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Keys to Asymmetrical Design, p.

48—Plus 4 projects to inspire you

Summer 2024

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2 H A NDWOV EN handwovenmagazine.com
Content s
Handwoven Summer 2024, Volume XLV Number 3

F E ATU R E S
14 Notes from the Fell 28 Weaving a Twice-Woven Rug
Rag Rug Color Gamps C AT H E R I N E M A R C H A N T
T O M K N I S E LY Creating your own chenille-like yarn is easier than
Tom wondered what would happen if he wove a you might think. Catherine shares her method for
set of gamps using various colors for both the cot- weaving a crammed-and-spaced cloth from stash
ton warp and the weft fabric strips. His results yarn—and then cutting that cloth into strands of fluffy
showcase how different colors in warp and weft chenille perfect for weaving an extra-plush rug.
can affect even rag rugs—and will be an excellent
resource as he designs new projects. 48 Balancing Asymmetry
TIEN CHIU
18 Vintage Weavers Have you ever wondered why some asymmetric
Movement Challenges designs are visually appealing while others feel
C Y N T H I A E V E T TS A N D T I N A FLE TCH ER unsettling? It often comes down to balance. Tien
explains how she uses the concept of visual weight
Movement disorders that inhibit mobility and
to create cloth with balanced asymmetric patterns.
cause tremors or loss of coordination can be a
normal part of aging, but that doesn’t make them
any less frustrating. Cynthia and Tina look at the 58 Clasped Warp on 4 Shafts
ways in which these disorders can affect weavers, R O B I N LY N D E
and they offer advice on how to keep weaving After weaving many clasped-warp projects on her
through it all. rigid-heddle loom, Robin was curious: Could she
use this color-changing technique on her floor
22 Soaring Sensations loom? As it turns out, clasped warp isn’t just
S A R A V O N T R E S C KO W possible on a floor loom—it’s stunning! Learn
how Robin accomplished it.
To celebrate her son’s achievements as a pilot, Sara
decided to design and weave a special piece for him.
She describes how she turned a photo of his plane
into an image she could weave on her drawloom.

PROJ E C TS D E PA RTM E NTS

24 Tuscan Summer Rug 51 Eventide Elegance Scarf 4 From the Editor


SANDI LEMONS TIEN CHIU 5 Letters/Project Index

32 Twice-Woven Rug 54 Emerging 8 Media Picks


C AT H E R I N E M A R C H A N T Asymmetry Scarf 9 Goods

34 Building Blocks Rug


BRENDA GIBSON
12 What’s Happening:
SUZIE LILES 62 Cascading Colors Scarves Bright Treasures from
Old Swedish Farmhouses
R O B I N LY N D E
38 Sand and Sky Stitched LY N N R O G N S V O O G
Double Cloth Rug 66 Summer Berry Towels 75 The Sheer Joy
T O M K N I S E LY M A LY N D A A L L E N of Weaving Together

42 Core Spun Comfort Rug 70 Changing Lanes Scarf 76 Reader’s Guide


CYNTHIA COX DEBORAH HEYMAN Project Directory
Yarn Suppliers
44 Salts Mill Rug Finishing Techniques
FRANCES RICHARDSON
77 Beyond the Printed Page
80 Endnotes
Tackling Textile Waste
by Weaving

62 REGINA MCINNES

SUMMER 2024 H A NDWOV EN 3


Hello, weavers!
I’m honored and delighted to introduce myself to
you as the new editor of Handwoven. SUMMER 2024, Volume XLV Number 3
FROM TH E EDITOR

Here at the beginning of my tenure, I find myself


filled with many, many ideas for inspiring stories,
EDITORIAL
projects, and ways of sharing them with you—and EDITORIAL DIRECTOR Anne Merrow
also with trepidation about following in the footsteps EDITOR Lynn Rognsvoog
of Handwoven’s former editors. CONTRIBUTING EDITOR Christina Garton

As I make my way through all 219 back issues of the MANAGING EDITOR Lavon Peters
PROJECT EDITOR Angela K. Schneider
magazine (spanning 45 years!), it’s clear that Susan E. Horton, Anita
TECHNICAL EDITORS Malynda Allen, Rona Aspholm,
Osterhaug, Madelyn van der Hoogt, Jean Scorgie, Jane Patrick, and Deanna Deeds, Greta Holmstrom, Merriel Miller,
Anita Osterhaug, Bettie Zakon-Anderson
Handwoven’s visionary founder, Linda Ligon, were (and still are) smart,
EDITORIAL ASSISTANT Katrina King
creative, and skilled weavers and editors. COPY EDITOR Katie Bright
Weaving trends have changed over the decades. Nevertheless, my per- PROOFREADER Deirdre Carter
sonal to-weave list grows longer with every back issue I read, precisely CRE ATIVE
because of the skill those editors used in covering this craft we love in a DESIGNER Samantha Wranosky
way that still feels relevant. My fondest wish is that my work here lives up PRODUCTION DESIGNER Mark Dobroth
to and builds on their legacies. PHOTOGRAPHY Matt Graves
PHOTOSTYLING Carol Beaver

Onward to what you’ll find inside this dual-themed issue.


First, if you have bare floors in need of covering, you’ve come to the
right place. The brilliantly colorful krokbragd rug on our cover had every-
one on staff excited. Wouldn’t it brighten your space? If that’s not quite
what you’re looking for, we have five other rug projects to consider. Some
use rags, stash yarns, or even shearing leftovers; some have bold geomet-
FOUNDERS Linda Ligon, Anne Merrow, John P. Bolton
ric shapes; and one special project makes a rug that is supremely fluffy.
PUBLISHER John P. Bolton
Next, if you’re curious about asymmetry, we have an article about how to
DIRECTOR OF MEDIA SALES & BRAND PARTNERSHIPS Julie Macdonald
design a balanced asymmetric pattern. If you’re not up to designing with DIRECTOR OF MARKETING Haydn Strauss
asymmetry quite yet, we have several gorgeous patterns to get you started. DIRECTOR OF DIGITAL CONTENT & STRATEGY Tiffany Warble
Other stories include how to weave with a clasped warp on a multi- DIRECTOR OF EVENTS & CUSTOMER SUCCESS Rachel Martin
shaft loom; ideas for weaving in the face of movement tremors; a review of
two books you might want for your library (one of them written by a for- Handwoven® (print ISSN 0198-8212; online ISSN 2381-2303) is published
quarterly by Long Thread Media LLC, 1300 Riverside Ave, Ste 206, Fort
mer Handwoven editor!); and how a unique commemorative banner was Collins, CO 80524; phone (888) 480-5464. Periodicals postage paid at
Fort Collins, CO, and additional mailing offices. All contents of this issue
designed and woven—you may have seen it in person at the 2022 Complex of Handwoven® are copyrighted by Long Thread Media LLC, 2024. All
rights reserved. Projects and information are for inspiration and personal
Weavers Complexity exhibit. use only. Handwoven® does not recommend, approve, or endorse any of
the advertisers, products, services, or views advertised in Handwoven®.
Nor does Handwoven® evaluate the advertisers’ claims in any way. You
should, therefore, use your own judgment in evaluating the advertisers,
I’m curious—what’s on your loom right now?
FOLLOW & SHARE products, services, and views advertised in Handwoven®. Reproduction
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FUTURE THEMES
For editorial inquiries, email handwoven@longthreadmedia.com.
FALL 2024 WINTE R 2024 SPRING 2025
Anything but Twill! Color in Fiber Easy Breezy VISIT US ON THE WEB
We love twills, but here’s your From brilliant color to ingenious Pack away your warm winter longthreadmedia.com
chance to try out and fall in love uses of natural tones, this issue textiles and welcome spring- handwovenmagazine.com
with other structures. will help you bring color to life. time with a range of lacy,
open, and transparent weaves.

4 H A NDWOV EN handwovenmagazine.com
Letters Stories, tips, tricks, and questions

LE T TERS
Project Index from Handwoven readers

When I recently needed to transfer hundreds of heddles on my newly


acquired 54-inch Fireside loom, I saw I could quickly get in deep trouble.
To keep all those heddles from crossing and tangling as I moved them,
I grabbed a couple of large knitting stitch holders and fastened one
through the top and another through the bottom of the heddles.
My partner, who has a nearly complete metal shop, immediately made
Tuscan Summer Rug Twice-Woven Rug
me a batch of similar pieces with scrap wire. They look like large safety
page 24 page 32 pins without eyes. Using them, I can gather 50 or more heddles and
securely wrangle them into place with no hassle at all. (Editor’s Note:
If you don’t have a friend or partner with a metal shop, you can buy large
knitting stitch holders or extra-large, heavy-duty safety pins, also known
as blanket pins.)
Thanks again for supporting my new life-support system, known to many
as weaving. I started weaving at the age of 75—what an audacious move!
Sand and Sky Stitched —Aline Faben, Fortuna, California
Building Blocks Rug Double Cloth Rug
page 34 page 38

I wish I knew then what I know now when I wrote my article “Warp
Speed: Winding Warps with Multiple Ends in Hand” (Spring 2024)!
Since writing that piece, I have learned how to warp a loom front to
back, or as Madelyn van der Hoogt puts it, “thread before you beam.” I
wound a test warp using the same stripe pattern as my Swift Serviettes
in the same Handwoven issue to iron out the details of warping multiple
Core Spun Comfort Rug Salts Mill Rug
page 42 page 44
ends front to back.
In short, I found that to warp a loom front to back with a mixed warp,
you need to sley the reed in the warp color order. In other words, you need
to reorganize the warp to form the pattern stripes in the reed. Here is
how to proceed:

1. Put lease sticks through the cross.


2. Get comfortable: find a setup that allows you to sley the reed accu-
Eventide Elegance Scarf Emerging Asymmetry Scarf rately and comfortably. I prefer to work with a vertical reed, with lease
page 51 page 54 sticks held behind the reed about halfway up and with the balance of
the warp looped around a dowel to offer some resistance.
3. Cut the loops and sley in the warp color order, maintaining the order
at the cross as much as possible. Be careful not to drop ends.
4. Once the warp is sleyed, place the reed in the beater and remove the
lease sticks.
5. Thread the heddles in the warp color order. Because the sett in the
Swift Serviettes design is 2 ends per dent, you still have to pay atten-
Cascading Colors Scarves Summer Berry Towels tion to order—the pair of ends in a given dent may be of different
page 62 page 66
colors.
6. Tie on and beam. It is a good idea to use the beater to monitor possible
tangles in the warp. Let the beater rest on the breast beam as you
beam. When the warp pulls it toward the castle, it indicates the
beginning of a tangle. Clear those tangles as they arise with a few
good tugs on the warp.
(Thank you to my guildmate Colleen Casey for her thorough instruction
in F2B warping.)
Changing Lanes Scarf
page 70 —Véronique Perrot

SUMMER 2024 H A NDWOV EN 5


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M EDI A PICK S

Rags to Rugs discretionary—and he’s a proponent of


30 New Weaving Designs for Repurposed Fabrics warping for more than one rug at a time.
By Tom Knisely Apart from the inspiring rug patterns,
I was happy to find a robust “Rag Rug
Weaving Basics” section that covers
In the past few years, I have become increas- When the rag weft is uninteresting, such everything a rug weaver might want to
ingly aware of the quantity of textiles in as a plain army-gray wool, he uses colors know about tools, warp and weft consider-
our landfills. I try to be judicious about the and patterning in his warp to create an ations, various weft preparation methods,
clothing and linens I purchase, with an eye attractive design. For a rug using a blue warping, weaving, and finishing. This book
to buying pieces with longevity. But even plaid weft, he lets the warp drop into is a great jumping-off point for anyone
so, I feel guilty when I throw away clothing obscurity and allows the fabric to dictate a interested in weaving rugs using fabrics
or plastic bags, knowing that they will live new overall design. Confronted with plain and fibers that would otherwise be added
virtually forever in a landfill. In Rags to Rugs, flannel sheets, he uses tie-dye to create to our landfills. I highly recommend it.
his latest rag rug weaving book, Tom Knisely fun, colorful designs before making rag
shows how you can incorporate used cloth- strips from them. Mechanicsburg, PA: Stackpole, 2023.
ing and bedding linens, discarded plastics, Within these pages, you’ll find instruc- Paperback, 144 pages, $29.95. ISBN
worn-out rag rugs, and even used drop tions for weaving rugs using bound- 978-0811770576.
cloths into your rug weaving. weave, plain weave, twill, overshot, log —Susan E. Horton
You might assume that rugs made from cabin, summer and winter, and clasped
discarded fabrics would be solely utilitar- wefts. Each of the 30 patterns includes SUSAN E. HORTON is the former editor of
ian, but that is not the case. Knisely is a a draft, warp and weft descriptions, Handwoven. She is a collector of art and
proficient weaver and designer who spent setts, and basic directions. What you fiber books. She leans heavily on weaving
the time up front to plan beautiful rugs won’t find are warp lengths and yardages books for inspiration and guidance.
made from relatively humble beginnings. because Knisely considers those to be

in their affordable materials requirements—


Nordic Hands Scandinavian sensibility at its finest!
25 Fiber Craft Projects to Discover Importantly, the book’s instructions are
Scandinavian Culture so accessible they absolutely dare a reader
By Anita Osterhaug to not try a new craft or return to an old one.
I’ve never had much luck knitting brioche,
but Osterhaug’s simple and clear directions
I believe our interests are often a Katy and an Interweave Press fiber-arts tour for her gorgeous Nordic Summer and Winter
manifestation of our search for self and of Scandinavia became the germ of Nordic Throw have me ready to cast on and try again.
ancestry—an attempt to connect to our Hands, a beautiful and heartfelt love letter Despite its stunning photos, Nordic
past through our modern-day activities. In to Nordic textiles. Hands is not just a coffee-table book. The
my thirties, travel and food were at the top The book is broken into five parts. The writing is so engaging that I found myself
of my list. Longing to understand more of first serves as a primer of Scandinavian lingering over passages about Nordic his-
my family history, I took my grandmother history, giving context to the types and tory, ritual, and design. Osterhaug’s close
on a self-designed culinary tour of Poland, styles of projects included. The remaining connection to her heritage is palpable, and
including a stay in her mother’s hometown four chapters are organized around the her accomplishments as a journalist, writer,
of Kraków. While the time spent with my pillars of Nordic life: nature, community, and fiber artist earn this book a spot in any
grandmother was memorable, the post- craftsmanship, and sustainability. crafter’s library as the resource on all things
Communist–era food was not. Thankfully, To my surprise and delight, as a craft- Nordic. Aunt Katy’s gift of that seminal trip
where I chose food, Anita Osterhaug chose indiscriminate maker reviewing a book was not just to Osterhaug but to all of us.
fiber. And for that, we all benefit. for a weaving magazine, the projects, by —Christine Jablonski
Osterhaug, who also happens to be a Osterhaug and others, include knitting, wet-
former editor of Handwoven, grew up sur- felting, and needlefelting as well as weaving. Atglen, PA: Schiffer, 2023. Hardcover, 192
rounded by Nordic textiles. As a young girl, The weaving projects cover frame, inkle- pages, $34.99. ISBN 978-0764366918.
she learned Nordic knitting and embroi- band, and rigid-heddle looms (primarily
dery techniques from her grandmother plain weave with supplementary weft trans- CHRISTINE JABLONSKI is an avid weaver
and beloved Aunt Katy. Decades later, the latable to shaft-loom weaving). The projects who rediscovered her love of knitting
serendipitous timing of a bequest from Aunt are practical in their use (home items) and thanks to plane travel and jury duty.

8 H A NDWOV EN handwovenmagazine.com
Favorite Finds

GOODS
A cute tool for knitting cord, an extra-fine heddle
for the rigid-heddle loom, a clip-on temple, and a
handcrafted double-bobbin shuttle
Photos by Matt Graves unless otherwise noted

Trim and Embellish


Looking to add that special touch to your weaving? Make custom
i-cord with this wonderful knitting mushroom from Knitting on
the Fringe. Measuring 3¼ inches tall, it fits comfortably in the
hand and is self-contained with the needle fitting inside. Craft
coordinating hanging loops for towels, embellish the edge
of a pocket or scarf, or maybe even make cording to use in a
diversified-plain-weave project. knittingonthefringe.etsy.com

Fine Yarns? No Problem!


Rigid-heddle weavers rejoice! Have you wanted to use thinner
yarns and weave with more ends per inch without having to set
y Tre e We av er

up multiple heddles? Now you can! Tabby Tree Weaver’s super-


fine rigid heddles are available in four sizes ranging from 15.5 to
25.5 dents per inch, with six lengths to fit either your Ashford or
Ph oto co ur te sy of Ta bb

Schacht loom. tabbytreeweaver.com

Ba rn of Ka ns as
An Adjustable Aid
Need an extra hand to keep those selvedges in line? Try using
Leclerc temple clips from the Yarn Barn of Kansas. The set comes
Ph oto co urtes y of the Ya rn

with four clips, four eye screws for attaching to your loom, and
three sets of weights. Clip a temple to each edge of your cloth,
thread the cords through the eye screws, and add the right
amount of weight for your desired tension. yarnbarn-ks.com

Double Your Fun


Weave two yarns at one time with this double-bobbin
shuttle from Handywoman Shop. This super-slim
model comes in a variety of hardwoods (olivewood
shown here), holds two 4-inch bobbins, and measures
12 inches in length. The slim profile also makes it
perfect for finishing off those last few inches of warp
with ease. handywomanshop.com

SUMMER 2024 H A NDWOV EN 9


50th anniversary
Louet carries on its proud tradition of product
excellence after 50 years. Thank you Louet
fans and customers the world over who have
helped make our brand a house hold name in
the spinning and weaving community.

