Weaving

Soft and Sweet Bread Rolls

Our family just loves fresh, home baked bread.

I bake all the bread for my family, four loaves at a time. That way we have some fresh and some to store in the freezer for the following days.

But there are some days (more often than I care to admit!) when we’ve run out of loaves and I need to do something fast! Those are the days that my rolls make an appearance. They are much quicker to make than bread loaves and I can get them to the table super fast.

These rolls are very similar to how I make my scrolls, but you bake the dough as rolls instead of being rolled up with fillings.

There are many fillings you can serve in the rolls once they are baked. You can serve them warm or allow to completely cool first. Here are some serving ideas:

I posted on Instagram that I was serving bacon and avocado rolls and everybody wanted to know about them!

Bacon and avocado-

Serve the rolls while still warm. Cut open, spread with mayonnaise, mashed avocado, cheese and fried bacon.

With soup-

You can make the rolls “dinner roll” size if desired. Serve warm, spread with butter. This makes a real meal out of your soup and completes it perfectly.

Egg and bacon rolls-

Similar to the avo and bacon, only this time you also fry eggs with your bacon. Serve with or without cheese and mayonnaise.

Ham and salad-

Allow rolls to cool before cutting open. Serve with ham and whatever salad you like, whether it’s some mixed leaves or a coleslaw.

Hamburger or Veggie burger-

These rolls make great hamburger buns! Fry your meat or veggie patty and team with your favourite extras in the roll. Personally, we’re fans of hamburgers “with the lot”! You can make Hawaiian style burger by adding a ring of tinned pineapple.

For afternoon tea-

These are delicious enough to serve with butter and jam or marmalade for an English style afternoon tea.

Grilled cheese-

My kids love it when I do this. Cut the rolls in half. Using a grill, lightly toast both sides of each half. Top the halves with cheese and place back under grill until melted. Delicious for lunch or paired with soup.

Soft and Sweet Bread Rolls

Kelly

Delicously light and soft rolls for any meal

Print Recipe Pin Recipe

Prep Time 10

Cook Time 30

Rising time 1 20

Servings 9

Equipment

Stand mixer (optional)
Oven

Ingredients

800 grams Bread flour You can do all white flour or a mix. I like to do 200grams wholemeal and 600grams white flour.
1 tbsp Dry active yeast
2 tbsp White sugar or honey
2 tsp Salt
3 tbsp Sunflower oil
2 & 2/3 cup warm water or milk I use milk powder in water

Instructions

Place all dry ingredients in mixer bowl, fitted with a dough hook. Place in a mixing bowl if mixing by hand. Mix lightly to combine.
Combine oil and warm water/milk in a jug. If using honey, add it with the liquids also.
Set the mixer on minimum and gradually pour the wet ingredients into the dry. Keep mixing until well combined, then turn the machine up to number 1 mixing for 5 minutes. If mixing by hand, mix all ingredients until thoroughly combined, then knead for 5 minutes.
Place some oil in the bottom of the bowl to prevent the dough from sticking while rising.
Place a clean towel over the bowl and allow the dough to double in size. The time this takes depends on the room temperature. It can take anywhere from 30 minutes to 1 hour.
When doubled in size, take the dough out of the bowl and press down to expel air. Cut into roughly 9 equal pieces. If you want larger rolls, make 6 equal pieces. Form the pieces into little rounded ball shapes and pinch underneath to ensure seams are underneath.
Place into greased or non stick baking tray (I like to use non stick baking paper to line it). Place the balls in lines to fit your tray. The balls should touch each other. Cover loosely with the towel once more.
Preheat oven to 220 degrees celsius (428F) conventional or 200 (392F) fan forced. Allow the rolls to rise for around 15 – 20 minutes.
Bake in oven for 20-30 minutes (this will vary according to your oven) or until nicely browned.
Remove from oven and place rolls on a cooling rack.

