Warping Up (2)

Progress is good. I got up to 12 sections yesterday and have done one this morning before 0730 am!  Time varies between 20 and 30 minutes per section depending on how many colour changes there are in the section. The cross ties are yellow cotton. The pieces of paper are paper tape to stick down the thread ends securely. I worry all the time about the colours. Have I really got these right? A lot of time is spent scurrying back and forth between the loom and the office checking.

Maureen asked for a clearer photo of Michael's helpful device for aligning the warp as it comes off the warping wheel. The picture shows it on the loom back beam. The prongs are at lower left. You can just see the cork lining under the top piece of wood which acts as a friction brake.

Here is a photo of the device off the loom. The vertical piece of wood sits below the back beam and is cork lined. The prongs fit into this piece of wood. There are two other pieces of wood below that which you can just see peeking out and a block of wood between each of those and the two pieces on the upper side. Michael put it together from bits of scrap in the cellar.  Bluster Bay it is not but it works very efficiently.








I do do other things as well as worry about the warp colours. Yesterday I got round to winter pruning the peach tree and the pear cordons. The pear cordons are 25 years old and are suitably gnarled. Some of the gnarliest bits have now been cut off. I did the pear stepovers too.  When the pruning was done, the peach was sprayed with copper fungicide and the pears along with apple cordons  were also sprayed. The peach tree is my pride and joy - closely followed by the quince tree. After living in this house for 15 years, I suddenly realised we had a one and a half story blank wall facing South. Perfect for a peach tree. Now most peaches in this country are hard and tasteless. So I spent a year researching this and went to Wisley to look at their peach collection in February and late August. The question was which variety flowers late and ripens early and is said to have a good flavour. I came up with the Duke of York which we bought from Deacons in the Isle of Wight. First year this very small tree was covered with blossom - and then had 6 enormous peaches. And they turned out to be white peaches with a fantastic flavour.  It has never looked back. It fruits for the whole of August and some years I am reduced to making peach jam! The only year which was an off year was 2008 when it rained all summer and what peaches did ripen, were watery and tasteless. Moral: peaches need some sunshine just like me!