Follow us on social media, contact a Louet


dealer or check out our website to learn more
about the anniversary specials we have going
on throughout 2024.
W H AT’ S H A PPE N I N G

Bright Treasures from ALSO OF NOTE

Old Swedish Farmhouses SMALL E XPRESSIONS


When: July 2–August 26, 2024
Where: Wichita-Sedgwick County Historical
By Lynn Rognsvoog Culture,” in use on Sundays and spe-
Museum, 204 S. Main St., Wichita, KS
Colorful and whimsical woven cial occasions rather than every day. Info: wichitahistory.org for hours and tickets.
and embroidered cushions and Restricting the use of these beautiful In association with Convergence 2024, Small
bedcovers from the latter half pieces reinforced their special status Expressions is a juried exhibition of contem-
of the eighteenth century through and had the effect of minimizing ev- porary small-scale works that speaks to the
intricacy of expression, the intimacy of design,
the mid-nineteenth century are eryday wear and tear while preserv-
thoughtful communication, and visual excite-
currently on view at the ing their bright colors. ment. The exhibit will travel around the United
American Swedish Historical The women who created the tex- States after it leaves Wichita; for dates and
Museum in Philadelphia. The tiles used naturally dyed fibers. locations, visit weavespindye.org
/book-an-exhibit.
textiles are from the personal Metal salts or urine served as mor-
collection of Philadelphians dants and resulted in vibrant, stable COM PLE XIT Y
Wendel and Diane Swan. colors. Images were created in the When: July 6–August 17, 2024
Where: Mark Arts, 1307 N. Rock Rd., Wichita, KS
Most of the roughly 50 textiles on cloth using embroidery, tapestry, and
Info: markartsks.com for hours. Free admission.
display were created by women liv- even rya techniques. In association with Complex Weavers 2024,
ing on farms in southern Sweden, Common motifs in the pieces Complexity is a juried international mem-
where skills in weaving, embroidery, include depictions of exotic and bers’ exhibition of works that employ com-
and other forms of textile production mythical birds and other creatures, plex or innovative design, techniques, and/or
weave structures. To view the exhibit online,
were necessary to run a household. Roman mosaics, geometric patterns, visit complex-weavers.org/galleries.
As farming life changed with the on- and floral images of all kinds,
JE RE M Y FRE Y | WOVE N
set of both the Industrial Revolution highlighting the influence foreign
When: Through September 15, 2024
and mandatory schooling of chil- trade had on even these rural Where: Portland Museum of Art,
dren, these textiles became “Sunday communities. 7 Congress Square, Portland, ME
Info: portlandmuseum.org for hours
and tickets.
More than 50 baskets woven from natural
S W E D I S H F O L K W E AV I N G S F O R M A R R I AG E ,
materials including black ash and
C A R R I AG E , A N D H O M E 1 7 5 0 – 1 8 4 0
sweetgrass by Jeremy Frey, a seventh-
generation Passamaquoddy basketmaker,
Photos courtesy of the American Swedish Historical Museum

When: Through will be on display. A printed exhibit catalog is


September 22, 2024 available. The exhibit moves to the Art
Where: American Swedish Institute of Chicago from October 26 through
Historical Museum, 1900 Pattison February 10, 2025.
Ave., Philadelphia, PA SILK RIBBON WE AVING
Info: americanswedish.org for When: Through September 2024
hours and tickets Where: Whitchurch Silk Mill, 28 Winchester St.,
Whitchurch, Hampshire, UK
Info: whitchurchsilkmill.org.uk for hours
and tickets.
In a creative collaboration between this
living museum of industrial heritage and
Jane Austen’s House in Chawton, the mill
has wound a long silk ribbon warp inspired
by Jane Austen’s home and by objects from
the museum’s collection. Visitors will see
Left: Brightly colored parrots, flowers, and leaves on a Flemish-weave cushion workers weaving it off through September.
cover. Right: Geometric patterns decorate this cushion cover, woven by MHD in
1828 using rya techniques.

12 H A NDWOV EN handwovenmagazine.com
Learn to weave with Enjoy 8 seasons of
Jane Stafford School of Weaving remarkable videos for all skill levels

all-inclusive membership schoolofweaving.tv

SUMMER 2024 H A NDWOV EN 13


NOTE S FROM TH E FELL

Photos by Matt Graves


Tom wove a series of color gamps using 8/4 cotton warp and rag wefts to better understand the color interactions that happen in
rag weaving.

Rag Rug Color Gamps


BY TO M K N I S E LY

A gamp is a marvelous weaving tool. What is a gamp? It’s like a sampler. weft colors interact with each other.
Rather than threading one pattern, you plan multiple threadings across the It is a far cry from mixing finger
warp. As you weave, often (but not always) using multiple treadlings, you paints together in elementary school,
get many different combinations of warp and weft. Weavers use gamps to but the idea is the same.
study twill threadings and treadlings, overshot patterns, and, one of my In the past, I have woven color
favorites, color interactions. gamps in plain weave and twill, but I
wove those gamps using the same
When you thread a color gamp, you green, blue, indigo, and violet. You threads in the warp and the weft. I
thread several colors in a warp- could thread a monochromatic gamp wondered what it would be like to
stripe arrangement. It can be any- in blues going from the lightest blue weave a color gamp for rag weaving. It
thing you would like to try. It could to the darkest. For your weft, you’ll could prove to be a valuable study to
be a gamp of different neutral colors weave the gamp in the same color see what happens when colored rags
or one with the primary and second- order as you warped it, or what is are woven into different color families
ary colors on a color wheel or a rain- called tromp-as-writ. As you weave, of warp ends. My excitement took me
bow order of red, orange, yellow, you’ll clearly see how the warp and to the fabric store to see if I could buy

14 H A NDWOV EN handwovenmagazine.com
NOTE S FROM TH E FELL
solid-colored fabrics in primary, sec- Some color blocks underwent drastic changes, and some
ondary, and tertiary colors. I was in were as expected. I am no longer afraid to use color in my
luck when I found the quilters’ cotton rug warps and have a much better understanding of how
fabrics. I used a color wheel to help
color plays into my woven pieces.
me pick out the 12 colors needed for
my experiment in addition to black,
gray, and white. Because I didn’t and purples, yellows and oranges, and 20 percent take-up and 36 inches for
know exactly how much fabric I blues and greens. Each piece of fab- hems and loom waste for a total of
would need, I purchased 5 yards of ric produced twenty-one 1½-inch 3 yards for the warp length.
each color so I would have long strips strips. I put aside five strips of each I try to weave efficiently, making
of fabric to work with. That gave me fabric color for each gamp. the most of my time and warp. How-
more than enough weft for this I started preparing myself to ever, this little experiment meant
experiment, with plenty of leftovers warp my loom four times for this that I needed to purchase 25 spools
for other rugs later. color study—I was not discouraged of 8/4 carpet warp in different colors.
I washed the fabrics in hot water but excited to do so. I knew that I Because there were 800 yards on
on a regular cycle to tighten them wanted to weave each of the weft each spool and I only needed 48 ends
up and dried them on a regular set- colors for about 4 inches and each of each color, I could easily afford to
ting. To prepare my weft, I tore each warp color would be about 4 inches make the warp a little longer. I made
length of cloth into 1½-inch strips wide. If I wanted to weave all 12 col- each warp 5 yards long so I could
and tapered the ends. I knew I ors plus the three neutrals, I would weave a rug on the added warp
wanted to warp and weave four dif- need 60 inches of warp for the color length. For my bonus rugs, I used up
ferent color gamps: neutrals, reds areas. I then added 12 inches for unrelated leftover rags from other

Even though the 8/4 cotton warp is relatively small compared to the thick rag weft, warp color can make a big difference in how the
weft appears.

SUMMER 2024 H A NDWOV EN 15


NOTE S FROM TH E FELL

Left: The value of warp yarn also affects the weft. Jewel-tone rags are the star of the show with a darker warp but fade to the
background when paired with a lighter warp. Right: Tom’s rag-weaving color gamps are invaluable resources when it’s time to
choose project colors.

FIGURE 1. WARP COLOR ORDERS


I chose to use solid-color fabric strips
Gamp #1: The Neutrals Gamp #2: Reds and Purples
to weave samples that were as “pure”
48 48 Black 48 48 Velvet as possible, I now have a pretty good
48 48 Dark Gray 48 48 Purple
48 48 White 48 48 Lavender idea of what my rug will look like,
48 48 Ivory 48 48 Pink even when using fabrics with a
48 48 Ecru 48 48 Red
48 48 Red Brown 48 48 KY Cardinal printed pattern.
48 48 Dark Brown 288 ends total I have included my charts for the
336 ends total
color orders in the warps (Figure 1),
and you can also find them and
Gamp #3: Yellows and Oranges Gamp #4: Blues and Greens
more photos of the gamps in my
48 48 Bronze Gold 48 48 Navy book Weaving with Rags. I hope you
48 48 Yellow 48 48 Royal
48 48 Pear 48 48 Slate try weaving your own color gamps
48 48 Peach 48 48 Colonial Green
48 48 Gold 48 48 Myrtle
and experience the fun of seeing
48 48 Burnt Orange 48 48 Forest how different colors play together in
288 ends total 288 ends total
your warp and weft.
Happy weaving,
rug projects. (When you are a rag rug in the color interlacements. Some Tom
weaver, you always have rags in your color blocks underwent drastic
stash. I could get ahead in my changes, and some were as expected. TOM KNISELY is the resident weaving
gift-making!) I am no longer afraid to use color in and spinning instructor for Red Stone
I have to say that I learned a lot my rug warps and have a much bet- Glen Fiber Arts Center. He is a regular
from weaving these rag rug color ter understanding of how color plays contributor to Handwoven and has
gamps. I found quite a few surprises into my woven pieces. Although written five books on weaving.

16 H A NDWOV EN handwovenmagazine.com
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SUMMER 2024 H A NDWOV EN 17


VINTAG E WE AV ERS

Photos by Rick Selvaggi unless otherwise noted


Having a partner help with weaving—whether by threading heddles, tying treadles, or reading the draft—can not only make weaving
easier but also provide a great opportunity to socialize.

Vintage Weavers
Get a Move On! Working with Movement Challenges
C Y N T H I A E V E T T S A N D T I N A F L E TC H E R

Forbes magazine reports that maintaining mobility and movement control LE ARNING THE LINGO
is one of the eight challenges of aging. While this may not be news we want ABOUT BODY MOVEMENTS
to hear, that same article also tells us that technology and innovation are Movement challenges span a wide
making life easier and better for those experiencing movement challenges. range of conditions that can affect
Let’s look at what that entails and how it impacts our weaving lives. our daily lives and weaving activi-
ties. For simplicity’s sake, let’s put
ME ET VIK TORIA without splashing. Weaving became them under two umbrellas: things
Viktoria is a 62-year-old weaver liv- progressively more difficult, but she that are associated with fast or
ing in New York City. As a proud was reluctant to abandon her fami- uncontrolled actions (movement-go),
descendant of a long line of Ukrainian ly’s tradition of spinning wool and and those that make it hard to move
weavers, she enjoys working in the creating intricate woven designs. (movement-slow).
traditional Ukrainian style. Two Viktoria’s children and husband Movement disorders usually
years ago, Viktoria noticed her were convinced that weaving might involve ataxia (a loss of coordina-
hands trembled when she held a be nearly as important for her satis- tion), dystonia (the presence of
glass of water. She was diagnosed faction and well-being as doctor’s twisting or repetitive movements),
with Parkinson’s disease (PD), and appointments, therapy sessions, and tremors (shaky movements typi-
soon she needed a straw to drink and medication schedules. cally associated with the head,

18 H A NDWOV EN handwovenmagazine.com
VINTAG E WE AV ERS
voice, tongue, or legs). Each disrup- Clinic, about 5 percent of adults over tend to develop compact handwrit-
tive movement pattern can vary in the age of 65 have essential tremors. ing to offset the impact of tremors on
intensity, parts of the body involved, Usually, they increase over time, and their larger writing style.
and when they occur. while they are successfully accom-
Conditions such as arthritis, stroke, modated in the early years, even BA S I C M OV E M E NT
and muscular sclerosis can cause basic actions such as reaching for IM PROVE M E NT STR ATEG IE S

movement restrictions because of items can be challenging later in life. Moving slowly and struggling to con-
weakness, pain, or lack of control. Essential tremors tend to quiet trol movements can frustrate even
down when a body is at rest and flare the most patient and methodical
M OV E M E NT- GO up during voluntary movements weaver. LSVT BIG is a training pro-
In hyperkinetic or movement-go dis- such as warping a loom; these are tocol that encourages folks with PD
orders such as essential tremors known as action tremors. They can to change their perception of the size
(involuntary tremors), the body calls also affect actions such as holding of their movements. Going big with
in too many muscle fibers for a still while reading a pattern draft; movements may help to overcome
desired action, leading to shaking or these are known as postural tremors. struggles with fine motor control.
writhing. According to the Cleveland Music and rhythm can assist move-
M OV E M E NT-SLOW ment and coordination, so dancing
PD is a classic hypokinetic or move- to music with a strong beat is fre-
Weavers are not alone when it ment-slow condition because it quently recommended. Many occu-
comes to experiencing tremors results in a stiffening of the body, pational and physical therapists can
while working. Tremors and face, and hands. People with PD tend assist in learning these and other
other muscle disorders are
to develop balance challenges, have techniques to improve functional
famously associated with:
stooped posture, and often may live movement.
• Pistol shooter’s cramps
with resting tremors in their fingers, Moving with shaky tremors can
• Golfer’s yips
thumbs, and even chins. Their trem- bring frustrations of a similar
• Runner’s dystonia
ors involve the legs and feet instead nature. Gaining stability through
• Oyster shucker’s dystonia
of the head and neck motions seen in weight bearing can be helpful—such
• Speed skater’s English-mop
essential tremors. as adding weight to tools or materi-
foot
As opposed to movement-go con- als, or even wearing wrist weights
• Pianist’s dystonia
ditions, PD can seem worse when a to dampen tremors. Using your own
• Writer’s cramp
body is at rest. People with PD also body weight can help if you are able
to lean on your elbows or forearms to
steady your hands.
Regardless of whether you are
struggling to get moving or to keep
Photo courtesy of Wikimedia commons, CC BY 4.0

from moving too much, these move-


ment struggles exist on a continuum.
creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0

There is no magic formula to solve


these issues, but experimenting
with a variety of strategies may
result in discovering what works
best for any particular task at hand.

E M BR ACE WHAT YOU’ VE


GOT WHILE WE AVING

These spirals were drawn by a patient with an essential tremor on one side of his body. Use your experience and know-how
The spiral on the left was drawn with his left hand, the one on the right with his right. to get around movement challenges.

SUMMER 2024 H A NDWOV EN 19


VINTAG E WE AV ERS

Here are some common hacks as • Prop it. Prop hands and arms Tr y Some Apps
applied to weaving. when threading fibers or passing Technology can help people man-
• Weight it out. Use larger and heavier shuttles. More stability in big arm age movement challenges in a vari-
shuttles. A bit of weight and a larger muscles and joints will allow for ety of ways.
surface to grasp can ease the better control in the smaller mus- Because lack of sleep, too much
weaving process. Alternatively, if cles that control your hands. Sta- caffeine, low blood sugar, anxiety,
you don’t want to change your bility leads to mobility. and some medications can all cause
tools, you can wear small wrist movement challenges, it makes
weights to help dampen tremors. WORK WITH YOUR sense to consider using technology
Rest often, as the extra weight MOVEMENT CHALLE NGES to address these factors. Here are
can be tiring for your muscles. Watch What You Eat and Drink some helpful resources:
• Partner-up to set up. When set- One way to stay in front of movement • Accessibility options through the
ting up your next project, offer to disorders is to eat well. Research Apple Store (apple.com/accessibility
read the draft and oversee the shows that dietary choices can slow /mobility) include apps providing
work while steadier hands thread the onset and severity of conditions voice control and switch control
the warp through the reed and such as PD and essential tremors. to operate devices, predictive text
heddles. Weaving partnerships A Mediterranean diet of veggies, to make writing easier and faster,
can be satisfying when the pro- fruits, whole grains, fish, and olive and activity or workout trackers.
ductivity is shared. oil seems to be a front-runner in Some of our favorite accessibility
• Size matters. Experiment with this area, and a diet containing soy features are assistive touch,
your warp width and fiber size. protein, yogurt, spinach, and sweet which customizes gestures such
Try going narrow and tight to potatoes also shows promise. as a clench or pinch; alternative
deal with resting tremors, or wide Caffeine and tobacco consumption input, which tracks eye and other
and loose when challenged by can make tremors worse, so put movements to control phones and
intention tremors caused by a aside that cup of coffee or cigarette tablets; and touch accommodations
range of conditions. Consider when completing detailed finish to make touch screens less sensi-
bulky fibers to avoid the frustra- work, such as knotting fringe, to help tive to movements such as trem-
tion of fiddling with thin threads keep your hands and head steadier. ors. A visit to a local phone store
that can be easily tangled, Drinking 2 to 4 ounces of wine is may be helpful in setting up
crossed, or broken. known to improve essential tremors accessibility features on a tech-
• Step on it. Use a loom with foot but should not be used as a remedy nology device, but a little
treadles or one with hand levers for those with PD. advanced planning can help tech-
to compensate for tremors. nology users develop a
clearer picture of what they
While there is no substitute for medical intervention to address movement
need most. Phrases to use in a
challenges, weavers can adopt movement-healthy habits at home to aug- computer search include phone
ment their medical care. accommodations for movement
• Design weaving patterns • Practice relaxation and disorders and accessibility apps for
for success. mindfulness. shaking hands.
• Adjust tension on the loom; • Stay strong by using your muscles • Parkinson’s LifeKit (apps.apple
make it tighter and heavier to rather than overprotecting yourself. .com/mm/app/parkinsons-lifekit
optimize control. • Use rhythm. Allow music or sing- /id1226151783) tracks the many
• Alter size and/or weight of shut- ing to set a comfortable pace that
aspects of movement disorders,
tles or add weight to your active helps your body move.
including when a voice sounds
body part(s).
faint, tremors act up, or dexterity
• Avoid caffeine, tobacco,
and alcohol. seems challenged. Monitoring
these things can help weavers

20 H A NDWOV EN handwovenmagazine.com
VINTAG E WE AV ERS
Together, CYNTHIA E VET TS and TINA
FLETCHER have 83 years of weaving
experience, 78 years of occupational
therapy practice, 47 years in higher
education, and 19 years of friendship
and shockingly similar interests. They
are definitely vintage weavers.