Keyword baking, bread, bread roll

Would you prefer to see this post in video format? Let me know in the comments if you do, and I’ll see what I can come up with 😉

If you are interested in baking your own bread, check out these resources:

Milk and Honey Bread

Whole Wheat No Knead Bread Recipe

Zucchini Bread Recipe

Easy Flat Bread Recipe

Cheese and Bacon Scrolls

I hope this recipe blesses you and that you love these yummy rolls as much as our family!

My biggest ever mistake in weaving

by Kelly 29 Comments

Quite a few years ago now, we bought our first family DSLR camera. I loved photography when I was in high school and spent as much time doing it as I was allowed. I think one thing I loved about it was it was the only subject in which I felt free and unrestricted.

I could take one of the school’s SLR (pre- digital days!) cameras home when I wanted. I was given access to the school dark room in my spare time, and thankfully, my parents paid the bills for the photo paper and chemicals without grumbling.

*This post contains affiliate links. For further information, please see my disclosure policy.

So, getting our first entry level DSLR was like reliving a bit of that favourable part of my teenage life. It wasn’t long before I decided I wanted to take a course to learn the camera inside out. I enrolled in an online course, which was quite an investment for our single income family at the time, and started learning.

I became completely engrossed. I lived and breathed photography for the best part of a year. I loved the assignment challenges and started making my own challenges. Thankfully, I had 4 beautiful children who were my willing subjects. I started to dream up themes for photos. I made costumes, visited beautiful locations and used interesting props.

So, what does all this have to do with weaving?

Well, I was already a weaver when I started the photography course. But I was in a “not so positive place” with it. I was trying to learn new and interesting techniques, but it was really hard. I was putting pressure on myself to make perfect, Instagram worthy pieces that I just wasn’t ready to undertake.

Homeschooling, mothering, attempting to supplement our income didn’t leave much time for creative pursuits. Photography fit well, because the children were very often my subjects and were always with me when I was doing it, so it fit well.

As time went on, I wondered whether weaving was really the right thing for me. My rigid heddle loom sat empty month after month. My husband had bought it for me as a gift. I felt guilty that I wasn’t using it.

Most of all, I felt that I wasn’t capable of learning all I wanted to on this loom, and so my motivation lagged completely.

The frustrations that I’d been having with weaving built up in my mind and sat upon my shoulders as a heavy burden. Guilt, annoyance, frustration, lack of motivation – all these negative emotions around weaving were just penned up. I didn’t share this with anyone, and so it went on, and so the loom continued to sit empty.

And this was my biggest mistake.

So, what happened? Well, eventually the novelty of lugging that somewhat heavy camera around, countless hours of making costumes and finding new locations began to wear off. I started to remember what had attracted me to weaving in the first place, and why I felt compelled to make my own cloth. I started to notice beautiful yarns again. Ideas began to bubble up in my mind.

But the most important thing that happened is that I just put a warp on the loom.

I took a step. I don’t remember what it was that I made. Maybe it was just a simple, fun, non committal, explorative weave. Maybe it was something to wear or something for my kids to use in their play house. I really don’t remember, and it doesn’t really matter. The point is that I just did it.

I do still get weaver’s block to this very day, especially when I’m challenging myself to learn something new, but the difference is in how I handle it. I ensure that whenever those negative weaving feeling start creeping back in, I do something about it!

I have many resources that can help you get past the frustrated weaver point and on to weaving beautiful things. Here are a few suggestions:

Keep a weaving journal. Document your projects and how far you’ve come. Add in your future weaving plans, include pictures, colours, snippets of yarn. Use your past projects to build on.

Make a creative space. This is not possible for everyone, but even just a corner of a room, somewhere you can set up your loom and some yarns can help. If you don’t have to lug out all your materials every time you want to weave, you will be more likely to do it.

Make time for regular weaving – even if it’s 15 minutes at a time. You will make progress if you keep at it.

Make a Pinterest board or a mood board for inspiration. This can be as loose or as planned as you like.

Immerse yourself in the weaving community. Join groups (online or face to face), watch Youtube videos, listen to podcasts. These will help keep you motivated and prevent feeling isolated.

Join the Online Weaving School. When you purchase a membership, not only do you get access to the class library full of courses for all different weaving levels, you also receive an invitation to join a wonderful weaving community.

