over time, and have used a number of variations. The band in the photo isn't exactly what the draft yields. The draft includes grass in the pasture, and in the band, I've substituted "X" (background) for the "G" grass. If you work the pattern a few times, you'll see how it can be changed up in subsequent bands. The warping technique for inkle loom is explained in Anne Dixon's "Inkle Pattern Directory," but I have included a visual to assist with her somewhat awkward explanation.
