Announcing Patreon for ASpinnerWeaver

Since 2008 I have been sharing stories of inspiration and creation here. It has become a well-used resource for bandweavers everywhere. It will remain as such.

Going forward, I will be moving my focus to Patreon where I will create exciting new content as well as a new community for inkle weavers to chat with me about what I am working on.

Won't you join me on this journey as I share my curiosity, enthusiastic discoveries, lessons learned, tips, tutorials, and pattern collections?

There will be content for free members and even more for those who choose to support my work by paying for a subscription. https://www.patreon.com/AnnieMacHale

 

The Book That Was Never Written and What Will Take Its Place

 

For several years I've been saying that I would write a 3rd book. I know that some of you have been waiting. But, it may never come to be. The topic was to be my take on Speckled Pickup. But, other authors have quite adequately covered this technique, more often called "Baltic". In my next post, I'll share two lovely new resources. 

I like to design my own patterns in this technique, many of which don't resemble any traditional motifs. Rather than putting them into a book, they will be published in the future as pattern collections that will be available through my newest creator space, Patreon. https://www.patreon.com/AnnieMacHale            This is a very exciting thing for me as it will allow me to create a community of inkle weavers and share my curiosity, enthusiastic discoveries, lessons learned, tips, tutorials, and patterns. It has chat features! 

Not writing another book feels like a good decision and a big weight off my shoulders. Both of my previous books were on topics that were not covered in depth in other publications and needed to be written. These books have contributed to the knowledge base of bandweavers around the world, and I am immensely glad that I wrote them. I am very grateful to each and every person out there who has purchased one. My apologies if you are disappointed about the decision not to write the third one!

In my first book, I delved into color theory and how to use it in an inkle band. Most of the books that I learned from were written in a time (the 1980's) when books didn't have a lot of color illustrations. None of them deeply explored the possibilities of weaving brilliant bands in plain weave. 

It felt good to share my understanding of color, learned through thousands of experiments on the inkle loom. 

The book includes 200 pattern charts and describes how to use them as a launching point to design endless variations. 

Each pattern includes a link to open it in the free online tool,  the Seizenn Band Weaving Pattern Editor. The result is that each pattern is interactive. You can call it up and edit it to suit your individual tastes, or yarn stash. 

In my second book, I wrote about Three-Color pickup, a delightful variation on Baltic-style pickup. Unknown to most modern weavers, it is an older technique for which pattern books have not been readily available until now. 

Since I knew of no pattern book for this technique, I felt that I needed to write one so that it could be re-discovered and used in modern times. 

Both books are available in spiral-bound paper versions through my Etsy shop here:

https://aspinnerweaver.etsy.com/listing/658320160/inkle-weaving-design-book-by-annie

OR ebooks are available through my Patreon shop here: https://www.patreon.com/anniemachale/shop

Please join me on Patreon where I will be posting regularly. I have so much to share!
As I settle in there, offerings and subscription levels may shift according to what I find to be helpful to most of my followers. https://www.patreon.com/anniemachale

A Conversation with Anne Merrow of Long Thread Media

 "The call of complexity draws some weavers to more shafts, more structures, more hand-manipulated techniques. For Annie MacHale, refining the techniques and celebrating the artistry of very simple bands has been a lifelong fascination. Starting when she first picked up a shuttle and inkle loom in her teens, Annie has worked in wool, cotton, and hemp, creating practical cloth that’s just a few inches wide."

And so begins the lovely article that Anne Merrow of Long Thread Media wrote about our interview. You can now hear the conversation live on the Long Thread Podcast.

https://littlelooms.com/long-thread-podcast-annie-machale

Have Inkle Loom. Will Travel!

 I might be getting in the groove and figuring out how to be a successful traveling teacher. In 2024 and 2025, I have some interesting places lined up and am adding to them. You can see the whole list here:

https://aspinnerweaver.blogspot.com/p/classes.html

Some workshops, hosted by guilds, may or may not be open to non-guild members. 
Whereas others, at shops and conferences, have open enrollment. Here are a couple of opportunities to study with me which are coming up soon. 

If you have a local guild or shop that might be interested in having me come visit and teach some workshops, please get in touch. My email address is: iweavestraps@gmail.com.

I'm delighted to be returning to the Fiber Circle Studio in Petaluma, CA in April. This photo is from a past workshop there. I will be there just at the same time as the Conference of Northern California Handweavers which is in Rohnert Park, the next town over. 

You can learn more and sign up here: https://fibercirclestudio.com/collections/in-person-workshops-events?page=2

And, at the beginning of May, I will be headed up to the Eugene Textile Center, in Eugene, OR. 

I have been doing business with them for years, but haven't been there in person, so, I am excited! There are only a few spots left for those 3 workshops. You can find out more and sign up here:  https://www.eugenetextilecenter.com/class-calendar

Workshops in Eugene include Three-Color Pickup. At this time in the U.S., I'm the only one teaching workshops in this technique, so it's a rare opportunity!

Of course, if you can't get to a workshop, there's always the book which you can purchase here in paper or PDF form. https://taprootvideo.com/instructorClasses.jsf?iid=12