On Ravelry I found a link to an article on a really fantastic Very Big mangle.
To ensure I don't lose the link, I decided to post it here, too: https://craftsmanship.net/ancient-mangle-santarcangelo-di-romagna/.
(there is a video, too)
Showing posts with label cold mangling. Show all posts
Showing posts with label cold mangling. Show all posts
05/10/2019
23/04/2015
Now what?
The fan fabric is done: inspected (several mistakes... some mis-sleying, some treadling mistakes, some must-have-been-a-bad-shed, one end not caught for long stretches), some repairs (only broken ends, the mistakes were too difficult); washed; mangled.
(I'm hoping I can get at least one shirt without glaring mistakes - perhaps it was A Good Thing I used such a busy/uneven pattern?)
So what have I learned? I think the most important thing is not to sley three per dent, because 1) it is very difficult to get it correct and 2) all too often the three ends did not separate when crowded.
I would have used a temple, had I but planned better: just five centimetres wider, and my biggest temple would have worked. Or: just 10 cms narrower, and one of the shorter temples would have been enough.
I also have learned to look better at the yarns when doing fairly dense setts - some of the spools had twisted-together ends, when they might have been knotted for better strength. I might have seen the knots, but the twists just separated.
Perhaps also it would have been better with fewer shafts? The more shafts, the more difficult to optimize the sheds. Here I had 8 shafts, and after too much fiddling I decided the top of the sheds were "good enough"... wrong decision, obviously.
It was "interesting" to mangle a fan fabric. As you have seen, there are small bumps in the cloth when weaving. They are not all gone when washed, and even knowing the trick of only smoothing to the sides (never along the warp) when rolling, some bumps wanted to stay.
No matter how tight one tries to make the roll, after a couple of passes it has loosened - partly because of the back-and-forth motion of the mangle, partly because the cloth flattens. Because of the persistent bumps, I re-rolled several more times than I normally do. The result is ok, though.
(But I "cheated" and pressed after mangling, also to help with the after-drying...)
Some pics:
Now to decide what kind of shirt to make, to go with the sort-of-diagonal-ish pattern.
One of the obvious choices is a not-really-shaped top, but there are five metres of fabric...
Perhaps some kind of kimono (or do I mean bat-wing?) "over-shirt", perhaps? I'm not sure about set-in sleeves with a fabric like this - thinking that probably they have to be matched in some way.
For now, the fabric sits on a roll on top of the fabric shelves.
04/07/2013
Mangled linens
And just because I managed to capture the sheen of mangled linens (in the last post), I'll dedicate a whole post to just them:
The picture is turned to make it as big as possible - click to make it even bigger!
And yes, they are different - I often like to make "families": the warp stripes are fixed (of course), but the weft stripes are varied - one placemat has even-sized stripes, one is "tromp-as-writ" until the size was right, one has just two sizes of stripes and so on.
The picture is turned to make it as big as possible - click to make it even bigger!
And yes, they are different - I often like to make "families": the warp stripes are fixed (of course), but the weft stripes are varied - one placemat has even-sized stripes, one is "tromp-as-writ" until the size was right, one has just two sizes of stripes and so on.
28/04/2013
Another mangle (and some damask)
Today we went to a renowned damask weaver, Elsa Persson.
She had (and used, of course!) a very old mangle, probably as old as the house itself (that was mid-1800 - I did not pay attention....)
The type is basically the same as mine (ie "box mangle"), but hand operated. I did not get a good overview picture, but here is one from a museum site. (This one lacks the top roller, though)
This type was "home-made" (probably by some local furniture maker). The beds (boards) are not stone (as in mine), but wood. The box has an open top, and stones are added for pressure. Originally it was operated by two persons - it has handles at both ends - pushing and pulling the top back and forth. By about 1900 a crank was added (or perhaps the whole windlass - Laura tells me that is what the contraption is called), so now it can be operated by one person.
The rope is tied to one handle, taken round the top roller several turns, and then tied to the other handle.
Here is an overview of the left side:
(I especially like that it is pegged together, just as our looms always are!)
The rope is tied to the nearest handle (not seen), goes over the roller:
To tip it (to get the rollers which hold the cloth in and out), it is just cranked to one extreme, and the box will tip by itself. I tried to get a picture of that, but could not find an angle where the mechanism/function could be seen.
Elsa has found a way to mangle wide fabrics without a fold: she got this sturdy steel tube, rolls the whole cloth around it and puts it in "halfway" - mangles. Takes the tube out, turns it and mangles the other side. The whole width stays on the tube, but only half the width gets mangled per "pass".