You may also be interested in these relevant videos:

Have you ever felt paralysed in your weaving journey? What helped you out of it? Or, if you are in a rut, what are you going to doing about it? Let me know in the comments below so we can keep the discussion going.

I hope this post inspires you to warp up your loom and get weaving!

Oh, and I do still indulge in photography from time to time, but I must admit that my newer Canon DSLR is used a lot more for filming classes than anything else! The big plus from all my photography practice is that I’m now capable of taking some pretty decent photos of my weaving.

If you’re interested in improving your photography for weaving purposes, check out my Photography for Weavers class. All you need is a phone and some of your hand weaving to get started!

Until next time…

Happy Weaving!

Surface embroidery on weft floats

by Kelly 12 Comments

Embroidery was one of my first crafty loves and I still have a very soft spot for this beautiful art.

When my children were young I was very immersed in the world of embroidery. I loved it for several reasons:

It costs next to nothing to get started, and at that time of life we had no extra money!
It is incredibly portable and you don’t need a specific space to set up.
I could easily pick it up and put it down, very important when you have little kids around.
There are many styles of embroidery to explore.
With a bit of practice, you can improve very quickly (like some other fibre arts I may have mentioned previously, wink wink 😉)

Besides the fact that that weaving kind of took over my life, I’ve also not spent much time doing embroidery in recent years due to the deterioration of my eyesight. I definitely took that for granted when I was younger and even though I now have reading glasses to wear, the clarity is not the same.

Like many of the arts and crafts I’ve enjoyed over my life, I’ve found that embroidery can be married beautifully with weaving, and in many different ways.

One example is my bread towel project from a couple of years ago. I wove the towels and then embroidered some “bread themed” text on them.

But if you feel that you can’t embroider a straight line to save yourself, that doesn’t mean you have to strike embroidery off your list completely.

One time I was experimenting with some weft floats on my rigid heddle loom and thought to myself “these look nice, but if feels like something is missing” 🤔 I felt that I needed to introduce some more colour, and I just happened to have some lovely hand dyed rainbow yarn handy. A little while later, I had some gorgeous diamond shapes happening!

This technique is a surface embroidery, meaning that unlike the usual needle in and out from front through to back of the fabric, the embroidery yarn sits on top of the fabric and is incorporated by “tie downs” or anchors.

Today, I would love to show you how you can achieve this patterning with just a tapestry needle and some contrasting yarn.

Firstly, you will need to work some weft floats. These form the basis for your embroidery thread and gives it a path to travel. The weft float sequencing that I’m using for this tutorial is detailed in this video:

Start by threading your tapestry needle with a good, long length of your embroidery thread. You don’t need to specifically use embroidery floss (though that certainly looks lovely!) I used some light worsted/dk weight wool that was hand dyed and my warp was the same weight of wool, commercially dyed. I think ribbon would look lovely too.

Knot the end of your yarn so it doesn’t pull through. Starting on the first horizontal row of weft floats,(the second row of floats from a vertical perspective) bring your needle through from the back, at the bottom right hand corner of the pair of floats.

Now, take the needle underneath the float pair but not into the fabric itself. Pull the yarn through.

Now take the needle to the pair of floats on the right, they are in a diagonal position from where we just were. Take the needle underneath this pair and pull through.

Now take the needle to the pair on the left diagonal, go underneath the floats and pull through. Starting to see a simple pattern here? We’re basically zig zagging the embroidery yarn back and forth between the weft floats. Pretty simple, huh? 😉

When you get to the top of the row and have no more weft floats to go to diagonally, take the needle down through the fabric to the back. Do this just underneath the top of the last floats you went through, so that it’s not visible. This is to help anchor and secure the row of stitching you’ve just completed.

At the top of the next vertical row of weft floats, bring your needle up through the fabric from the back. The needle should be positioned to the top right of the pair of floats, as shown in the photo above.

Instead of travelling upwards through the weft floats, the time we’re travelling down the vertical row. Take the needle underneath the top floats and pull through.