RESOURCES
Adams, J. L., K. J. Lizarraga, E. M.
Waddell, T. L. Myers, S. Jensen-
Roberts, J. S. Modica, and R. B.
Schneider. “Digital Technology in
Movement Disorders: Updates,
Applications, and Challenges.” Current
Neurology and Neuroscience Reports
21 (2021): 16. ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc
/articles/PMC7928701/pdf/11910_2021
_Article_1101.pdf.
Cleveland Clinic. “Essential Tremor.”
my.clevelandclinic.org/health/diseases
/11886-essential-tremor.
Dance for PD. danceforparkinsons.org.
Fike, Katy. “The 8 Challenges of Aging.”
Forbes, April 6, 2018. forbes.com
Propping your arms and hands when passing the shuttle can give you more stability /sites /nextavenue/2018/04/06/the-8
and more control over your movement.
-challenges-of-aging/?sh=277f443c1f4a.
Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson’s
decide when their body is most RE ME MBE R VIK TORIA? Research. michaeljfox.org.
ready for weaving and how well Over time, Viktoria learned she has a Mind, Music, and Movement Foundation
movement interventions are work- better time with weaving if she does a for Neurological Disorders. m3f.org.
ing. This app costs $99.99. little prep work before she starts, Parkinson Foundation of the National
• Beats Medical Parkinson’s Therapy including dancing with her husband Capital Area. parkinsonfoundation.org.
(beatsmedical.com/parkinsons) to relax her muscles and switching Ray, A., and D. A. Biswas. “Association of
uses a metronome to deliver her traditional happy-hour highball Diet with Essential Tremor: A Narrative
rhythmic beats to trigger for some herbal tea. She’s learned to Review.” Cureus 14, no. 9 (September
smoother mobility, dexterity, and match her pattern choices with her 14, 2022): e29168. ncbi.nlm.nih.gov
speech for people with movement shakes and finds that she enjoys /pmc/articles/PMC9567235.
challenges. This app has a free weaving large and bold styles. She has Yin, W., M. Löf, N. L. Pedersen, S.
14-day trial. even allowed her daughter to do some Sandin, and F. Fang. “Mediterranean
• Staybl (staybl.app) uses an accel- of the detailed handwork on hand- Dietary Pattern at Middle Age and Risk
erometer to counteract unwanted woven skirts. Keeping Viktoria weav- of Parkinson’s Disease: A Swedish
tremor-induced smart device ing has become a real family affair, Cohort Study.” Movement Disorders
movements by instantly moving and they have found that working 36, no. 1 (January 2021): 255–260.
its on-screen browser in the together has provided them with movementdisorders.onlinelibrary
opposite direction. This app is a many happy times—especially .wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.1002/mds
free download. the dancing. .28314.

SUMMER 2024 H A NDWOV EN 21


SOARING SENSATIONS

Images courtesy of Sara von Tresckow


Left: Sara began her composition with this photograph of her son’s plane. She then used computer programs to remove the
background, simplify the image, and insert minimal shading. Right: The finished weaving also includes the logo of the aircraft
manufacturer as well as the number that appears on the tail of the plane.

Soaring Sensations
Portrait of a Glider
BY S A R A VO N TR E S C KOW

To celebrate my son’s achievements as a pilot, I wanted to design and weave a takes a digital image and reduces the
piece that recognized his experiences with sailplanes and motorized aircraft. I number of pixels to match the num-
developed the woven image from a photograph of the glider on the ground at a ber of warp threads on the loom, in
gliderport in Elmira, New York. After extracting the plane and reducing the this case, enough threads to produce
colors, I rotated the figure so that the plane appeared to be flying. The dragonfly 150 pixels for the 150 drawcords, with
represents the logo of the glider model, a vintage German “Libelle” or dragonfly. each cord controlling five threads.
The number is the tail number specific to that plane. Photo applications such as Photo-
shop, Elements, and other graphic
The weaving itself defies easy After sampling, I realized I could design apps can do this. While there
classification; though it is a woven accomplish my vision by brocading are functions to reduce pixels auto-
graphic, it’s not a tapestry. Instead, a five-end twill in selected areas matically, doing so can distort the
I wove it on a single-unit drawloom. using a separate set of five treadles. image. At each reduction step, care
My first attempt in damask failed to To weave a design such as this must be taken to keep the basic
allow for the shading needed to requires preparation. Rather than the design and silhouette intact by manu-
make the image more interesting. usual structural draft, the weaver ally adjusting pixels bit by bit.

22 H A NDWOV EN handwovenmagazine.com
SOARING SENSATIONS
My first attempt in damask in the Complex Weavers Complexity SAR A VON TRESCKOW learned to weave
exhibit in Knoxville, Tennessee, in while living in Germany for 20 years.
failed to allow for the shading
2022, and it now hangs in our son’s She is the author of When a Single
needed to make the image
home. He recently returned from Harness Simply Isn’t Enough, a guide
more interesting. the 37th FAI World Gliding to setting up and designing with
Championships in Narromine, drawlooms for double-harness weaving.
Australia, where he participated as a
Once a graphic has been simpli- crew member for the US team.
fied, it can be worked into a textile
using half-heddle sticks, drawcords,
pick-up sticks, or similar tools.
While slow, using a simple standard
structure as the ground allows for
the creation of many images on a
single warp by varying the graphed
representation of the desired image.
This type of graphic design is not
confined to a drawloom; for exam-
ple, finnweave or doubleweave pick-
up would work as well.
Damask on the drawloom often
consists of basic satin weaves, as
they allow for areas of distinct col-
ors to form. I chose to work on
what is normally the “back” side,
using the blue of the weft yarn for a
weft-faced, five-end satin back-
ground and the warp-effect satin
in white for the plane, clouds, and
tail number.
I wove using a chart created in a
design program for beading and
fiber artists that prints the image
on 11" × 17" paper for easy reading. I
picked each row on the drawcords
and then marked it as woven. The
brocaded areas needed two trea-
dled picks with the ground pick
first. Because this thread showed
up mainly on the back side, I did
not need to select a specific color.
Then, I treadled the corresponding
twill pick. I used small bobbins of
the correct color to fill the desig-
nated pattern areas. Light gray and
black provided additional detail. Top: Along with simplifying the image, Sara added clouds above and below the aircraft so it
looked like it was flying. After editing the image, Sara used the file to guide her work as she
The finished piece was displayed pulled the drawcords on her drawloom. Bottom: Detail of brocaded shading

SUMMER 2024 H A NDWOV EN 23


24 H A NDWOV EN handwovenmagazine.com
3-SH A F T

Tuscan Summer Rug


SANDI LEMONS

STRUC TURE YARNS WARP LE NGTH DIME NSIONS


Krokbragd. Warp: 8/5 linen (446 yd/lb; Bockens), half-bleached, 123 doubled ends 2¼ yd Width in the reed: 305⁄8".
554 yd. long (includes doubled Woven length: (mea-
EQUIPME NT
Weft: 1.25/1 mattgarn (100% wool; 620 yd/lb; Borgs), floating selvedges; sured under tension on
3-shaft loom, 31" weaving
#5001 natural, 693 yd; #5040 dark red, 416 yd; #5778 allows 31" for loom the loom) 50".
width; 8-dent reed; 3 large
very dark purple, 545 yd; #5595 light gold, 379 yd. waste; loom waste Finished size: (after
boat shuttles and 4 bob-
includes fringe). steaming with iron)
bins or 4 stick shuttles. OTHE R SUPPLIES
28" × 48" with 7" fringe.
Temple (recommended). SET TS
Warp: 4 epi (every other
dent in an 8-dent reed).
Weft: about 43 ppi.

I have always been a lover of symmetry and geometrical patterns.


Before I learned to weave, I would sit in meetings at my university
job doodling these kinds of patterns all over my notes. I have also
always been drawn to textiles. Throughout my many travels I’ve
never failed to come home with textiles of some kind. Fast-forward
to the first time I walked into a weaving studio and beheld a
krokbragd rug in progress. I thought, “Now, I want to do that!” I was
there for my very first weaving lesson, so I had a lot to learn first,
but I always knew I would circle back to krokbragd. Here is the
result, and I hope you enjoy weaving this rug as much as I did!

1 Wind a warp of 123 doubled ends (246 total threads) 2¼ yd


long. This includes the 2 doubled ends that will be used as float-
ing selvedges. Warp the loom using your preferred method, fol-
lowing the draft in Figure 1. Centering for a weaving width of
305⁄8", sley a doubled end in every other dent in an 8-dent reed
(4 epi). Beam the floating selvedges with the rest of the warp,
sley them through empty dents on either side of the warp, and 4 Weave each motif following the color
weight them behind the back beam. sequence in Figure 2 and weaving order
in Figure 3. Each design row consists of
2 Wind bobbins or stick shuttles with each of the weft colors. 3 picks, treadled 1-2-3, repeated 3 times
Leaving at least 8" of unwoven warp for fringe, spread the warp (9 picks). Columns 2 and 1 are repeated in
with scrap yarn. Figure 2 to show what the full pattern
looks like; while you’re weaving, don't
3 Leaving a tail at least 4 yd long for hemstitching, weave 1" in include those column repeats. End with
natural following the krokbragd treadling. Use the tail to hem- another 1" in natural and hemstitch as you
stitch in groups of 2 doubled warp ends (4 threads). did at the beginning.

SUMMER 2024 H A NDWOV EN 25


HEDDLE COUNT 1. DRAFT 2. WEFT COLOR ORDER
Shaft 3 30 30x 1 2 3 2 1 1 2 3 2 1
1 2 3
Shaft 2 60
3 3 3
Shaft 1 31
2 2 2 2
Total 121
1 1 1 1
/

repeat
/
/ Motif 6
Motif 1
floating selvedge
3. MOTIF ORDER
1" Natural

Motifs 1–9 4. FRINGE

Center Motif

Motifs 9–1 Motif 7


(reverse order)
Motif 2
1" Natural

5 Leaving at least 8" for fringe on both ends, cut


the rug from the loom. Trim the ends to 7". Work the
Motif 8
fringe in groups of 4 threads. Cross a group over the
next group to the right. Combine two groups that
come together in an overhand knot 1" from the rug
edge (see Figure 4). Repeat with the next two Motif 3
groups. Note that either the first or last group will
have only 2 threads. Braid each combined group
for 4" and secure with a half-hitch knot. (If you want
to make a fancier finish, Sandi recommends trying Motif 9

one of the edges in Finishes in the Ethnic Tradition;


see Resources.)

6 Steam the rug to finish: Lay a damp towel on top Motif 4


of the rug and press firmly with a hot iron over the
entire surface of the rug. Do the same with the
fringes to make them lie flat.
Center Motif

RESOURCES
Baizerman, Suzanne, and Karen Searle. Finishes in the Ethnic
Tradition. St. Paul, MN: Dos Tejedoras, 1994. Motif 5
Greenlaw, Debby. Krokbragd. Self-published, 2019.
natural
———. Krokbragd Patterns. Self-published, 2021. very dark purple
dark red
light gold
SANDI LEMONS is the owner of Tabby Tree Weaver in Fishers,
For each row, weave the color sequence, treadling 1-2-3,
Indiana. She gets to weave between teaching, managing repeated 3 times (9 picks total each row).
inventory, and serving customers . . . so basically never. Of Columns 2 and 1 are shown repeated above simply to help you
visualize the pattern.
course, her favorite weave structure is the slowest one to weave.

26 H A NDWOV EN handwovenmagazine.com
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SUMMER 2024 H A NDWOV EN 27


WE AV ING A T WICE -WOV EN RUG

Photo by Matt Graves


Catherine gets her lush, multicolor pile by making chenille yarn using odds and ends from her stash.

Weaving a Twice-Woven Rug


C AT H E R I N E M A R C H A N T

Weaving fabric to then turn into a fluffy, chenille-type yarn is a technique shrank. I had to get serious. I dug
for every weaver with a floor loom. New weavers will appreciate the simple out my notes from that long-ago
plain weave structure with the bonus of no worries about selvedges. More guild meeting and got started.
experienced weavers will rejoice in using up stash yarns. I pulled out bins of yarn and saw I
had lots of red, so I started there.
My experience with this technique Judy, wove several that I admired, Digging through other bins, I pulled
started with a guild program back but it took me 30-odd years to get out oranges and purples and the
in the 1990s with the idea of creating around to weaving one myself. odd ball of turquoise and made a
the weft of the rug by first weaving At the outset of the COVID-19 pile of yarn on the floor.
a crammed and spaced fabric, cut- pandemic shutdown, I thought it There is no need to worry about
ting it up into long strings of che- would be an excellent time to use the fiber content or diameter of the
nille, and then weaving the result- up some of my stash. I wove and yarn. Wool or cotton, laceweight or
ing fluffy strings into a lovely, wove and wove, but thanks to inter- bulky knitting yarn, all of it goes
shaggy rug. My weaving neighbor, net shopping, my stash hardly together. This is a good project for

28 H A NDWOV EN handwovenmagazine.com
WE AV ING A T WICE -WOV EN RUG
There is no need to worry
about the fiber content
or diameter of the yarn.
Wool or cotton, laceweight
or bulky knitting yarn, all of
it goes together.

the inch and repeat. I used a 15-dent


reed, so I threaded the first 2 dents
with 4 ends each and then skipped
the next 13 dents. If you don’t have a
15-dent reed or finer, put all 8 ends
into 1 dent. Tie on to your apron
rod, and you are ready to go. There
is no need to weave a header to
spread the warp.
Pulling yarn from your pile, com-
bine enough strands to make a bundle
about the size of your pinky finger,
and wind them all together onto a
Photos by Sherman Myers except where noted

rag shuttle. If you run out of a par-


ticular yarn before the shuttle is
filled, just tie on another. Start
weaving. Don’t concern yourself
about distributing the colors evenly.
The colors will be woven into each
chenille string and spread through-
out the second weaving. The sel-
vedges are easy—just leave a loop at
each edge to clip later; messy is fine.
Top: The pile of odd yarns used by Catherine to create the weft bundles needed for When you cut the first weaving
her initial woven fabric. Bottom: Multiple yarns are bundled together to make the weft.
off the loom, knot each group of
four warp ends to protect the weft.
the acrylic yarn you inherited from have—you won’t be able to see it in Keep the fringe long enough to tie
your great-aunt Tilly, scratchy yarn, the finished product. I wound a to the next string as you weave the
and yarns in colors so unappealing warp of 288 ends, 5 yards long. A rug in round 2.
you can’t imagine what made you 5-yard warp will make chenille I warped for 36 strips to weave a
buy them in the first place. strips just long enough to fit on a rug 30 by 50 inches and ended up
Wind the first warp using fine, rag shuttle. with several strips left over. Make
strong yarn. I used 20/2 cotton, but Thread the warp for plain weave fewer strips if you want to weave a
10/2 would also work. The fine warp using two or four harnesses. Select rug with smaller dimensions.
will bite into the soft weft yarns, the narrowest dent reed you have; Treat the second warp as you
gripping them after they are sley the warp with 4 ends in one would when making a rag rug. I have
clipped. Don’t worry about the color dent and the next 4 in the next dent. an abundance of 8/4 cotton warp
of the warp; just use what you Then skip the dents for the rest of yarn, so that is what I usually use.

SUMMER 2024 H A NDWOV EN 29


WE AV ING A T WICE -WOV EN RUG

Notes on Chenille
Chenille yarn has two compo-
nents: fine core threads and the
thicker, short lengths of pile the
core threads hold on to. The result
is a fluffy yarn that looks a bit like
a caterpillar. In fact, the name
chenille comes from the French
word for caterpillar. Another great
description of chenille comes
from Deborah Jarchow in her
Handwoven article “Weaving
with Rayon Chenille” (September/
October 2023), in which she says
it is “like a pipe cleaner but with a
softer core.”

Other possibilities would be linen


rug warp or cotton twine. (Use what
you have—we are stash-busting
here.) The color of the second warp is
a little more important than it was
for the first warp, but really, the only
place it shows is in the hem. Wind a
warp that is 6 ends per inch (epi),
spaced evenly. (I usually double the
epi on the outside edges for a rag rug,
but if you do that here, you will not
be able to pack the hem tightly and
will have to make fringe.) Spread the
warp and weave the hem. I bundle 4
or 5 strands of 8/4 rug warp to weave
a 3-inch hem, packing as tightly as
possible. These bundles can be all
one color or several colors.
Now it’s time to cut the chenille
threads apart. Because my hands
get tired when cutting, I cut half a
dozen strands and weave with them
while my hands recover.
Wind the first chenille strand onto
a rag shuttle. As you place the first
pick, wind the end of the warp bun-
dle around the end warp thread and
back into the same shed. When you
Top: Catherine’s first warp is an extreme example of crammed and spaced. Eight ends,
come to the end of that chenille sett tightly, are spaced about an inch apart. The crammed ends hold the weft firmly in
strand, wind the next chenille strand place while the spaces allow ample room to cut the fabric into chenille yarn. Bottom:
After weaving the fabric, Catherine carefully cuts between the warp threads to create
onto the shuttle and tie the end of a chenille yarn.

30 H A NDWOV EN handwovenmagazine.com
WE AV ING A T WICE -WOV EN RUG
the last strand to the beginning
of the next. This keeps the butt ends
tight together. Pay attention to the
selvedges. The edges will be fluffy
and loopy, but you don’t want them
to be too loopy. Repeat the hem at
the end of the rug. Cut the rug off the
loom. Fold the hems over twice and
stitch by hand or machine.
To wet-finish, I filled my top-
loading washing machine with hot
water and washed on the delicate
cycle. I laid the wet rug on my patio
to dry in the sun.
This rug is resilient and cushy on
bare feet, perfect for next to the bed.
While hunting up all the red yarn
I could find in my stash, I discov-
ered a ton of gray yarn. I feel
another rug coming on, this time
gray with white, black, and lots of
that glitzy novelty yarn I hoarded
After the chenille yarn is cut, it makes for an extra-fluffy weft, perfect for weaving rugs. back in the nineties.

Weaving • Spinning • Dyeing • Felting

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2- OR 4-SH A F T

Twice-Woven Rug
C AT H E R I N E M A R C H A N T

STRUC TURE YARNS SET TS


Plain weave. First warp: 20/2 cotton (8,400 yd/lb; Lunatic First warp: 60 epi with gaps (4 ends in each of
Fringe Yarns), 1,440 yd. 2 adjacent dents, skip 13 dents in a 15-dent reed).
EQUIPME NT
First weft: various yarns of any size and fiber. First weft: about 4 ppi.
2- or 4-shaft loom, 36"
Second warp: 8/4 cotton carpet warp (1,600 yd/lb; Second warp: 6 epi (1/dent in a 6-dent reed or 1 in
weaving width; 15-dent
Maysville), 495 yd. every other dent in a 12-dent reed).
reed; 6- or 12-dent reed;
Second weft: chenille strips from first weaving; Second weft: about 6 ppi for hems; about 3 ppi for
boat shuttle; rag shuttle.
8/4 cotton carpet warp for hems, 165 yd. woven chenille warp.

