Okay, I was pretty excited about having my warp already tied on the loom, spread, and ready to weave. This morning I got my yarns together, made sure I had enough of each color, and started weaving. After knotting with the weft to start off and weaving 2 inches, I discovered a threading error. It was not fixable by just moving a couple of warps, so I took out about 10 inches, undid all those little knots on the ends of the warp groups (see below), and pulled it all out. I finally had to leave for previously scheduled appointments, but first thing tomorrow I will get started on re-sleying this section of the warp and removing the spreader yarn and the two inches of weft that I plan on saving. I am so glad I discovered this mistake before weaving further!
Tying on method: I can’t think of the name this is called, but it has made my tying-on so much easier. There are shoelaces on my apron rod placed with a lark’s head. Then each warp group is knotted at the end. The warp group is split in the middle and the knot is drawing up through that opening, and then the ends of the shoelaces are inserted through the loop formed in the warp group. The warp is allowed to tighten on the shoelaces, which can pull the warp tighter. This method has saved my fingers from many blisters. I used to tape up my fingers before starting to warp. I was first taught this by a guild member, but couldn’t remember how to do it when I needed it next. I found a brief paragraph describing this method in Key to Weaving, and I had to reread this every time I warped for a while–no pictures.