You may start to guess what comes next. Take the needle underneath the weft floats to the right, on the diagonal. Pull the yarn through. Continue in this fashion, zigzagging downwards until you reach the bottom. Remember to take the needle down through the fabric each time your finish a row, in order to anchor the thread and prepare for the next row.

Once you’ve practiced a couple of rows, you can speed up the process by taking the needle under 2 pairs at the same time. This makes it go much faster and is a natural progression from embroidering under one pair.

There are further variations on this theme that are possible. Experiment and see what you can come up with!

Would you like a free video tutorial so that you can see this surface embroidery in action? I already have that covered, check out my video on Youtube:

Don’t forget to like and subscribe, thank you!

I hope you enjoyed this tutorial. Let me know if you love this technique and intend to give it a try by leaving a comment below, I love to hear from you.

Other resources you may be interested in:

Troubleshooting loose slot threads

All about finger controlled techniques

Weave neat edges on the rigid heddle loom

How to weave clasped weft

Until next time…

Happy Weaving!

Welcome to The Online Weaving School

by Kelly 59 Comments

Are you new to the Online Weaving School – Kelly Casanova Weaving Lessons? This is a guide to help you get started and find the right class for you.

Already a member? Log in here!

Hi, I’m Kelly!

I am very blessed to be able to pass my passion for weaving on to thousands of students all over the world.

At Kelly Casanova Weaving Lessons I teach in a way that is relaxed and unrushed. I share everything that I can think of to help you grasp a concept, and most classes are step by step, project based learning.

I don’t feel like a teacher, more a weaving friend who is eager to show you some really cool things!

So, grab a cuppa, pull up your weaving chair, and let’s get learning!

New to rigid heddle weaving? Start here!

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What are finger controlled techniques?

by Kelly 6 Comments

Just when you thought you had tried everything in weaving, you discover there is more! Finger controlled techniques can add a whole other dimension to the way you’ve been weaving and offers new and exciting possibilities.

So, what are finger controlled techniques?

Also know as “finger manipulation weaving”, finger controlled techniques is a kind of umbrella term for a group of weaving techniques. It basically means that, rather than using just the shafts on your loom to control the threads and achieve patterning, you are also bringing your hands directly onto the warp to perform manipulations.

*This post contains affiliate links. For further information, please see my disclosure policy here.

Often the finger manipulations will involve using a tool of some sort to aid you in holding the pattern created. Some examples of tools used are pick up sticks, knitting needles, threading hooks and crochet hooks.

Why use finger controlled techniques?

There are many good reasons to introduce finger controlled techniques into your weaving.

It increases your pattern possibilities.
You can achieve patterns that may not typically be associated with traditional weaving.
You can weave a drastically different pattern to what you normally might.
It is an exciting, interesting and sometimes meditative way to weave.
It can be used in small sections or borders to accentuate a plain or other weave structure.
It can be incorporated seamlessly into any loom set up.
You don’t need extra shafts or a bunch of extra equipment to give it a try.
You can set up your loom for plain weave and introduce the finger techniques on the same warp.
The techniques are good for an adventurous beginner. Make sure you have a plain weave project or two under your belt first though.
There are many different types of techniques to try, all with different effect. And each one has variations!

Which kind of looms work for using these techniques?

That is the beauty of it! Most finger controlled techniques are worked at the front of the loom, on the warp directly in front of you. This means it’s suitable for rigid heddle looms, table looms and floor looms.

Today I’m going to discuss the 3 most popular and well known finger controlled techniques in weaving:

Brook’s Bouquet
Leno
Danish Medallions

Brooks Bouquet was made popular by Marguerite Brooks when she wrote a book that included variations on this weave structure. You can see the “bouquet” component, where the yarn wraps around bunches of warp threads (the number of threads is adaptable) and pulls in tightly.

Reminiscent of lace knitting, the finished fabric also has some interesting qualities. Most of the time, woven fabric lacks “stretch” but using Brooks Bouquet produces a fabric with definite stretch. It is mildly open and airy, and yet has a beautiful and intricate pattern.

You don’t need any extra tools, just your stick shuttle (the same one you’re using for your weft) to pick up groups of threads in a repeat pattern and loop the yarn around the bunches as you go.