WARP LE NGTH DIME NSIONS


First warp: 288 ends 5 yd long (allows 10" for take-up, Width in reed: first warp, 352⁄15"; second warp, 30".
33" for loom waste). Woven length: first weaving, 137"; second weaving, 60".
Second warp: 180 ends 23⁄4 yd long (allows 7" for Finished size: 27" × 52".
take-up, 28" for loom waste).

My shaggy rug is inspired by a desire to reduce my out-of-control 3 Cut the weaving off the loom, leaving
yarn stash. First, I weave a fabric with stash yarns, then I cut it up 4"–6" of warp ends to tie the strips
into a chenille-like bulky yarn that becomes the weft of the rug. together later. Knot each group of 4 warp
Even though this technique involves warping the loom twice, the ends to prevent raveling.
plain-weave structure makes the threading and weaving easy.
For the chenille, I make a pile of yarn put-ups on the floor. I select 4 Slice the fabric into strips, cutting
a dominant color and a couple other colors to serve as contrast. Yarn down the center of each gap between
weights can vary from fine weaving yarn to bulky knitting yarn. The warp-end groups.
fibers can be anything, natural or synthetic. Several years after
weaving my first twice-woven rug, it is still cushy and has held up 5 Wind the second warp with 180 ends
through repeated vacuuming. Because the rug has pile on both 2¾ yd long, using a color that coordinates
sides, it is also reversible. If you’re using it on a smooth or slippery with the first weaving. Thread for plain
floor, just make sure to put a nonslip rug pad underneath. weave using your preferred method. Cen-
tering for a weaving width of 30", sley
1 Wind a warp of 288 ends 5 yd long using a color that will go 1 per dent in a 6-dent reed or 1 in every
with the weft yarns you’ve chosen. Warp the loom using your other dent in a 12-dent reed.
preferred method, threading for plain weave. Centering for a
weaving width of 352⁄15" in a 15-dent reed, sley 4 ends in one 6 Wind the weft for the hems using 5
dent and 4 ends in the next dent, then skip 13 dents. Repeat strands of 8/4 cotton carpet warp on the
across the warp. boat shuttle. Wind a chenille strand onto
the rag shuttle. Spread the warp with
2 Take enough strands of yarn that, when held together, they scrap yarn.
are the width of your pinkie finger (see the bottom photo on
page 29). Wind them together onto a rag shuttle. Weave until you 7 Weave 3" of plain weave for the hems
can no longer get a good shed, changing yarns as they run out. using the 8/4 cotton. Begin weaving with
Leave loops sticking out of each selvedge with every pick. the chenille in plain weave. The fuzzy weft

32 H A NDWOV EN handwovenmagazine.com
will show on both sides of the rug. 10 Finish by machine washing CATHERINE MARCHANT of Alpine, Utah,
As you reach the end of each with hot or warm water on the deli- looks forward every morning to weav-
strand, tie the warp ends of the cate cycle. Air-dry. Any wool pile ing in her studio. Consequently, she
chenille weft to the next strand. will not shrink appreciably, and the needs all the stash-busting projects she
Continue for about 54" or until you yarn will bloom, making the pile can find. She is a member of the Mary
run out of chenille weft. feel denser. Meigs Atwater Weavers Guild in Salt
Lake City, Utah, and the Westfield
8 Using 5 strands of 8/4, weave RESOURCES Weavers Guild in Westfield, New Jersey.
3" of plain weave for the hem. Ignell, Tina. “Intimations and Sensa-
tions.” VÄV 2 (May 27, 2022), 51–53.
9 Remove the rug from the loom. Meany, Janet. “Twice Woven Rugs.”
Trim ends and fold them over 1" Complex Weavers Newsletter 47
twice to enclose the raw edges. (January 1995), 18–20.
Stitch the hems by hand or machine.

SUMMER 2024 H A NDWOV EN 33


34 H A NDWOV EN handwovenmagazine.com
4 -S H A F T

Building Blocks Rug


S UZI E LI LE S

STRUC TURE YARNS WARP LE NGTH SET TS


Taqueté. Warp: 8/5 linen warp (446 yd/lb; Bockens), 184 working ends (186 Warp: 5 epi (1/dent in a
unbleached, 465 yd. threads total) 2½ yd long 5-dent reed or every other
EQUIPME NT
Weft: 1.25/1 mattgarn (100% wool; 137 yd/3.5 oz skein; (includes doubled dent in a 10-dent reed).
4-shaft loom, 37"
Borgs), #5059 navy, 2,220 yd; #5538 magenta red, selvedges; allows 42" for Weft: 20 ppi.
weaving width; 5-dent
945 yd; #5513 green yellow light, 189 yd. 8/5 linen, loom waste; loom waste
or 10-dent reed; 3 ski DIME NSIONS
unbleached, 21 yd. includes fringe).
shuttles. Width in the reed: 364⁄5".
Woven length: 48".
Finished size: 32½" ×
48" plus 4" fringe on
each end.

In 1983, at my first three-day workshop, taught by Gorel Kinersly,


I wove a rug sample using taqueté. In addition to learning that new-
to-me weave structure, I came away from the workshop with an un-
derstanding of blocks, which has aided my designs ever since.
This project, combining taqueté and my love of blocks, brought
my thoughts back 40 years to my beginnings as a weaver. I like how
the blocks look, as well as the design possibilities that come from
changing the colors and sizes of each block. I used a Glimåkra loom
because I find heavy-duty looms stand up to the high tension and
heavy beating required when weaving rugs.

1 Wind a warp of 184 working ends (186 threads total) 2½ yd


long. Warp the loom using your preferred method, following the
draft in Figure 1. Thread the first and last ends doubled. Center-
ing for a weaving width of 364⁄5", sley 1 per dent in a 5-dent reed
or every other dent in a 10-dent reed. Sley the doubled selvedge
ends together in a single dent.
The reverse side of this rug is mainly blue, with
2 For each weft color, wind 3 strands of the same color on a ski narrow blocks of red and yellow.

shuttle. Leaving 6" of warp for fringe, spread the warp with
scrap yarn. 5 Leaving at least 6" for fringe, cut the
rug off the loom.
3 Twine the beginning of the spread warp following the instruc-
tions in How to Twine on page 36. 6 Braid the warp ends. Suzie used 3
paired warp ends per braid and then
4 Weave following the draft in Figure 1. Twine the end as you did braided the tails of the twining yarn to
at the beginning. match the fringe. Do not wet-finish.

SUMMER 2024 H A NDWOV EN 35


How to Twine
Twining is a common finish for
rugs. Not only is it attractive, it
also secures the weft. Here’s
how to twine each end of
this rug:

1. To make a twining strand,


HE DDLE COUNT 1. DR AFT measure 2 lengths of warp
4x yarn 5 times the width of the
Shaft 4 56
4x 2x 7x 6x warp. Hold those lengths of
Shaft 3 36 1 2 3 4
Shaft 2 46 4 4 4 4 yarn together and fold them
Shaft 1 46 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 in half. The resulting strand
Total 184 2 2 2 2 2 2 will be made up of 4 threads.
1 1 1 1 1 1
2. Place 1 end of the twining
Note: First and last ends are doubled strand below the first warp
in the heddles and in the reed. end and the other end
4½"

above the first warp end so


that the fold is snugged up
navy against a selvedge thread.
magenta red
5¼"

green yellow light 3. Bring the strand that is be-


low the warp up and forward
3x

RESOURCES 1 end. Bring the strand that


1½"

is above the warp down and


Collingwood, Peter. Techniques of Rug
forward 1 end.
Weaving. New York: Watson-Guptill,
4. Continue this over/under
5¼"

1969. pattern across the warp, as


Horton, Susan E. “Finishing Tips and shown in the illustration.
Techniques You’ll Want to Know.” When you have completed
1½"

Handwoven, April 26, 2022. the row of twining, use your


fingers or a comb to push
2x

handwovenmagazine.com/team-colors
it into place against the
5¼"

-weave-along-finishing-tips-and fell line.


-techniques-youll-want-to-know. 5. Temporarily secure the
ends of the twining strands.
4½"

SUZIE LILES has taught weaving for over After you cut the rug off the
35 years. She owns Eugene Textile loom, braid the warp ends
and twining tails to secure,
Center and co-owns Glimåkra USA
as noted in Step 6 of the
with her daughter Sarah Rambousek. instructions.

36 H A NDWOV EN handwovenmagazine.com
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38 H A NDWOV EN handwovenmagazine.com
8-SH A F T

Sand and Sky Stitched


Double Cloth Rug
TO M K N I S E LY

STRUC TURE YARNS WARP LE NGTH DIME NSIONS


Stitched double cloth Warp: Bomullsmattvarp 12/6 (100% cotton; 1,463 yd/lb; 202 working ends Width in the reed: 252⁄8".
twill. Bockens), #61 dark brown, 530 yd. (212 total threads) 2½ yd Woven length: (mea-
Weft: Comfy Cozy cotton flannel fabric (100% cotton; long (includes doubled sured under tension on
EQUIPME NT
Joann), Blue Ashes, Hunter Green, Adriatic Blue, floating selvedges; the loom) 39".
8-shaft loom, 26" weav-
Caramel, and Tobacco Brown, 4 yd each. allows 8" for take-up, Finished size: (after wet-
ing width; 8-dent reed;
43" for loom waste). finishing and hemming)
5 rag shuttles. OTHE R SUPPLIES
23½" × 33".
Two 2-lb weights for floating selvedges; fabric scissors SET T
or rotary cutter and self-healing mat; metal temple; Warp: 8 epi (1/dent in an
Fray Check. 8-dent reed).
Weft: about 10 ppi.

The possibilities of stitched double cloth have intrigued me for


some time now. The treadling order follows the same order as com- Tips
plementary plain weave and doubleweave overshot, which have a • Trim the end of each rag strip into a
common ancestor: twill. long taper. To start or stop a color,
fold the tapered end around the sel-
Recently, as I was tying up my treadles for some turned-twill tow- vedge and back into the same shed.
els, I noticed a correlation between the 1/3 twill tie-up and the 3/1 To join a new strip of the same color,
twill tie-up. When I looked closer at the tie-up, I divided it into overlap the tapered ends of the old
quadrants. The lower left and the lower right quadrants contained and new weft strips.
everything in the tie-up to weave four-shaft stitched double cloth. • Tom recommends using a sturdy
The upper quadrants would work to weave the other four shafts of loom for weaving rag rugs. An extra
firm beat is required for packing in
this eight-shaft threading. It became obvious I had missed some-
rag weft, and a sturdy loom—prefer-
thing. I would have to revise my turned-twill treadling to accom- ably with a heavy beater—will make
plish the stitched double cloth, but what’s new? the job easier. Also, the warp needs
I experimented with a loosely sett warp to allow the rag color to to be under a higher-than-normal
tension for rag weaving, which can
dominate the rug’s design. As I treadled for stitched double cloth,
cause narrow sheds on jack looms.
the familiar opposing lines of a turned twill started to appear. As I
wove on, I could see that the color blocks were switching positions
from front to back, just as they should in stitched double cloth.
This rug was quick to weave. I loved weaving it, and now you can, too. of Blue Ashes in half into 3⁄8" strips. You
will need about 25 yd of the thinner hem
1 Prepare the rag strips: Wash the flannel on a regular cycle and weft. See Tips.
dry on medium heat in a dryer. Cut off the selvedge edges with
sharp scissors or a rotary cutter and self-healing mat. Tear the 2 Wind a warp of 208 ends 2½ yd long.
fabric lengthwise into 1½" strips. Tear those strips in half into ¾" Wind 4 additional ends to be used as float-
strips. (Tom finds this is easier than trying to tear them into ¾" ing selvedges and set them aside. Warp
from the beginning.) You could also cut your fabric into strips, but the loom using your preferred method, fol-
Tom prefers the look of torn fabric. For the hems, tear ¾" strips lowing the draft in Figure 1. Centering for a

SUMMER 2024 H A NDWOV EN 39


1. DRAFT
3x
8x 6x 8x weaving width of 252⁄8", sley 1 per dent in an
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
8 8 8 8 8 8 8-dent reed, doubling the first 4 ends and
7 7 7 7 7 7
6 6 6 6 6 6 the last 4 ends in the heddles and dents.
5 5 5 5 5 5
4 4 4 4 4 4 4
Sley the doubled floating selvedges through
3 3 3 3 3 3 3 empty dents on each side of the warp and
2 2 2 2 2 2 2
1 1 1 1 1 1 1 weight them over the back beam. Tom used
2-lb weights for his floating selvedges.

8x
Note: Thread the last 4 ends on each
side plus the floating selvedges doubled
in both the heddles and the reed.
3 Wind your rag shuttles with each of the
rag wefts. Spread the warp with scrap yarn.

4x
cont’d

Insert a temple within the scrap yarn header.

4 Weave the plain-weave hem using the


4x

Blue Ashes hem weft and following the


draft in Figure 1. Then switch to the thicker
3x

weft and weave the body of the rug follow-


ing the draft for about 36". End with 16
picks of plain weave using the thinner weft
3x

for the hem.

5 Weave several picks of scrap yarn to pro-


4x

tect the weft. Cut the fabric from the loom.


Run a line of Fray Check between the scrap
4x

yarn and the hems. Cut off the scrap yarn.


Fold the hems over twice, press, and
3x

secure with machine stitching. Sew the


ends closed.

6 Wet-finish in warm water either by hand


3x

or machine. Press the excess water out in a


4x

big towel. Lay the rug flat to dry.

RESOURCES
4x

Knisely, Tom. Rags to Rugs. Guilford, CT: Stackpole


Books, 2023.
———. Weaving Rag Rugs. Guilford, CT: Stackpole
3x
8x

Books, 2014.
———. Weaving with Rags: Making Rag Rugs and
HEDDLE COUNT More. Video. Long Thread Media.
Shaft 8 18
Shaft 7 18
Shaft 6 18 TOM KNISELY weaves and teaches weaving and
Shaft 5 18 doubled floating selvedge
Blue Ashes spinning at Red Stone Glen Fiber Arts Center.
Shaft 4 32
Shaft 3 32 Hunter Green He lives with his wife and two cats near New
Shaft 2 32 Adriatic Blue
Shaft 1 32 Tobacco Brown Cumberland, Pennsylvania.
Total 200 Caramel

40 H A NDWOV EN handwovenmagazine.com
www.GlimakraUSA.com

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SUMMER 2024 H A NDWOV EN 41


2- OR 4-SH A F T

Core Spun Comfort Rug


C Y N T H I A COX

STRUC TURE YARNS SET TS


Plain weave. Warp: Navajo Churro blanket-weight singles (100% Navajo Churro wool; 225 yd/4 oz; Warp: 4 epi (1 doubled
Rainbow Fiber Co-Op), Natural, 512 yd. end sleyed every other
EQUIPME NT
Weft: Core spun Leicester longwool/llama yarn (fiber percentages unknown; about dent in an 8-dent reed).
2- or 4-shaft loom, 32"
50–70 yd/put-up; Fuzzy Ewe Farm), 95 yd. Navajo Churro blanket-weight singles, Weft: about 3 ppi.
weaving width; 8-dent
5 yd.
reed; metal weight for DIME NSIONS
Note: The Rainbow Fiber Co-Op sells its yarn annually and often sells out quickly. Try
the loom’s beater bar; Width in the reed: 317⁄8".
Navajo Churro blanket-weight weaving yarn (100% Navajo Churro wool, 750 yd/4 oz,
2 large stick or ski shut- Woven length: (mea-
Laurel Canyon Farm) in Maria as a substitute. The Fuzzy Ewe Farm core spun was a
tles. Note: A weighted sured under tension on
limited-edition batch and is no longer available. Variegated core spun (100% wool,
beater bar is very helpful the loom) 31".
45 yd/lb, Wildwood Farm) works as a substitute, as would many other core-spun
for this project due to the Finished size: 32" × 30"
variegated wools in natural browns.
heaviness and bulk of plus 5" fringe.
the core spun yarn. WARP LE NGTH
128 doubled ends (256 total threads) 2 yd long (allows 6" for take-up, 35" for loom
waste; loom waste includes fringe).

Visiting my friend Julie at Fuzzy Ewe Farm is always an adventure. threading doubled ends in each heddle.
There are beautiful llamas and Leicester longwool sheep to ooh and Centering for a weaving width of 317⁄8",
aah over while contemplating the bounty of the next shearing. And sley a doubled end in every other dent in
there is always a good chance that Julie has received a fresh ship- an 8-dent reed.
ment of milled yarn from the previous year’s shearing. I discovered
the amazing core-spun yarn I used in my rug on one such visit. 2 Wind a stick shuttle with the Churro for
Not one for waste, Julie had the mill process the leftover britch the ends of the rug. Wind another large
and rump wools (combined from the llama and sheep) into this one- shuttle with a few yards of the core spun
of-a-kind rope of core spun. The result is a wonderful mélange of weft yarn. Because it is so thick and bulky,
natural colors that I could not resist. It is perfect for a thick, heavy, only a few yards will fit on a shuttle. Take
and soft rug—just what I need to keep my feet cozy on the chilly
winter floor of my studio.
Weaving with this type of yarn does create some challenges. A
weighted beater is a must for packing in the heavy, thick yarn—my
husband added an 8-pound steel bar to my Leclerc loom, and that
helped quite a bit. Also, due to the thickness of the yarn, only small
amounts will fit on a stick shuttle, which means frequent splicing and
joining. I did find the joining process easy, though, and virtually in-
visible. Finally, you need to be careful not to twist the yarn as you
bring the shuttle in and out of the shed at the selvedges. Keeping the
twisting to a minimum will keep your rug from curling. Overall, I am
thrilled with the results, and I hope you are inspired to give it a try.

1 Wind a warp of 128 doubled ends (256 threads total) 2 yd long.


Warp the loom for plain weave using your preferred method,

42 H A NDWOV EN handwovenmagazine.com
care that you do not get so much following method: On the cut ends an overhand knot in each pair of
on the shuttle that it does not fit of the core-spun, tease and pull doubled warp ends (4 threads)
through the shed. Spread the out about 2 inches of the outer close to the weft or prepare a
warp with scrap yarn. layers beyond the cotton core. twisted fringe using 2 doubled
This provides a thin, flat piece for ends in each fringe bundle.
3 Weave 5 picks of plain weave splicing with a new yarn and
using the Churro. Beat firmly after makes a clean, invisible transition. 7 Do not wet-finish. To clean the
each pick. rug, shake it and hang it to air out-
5 End with 5 picks of plain weave side as needed.
4 Begin weaving with the core- in the Churro. Weave a few picks
spun yarn. Weave approximately of scrap yarn to protect the weft. CYNTHIA COX enjoys weaving functional
90 picks or about 30", beating items in her home studio, The Wild Weft.
firmly after each pick and being 6 Leaving at least 4" on both She is inspired by the beauty of West
careful not to twist the yarn as you ends for fringe or a knotted finish, Texas and the variety of unique and
begin each row. For joins, use the cut the fabric from the loom. Tie natural fibers produced in the region.