- this, of course, requires an "open-sided" mangle - but mine is! Pity it is Sunday, or I would go to the hardware store immediately... :-)
Laura has posted some pictures of both looms and finished pieces, here - so I will only add one more picture:
A detail of a tablecloth depictiong the story of Elsa's home: the house in the middle, some of the farm's animals (and some wildlife, too - deer of several sorts, typical trees and flowers...) on the borders. This was woven with a single-draw loom.
(Click all pictures to biggify)
She had (and used, of course!) a very old mangle, probably as old as the house itself (that was mid-1800 - I did not pay attention....)
The type is basically the same as mine (ie "box mangle"), but hand operated. I did not get a good overview picture, but here is one from a museum site. (This one lacks the top roller, though)
This type was "home-made" (probably by some local furniture maker). The beds (boards) are not stone (as in mine), but wood. The box has an open top, and stones are added for pressure. Originally it was operated by two persons - it has handles at both ends - pushing and pulling the top back and forth. By about 1900 a crank was added (or perhaps the whole windlass - Laura tells me that is what the contraption is called), so now it can be operated by one person.
The rope is tied to one handle, taken round the top roller several turns, and then tied to the other handle.
Here is an overview of the left side:
(I especially like that it is pegged together, just as our looms always are!)
The rope is tied to the nearest handle (not seen), goes over the roller:
To tip it (to get the rollers which hold the cloth in and out), it is just cranked to one extreme, and the box will tip by itself. I tried to get a picture of that, but could not find an angle where the mechanism/function could be seen.
Elsa has found a way to mangle wide fabrics without a fold: she got this sturdy steel tube, rolls the whole cloth around it and puts it in "halfway" - mangles. Takes the tube out, turns it and mangles the other side. The whole width stays on the tube, but only half the width gets mangled per "pass".
- this, of course, requires an "open-sided" mangle - but mine is! Pity it is Sunday, or I would go to the hardware store immediately... :-)
Laura has posted some pictures of both looms and finished pieces, here - so I will only add one more picture:
A detail of a tablecloth depictiong the story of Elsa's home: the house in the middle, some of the farm's animals (and some wildlife, too - deer of several sorts, typical trees and flowers...) on the borders. This was woven with a single-draw loom.
(Click all pictures to biggify)
27/04/2013
More mangling
Yesterday I wrote that my mangle is "a biggish affair". I knew I was wrong, but everything is relative, yes? (Mine barely fits into it's "shed", and feels big enough when you are standing beside it...
Today I managed to find some pictures and the history of the biggest mangle I have ever seen.
(Scroll down a little to find the pictures.)
The description is in Swedish. I don't know how much google translate would "mangle" it, so here are a few of the key facts, translated by me:
"
The mangle is probably built in the 19th century and is one of the biggest in the world.
[...]
The box is 8 metres long, 1 meter wide and weighs 20 tons (20 000 kg). [...] The bottom slopes down from the middle outwards - the slope is more pronounced toward the ends, to facilitate the tipping of the box to change rollers.
[...]
Up to 1928 it was driven by horses. [...] It was then electrified
[...]
The linen goods to be mangled consisted of lots of 100 "aln" (about 200 feet) long (1) for towelling, or 12 metres for tablecloths and napkin goods.
[...]
The rollers were made of a special kind of birch*. The goods were mangled two times. A "mangle cloth" (protector sheet) was not used. [...] The goods were re-rolled between the first and the second mangling. When the mangling was done the goods had become "some aln" (2 ft) longer.
[...]
The mangle was used by the (proto-)industry.(2) "
(1) in another text I have found 30-40 metres for the towelling, but that is impressive enough...
(2) as part of the wet finishing. Measuring was done after mangling, and the weavers were paid based on the measured length (from other sources)
From our mangling today, some before-and-after pictures:
Of course, what with the changing light and other circumstances, the pictures are not quite to the same scale and... but, hopefully, you will notice the difference.
What is nice with white-on-white (or, in this case natural-on-natural) is the subtlety of the resulting pattern. Seen from a slightly different angle:
* the rollers of my mangle(s) are beech. Pictures of the small table mangle here.
Today I managed to find some pictures and the history of the biggest mangle I have ever seen.
(Scroll down a little to find the pictures.)
The description is in Swedish. I don't know how much google translate would "mangle" it, so here are a few of the key facts, translated by me:
"
The mangle is probably built in the 19th century and is one of the biggest in the world.
[...]
The box is 8 metres long, 1 meter wide and weighs 20 tons (20 000 kg). [...] The bottom slopes down from the middle outwards - the slope is more pronounced toward the ends, to facilitate the tipping of the box to change rollers.
[...]
Up to 1928 it was driven by horses. [...] It was then electrified
[...]
The linen goods to be mangled consisted of lots of 100 "aln" (about 200 feet) long (1) for towelling, or 12 metres for tablecloths and napkin goods.
[...]