I love Brooks Bouquet in solid colours, using the same yarn for warp and weft, however I’ve seen some really beautiful pieces using variegated yarns too.

If you’re interested in trying it out but would like some step by step instructions, the Garden Path Scarf digital PDF download pattern is the perfect place to start. I have included lots of colour photos in this pattern as well as all the yarn and calculation details you need to complete a really beautiful scarf. I’ve woven two Garden Path scarves in merino yarn for myself and they are my go to for cold weather.

The next technique I want to share with you is Leno.

This also creates a light, airy fabric, but even more so than Brooks Bouquet. It is a very slow weave, as you twist threads using your fingers and a pick up stick and then hold the twists in place by beating in the weft thread.

Leno also has variations, for example, it can be woven on an open or closed shed. You can weave it in rows, with plain weave in between. You can weave Leno for the whole piece or just in border sections (it looks fantastic as bordering on a classic scarf or table runner).

If you like the look of this technique, I have good news for you! I have a complete tutorial on weaving Leno and it’s totally free. It is aimed towards rigid heddle weavers, but is completely adaptable to other looms as well. You can find that tutorial here.

That brings us to Danish Medallions.

This is a highly decorative technique. I love to showcase strongly contrasting yarns to really make those medallions pop out of the piece. It is a really interesting and fun technique to work on your loom.

The basic idea is to run a contrasting weft thread through bands of plain weave in another colour. The width of this band of plain weave will partly determine how large your medallions will be. You then bring in your contrast colour weft, threaded on a tapestry needle (at least, that is how I like to do it).

Using a crochet hook, or my preference, a double ended threading hook, you then hook this contrast yarn by taking the hook through the work at the previous contrast pick and pulling it though. This is where the tapestry needle comes in handy, as you can take it through the loop created.

Cinch up this loop and you have your first medallion. How tightly you cinch it will depend on the effect you want. A light cinch will give you medallions that seam to sit on the fabric with some minor gaps in between. A tight cinch will give you more separated looking medallions and will produce an airier fabric.

Both options look beautiful. You will notice in the sample above that I’ve also included beading between some medallions, just for fun. The Danish medallion technique lends itself beautifully to extra embellishments.

If you want to see this technique in action (because it’s so much easier to show it than to tell it) I have a very affordable online workshop that demonstrates both Danish Medallions and Leno, all in one place. Click here to check that out!

I hope that today’s post has helped you to find out more about finger controlled techniques and encouraged you to consider giving them a shot!

It can be fun to put on a short sampler warp, thread up for plain weave, and work your way through these techniques. You might find a really awesome way to combine the 3 to make a unique woven piece!

As always, I love to hear from you here and answer any questions you may have, so please let me know you visited by leaving your comment below.

Until next time…

Happy Weaving!

Weaving with a disability

by Kelly 20 Comments

Today’s guest is a very inspiring woman! Jacky is an artist and weaver from a beautiful part of the U.K, surrounded by captivating landscapes and historic buildings.

I have admired her work for some time on Instagram, where she shares wonderful photos of her artist life and her dog, Boo. In fact, when selecting photos for today’s interview, it was very difficult to narrow down to just a few, I wanted to show you so many more!

I particularly wanted to chat with Jacky on the blog so that she could share her story and experience with her physical disability and how that has impacted on her creative life.

I hope that her story will encourage you all to focus on what you CAN do, regardless of your circumstances.

How long have you been weaving? What got you interested in starting?

Just before Christmas three years ago I bought a little frame loom on a whim. I designed a little snowman wall hanging and was surprised by how well it turned out and how much I enjoyed doing it, and that’s what got me started on my weaving journey. I started looking more into weaving and that’s when I first read about rigid heddle looms – I didn’t know if I would be able to use one from my wheelchair, especially doing the warping, so did lots of research on YouTube, which is when I first saw your videos, which have been a real help for me. My Birthday was coming up, so I asked my family if I could have money instead of presents. I was so excited when I opened my first ever rigid heddle loom and couldn’t wait to get started weaving on it!

What loom/s do you own?