SUMMER 2024 H A NDWOV EN 43


44 H A NDWOV EN handwovenmagazine.com
2- OR 4-SH A F T

Salts Mill Rug


F R A N C E S R I C H A R DS O N

STRUC TURE YARNS OTHE R SUPPLIES SET TS


Weft-faced plain weave. Warp: 8/5 linen (480 yd/lb; Yarn Barn of Kansas), Temple; large-eye long Warp: 3 epi (threaded
Natural, 600 yd. carpet needle for 1-0/dent in a 6-dent
EQUIPME NT
Weft: 2/60 New Zealand rug wool (100% wool; finishing. reed).
2- or 4-shaft loom, pref-
960 yd/lb; R&M Yarns), Spiced Mustard, 295 yd; Weft: 18 ppi.
erably counterbalance or WARP LE NGTH
Gunmetal Gray, 650 yd; Light Khaki, 3,140 yd. Note: Try
countermarch, 33" weav- 99 working ends DIME NSIONS
Highland (100% wool; 900 yd/lb; Harrisville Designs)
ing width; 6-dent reed; (200 threads total) Width in the reed: 323⁄6".
or Collingwood Rug Wool (80% wool/20% nylon;
2 stick or ski shuttles at 3 yd long (allows 6" for Woven length: (mea-
900 yd/lb; Valley Yarns) as a substitute.
least 12" long. take-up and 36" for sured under tension
loom waste). on the loom) 66".
Finished size: 30" × 57".

A photograph I took looking over the roofs of the Salts Mill loom 1 Wind a warp of 200 ends 3 yd long.
sheds in Saltaire, West Yorkshire, inspired my rug. I grew up a few Warp the loom using your preferred method
miles from Saltaire, and the zigzag pattern of mill roofs was a famil- for a straight draw, either 4, 3, 2, 1 on a
iar sight throughout my childhood in the industrial textile district 4-shaft loom or 2, 1 on a 2-shaft loom.
of the West Riding. Centering for a weaving width of 323⁄6",
Salts Mill was the heart of a model village built on the banks of and following the sleying chart in Figure 1,
the River Aire by Sir Titus Salt in 1853 to house his mill workers. A sley a doubled end in every other dent,
few miles from the center of Bradford, Saltaire provided the work- with a tripled end in the first and last
force a healthier environment than that endured by mill workers in dents (see Resources).
the middle of the city. Salt built housing, a chapel, a library, a
school, a laundry, a mechanics institute, and a park around his mill, 2 Wind a shuttle with 4 strands of Gun-
which at its peak employed 3,000 workers and produced 30,000 metal Gray held together. Wind a second
yards of fabric a week. After it ended production in 1987, the mill shuttle with 2 strands of Light Khaki rug
was bought by a local businessman to house the work of his friend wool (see Weaving Tips). The doubled
and fellow Bradfordian, David Hockney. Saltaire is now a UNESCO khaki weft will be doubled again when
World Heritage Site, with the mill housing Hockney’s work along weaving the clasped-weft technique.
with stores and a restaurant. The surrounding housing is still a
thriving residential village. 3 With scrap yarn or extra rug weft,
I learned the techniques used to weave my rug at Jason weave about 2" of plain weave, bubbling
Collingwood’s class on rug weaving held at Yadkin Valley Fiber the weft so that it has plenty of length to
Center in 2019. They are also described in Peter Collingwood’s book cover the warp comfortably. This section
The Techniques of Rug Weaving. will be removed when the rug is finished,
As I noodled around with the design, I found it more pleasing the so it’s a good opportunity to practice your
simpler it became, but that simplicity became the main technical beat. Push the outer 2" of weaving down
challenge—there are fewer places for mistakes and inconsistencies from the fell toward the breast beam, creat-
to hide! ing two triangles of bare warp at each side.

SUMMER 2024 H A NDWOV EN 45


HEDDLE COUNT 1. SLEYING CHART
Shaft 4 25 96x
Shaft 3 25
Shaft 2 25
Shaft 1 24
Weaving Tips 2. RUG SCHEMATIC Total 99 6-dent reed
• When winding a shuttle 16 ends
with multiple strands, keep 51⁄6"
a finger between strands 2"
to ensure even winding.
Frances keeps one hand
still with her fingers sepa-
rating the yarn, while hold- 8"
ing the shuttle in her other
hand and winding the yarns
on by turning the shuttle
back and forth like a wind- 1"
shield wiper.
• Bubbling reduces draw-in
on weft-faced weaves by 8"
providing more slack for the
weft to wrap around the
warp than the usual angled
1"
weft or weft smile. After
throwing a pick but before
closing the shed, spread
your fingers and gently 8"
draw the weft to the fell
line in several places evenly
across the width of the
1"
warp, creating hills and val-
leys in the weft. Close the
shed and beat as usual.
• Frances used the Maori 8"
edge (see Resources) and
wove the ends into the rug.
• If your finishing choice in- 1"
volves weaving the warp
ends back into the rug,
weave the first and last
8"
couple of inches of the rug
with a little slack in the weft
so that there is room for
the additional warp. If you 1"
make fringe from the warp
ends, do not weave the ex-
tra slack in the weft.
8"
• Splice joins in the weft
by overlapping them (see
Resources) and leaving
about 4" available to darn 2"
the ends in. Frances pre-
33"
fers to darn in ends as she
weaves, but that can also Spiced Mustard Grid = 1"
Gunmetal Gray
be done after weaving. Light Khaki

46 H A NDWOV EN handwovenmagazine.com
Fill these triangles by weaving scrap
yarn back and forth until the fell is the
same height all the way across the
warp. Beat firmly to create a firm
base for your rug. Install the temple.

4 Weave 2" of Gunmetal Gray


(see Weaving Tips). Send the shut-
tle through the shed at an angle, strands of both colors in the same in the weft for sewing ends into
tug hard on the yarn to settle the shed, clasped together. Bubble the the rug if needed.
selvedge, then change the shed, weft and adjust the position of the
bubble the weft, and beat on a clasp to fall under a raised warp so 9 Weave ½" of scrap yarn to pro-
closed shed. Move your temple that when it is beaten, it is hidden tect the weft. Remove the rug from
frequently as you weave. on the underside of the rug. the loom.

5 Begin the clasped-weft band (see 6 Weave 9 picks with the first 10 Work the Maori edge starting
Resources). Using the rug schematic warp end on the left woven in the with the rug face down or prepare
in Figure 2 as a guide, mark the triangle color. On the next pick, a fringe (see Resources).
warp where the joins in the colors move the clasp over so that the
should land. The beginning of the next warp end is woven in the tri- RESOURCES
triangle is woven over 1 end; the angle color. Weave 9 picks on that Collingwood, Jason. Rug Weaving with
upper edge is woven over 16 ends. end. Repeat this pattern, weaving Jason Collingwood. Class handout
Place 2 balls of Spiced Mustard yarn 9 picks for each step until you fin- from Yadkin Valley Fiber Center,
in a bowl or bag on the floor to the ish on the 16th end. The diagonal North Carolina, 2019.
left of the loom and draw 2 strands edge of the triangle comprises 16 Collingwood, Peter. The Techniques of
up. Send the Light Khaki yarn on the steps of 9 picks each. Rug Weaving. New York: Watson-
shuttle through the shed from the Guptill, 1972.
right and link it around 2 strands of 7 Weave 1" of Gunmetal Gray.
the Spiced Mustard before sending Repeat the triangle/gray pattern FR ANCES RICHARDSON, former textile
it back to the right through the same until you have woven 6 triangles. conservator and teacher, lives in
shed. The Spiced Mustard yarn Rockbridge County, Virginia. She recently
passes into the shed and back to 8 After the 6th triangle, weave undertook research on a collection of
the left. You will end up with 4 2" of dark gray, leaving extra room local historical weaving drafts.

SUMMER 2024 H A NDWOV EN 47


BA L A NCING A S Y M M E TRY

Left: Photo by Matt Graves. Right: Photo by Tien Chiu


Left: Tien used the principle of weight to balance her Eventide Elegance Scarf, page 51. Right: Tien’s Autumn Splendor uses a
balanced, asymmetric design to give the feeling of a windblown leaf.

Balancing Asymmetry
BY T I E N C H I U

Symmetric designs can be beautiful, with the bonus of being relatively easy designs typically look better when
to design; however, when you want a more lively, less regular feel to your they feel balanced between the right
piece, it’s time to experiment with asymmetry. and left sides and/or top to bottom.
Symmetric designs, as in Draft 1,
Asymmetric designs are often more In my handwoven coat, Autumn are easy to balance. You simply do
visually intriguing than similar sym- Splendor (shown above), I wanted a the same thing on both sides and
metric designs. The irregular forms dramatic sense of sweeping move- voilà! It all works out. However, if
produced by asymmetry make us ment, like a leaf blown about in the you want to create balance without
want to look longer at them to figure wind. That sense of freedom would the formal look created by symme-
out what they mean, visually speak- have been hard to achieve with a try, you’ll have to work out asym-
ing. As a result, asymmetric projects symmetric pattern, so I decided on metric balance.
often feel more dynamic, intriguing, an asymmetric design. The result is
and casual than symmetric pieces. much more free-flowing than a HORIZONTAL BAL ANCE
(That doesn’t mean they’re better symmetric design would have been. Let’s start by discussing horizontal
than symmetric pieces, though—it When you opt for asymmetry, balance, the balance between the
depends on your tastes and creative though, design becomes a little right and left sides of a piece. Hori-
goals for a piece.) more challenging. That’s because zontal balance in asymmetry is

48 H A NDWOV EN handwovenmagazine.com
BA L A NCING A S Y M M E TRY
Draft 1 Draft 2
hard to define in words but easy to
see. Some design elements have
more visual interest than others.
You can think of them as having
more visual weight; they attract the
eye more than other elements. If you
put all the interesting parts on one
side of a piece, it will feel unbal-
anced, like a seesaw with only one
person on it.
The design shown in Draft 2, for
example, is unbalanced—the most Draft 3 Draft 4
visually interesting part is all the
way on the left, and there’s nothing
interesting on the right side. Unbal-
anced designs often feel unsettling.
Sometimes, that’s what you want—
but if not, you’ll need to balance
your design.
One way to balance a design is by
putting similar stripes at roughly
the same distance from the center
to create a piece that is almost, but
not quite, symmetric. For example,
you can put a stripe on one side and
then put a similar-sized stripe with
equally assertive colors on the
other, placed symmetrically as in
Draft 3. This gives the project a
more dynamic appearance while
still feeling balanced.
The principle of weight can also
help with designing balanced asym-
metric designs. Think of balance as
a seesaw: you can put a weight any-
where on the seesaw, but the farther
from the center it is, the more force
it exerts. Put another way, a weight
on the end of the seesaw arm will
push the arm down farther than the
same weight right next to the center
of the seesaw. The same principle
applies in design; a small stripe far
from the center of a piece can
balance a wider stripe closer to
the center.

SUMMER 2024 H A NDWOV EN 49


BA L A NCING A S Y M M E TRY

Draft 5 Draft 6
about making sure that the weight
of a piece is distributed in a way
that feels comfortable to our visual
brain. Putting bigger, darker objects
on the bottom and smaller, lighter
design elements on top creates a
sense of vertical balance.
Designs with big, dark areas sus-
pended on the top of the piece
almost seem to be floating in midair
and can look unsettling and lacking
Draft 7 Draft 8 in vertical balance. That’s because
we look at them and instinctively
think the unsupported dark areas
will fall. As a result, vertically bal-
anced designs that are asymmetric
generally can’t be flipped upside
down and retain a balanced feel.
For example, Draft 7 is vertically
balanced, with the darker, heavier
parts on the bottom and the lighter,
smaller ones on top. Draft 8, how-
ever, is not vertically balanced; the
colors have been flipped from top to
bottom, putting the darker, heavier
If you’d like something more symmetrical, you don’t have to elements at the top, so the design
balance the draft using the same stripes or the same colors. feels unsettling.
Asymmetric, vertically balanced
projects often have a definite top
and bottom. If you don’t mind
In the example shown in Draft 4, stripes that are internally symmetric— arranging the item “upright” (or
the large stripe to the left is bal- but working with asymmetric stripes don’t mind it feeling upside down!),
anced by the small stripe at far works, too, and produces a less rigid this isn’t an issue. If you’d prefer
right. The small stripe, farther from feel. In Draft 6 you can see two groups something that can be flipped top
the center than the larger stripe, of stripes in similar colors. Notice the to bottom, such as a scarf, then ver-
gains visual weight due to its loca- formal, ordered, and calming look tical symmetry or near-symmetry is
tion, causing the design to balance of the symmetric stripe on the left. your best option.
out even though one stripe is larger. Then, on the right, notice the infor- Of course, if you don’t mind a
If you’d like something more sym- mal, dynamic look of the asymmetric piece that feels unbalanced, you can
metrical, you don’t have to balance stripes. That’s the difference between arrange your design however you
the draft using the same stripes symmetry and asymmetry! like! Weave it your way.
or the same colors. The drawdown
in Draft 5 shows an example of a VERTICAL BAL ANCE RESOURCES
balanced stripe design that uses dif- Top-to-bottom balance, or vertical Pentak, Stephen, and David A. Lauer.
ferent stripes and colors. balance, works differently from hor- Design Basics. Boston, MA: Cengage
Thus far, we’ve been playing with izontal balance. Vertical balance is Learning, 2015.

50 H A NDWOV EN handwovenmagazine.com
4 -S H A F T

Eventide Elegance Scarf


TIEN CHIU

STRUC TURE YARNS WARP LE NGTH DIME NSIONS


Twill. Warp: 8/2 cotton (3,360 yd/lb; Maurice Brassard), 290 ends 2¾ yd long Width in the reed:
#83 Noir, 487 yd; #5169 Fuchsia, 88 yd; #3161 Jaune (includes floating sel- 1010⁄12".
EQUIPME NT
Or, 80 yd; #5029 Bleu Moyen, 72 yd; #1315 Orange vedges; allows 7" for Woven length: (mea-
4-shaft loom, 11" weav-
Pâle, 44 yd; #5120 Mauve Pâle, 28 yd. take-up, 20" for loom sured under tension on
ing width; 12-dent reed;
Weft: 8/2 Tencel (100% lyocell; 3,360 yd/lb; waste; loom waste in- the loom) 72".
1 shuttle.
Maurice Brassard), #T5070 Royal, 646 yd. cludes fringe). Finished size: (after wet-
finishing and hemming)
SET TS
9" × 65" plus 3" fringe.
Warp: 27 epi (2-2-2-3/
dent in a 12-dent reed).
Weft: 27 ppi.

If you’re just starting out weaving with asymmetry, this scarf is a reed. Sley the floating selvedges through
perfect introduction as it combines symmetric stripes into an empty dents on each side of the warp and
asymmetric design. A wide stripe on one side is balanced by a pair weight them over the back beam.
of smaller stripes on the other, giving it a fun, casual feel.
The challenge in designing this scarf lay in combining the three 2 Wind a bobbin with the weft. Tien rec-
stripes—all different widths—with the woven pattern. I experi- ommends winding several bobbins of weft
mented with aligning the stripe width and placement with the pat- to make it easy to switch bobbins as they
tern repeat (32 threads), but this resulted in a stiff, rigid feel. Placing run out. Leaving at least 6" of unwoven
the stripes with no care for the woven pattern, though, felt disjointed. warp for fringe, spread the warp with
The symmetric colors in each stripe seemed to “want” a symmetric scrap yarn.
woven pattern to go with them. What to do?
I decided to center each stripe around an element in the woven pat- 3 Leaving a tail 1 yd long for hemstitching,
tern to align the two types of symmetry: color and weaving pattern. begin weaving the pattern following the
However, I made the stripes different widths, which changed the ap- draft in Figure 2. Use the tail to hemstitch
pearance of the motifs. The large stripe runs across what looks like a in groups of 4 warp ends, including an
series of four-pointed stars. The medium-size stripe creates large occasional 3- or 5-thread unit to keep the
“eyes,” and the thin stripe produces a tiny series of Xs and Os. colors neat in the striped areas.
If you are designing with a draft that creates motifs (as opposed to
an “allover” draft such as 2/2 straight twill), think carefully about how 4 Continue weaving following the draft
to align those motifs with your color pattern, especially when design- for about 72", ending at the end of a pat-
ing asymmetrically! Thinking about how color and woven pattern coor- tern repeat. Hemstitch as you did at the
dinate can make all the difference in designing a piece you love. beginning.

1 Wind a warp of 288 ends 2¾ yd long following the warp color 5 Leaving at least 6" for fringe on both
order in Figure 1. Wind 2 additional ends of Noir (black) to be used ends, cut the fabric from the loom. Trim
as floating selvedges and set them aside. Warp the loom using the fringe ends to 5". Prepare a twisted
your preferred method, following the draft in Figure 2. Centering fringe using 2 hemstitched groups in
for a weaving width of 1010⁄12", sley 2-2-2-3 per dent in a 12-dent each fringe bundle.

SUMMER 2024 H A NDWOV EN 51


52 H A NDWOV EN handwovenmagazine.com
HEDDLE COUNT 1. WARP COLOR ORDER
Shaft 4 81 26 13 13 #5029 Bleu Moyen
Shaft 3 90 29 15 11 3 #3161 Jaune Or
Shaft 2 72 16 3 3 4 4 1 1 #1315 Orange Pâle
Shaft 1 45 32 8 8 6 6 2 2 #5169 Fuchsia
Total 288 10 4 4 1 1 #5120 Mauve Pâle
175 16 125 7 27 #83 Black/Noir
288 ends total

2. DRAFT
2x 2x 2x 2x 2x
1 2 3 4
4 4
3 3
2 2
1 1

3x cont’d
2x 2x 2x 2x 2x 2x

2x
2x
cont’d
2x 2x 2x 2x 2x 2x

72"
2x
cont’d

2x
2x 2x 2x 2x 2x 2x 2x

floating selvedge
Bleu Moyen
Jaune Or
Orange Pâle
Fuchsia
Mauve Pâle
Black/Noir
Royal

6 Wet-finish in warm water with a


small amount of mild detergent by
gently agitating with your hands
for 1–2 minutes. Rinse well and
dry flat. Press with an iron when
almost dry.