The rollers were made of a special kind of birch*. The goods were mangled two times. A "mangle cloth" (protector sheet) was not used. [...] The goods were re-rolled between the first and the second mangling. When the mangling was done the goods had become "some aln" (2 ft) longer.
[...]
The mangle was used by the (proto-)industry.(2) "
(1) in another text I have found 30-40 metres for the towelling, but that is impressive enough...
(2) as part of the wet finishing. Measuring was done after mangling, and the weavers were paid based on the measured length (from other sources)
From our mangling today, some before-and-after pictures:
Of course, what with the changing light and other circumstances, the pictures are not quite to the same scale and... but, hopefully, you will notice the difference.
What is nice with white-on-white (or, in this case natural-on-natural) is the subtlety of the resulting pattern. Seen from a slightly different angle:
* the rollers of my mangle(s) are beech. Pictures of the small table mangle here.
26/04/2013
Mangling
Today we have been working on mangling Laura's samples
The mangle itself is a biggish affair. It was made in about 1900 (I bought it from a house built in 1901, and the story was it was "built into the house"... it was, hm, interesting to get it out from the attic.), it weighs a total of 1450 kg and has a working length of some 4 meters. It has an electric motor, but can be cranked by hand. (That takes a certain amount of dedication, though.)
When I grew up, almost every apartment house had a mangle like this in the laundry room, and I was so happy when I found one for sale here in the "boondocks". I hired piano movers for the move, but they nearly refused... at least, it is now on the ground level, in a shed with wide doors, so it was easy to get it in place.
It was not quite as easy to put it together again: that giant flywheel with the gears attached is cast iron, and would not easily come apart. We had to rig various ropes and timbers to get it up where it belongs (and it took a couple of neighbours helping, too. Don't try this at home!).
For those of you wanting to know how to handle such a "monster", here is an article I wrote many years ago.
ETA: and I found an interesting articla about box mangle history here.
The mangle itself is a biggish affair. It was made in about 1900 (I bought it from a house built in 1901, and the story was it was "built into the house"... it was, hm, interesting to get it out from the attic.), it weighs a total of 1450 kg and has a working length of some 4 meters. It has an electric motor, but can be cranked by hand. (That takes a certain amount of dedication, though.)
When I grew up, almost every apartment house had a mangle like this in the laundry room, and I was so happy when I found one for sale here in the "boondocks". I hired piano movers for the move, but they nearly refused... at least, it is now on the ground level, in a shed with wide doors, so it was easy to get it in place.
It was not quite as easy to put it together again: that giant flywheel with the gears attached is cast iron, and would not easily come apart. We had to rig various ropes and timbers to get it up where it belongs (and it took a couple of neighbours helping, too. Don't try this at home!).
For those of you wanting to know how to handle such a "monster", here is an article I wrote many years ago.
ETA: and I found an interesting articla about box mangle history here.
06/05/2011
Not terribly exciting
Woven, cut, washed, mangled. Some reed marks did not wash out.
Looks better from further away?
Seen from too near, the pattern is not visible:
Maybe this threading is better on a 2/2 tie-up?
Below the green sample wet finished - top part same as the orange, bottom with a 2/2 for the background, 1/3 for the other block.
(If anybody but me can see the warpfaced block :-)
But the drape is great, especially after mangling!
Looks better from further away?
Seen from too near, the pattern is not visible:
Maybe this threading is better on a 2/2 tie-up?
Below the green sample wet finished - top part same as the orange, bottom with a 2/2 for the background, 1/3 for the other block.
(If anybody but me can see the warpfaced block :-)
But the drape is great, especially after mangling!
19/03/2011
A small mangle
Let me present a small table-top mangle:
It is not exactly portable, as the stand and mechanism are cast iron. OTOH, it stays put :)
To change the pressure, there is a spring under the front "table" (that is easily lifted out):
There is a protector sheet fastened to the top roller:
This sheet should preferrably be longer, but I haven't bothered to change it. Shopping for a "mangle sheet" in Sweden will get you a piece of tightly woven (plain weave) unbleached linen.
To use it, put the (in this case) towel as near to where the protector sheet is fastened as possible, the hem as parallell to the roller as possible, and lower the "clutch" bar. The bar is both what engages the gears and also to protect your fingers. Start cranking, just to make sure the towel is in place, and held.
As you go on cranking, make sure the towel stays flat (always smooth it towards the sides). When it has gone a three-quarter turn, the hem is visible through the protector.
The "bump" of the hem will show on the towel - the only way to avoid that is to let the towel go straight through - like I did with this shawl:
(click to biggify - you can see the shawl coming through to the right)
Once the towel has all gone onto the roller, you crank away "until done" - then disengage the clutch bar, and drag the mangled piece towards you. The top roller spins free when the bar is in the up position.
For best result, the goods should be slightly moist. If it is dry, sprinkle with water and let it sit for some hours in a plastic bag, to let the moisture even out.
