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Weaving 101 Our guest experts demystify the process of weaving. From "Uncommon Threads" episode DUCT-203

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Now that the loom is ready to go, Andrea demonstrates the weaving of a striped fabric.

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Weaving Fabric

1. Crank the back beam until the warps catch in the reed. Then come around to the front of the loom and detangle. Go back to the crank and roll the warps onto the back beam until it catches again, and repeat.

2. When you have about 1' of warp sticking out of the front of the reed, separate the warps into bundles as you did at the back and tie single knots to the front beam. Then, working your way from the edges in, tighten each bundle and make the second knot, securing the warp to the front.

3. Now you're ready to weave. Step on the appropriate treadle to separate the warps (as per the pattern) and first add the header. This is a thicker yarn that will be removed when all is done, so it's okay if it's purple or something. Put it through the shed (the space made between warps when treadle is stepped on) and beat it down with the beater (this is the unit that the reed is held in); see how the reed pulls the header toward you and places the warps in order around it. Step on the next treadle and put the header through the opposite direction. Beat again. It usually takes about 3"-4" of header before the warps are in a position to accept real weft and look good.

4. Get out the shuttle and weft. Continue weaving as you did with the header, and you will see the fabric begin to form.

Undulating Twill

Travis weaves an undulating twill pattern on the floor loom, and Andrea shows how to finish off the ends of the fabric using different techniques, such as knotting (figure A), straight stitching (figure B) and braiding the unfinished ends (figure C).

Figure A

Figure B

Figure C

Tip: You can get a pattern for undulating twill at craft stores, online and/or in weaving magazines. Here are a few tips to help you understand how to interpret the patterns:

1. When reading the pattern for undulating twill, keep in mind that the top bar is like musical notation, with each note representing one of the different harnesses.

2. On the side is the treadling diagram, so you know which treadle to step on to create the drawn-out pattern. Once you get the hang of it, you won't need to refer back to the pattern, because you can just repeat it.

3. Start on the first treadle and then beneath, treadles number two, three, and four. It will begin building up a wavy diagonal. So keep repeating until you have a completed project.

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GUESTS :

Travis Meinolf
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Anita López
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