TIEN CHIU teaches classes on color and


design at The Handweaving Academy,
an online school where weavers learn
to design projects they’ ll love.

SUMMER 2024 H A NDWOV EN 53


54 H A NDWOV EN handwovenmagazine.com
8-SH A F T

Emerging Asymmetry Scarf


B R E N DA G I B S O N

STRUC TURE YARNS WARP LE NGTH DIME NSIONS


Deflected doubleweave. Warp: Kiku 20/2 silk (5,000 yd/lb; Treenway Silks), 312 ends 3 yd long Width in the reed: 13".
#226 November Maverick, 468 yd. 2/18 superfine (allows 8" for take-up, Woven length: (mea-
EQUIPME NT
merino (5,040 yd/lb; Jagger Spun), Chanel, 468 yd. 21" for loom waste; loom sured under tension on
8-shaft loom, 13" weav-
Weft: Kiku 20/2 silk, #226 November Maverick, waste includes fringe). the loom) 79".
ing width; 12-dent reed;
388 yd. 2/18 superfine merino, Chanel, 404 yd. Finished size: (after
2 shuttles. SET TS
wet-finishing) 9½" × 67"
Warp: 24 epi (2/dent in
plus 11⁄2" fringe.
a 12-dent reed).
Weft: 24 ppi.

I am fond of all forms of doubleweave but especially love deflected


doubleweave with its bold and exuberant patterning possibilities. Note on Structure
Yarns will curve and gaps will close upon wet-finishing, and the ef- Deflected doubleweave is a subset
of doubleweave where the warp and
fects of differential shrinkage can be creatively exploited. weft threads of each layer alternate in
The fabulous color and texture in my scarf remind me of a regal groups rather than individually.
theme, with gold threads contrasting beautifully against sumptuous
fabrics in purples, pinks, and reds. Where I live in the United
Kingdom, we were recently immersed in pageantry with the funeral
of Queen Elizabeth II and the coronation of King Charles III.
Historically, many kings and queens have been famously eccentric—
literally meaning off-center—or asymmetric, one might perhaps say.
There are both aesthetic and practical reasons for embracing
asymmetry from time to time. The slight disturbance of an other-
wise symmetrical pattern can create a frisson of visual interest.
Here, I used a slight variation in the width of threading blocks, the
depth of treadling blocks, and the rhythm of the point reversals, in
addition to placing the focal point of the design off-center.
Deflected doubleweave has two sets of selvedges, one for each color.
A symmetrical draft has an outer pair of selvedges in one color and
an inner pair in the other color, which can involve the need for some
tricky choreography of shuttles when changing color. However, by
making an asymmetric draft with each outer selvedge a different
color, no such adjustments are required, provided each shuttle
starts at its own selvedge. All this enables a smoother and more
pleasurable weaving experience.

1 Wind a warp of 312 ends 3 yd long following the warp color


order in Figure 1. Warp the loom using your preferred method,

SUMMER 2024 H A NDWOV EN 55


2. DRAFT
2x 2x
4x 3x 3x 3x 3x 3x 2x 2x 2x 2x 2x 2x 2x 2x 2x 2x
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
8 8 8 8 8
7 7 7 7 7
6 6 6 6 6
5 5 5 5 5
4 4 4 4 4
3 3 3 3 3
2 2 2 2 2
1 1 1 1 1

8x
2x cont’d

2x
3x 3x 3x 3x 2x 2x 2x 2x 3x 3x 3x 3x 3x 3x 4x 4x 4x 4x 4x

2x
8x
2x
2x
2x
2x 2x 2x 2x 2x 2x 2x 3x
repeat until piece measures about 73"
cont’d

repeat cont’d
2x 2x 2x
2x
2x 2x 3x 3x 3x 4x 4x
2x
2x
2x
2x

Chanel
2x

3x
November Maverick
2x

3x
2x

3x
2x

2x

HEDDLE COUNT
2x

2x

Shaft 8 40
11x

Shaft 7 40
2x

3x

Shaft 6 38
Shaft 5 38
2x

2x

Shaft 4 36
Shaft 3 36
2x

2x

Shaft 2 42
Shaft 1 42
2x

2x

Total 312
2x

2x
8x

2x
2x

1. WARP COLOR ORDER


2x

2x 2x 2x 4x 3x 4x 5x
156 8 6 6 8 6 4 6 8 6 4 8 Chanel
156 8 6 8 6 4 6 8 6 6 4 8 #226 November Maverick
312 ends total

56 H A NDWOV EN handwovenmagazine.com
following the draft in Figure 2. You
may find it easier to wind 2 sepa-
rate warps, 156 ends of each color,
and combine them either in the rad-
dle or in the reed according to your
warping method. Centering for a
weaving width of 13", sley 2 per
dent in a 12-dent reed. Note: While
many deflected-doubleweave proj-
ects require a floating selvedge,
this one does not, nor is it recom-
mended by the designer.

2 Wind shuttles with each of the


weft colors. Leaving at least 2" of
unwoven warp for fringe, spread the
warp with scrap yarn.

3 Starting from the right side and


leaving a tail 1 yd long for hem-
stitching, weave 17 picks of plain
weave with the merino shuttle,
ending with the shuttle on the left
side. Use the tail to hemstitch in
color groups of 4 or 6 warp ends;
divide the widest color stripes into 6 Wet-finish in water at about (a nailbrush is great for this) and
2 groups of 4 ends. 100°F (which feels only just warm) given a final neatening trim
with a mild detergent suitable for when dry.
4 Starting with the silk shuttle on silk and wool. Squeeze the scarf
the right side, weave the border in the water to full the merino but RESOURCES
treadling for the start. Continue do not agitate so much as to cre- Keasbey, Doramay. Pattern Techniques
weaving the main patterned body ate obvious shrinking or fulling. for Handweavers. Eugene, OR: self-
of the scarf following the draft in Rinse, blot in a towel, and leave published, 2005.
Figure 2 until it measures about to dry completely before judging Richards, Ann. Weaving: Structure and
73". Weave the border treadling for the effect, which is not obvious Substance. Ramsbury, Wiltshire, UK:
the end and add 17 picks of plain when wet. It is better to have to Crowood Press, 2021.
weave in merino so that the shuttle repeat the finishing process to van der Hoogt, Madelyn, ed. The Best of
ends on the right. Leave a tail 1 yd enhance the effect rather than Weaver’s: Fabrics That Go Bump. Sioux
long before cutting the shuttle have too much shrinkage or fulling, Falls, SD: XRX Books, 2002.
thread, and hemstitch in merino as as these processes are irrevers-
you did at the beginning. ible. The silk should just bubble BRENDA GIBSON, based in London, has
up a little above the slightly fulled been weaving seriously and teaching
5 Leaving at least 2" for fringe merino wool background. The weaving since retiring from her first
on both ends, cut the fabric from short, hemstitched fringe can be career about 17 years ago.
the loom. straightened out while still damp

SUMMER 2024 H A NDWOV EN 57


CL A SPED WA RP ON 4 SH A F TS

Photo by Matt Graves


Using the clasped-warp technique, Robin gets planned areas of asymmetric warp color changes throughout her scarf.

Clasped Warp on 4 Shafts


R O B I N LY N D E

The clasped-warp technique allows you to change colors midway in a warp in CL A SPE D -WARP DESIG N
either a random or purposeful design. This unique method is most often used It’s perfectly acceptable to let clasped-
along with direct warping on a rigid-heddle loom. In fact, I first saw the idea in warp joins happen randomly, but
an advertisement for a rigid-heddle loom. I wove several pieces using the tech- there are factors you should consider.
nique, experimenting with color and design ideas, and then wrote an article Where will the joins occur? Joins
about clasped warp for Easy Weaving with Little Looms (Summer 2020). in the middle part of your piece may
be evident in a shawl but not in a
I experimented with clasped warps Clasped-warp weaving gives me the scarf that is tucked around the neck.
on a multi-shaft loom, and I enjoy the best of both worlds: the fun of chang- Also, think about the ends of the
way pattern appears and disappears ing color with direct warping; and piece—will there be fringe or hems?
when you use a weft yarn that seeing a woven-in pattern come and Joins close to the ends disappear in the
matches one of the warp yarns. I have go as the warp color changes at each fringe area and can even disrupt the
now used the direct-warping tech- clasp or join. Here are my tips for integrity of hems or fringe.
nique for four-shaft shawls and success in the design and execution You have many options for creat-
scarves using a variety of yarns. of such a project. ing designs based on the join

58 H A NDWOV EN handwovenmagazine.com
CL A SPED WA RP ON 4 SH A F TS
placement. The joins may create an shows pattern in the center and percent as the starting point for the
overall diagonal, zigzag, or vertical solid colors on the outer triangle sett. Based on my experience with
design or a shape that is more ran- shapes. Shawl 2 uses Design 5 with a clasped-weft projects and these
dom. Consider using more than two light weft, so it has light edges and yarns, I sett Ashford DK (12 wpi) at
yarns or trading the positions of the center stripe shows pattern 6 ends per inch (epi); locally grown
the yarns (see Figure 1). As I write, as the light weft crosses the dark TR yarn (14 wpi) at 8 epi; Harrisville
I’m thinking of more ideas to explore! warp. You can even experiment with Designs Shetland (14 wpi) at 8 epi;
adding a third color for weft. and Jagger Spun Zephyr wool-silk
Yarn Color (30 wpi) at 15 epi. When planning
As in any other weaving, hue and Sett the sett, remember that each warp
value have huge effects on the I weave a lot of wool blankets and end is doubled.
resulting cloth. For the most dra- shawls, using a somewhat open sett I recommend against mixing
matic results, consider using yarns and light beat to produce a light- warp yarns in each project because
of quite different values. If one warp weight fabric with good drape yarns with differing elasticity can
yarn is light and the other is dark, after fulling. give unexpected results. You can use
and you choose to repeat one of Looking back over past projects, a different weft yarn, but I have
those yarns in the weft, you’ll see the my rule of thumb is to measure used the warp yarns (not doubled)
pattern where one yarn crosses the wraps per inch (wpi) and use 50 for weft in all of my projects.
other but will notice mostly texture
where the weft yarn is the same as
the warp. 1. PLACEMENT OF JOINS
The diagrams indicate warp yarns. Weft choices will impact appearance.
In Figure 1, Designs 4 and 5 use Yarns A and B are at different ends in 1, 2, and 3.
the same layout, but dark and light 1 The simplest method for your first project is to let the joins fall
warp yarns have traded places. Visu- in random locations.
alize how that center stripe would 2 This version places joins along a single diagonal.
look in each design depending on the 3 Joins can create one or more points.
hue or value of the weft yarn. 4 The light yarn appears to move diagonally through a dark background.
With my project (page 62), Shawl 1 5 Same as 4 but the dark and light yarn positions are reversed.
uses Design 4 with a dark weft that 6 Light and dark yarns create squared-off shapes as they trade places.
7 This join is more complicated, with two points and a third warp color.

1 2 3 4 5 6 7

SUMMER 2024 H A NDWOV EN 59


CL A SPED WA RP ON 4 SH A F TS

Draft If you want to follow a specific


Tip
Consider float length and ease of plan for where the joins will land,
If you are weaving the full width
threading when planning the draft mark the guide string with a mark- of your loom and don’t want to
for a clasped-warp project. You will ing pen or with sewing or binder remove extra heddles, you can
be threading while winding your clips at the quarter, halfway, and use two heddles as one.
warp and keeping your tension three-quarter points. Mark these
under control. I like to use a thread- same three points on the reed with
ing that is simple to remember and scrap yarn as well. points (see Design 4 in Figure 1).
easy to check as I go. Also, float As with any project, make sure A bench or chair placed between
length may be a consideration you have the correct number of the peg and the loom is a handy
because your sett is wider than heddles on each shaft before you place to hold this diagram as well as
usual for a given yarn. begin warping the loom. your draft and second yarn source.
Secure the beater partway
HOW TO WIND A CL A SPE D WARP between the shafts and the breast Measuring Warp
ON A MULTI -SHAF T LOOM
beam. Some looms have a pin to do Tie one warp yarn (Yarn A) to the
Loom Setup that; if yours doesn’t, tie it in place back apron bar and one warp yarn
Attach a warping peg to a fixed sur- or use clamps to secure it. (Yarn B) to the warping peg. Sepa-
face such as a shelf or heavy table. I like to refer to a diagram of the rate the heddles for your first pat-
Move the loom so that the back apron position of the clasping pattern tern repeat and slide them away
bar is the full length of your warp while I’m winding the warp. My dia- from the others. Use a threading
away from the peg. Measure a non- gram is marked with a dotted line hook to pull a loop of Yarn A
stretchy cord the exact warp length down the middle and three dotted through the first heddle of your pat-
and attach the ends of the cord to the horizontal lines to indicate the tern and then through the reed.
peg and the back apron bar. quarter, halfway, and three-quarter When the Yarn A loop is in the

Photos by Robin Lynde unless otherwise noted

Left: The completed warp for Shawl 1 is ready to wind on to the loom. Notice the warping guide string with clips attached and the
clips on Shaft 4 that indicate threading repeats. Right: The warp for Shawl 1 wrapped on the peg. Each end is wrapped an extra time
around the peg to maintain even tension and so the join position doesn’t slip.

60 H A NDWOV EN handwovenmagazine.com
CL A SPED WA RP ON 4 SH A F TS
Left: Halfway through warping Shawl 2 and ready to change yarn colors from one end to the other. The warping guide string with
clips is visible. Compare the position of the bench in these two photos. Even though I wind without high tension, the warp tension on
Shawl 2 has built up enough to shift the shelf where I attached the peg. I moved the bench to hold the shelf in place while I finished.
Right: The full warp for Shawl 2 is ready to wind on to the loom.

position where you want the join, you finish each repeat of the thread- Winding Warp
bring the entire ball of Yarn B ing draft. After you have threaded all the warp
through the loop and back around The most difficult part of this ends, cut and tie the last end of each
the peg. Wrapping it around the peg process may be learning to keep color to the back apron bar or warp-
a second time makes it easier to even tension across the warp ing peg. Wind the warp onto your
maintain the position of the join because care is needed with warp beam as normal, making sure
and the tension. That’s your first stretchy yarns. You do not want a that the joins don’t catch on the
warp end! tight warp—you want an evenly heddles or reed. Using some tension
Repeat this process for the rest of tensioned warp. Pay attention to the helps as you wind on. If the warp is
the warp. Notice that the Yarn A process, and you will discover tricks too wide to hold while winding, wind
loop will alternate starting posi- to keep your warp tension even. a few inches at a time, then add ten-
tions as you warp, coming from over Wrapping Yarn B around the end sion to groups sequentially.
and then under the back apron bar. peg twice helps me focus on the ten- Tie to the front apron bar and you
Use the markers on the warp sion of Yarn A as I pick up and are ready to weave!
measurement string to aid in plac- thread the next loop.
ing the joins as you move from one Make sure the loom and peg stay RESOURCES
side of the warp to the other. in place. A lightweight loom or a Lynde, Robin. “Clasped-Warp Weaving.”
Remember to allow for fringe and warping peg that is not firmly Easy Weaving with Little Looms, 2020,
waste yarn when determining attached may shift as warp tension 107–109.
where to place the joins. builds up—another reason to ———. “Green Pastures Scarf.” Easy
Use binder clips or sewing clips keep the warp tension consistent Weaving with Little Looms, 2020,
on the heddle bar to keep track as but light. 52–53.

SUMMER 2024 H A NDWOV EN 61


62 H A NDWOV EN handwovenmagazine.com
4 -S H A F T

Cascading Colors Scarves


R O B I N LY N D E

STRUC TURE DIME NSIONS SET TS


Twill with clasped warp. Width in the reed: 23". Warp: 8 epi (1 doubled
Woven length: (measured under tension on the loom) 90". end/dent in an 8-dent
EQUIPME NT
Finished size: (after wet-finishing) 18" × 76" plus reed).
4-shaft loom, 24" weaving width; 8-dent reed; 1 shuttle.
5" fringe. Weft: 7 ppi.
YARNS FOR A SHFORD DK SHAWL (SHAWL 1)
YARNS FOR LOCALLY G ROWN/ DIME NSIONS
Warp: Ashford DK (100% wool, 221 yd/100 g; Ashford), NATUR ALLY DYE D SHAWL (SHAWL 2)
Width in the reed: 24".
#806 Mist and #826 Sapphire, 828 yd total, split Warp: TR22 or TR23 (100% wool; about 1,500 yd/lb;
Woven length: (mea-
between colors. Meridian Jacobs), natural and indigo dyed, 1,152 yd
sured under tension on
Weft: Ashford DK, #826 Sapphire, 443 yd. total, split between colors.
the loom) 90".
Weft: TR23, natural, 462 yd.
OTHE R SUPPLIES Finished size: (after wet-
Nonstretchy cord, 3 yd; fringe twister (optional). OTHE R SUPPLIES finishing) 19" × 67" plus
Nonstretchy cord, 3 yd; fringe twister (optional). 5" fringe.
WARP LE NGTH
138 doubled ends (276 ends total) 3 yd long (allows WARP LE NGTH
18" for take-up and loom waste; loom waste includes 192 doubled ends (384 ends total) 3 yd long (allows
fringe). Note: Yarn will stretch under tension. 18" for take-up and loom waste; loom waste includes
fringe). Note: Yarn will stretch under tension.
SET TS
Warp: 6 epi (1 doubled end/dent in a 6-dent reed).
Weft: 7 ppi.

I knew I wanted to submit this clasped-warp idea to Handwoven after I


successfully adapted the technique, usually direct-warped on a rigid-
heddle loom, to a 4-shaft loom. While planning my article, I wove
several scarves and shawls and was limited only by time to explore
myriad variations. I did not—and could not—weave all the pieces that
I envisioned and even had trouble narrowing down which version to
share. So instead of choosing one, I offer you two options.

1 Attach a warping peg to a fixed surface such as a shelf or


heavy table. Move the loom so that the back apron bar is the full
length of your warp away from the peg. Measure a nonstretchy
cord the exact warp length for either Shawl 1 or Shawl 2 and
attach the ends of the cord to the peg and the back apron bar.
Follow the instructions under “How to Wind a Clasped Warp on
a Multi-Shaft Loom” in the article on page 58 of this issue, cen-
tering for a weaving width of either 23" for Shawl 1 or 24" for
Shawl 2. Create your clasp design and thread using the draft in
Figure 1 or 2 in this project.

