Do you ever read about weaving and come across the record keeping section and think…gee, I wish I could keep good records! Or maybe you wonder what records you should be keeping, or where you should keep them. I am not a great record keeper in the traditional sense. I don’t have a notebook with samples and details. I applaud those who do. It must be wonderful to look back and see exactly what you did for various projects. But I know this is just not how I am designed. I’ve tried various ways, combined them and come up with a system that currently works for me.
Before we get to my system though, let’s talk about what information should be kept.
The date the project was started (this is especially important if you keep photographic records).
The warp and weft yarn, including the colours, the reed used and the picks per inch (ppi).
Warp length, the number of ends warped and the width of the warp in the reed.
The woven width on the loom (this will be less than the width of the warp in the reed due to draw-in).
Where each weaving pattern begins (measured from the beginning of the work), where colour changes happen, how the hemstitching was done, if it was done and any other pertinent info concerning the actual weaving.
The length of the project off the loom before wet finishing.
The length and width after wet finishing…as well as how the item was wet finished.
There may be things that I’m missing, but I’m pretty sure I got all the major ones! Now let’s look at some of the ways I’ve kept records.
I confess that I am old-school. I love notebooks and pretty-coloured markers. So, I have a notebook and a set of 24 journaling markers. I date each project at the top of the page and then draw out pictures, designs, patterns and any other relevant information. This works well for the designing process, then I start another page and write all the details of what I actually did (as opposed to what I originally planned, because sometimes plans change).
2. Phone Apps. My favourites are Samsung Notes and Squid. Both are free and both work with text or a pen to write. Both allow you to change the colour ink, page template, create notebooks and import pictures. I use it the same way as the physical notebook. What I can’t do is share the notebooks across devices. But, I use it on my phone, and my phone is always with me. I love that I can take a picture, import it to the app then point out the important info.
3. Kindle Scribe…this is my current favourite. Writing on it is jut like writing in a notebook. I mean, exactly! I can set up folders and each folder can have notebooks. I can change the page template…but I can’t change the colour of the ink, which is a little sad. The pages are bigger so it’s easier to use than my phone and the battery lasts forever! And I can read books too!
So, these are my three favourite ways to keep records. While I love my notebook, I usually use technology because I am known for misplacing notebooks, but I won’t lose my devices! In addition to these methods, my camera is an ever-present companion. I take pictures of everything! I like to gather my materials and take a picture being sure that the colour names are visible as well as the reed size. I take pictures of pattern repeats, I measure and take pictures with the tape measure visible (I try to do this for ppi, each colour/pattern change, the end of a project and the length off the loom before wet finishing.) If I’m really organized, I will put all the pictures for a project in a single album and label the album with the name of the pattern.
What’s your favourite way to keep records?