Krista Richey, Eugene Weavers Guild & Salem Fiber Arts, Salem, Oregon
Winner: “Tow The Line”, sponsored by Glimakra
Material & Technique: Linen satin damask (5 end). The 0riginal pattern was found online in a collection of Profile Drafts from The Icelandic Textile Center website (fjorkafla-munstur_nr_13.jpg). I used this original motif on the far right and left side of this piece, but changed the center motif. The tie up and treadling were also changed resulting in a very different effect.
Description: This piece began as a challenge for our Eugene Weavers’ Guild “Beyond 8” study group. We chose a profile draft with the intent of weaving it in different weave structures using the number of shafts we each have available (from 12 to 40). To highlight the potential of profile drafts for a 2026 guild presentation, we planned to weave one piece true to the original profile, as well as a piece that looked “radically different.” A weaving program allowed me to play around with tie-ups and treadlings. I have long been infatuated with linen and intrigued by satin damask, so I (audaciously) decided to weave “radically different” in 16 linen singles satin damask.
Weavers will no doubt understand the foibles/catastrophes that led to this piece, including a necessary modification of the center motif due to a counting error in winding the warp. As I finally began to weave this piece, it continued to confound. Only in certain ideal lighting did it reveal itself to be anything but a plain piece of beige cloth.
Chapter 7: Princess Peekaboo is engaging, even mesmerizing…but only when she wants to be.