SUMMER 2024 H A NDWOV EN 63


(Robin twisted fringe for both pieces about 2½ minutes, drain, and rinse
Weaving Tips
but hemstitched only Shawl 2.) by soaking in warm water. Drain.
• The two designs described
Lay shawl flat on large towels to
4 Continue weaving, following the
here roughly follow Designs
4 and 5 in Figure 1 on page dry. When partially dry, hang it
59. Robin did not include draft in Figure 1 or 2 for about 90" over a padded rod.
specific amounts for each or desired length. Hemstitch as at
of the two colors of warp
the beginning. RESOURCES
yarn because they will vary
depending on your design. Lynde, Robin. “Clasped-Warp Weaving.”
Also, you may not use equal 5 Leaving at least 8" for fringe, Easy Weaving with Little Looms, 2020,
amounts of the two colors in cut the fabric from the loom. Trim 107–109.
your shawl, again depending ends to 8". Prepare a twisted Petzold, Charles G., Construction of
on your design. Be flexible!
fringe using 2 hemstitched groups Weaves, Nos. 1–7, handweaving.net.
• The warp yarns used in these
in each section. Draft 22200.
shawls are very elastic, and
they will stretch as you warp
the loom. After the finished 6 Wet-finish in hot water with mild ROBIN LYNDE raises her own sheep and
fabric is removed from the detergent. Agitate by hand or by dye plants, teaches weaving, and
loom, it will shrink substan- machine on the delicate cycle for weaves items to sell locally and online.
tially in length.
• Robin chose not to use float-
ing selvedges because she
doesn’t find the selvedge 1. ASHFORD DK SHAWL DRAFT (SHAWL 1)
edge a problem when weav- 13x
1 2 3 4
ing with wool. For Shawl 2, 4 4 4 4 4 4
she started weaving from the 3 3 3 3 3 3 3
left side with Treadle 1 and 2 2 2 2 2 2 2
1 1 1 1 1 1
wrapped the shuttle around
/
the right selvedge thread for /
each pick on Treadle 6. She /
skipped that step for Shawl 1. /
2x

/
If you prefer, you can use ASHFORD DK SHAWL HEDDLE COUNT /
90"

one thread at each edge as Shaft 4 28 /


a floating selvedge, or you Shaft 3 41 /
can add another end at each Shaft 2 41 /
Shaft 1 28 /
edge to serve that purpose. /
Total 138
/

2 Wind a bobbin with the chosen


2. LOCALLY GROWN SHAWL DRAFT (SHAWL 2)
24x
1 2 3 4 5 6
weft color. Leaving at least 8" at 4 4 4 4 4
the beginning of the warp for 3 3 3 3 3
2 2 2 2 2
fringe, spread the warp with 1 1 1 1 1
scrap yarn. /
/
/
3 Leaving a tail 2½ yd long for /
90"

LOCALLY GROWN SHAWL HEDDLE COUNT


/
hemstitching, weave about an inch /
Shaft 4 48 /
following your chosen treadling Shaft 3 48 /
draft. Use the tail to hemstitch in Shaft 2 48
Shaft 1 48
groups of 2 doubled warp ends. Total 192

64 H A NDWOV EN handwovenmagazine.com
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SUMMER 2024 H A NDWOV EN 65


4 -S H A F T

Summer Berry Towels


M A LY N DA A L L E N

STRUC TURE YARNS WARP LE NGTH DIME NSIONS


Twill. Warp: 10/2 cotton (4,200 yd/lb; Georgia Yarn 459 ends 4½ yd long Width in the reed: 193⁄12".
Company), Natural, 315 yd; Warm Navy, 675 yd; (includes floating Woven length: (mea-
EQUPM E NT
Hyacinth Violet, 1,076 yd. selvedges; allows 12" for sured under tension on
4-shaft loom, 20" weav-
Weft: 10/2 cotton, Cherry Red, 906 yd; Warm Navy, take-up, 32" for loom the loom) 118", or four
ing width; 12-dent reed;
479 yd; Olive Green, 450 yd; Natural, 94 yd. waste). Note: Allow 33" towels about 29½" each.
2–4 shuttles; 5 bobbins.
for each additional towel. Finished size: (after
OTHE R SUPPLIES
wet-finishing and hem-
Coordinating sewing thread. SET TS
ming) four towels,
Warp: 24 epi (2/dent in
16½" × 24½" each.
a 12-dent reed).
Weft: 27 ppi.

I love symmetry, but I admire the beautiful work of other weavers


who design asymmetric patterning with apparent ease. While Weaving Notes/Tips
designing these towels, I combined my love of symmetry and asym- • The accent thread in the body of tow-
metry. When folded in thirds lengthwise, each third is symmetrical; els 1 and 3 is always placed on treadle
1 between the two treadle 4 picks.
however, when the towel is open, the asymmetry becomes clear.
• Because there are many color changes,
I chose a simple rosepath twill and created designs by playing
reduce the thickness of the weft yarn
with color placement. In my sampling, I wove one towel by randomly at the selvedges by ply splitting.
switching weft colors as I went, giving me a beautifully varied sam-
1. With the shed open, pull the weft
pler, which I then used to plan the border for each towel. Two of the yarn tail up out of the shed about
towels use a single weft color (except for the border), and the other an inch from the selvedge.
two have an accent color throughout the body of the towel. Though 2. Split the plies.
you can weave these towels exactly as I did, I suggest putting on a 3. Take one ply back into the shed,
longer warp so you can play with the colors and design your own around the floating selvedge, and
custom borders. back into the shed, bringing it out of
While weaving, I noticed that the weft colors perfectly match the the shed a few threads past where
you brought it out originally. Beat.
currants and blackberries I harvest from my garden in the summer-
4. Trim the tails. This will keep your
time: bright red, black, and white among the dark green foliage. The
weft yarns at the same thickness
bright colors of these towels remind me of a summer picnic with red and prevent buildup at the sel-
and black currant jelly. vedges. You can carry the main
color up the edge.
1 Wind a warp of 457 ends 4½ yd long following the warp color
order in Figure 1. Wind 2 additional ends of Hyacinth Violet to be
used as floating selvedges and set them aside. Warp the loom 2 Wind bobbins with each of the weft
using your preferred method, following the draft in Figure 2. Cen- colors. Spread the warp with scrap yarn.
tering for a weaving width of 193⁄12", sley 2 per dent in a 12-dent
reed. Sley the floating selvedges through the empty dents on 3 With Warm Navy, weave the hem and
each side of the warp and weight them over the back beam. border for towel 1 following the draft

66 H A NDWOV EN handwovenmagazine.com
in Figure 2 and the weft color Green, following the draft and towel on each side of the con-
order in Figure 3. Continue weav- weft color orders and separating trasting picks.
ing the towel body until the towel the towels with 2 picks of con-
measures about 27½". Weave trasting yarn. 7 Wet-finish as you intend to wash
the hem. the finished towels. Tumble dry
5 Weave several picks of scrap until damp-dry. Press and allow to
4 Weave 2 picks of contrasting yarn to secure the weft. Cut the dry completely.
yarn to separate the towels. fabric from the loom.
Weave the remaining towels in 8 Cut the towels apart between
Cherry Red, Cherry Red with 6 Zigzag-stitch the ends of the contrasting yarn lines and trim
Warm Navy accents, and Olive weaving and the ends of each scrap yarn.

HEDDLE COUNT 1. WARP COLOR ORDER


Shaft 4 114 3x
Shaft 3 114 6x 18x 3x 2x 2x
Shaft 2 114
70 2 2 2 2 2 2 3 2 Natural
Shaft 1 115
150 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 Warm Navy
Total 457
237 21 3 3 3 24 3 2 3 2 1 3 2 5 Hyacinth Violet
457 ends total

SUMMER 2024 H A NDWOV EN 67


2. DRAFT
56x
1 2 3 4
4 4 4 4 4 4
3 3 3 3 3 3
2 2 2 2 2 2
1 1 1 1 1 1 1
1
2

3x
floating selvedge 3
4
4
3

hem
4x
2
1
1
2

4x
3
4
1
2
3

repeat
3. WEFT COLOR ORDER 4
1
Towel 1 Towel 2 Towel 3 Towel 4 4
3
Ch ural een
Na rry Ravy

tur avy

tur avy

vy
tur ed

Na rm N ed

N a rm N e d

rm e d
2
Na
Wa rry R

Wa rry R

Wa y R
Na e Gr
C h rm N

al

al

al

1
err
e

v
t
Wa

Oli
Ch

Ch

4
3

4x
44 hem 44 hem 44 hem 44 hem 2
4 28 4 29 1
3x

3x

1 9 1 4 1
3 7 3 7 2

hem
4x
4 1 4 1 3
3x

4 7 1 7 4
1 1 7 4 4
4 7 1 1 3

3x
7 9 3 3 2
1 body 8 1 1
3x

3 44 hem 1 3
1 7 1
3 1 4
1 8 7
7 3 1
4 1 7
1 4 4
4 7 1
9 Turn the hems up 1" and press.
4x

7 repeat for body 1 3


1 3 1 Turn the raw edges under to meet
4 9 3
44 hem 4 1 the fold. Press again. Sew the hems
12 4
3 7 in place by hand or machine.
1 1
3 7
1 4 RESOURCES
repeat for body
7 1 Dixon, Anne. The Handweaver’s Pattern
1 3
4 1 Directory. Loveland, CO: Interweave,
44 hem 3 2007, 83.
1
4
7 A mother of nine, MALYNDA ALLEN
1
7 enjoys watching beautiful patterns
4
body emerge as she plays with colors at
44 hem the loom.

68 H A NDWOV EN handwovenmagazine.com
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8-SH A F T

Changing Lanes Scarf


DEBORAH HEYMAN

STRUC TURE YARNS WARP LE NGTH DIME NSIONS


Twill. Warp: 10/2 pearl cotton (4,200 yd/lb; UKI; Yarn Barn of 594 ends 4 yd long Width in the reed: 214⁄12".
Kansas), #07 Black, 1,060 yd; #01 White, 1,028 yd; (includes floating Woven length: (mea-
EQUIPME NT
#67 Light Orange, #114 Indies Orange, #148 Caribbean, selvedges; allows 10" sured under tension on
8-shaft loom, 24" weav-
#63 Yale Blue, #37 Bali, #03 Fuchsia, #102 Magenta, for take-up, 38" for loom the loom) 96".
ing width; 12-dent reed;
and #10 Gold, 32 yd each. 10/2 pearl cotton (4,200 yd waste and sampling; Finished size: (after wet-
3 shuttles.
/lb; Lunatic Fringe Yarns), #5 Green Yellow, 32 yd. loom waste includes finishing and hemming)
Weft: 10/2 pearl cotton (UKI), #07 Black, 832 yd; fringe). 19" × 87" plus 4" fringe.
#63 Yale Blue, 535 yd; #01 White, 4,761 yd.
SET TS
Warp: 28 epi (2-2-3/dent
in a 12-dent reed).
Weft: about 23 ppi.

When I first began sampling for my project, I was looking to experi-


ment with the goal of achieving a pleated twill. My inspiration was a Additional Notes
small photo of a ridged fabric sample by Angela K. Schneider from the • Because you’ll be switching back
May/June 2021 issue of Handwoven (Yarn Lab: Camilla Valley Farm and forth frequently between the
blue and black wefts, it’s best to
2/16 Worsted-Spun Wool, sample 3). Inspired also by artist Yaacov
carry the inactive weft yarn up along
Agam’s agamographs, I’d hoped the vertical stripes would create two your selvedge.
different images depending on whether you looked at the fabric from
• Only small quantities are required
the left or right. for most of the colors, making this a
Originally, I planned on keeping my columns in weft-faced and great project for substituting your own
warp-faced twills consistent throughout the length of the fabric, al- choice of colors as a stash buster.
though I soon discovered the design had more interesting contrasts
and better color-value balance when I made occasional switches in
my treadling to include treadles 1, 2, 7, and 8. Even so, for the sake of
getting the fabric to pleat, I wove my sample using only treadles 3, 4,
5, and 6, but after washing, it didn’t pleat! Darn. Maybe if I had used
a smaller weft? Or an overspun yarn?
I reverted to my idea of occasionally changing the treadling to in-
clude eight treadles, feeling satisfied that the asymmetry of the de-
sign would be interesting enough in itself, even if the fabric didn’t
include the texture I’d anticipated.
Asymmetry appears in the colors in both the warp and the weft,
and the front of the fabric is different from the back. It’s intriguing
to see how the colors change depending on whether they are on the
white-dominant side or the black-dominant side. Look especially
at the two shades of side-by-side Fuchsia and Magenta. On one side,
they have a strong contrast, but on the other side, the two shades
look quite similar. While it’s not quite what I expected, I truly like
the way the weaving turned out.

70 H A NDWOV EN handwovenmagazine.com
1. WARP COLOR ORDER
3x 2x 4x 3x 3x 2x 2x 4x
8 8 #10 Gold
8 8 #102 Magenta
8 8 #03 Fuchsia
8 8 #37 Bali
8 8 #63 Yale Blue
8 8 #5 Green Yellow
8 8 #148 Caribbean
8 8 #114 Indies Orange
8 8 #67 Lt. Orange
256 8 8 8 8 8 8 8 8 24 8 8 8 8 8 8 #01 White
264 8 8 8 8 8 8 8 8 8 8 8 8 8 8 8 8 8 8 #07 Black
592 ends total

1 Wind a warp of 592 ends selvedges and set them aside. 2-2-3 in a 12-dent reed. Sley the
4 yd long following the warp Warp the loom using your floating selvedges through empty
color order in Figure 1. Wind preferred method, following the dents on each side of the warp
1 additional end each of White draft in Figure 2. Centering for a and weight them over the
and Black to be used as floating weaving width of 214⁄12", sley back beam.

SUMMER 2024 H A NDWOV EN 71


2. DRAFT 37x
2x 2x
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8
8 8 8 8 8

repeat cont’d

repeat cont’d
7 7 7 7 7
6 6 6 6 6
5 5 5 5 5
4 4 4 4 4
3 3 3 3 3
2x

2 2 2 2 2
1 1 1 1 1

14x
repeat cont’d
2x
4x

4x
repeat until 96" long
5x

2x
5x

6x
2x

2x
2x
3x

3x

5x
8x

8x

3x
3x
4x

5x
7x
10x
7x

2x
2x

2x
2x
2x

floating selvedge
Black
2x

Yale Blue
White

72 H A NDWOV EN handwovenmagazine.com
2. DRAFT (CONTINUED)

repeat cont’d

repeat cont’d
6x
2x

2x

2 Wind bobbins with each of the weft colors.


Leaving at least 8" of unwoven warp for fringe,
2x

spread the warp with scrap yarn.

HEDDLE COUNT
Shaft 8 74
3 Weave following the draft in Figure 2 until the
Shaft 7 74 piece measures about 96". Leaving at least 8" for
Shaft 6 74 fringe on both ends, cut the fabric from the loom. Trim
Shaft 5 74
Shaft 4 74 the fringe ends to 6". Prepare a twisted fringe using
2x

Shaft 3 74 2 bundles of 9 ends in each fringe.


Shaft 2 74
Shaft 1 74
Total 592 4 Wet-finish in warm water by gently agitating and
then leaving the scarf to soak for 20 minutes.
6x

Line-dry.

5 After wet-finishing, retie the fringe, placing the knots


at 3½" and trimming the fringe to a length of 4".
6x

RESOURCES
7x

Field, Anne. Collapse Weave: Creating Three-Dimensional


Cloth. North Pomfret, VT: Trafalgar Square Books, 2008.

DEBOR AH HE YMAN tries to weave with the motto that your


6x

project might not have turned out “good” in the way you ex-
pected—it’s just a different kind of “good.”

SUMMER 2024 H A NDWOV EN 73


GATH ERINGS
The Sheer Joy of
Weaving Together
By Handwoven and Easy Weaving with Little Looms staff

Early this year, a group of more than 40 weavers gathered in Colorado


for four days of weaving, camaraderie, and fun at Weave Together
with Handwoven.

On the official agenda were classes room admiring the finished pieces
covering a broad range of techniques others brought with them, as well as
for rigid-heddle, multi-shaft, tablet, projects woven and finished in classes
inkle, pin-loom, and tapestry weav- that week and even in-progress
ing (to say nothing of adventures in items still on the loom. There were
visible mending and making Dorset scarves and tapestries, designs full
buttons), with teachers familiar to of texture and color, and an incredi-
Handwoven readers, including Deb ble array of bands—including a
Essen, Sara Goldenberg White, memorable lace-adorned, jewel-
Bobbie Irwin, Sarah Neubert, John embellished inkle band made from
Mullarkey, Gabi van Tassell, Kate handspun tussah silk described as a
Larson, and Angela K. Schneider. “gown-less evening strap.” The cre-
On the unofficial agenda were ativity and humor of weavers never
good conversations with weaving cease to amaze!
friends old and new, a marketplace We hope the work you see here and
full of goodies to shop for, and many, online delights and inspires you as
many door prizes. much as it enchanted us. You can see
Perhaps the best part was the more pictures and a short video from
combined show-and-tell/low-key Weave Together at LT.Media/Weave
fashion show that wrapped up the -Together-2024.
event. Weavers walked around the

Top: Weaving on a pin loom. Second


from top: Cynthia beams as she shows
off the lacy techniques and textures she
learned in her rigid-heddle class.
Above: Weaving for iridescence on a
shaft loom. Right: Students concentrate
as they learn to weave tapestry.

SUMMER 2024 H A NDWOV EN 75


PROJEC T DIREC TORY

Designer/Weaver Project Page Structure Shafts Levels


RE A DER’S GUIDE

Allen, Malynda Summer Berry Towels 66 Twill 4 All levels


Chiu, Tien Eventide Elegance Scarf 51 Twill 4 All levels
Cox, Cynthia Core Spun Comfort Rug 42 Plain weave 2 or 4 All levels
Fox, Rebecca A Slice of Layer Cake Runner* 77 Plain weave 2 All levels
Gibson, Brenda Emerging Asymmetry Scarf 54 Deflected doubleweave 8 AB, I, A
Heyman, Deborah Changing Lanes Scarf 70 Twill 8 I, A
Hubbart, Carla Jeanne Zebras on the Serengeti* 77 Plain weave with color-and-weave RH AB, I, A
Knisely, Tom Sand and Sky Stitched Double Cloth Rug 38 Stitched double cloth twill 8 I, A
Lemons, Sandi Tuscan Summer Rug 24 Krokbragd 3 I, A
Liles, Suzie Building Blocks Rug 34 Taqueté 4 AB, I, A
Lough, Laura Mix It Up Mug Rugs* 77 Plain weave 2 or 4 All levels
Lynde, Robin Cascading Colors Scarves 62 Twill with clasped warp 4 I, A
Marchant, Catherine Twice-Woven Rug 32 Plain weave 2 or 4 All levels
Richardson, Frances Salts Mill Rug 44 Weft-faced plain weave 2 or 4 I, A
Levels indicate weaving skills, not sewing skills. AB = Advanced Beginner, I = Intermediate, A = Advanced. “All levels” includes very new weavers. *This is a subscriber-exclusive
project; see page 77 for more details.