It is not exactly portable, as the stand and mechanism are cast iron. OTOH, it stays put :)
To change the pressure, there is a spring under the front "table" (that is easily lifted out):
There is a protector sheet fastened to the top roller:
This sheet should preferrably be longer, but I haven't bothered to change it. Shopping for a "mangle sheet" in Sweden will get you a piece of tightly woven (plain weave) unbleached linen.
To use it, put the (in this case) towel as near to where the protector sheet is fastened as possible, the hem as parallell to the roller as possible, and lower the "clutch" bar. The bar is both what engages the gears and also to protect your fingers. Start cranking, just to make sure the towel is in place, and held.
As you go on cranking, make sure the towel stays flat (always smooth it towards the sides). When it has gone a three-quarter turn, the hem is visible through the protector.
The "bump" of the hem will show on the towel - the only way to avoid that is to let the towel go straight through - like I did with this shawl:
Once the towel has all gone onto the roller, you crank away "until done" - then disengage the clutch bar, and drag the mangled piece towards you. The top roller spins free when the bar is in the up position.
For best result, the goods should be slightly moist. If it is dry, sprinkle with water and let it sit for some hours in a plastic bag, to let the moisture even out.
24/11/2010
Done (for now)
Today winter arrived for real (well - maybe...) - it has snowed all day. I suppose it can be said that it will give a more x-massy feeling when we open our christmas shop on Saturday...
Meanwhile I got the third scarf done, but not without problems.
First, this thingy fell off:
It is the stopper for the flyshuttle cord, and is essential for weaving. See how snall space there is between its end and the wooden piece behind it? I did invent a few words while trying to get it back...
Then I had suddenly lost the knack of flicking the fly-cord out of the way of the shuttle, which resulted in many over-shot shuttles that then had to be retrieved from down-under-and-behind.
When half the scarf was woven, one shaft suddenly started to misbehave, which resulted in 11 faulty picks, that then had to be mended. (How do the rest of you determine when a piece should be scrapped rather than mended? Halfway done, I started to have doubts - but, by then I had done half of it... so I went on.)
After wet finishing and pressing, I decided that the fabric probably would benefit from mangling. (I have never mangled shawls, as I had doubts about the flattened fringes that would result from it.)
But - some time has to be the first time, and why not now?
I have a smaller electric mangle indoors (the Big Monster lives in an outhouse). What with knots and all, it could not be used "as usual" (letting the scarf get rolled up with the protector sheet). I managed to get the first fringe in between the rollers, and out it came in the back:
And boy, did it change the hand of the scarf!!! (and the fringes looked ok, too) So, up I went to get the second - and the electric mangle refused to cope! Sigh. Until - I remembered that I do have a manual indoors mangle!
And even better: it was a lot easier to get the fringes trough in a controlled fashion!
(As the whole contruction is open, I could let the fringes get taken trough with the help of the protector sheet, stop cranking when the end of the sheet had cone trough, lift out the fringes and let the scarf lie flat again)
So, here they are, all three, showing a bit of all sides:
The colours... well, in the darkness of November...
Meanwhile I got the third scarf done, but not without problems.
First, this thingy fell off:
It is the stopper for the flyshuttle cord, and is essential for weaving. See how snall space there is between its end and the wooden piece behind it? I did invent a few words while trying to get it back...
Then I had suddenly lost the knack of flicking the fly-cord out of the way of the shuttle, which resulted in many over-shot shuttles that then had to be retrieved from down-under-and-behind.
When half the scarf was woven, one shaft suddenly started to misbehave, which resulted in 11 faulty picks, that then had to be mended. (How do the rest of you determine when a piece should be scrapped rather than mended? Halfway done, I started to have doubts - but, by then I had done half of it... so I went on.)
After wet finishing and pressing, I decided that the fabric probably would benefit from mangling. (I have never mangled shawls, as I had doubts about the flattened fringes that would result from it.)
But - some time has to be the first time, and why not now?
I have a smaller electric mangle indoors (the Big Monster lives in an outhouse). What with knots and all, it could not be used "as usual" (letting the scarf get rolled up with the protector sheet). I managed to get the first fringe in between the rollers, and out it came in the back:
And boy, did it change the hand of the scarf!!! (and the fringes looked ok, too) So, up I went to get the second - and the electric mangle refused to cope! Sigh. Until - I remembered that I do have a manual indoors mangle!
And even better: it was a lot easier to get the fringes trough in a controlled fashion!
(As the whole contruction is open, I could let the fringes get taken trough with the help of the protector sheet, stop cranking when the end of the sheet had cone trough, lift out the fringes and let the scarf lie flat again)
So, here they are, all three, showing a bit of all sides:
The colours... well, in the darkness of November...
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