YARN SUPPLIE RS
Baah Yarn, baahyarn.com (Hubbart 77). Handweavers Studio, handweavers Quilt Lizzy, quiltlizzy.com (Fox 77). Treenway Silks, treenwaysilks.com
Eugene Textile Center, eugenetextile .co.uk (Gibson 54). R&M Yarns, rmyarns.com (Gibson 54).
center.com (Liles 34). Lunatic Fringe Yarns, lunaticfringe (Richardson 44). WEBS, yarn.com (Fox 77).
Fuzzy Ewe Farm, FuzzyEweFarm.etsy yarns.com (Heyman 70). Rainbow Fiber Co-Op, rainbowfiber Yarn Barn of Kansas, yarnbarn-ks.com
.com (Cox 42). Maurice Brassard et Fils, mbrassard coop.org (Cox 42). (Fox 77, Gibson 54, Heyman 70,
Georgia Yarn Company, gayarn.com .com (Chiu 51). Red Stone Glen Fiber Arts Center, Richardson 44).
(Allen 66). Meridian Jacobs, meridianjacobs.com redstoneglen.com (Knisely 38).
Halcyon Yarn, halcyonyarn.com (Lynde 62). Tabby Tree Weaver, tabbytree
(Lough 77). weaver.com (Lemons 24).

FINISHING TECHNIQUES

Twisting (or plying) the fringe


Divide the number of threads for each fringe into two groups. Twist each group clockwise until it kinks. Bring both
groups together and allow them to twist around each other counterclockwise (or twist in that direction). Secure the ends
with an overhand knot. (Use the same method to make a plied cord by attaching one end to a stationary object.)

Double (Italian) hemstitching


Weave several picks of plain weave (or the basic
structure of the piece), ending with the shuttle on
the right side if you are right-handed, the left
side if you are left-handed. Measure a length of
weft four times the warp width, cut, and thread
this tail into a blunt tapestry needle. Take the
needle under a selected group of warp threads above the fell and bring
the needle back to encircle the ends. Next, pass the needle under the same
ends but come up two or more weft rows down from the fell. Then bring the
needle back around the same group of ends below the fell. Repeat, encircling
the next group of ends.

Simple hemstitching
Weave several picks of plain weave (or the basic structure of the piece), ending with the shuttle on the right side if you are
right-handed, the left side if you are left-handed. Measure a length of weft three times the warp width and cut, leaving the
measured length as a tail. Thread the tail into a blunt tapestry needle.
Take the needle under a selected group of ends above the fell and bring it up and back to the starting point, encircling the
same group of ends. Pass the needle under the same group, bringing it out through the weaving two (or more) weft threads
below the fell. Repeat for each group of ends across the fell. Needle-weave the tail into the selvedge and trim.

76 H A NDWOV EN handwovenmagazine.com
B E YON D TH E PRINTED PAG E
1 Bonus Projects for
Handwoven Subscribers
If you enjoyed this issue, head over to the
Handwoven website for even more projects!
Get your downloads now at
LT.Media/HWSU2024-Extras.

1. Zebras on the Serengeti


CARL A JEANNE HUBBART
Images from an African safari inspired this rigid-heddle-
woven scarf. Designer Carla Jeanne Hubbart cleverly
combines solid black and white yarns with a verdant
handpainted yarn to evoke images of zebras hiding in
a lush, rainy-season savanna.
2

A Slice of
2.
Layer Cake Runner
R E B E CC A F OX
Strips cut from a quilt-fabric layer cake make up the
weft in this sweet table runner. To show off the fabric’s
sophisticated neutral palette, designer Rebecca Fox
opts for a crammed-and-spaced warp that locks in the
weft while giving it room to shine.

3. Mix It Up Mug Rugs


L AU R A LO U G H
Use up even the smallest amounts of stash yarns in these
cute and clever mug rugs. Employing a simple hand-
manipulated technique—and multiple put-ups of odds-
3 and-ends stash yarns—designer Laura Lough creates
thick, colorful yarn chains perfect for weaving rugs for
your glassware (or your floor!).

M ix It U
p Mu g
geti Rugs
e Seren A Slice of Layer Cake Runner L AU R
A LO U

on th
G H

Z ebra sCARLA
JEANN
E HUB
BA RT R E B E CC A F OX

Web projects for Handwoven Summer 2024 can


be found at LT.Media/HWSU2024-Extras.

SUMMER 2024 H A NDWOV EN 77


Contact Michaela Kimbrough for magazine standing order opportunities.
Retail Shop Directory mkimbrough@longthreadmedia.com

ALASKA F LO R I DA M A RYL A N D NEBRASKA


Sheep Thrills Black Sheep Yarn Shop Plum Nelly
4701 North University Dr 9602 Deereco Rd. 743 W 2nd Street
Sunrise, FL 33351 Timonium, MD 21093 Hastings, NE 68901
(954) 742-1908 (410) 628-9276 theplumnelly.com
sheepthrillsknitting.com blacksheepyarnshop.com
NEW HAMPSHIRE
G E O RG I A M A S S AC H U S S E T TS Harrisville Designs
The Fiber Loft PO Box 806
Untangled Yarn & Fiber 9 Massachusetts Ave Harrisville, NH 03450
1624 Tongass Ave Harvard, MA 01451 (603) 827-3996
Ketchikan, AK 99901 (978) 456-8669 harrisville.com
(907) 225-YARN (9276) thefiberloft.com
www.untangledyarnandfiber.com Georgia Yarn Company NEW JERSEY
Ketchikan’s key stop for fiber art- 4991 Penfield Rd WEBS - America's Yarn Store
Union Point, GA 30669 The Spinnery
ists. Ashford dealer. Looms, wheels, 75 Service Center Rd
(706) 453-7603 33 Race St
supplies, hand-dyed yarn local and Northhampton Rd, MA 01060
gayarn.com Frenchtown, NJ 08825
sourced directly from dyers. Open (800) 367-9327
Selling cotton, linen and silk yarns. (908) 996-9004
year-round or see our website. yarn.com thespinnery.square.site

A R I ZO N A ILLINOIS MICHIGAN
Fine Line Creative Arts Center
N E W M E X I CO
Fiber Creek Fibershed Yarn and Fiber Arts Espanola Valley Fiber Arts
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St Charles, IL 60175 Center
Prescott, AZ 86301 Boyne City, MI 49712
(630) 584-9443 325 South Paseo de Onate
(928) 717-1774 (503) 209-0431
fineline.org Espanola, NM 87532
fibercreekprescott.com michiganfibershed.com (505) 747-3577
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Tempe Yarn & Fiber INDIANA Heritage Spin & Weaving
1415 E University Dr 47 E Flint
Tempe, AZ 85281
Spinnin Yarns N E W YO R K
145 N Griffith Blvd Lake Orion, MI 48360
(480) 557-9166 (248) 693-3690 CeCe’s Wool
Griffith, IN 46319
tempeyarnonline.com heritagespinning.com 2080 Western Ave
(219) 924-7333
spinninyarns.com Suite 138
CO LO R A D O Leelanau Fiber Guilderland, NY 12084
310 N. St. Joseph St. (518) 779-9985
Blazing Star Ranch www.ceceswool.com
PO Box 52
3424 S Broadway KANSAS Suttons Bay, MI 49682
Englewood, CO 80113
Yarn Barn of Kansas (231) 271-9276 Daft Dames Handcrafts
(303) 514-8780
930 Massachusetts www.leelanaufiber.com/ 13384 Main Rd
blazingstarranch.com
Lawrence, KS 66044 Akron, NY 14001
Entwine Studio (800) 468-0035 The Hen House Quilt Shop (716) 542-4235
yarnbarn-ks.com 211 S Cochran Ave
4003 North Weber St
Charlotte, MI 48813 Fiber Kingdom
Building H
(517) 543-6454 137 E Broadway
Colorado Springs, CO 80907 K E N T U C KY thehenhousemi.com Salem, NY 12865
(719) 761-1211 LSH Creations (518) 854-7225
entwinecos.com 1584 WELLESLEY DRIVE fiberkingdom.com
Lexington, KY 40513 M I N N E S OTA
Lambspun of Colorado (859) 321-7831 Bella’s Flock Spinning Room of Altamont
1101 E Lincoln Ave lshcreations.com 11 Division St E 190 MAIN ST / PO BOX 427
Fort Collins, CO 80524 Suite 200 Altamont, NY 12009
(800) 558-5262 The Woolery Buffalo, MN 55313 (518) 861-0038
lambspun.com Ste 1A, 859 E Main St (612) 741-6437 spinningroom.net
Frankfort, KY 40601 https://bellasflock.com
Longmont Yarn Shop (800) 441-9665
454 Main St. woolery.com Weavers Guild of Minnesota N O R T H C A RO L I N A
Longmont, CO 80501 1011 Washington Ave S, #350 Silver Threads & Golden
(303) 678-8242 Minneapolis, MN 55415 Needles
www.longmontyarn.com MAINE (612) 436-0463 41 E Main St
Belfast Fiber Arts weaversguildmn.org Franklin, NC 28734
Serendipity Yarn & Gifts 171 High St., Suite 8 (828) 349-0515
PO Box 5120 Belfast, ME 04915 silverthreadsyarn.com
Buena Vista, CO 81211 (207) 323-5248 MISSOURI
(719) 395-3110 belfastfiberarts.com Hillcreek Yarn Shoppe Studio 256
serendipityyarn.com 4093 E. Ketterer Rd 106 S Greene Street
Halcyon Yarn Columbia, MO 65202 Wadesboro, NC 28170
12 School St (573) 825-6130 (704) 507-1160
Bath, ME 04530 hillcreekyarn.com Studio256.online
(800) 341-0282
halcyonyarn.com

78 H A NDWOV EN handwovenmagazine.com
The Tail Spinner Sunshine Weaving and Fiber C A N A DA
109 North Wilmington Street Arts Advertiser Index
Richlands, NC 28574 327 W. Main Street
(910) 324-6166 Lebanon, TN 37087 Ability Weavers ......................................65
www.thetailspinner.com 615-440-2558
sunshineweaving.com Anson County Fiber Arts Festival ...........27

T E XA S Ashford Handicrafts LTD .....................6–7


Jane Stafford Textiles
Yarnivore 142 Richard Flack Road dje Handwovens ....................................65
2357 NW Military Hwy Salt Spring Island, B.C. V8K 1N4
San Antonio, TX 78231 (250) 537-9468 Eugene Textile Center ............................31
(210) 979-8255 https://janestaffordtextiles.com/
Yadkin Valley Fiber Center yarnivoresa.net
321 East Main Street Retailer for all your weaving needs Fiberwood Studio Ltd. ...........................65
Elkin, NC 28621 including yarns, kits, supplies,
our mailing address: U TA H equipment and hand-dyed silks. Fiberworks.............................................37
Post Office Box 631 Needlepoint Joint Louet loom specialist & dealer. NA
Elkin, NC 28621 241 25th St wholesaler of Venne yarns. Georgia Yarn Company ..........................78
(919) 260-9725 Ogden, UT 84401
Glimåkra ................................................41
yadkinvalleyfibercenter.org (801) 394-4355 J A PA N
Fostering creativity in the fiber arts needlepointjoint.com Kakara Woolworks
with beginning to advanced classes,
Halcyon Yarn ..........................................C4
580 Yagami
Master Weaving Program and guest
instructors throughout the year.
W I S CO N S I N Akaiwa-shi, Okayama-ken Handweaving.net ..................................17
Icon Fiber Arts 709-0734
590 Redbird Cir +81-(0)86-995-9988 Handywomanshop.com ........................41
OREGON De Pere, WI 54115 kakara-woolworks.com
Eugene Textile Center (920) 200-8398 Harrisville Designs, Inc...........................17
2750 Roosevelt Blvd iconfiberarts.com UNITED KINGDOM Jane Stafford Textiles .......................13, 79
Eugene, OR 97402 Coorie Creative
(541) 688-1565 Fiber Garden 82 Murray Place
N5095 Old Hwy. 54 John C. Campbell Folk School ................27
eugenetextilecenter.com Stirling, Scotland, UK, FK8 2XB
Black River Falls, WI 54615 +441786 450416
(715) 284-4590 Kromski North America .........................13
Little Hawk Yarns www.coorie-creative.co.uk/
544 SE Main Street fibergarden.com
Leclerc Looms ...................................C2–1
Roseburg, OR 97470 George Weil & Sons
(458) 262-0046 Fiberwood Studio Old Portsmouth Rd LoftyFiber ..............................................27
www.littlehawkyarns.com 2709 N. 92nd St Peasmarsh, Guildford GU3 1LZ
Milwaukee, WI 53222 01483 565 800 Lone Star Loom Room ...........................65
Pacific Wool & Fiber (414) 302-1849 www.georgeweil.com
13520 SE Southwood Drive fiberwoodstudio.com Louet BV .........................................10–11
Prineville OR 97754 The Handweavers Studio and
(503) 538-4741 W YO M I N G Gallery Lunatic Fringe Yarn ................................41
pacificwoolandfiber.com 140 Seven Sisters Road,
London N7 7NS Michigan Fiber Festival ..........................37
P E N N S YLVA N I A 020 7272 1891
Peters Valley School of Craft ..................41
Twist Knitting & Spinning The handweavers.co.uk
5743 Route 202 Fiber
Weft Blown Ltd Prairie City Fiber Fest .............................37
Lahaska, PA 18938 House
17 Ailsa View
(215) 794-3020 The Fiber House Purrington Looms..................................65
West Kilbride North Ayrshire
twistknittingandspinning.com 146 Coffeen Ave Scotland, UK, KA23 9GA
Sheridan, WY 82801 by appointment only R & M Yarns............................................65
S O U T H C A RO L I N A Vendors for Schacht, Ashford, and +44 (0) 7930 657900
LoftyFiber Kromski wheels and looms. Supplies info@weftblown.com Schacht Spindle Co., Inc. ..........................2
415 E 1st Ave for all fiber arts needs. Individual
Easley, SC 29640 and group classes. See our website Tabby Tree Weaver .................................41
864-810-4747 for more.
loftyfiber.com (877) 673-0383 The Fiber House .....................................79
thefiberhouse.com
The Woolery.............................................2
TENNESSEE
Smoky Mountain Spinnery Treenway Silks .......................................37
466 Brookside Village Way Ste 8
Gatlinburg, TN 37738 Untangled Yarn and Fiber ......................78
(865) 436-9080
smokymountainspinnery.com Yadkin Valley Fiber Center......................79
Yarn Barn of Kansas ...............................C3

SUMMER 2024 H A NDWOV EN 79


Tackling
ENDNOTE S

Textile Waste
by Weaving

Photo by Regina McInnes


By Regina McInnes

While at the local tip (that’s what


we Aussies call the dump), I was
struck by the number of textiles the
bulldozer was pushing around
Regina used scraps of her handwoven fabric to make a platypus for a special four-
the waste pit among the building year-old. When it becomes raggedy and the child moves on to other toys, the
waste, appliances, and plastics platypus can even go onto the compost heap to break down.

of every size and shape.


It’s not news that many clothes
end up in the trash. According to As a little boy, he owned one pair of make a unique design was striking.
TheRoundup (see Resources): everyday shorts and a shirt, plus a She was very pleased with my praise,
• The global fashion industry good outfit for Sundays. When I con- and I’m sure she won’t throw that
makes more than 100 billion sider my wardrobe, I own much more garment away in a hurry.
garments each year. than I need—and a fair few of my This incident strengthened my
• 92 million tons of textile waste clothes are fast-fashion items made resolve to continue weaving and
are produced each year. with nondegradable fibers. creating. I will buy fewer fast-
• 7% of total worldwide waste What does all this have to do fashion items, find more
is textiles. with weaving? secondhand items, search for
• 9% of microplastics in the oceans After the long, slow process of better-quality clothing and home
come from textiles. planning a draft, winding a warp, textiles, and use them all longer.
• In the US, 17 million tons of textile and weaving the cloth, weavers are Weaving for purpose and pleasure
waste are sent to the dump every not likely to carelessly throw away is part of the process of being aware
year—about 112 pounds per person. the result, even when it doesn’t turn of the time, energy, and resources
How did we get here? The fast out exactly as we’d hoped. that go into textile production. So,
fashion industry emerged in the I keep pieces of my woven fabric in keep weaving, spinning, knitting,
twentieth century as a result of a box at the bottom of my wardrobe, and making beautiful things!
advances in production and mar- and I rummage through that box
keting technologies. Rather than when I’m in search of just the right REGINA MCINNES loves all fiber arts and
the traditional fashion cycle of fabric for a new project. One such creating unique and beautiful things.
introducing new designs seasonally, project was a stuffed platypus that
fast fashion manufacturers continu- has become a much-loved toy for RESOURCES
ally create a stream of trendy and four-year-old Rosy. When the platy- Ruiz, Arabella. “17 Most Worrying Textile
inexpensive clothes, often made of pus has ended its life, it can go onto Waste Statistics and Facts.”
synthetic fibers, to keep consumers the compost heap, as all fibers used TheRoundup, April 11, 2023. theroundup
buying. And buy they do—to keep in it—even the filling—are natural .org/textile-waste-statistics.
up with those very same trends. and will break down quickly. Wilén, Suss, and David Goldsmith.
As a result we now own many Recently, while I was lining up at a “Handwoven Textiles—A Step on the
more clothes than the previous gen- coffee shop, I noticed a woman in Path to Sustainable Fashion?”
eration did, and we wear each item front of me wearing a jacket that she University of Borås, November 9, 2018.
less often. My father grew up on a had obviously designed and made phys.org/news/2018-11-handwoven
small farm in rural Hungary in a herself. The way she’d cleverly joined -textilesa-path-sustainable-fashion
family that was neither rich nor poor. several pieces of woven material to .html.

80 H A NDWOV EN handwovenmagazine.com

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