My first loom was an Ashford 16” RHL, but after a while I wanted something I could weave wider fabric on. I knew I wouldn’t physically manage to weave on a very wide loom so finally decided on an Ashford 24” RHL and I love weaving blankets on that. Last year I decided to add a 12” Ashford Samplet loom to my little ‘loom family’, so that I could practice more complicated weaving, and I love it! It’s such a joy to use and I can easily carry it anywhere with me.

What is your favourite fibre to work with? Do you have favourite items to weave?

Wool is definitely my favourite fibre to weave with. I always used to think wool was scratchy to wear, but now of course I have learned that there are so many types of wool, each with their own qualities. Last year I wove a scarf from a handspun blend of Blue Faced Leicester and Rose fibre and that was beautifully soft. At the moment I’m in the middle of weaving a silk scarf on the Samplet, I’ve never woven with such fine silk before and I’m really enjoying it so I think that will become another favourite.

You also spend time spinning and painting. You love to paint en plein air and I find your landscapes absolutely beautiful. Do you have a favourite location/s for this?

Thank you Kelly. I’m very blessed to live in the Cotswolds which is a really lovely part of the U.K., so I’m surrounded by picturesque villages and beautiful countryside to paint in. I also love painting the sea, and my favourite coastal area is South Wales. I hope to be visiting there again soon now that our present lockdown restrictions are beginning to lift.

Please tell us about your disability and the challenges it presents to you in your creative pursuits.

I’ve been disabled with a neuromuscular illness for about 25 years now. It affects all my muscles, which are very weak, and I use an electric wheelchair to get about the house. It has left me with double vision, but I have strong prism lenses in my glasses which help quite a lot.

My arm muscles are very weak too, which is very challenging when I want to be doing things, but I make sure I take plenty of breaks to rest them for a little while when I’m weaving or painting. As long as I pace myself I usually get things done, it just takes a little bit longer.

I have to take lots of breaks when I’m warping the loom, and I’m always glad when I’ve finished doing it. My husband Phil almost always helps me with winding on the warp – I have used the ‘crank and yank’ method a few times, but it is definitely easier when he helps!

You have a beautiful assistance dog, Boo. How did you he come into your life and how has he made a difference to you?

Boo is an adorable yellow Labrador, and the gentlest dog I have ever known. He became my partner eight years ago thanks to a U.K. charity called Dogs for Good, which trains assistance dogs for people with disabilities and children with autism.

I can’t take my coat off by myself, so Boo comes by my side, gently puts one sleeve cuff between his teeth and pulls at it until my arm is free, then he goes to my other side and pulls that sleeve off too.

He also picks up everything I drop, helps to empty the washing machine and picks up the mail. He loves to come to Church with me and lies quietly by my side through the service. He has a bed in the studio and always comes to lie by my side when I’m weaving, I think he finds it as soothing as I do.

Is any of your creative work available for sale?

Most of my work is available for sale in the U.K. through my Facebook page or in exhibitions. I sell some of my woven items too, mainly scarves just now, again through Facebook. I have a stash of woven fabric waiting to be made into bags and purses, but I never seem to get round to get the sewing machine out to make them – I’d far rather be weaving!

Thank you so much to Jacky for taking the time to share with us today! I know that many of you would love to follow along with her work and see what she comes up with next. You can follow Jacky here:

Facebook-
Jacky Radbone, artist
Jacky Radbone, weaving in the Little Cwtch Studio (‘Cwtch’ is a Welsh word which means ‘ a hug’)

Instagram-

Jacky Radbone

Blog-

A Disable Artist’s Journey

Until next time…

Happy Weaving!

Photography for Weavers

by Kelly 8 Comments

You spend countless hours warping, weaving and finishing your unique hand woven pieces. It only seems right that you honour that process with some photos that show how beautiful your finished products really are.

Whether you want to take photos to share on social media, with friends and family or whether you sell your weaving online and want to present your pieces in their best possible light, it is well worth taking a bit of time to learn a few basic photographic principles that will help you level up with your photos.

*This post contains affiliate links. For further information, please see my disclosure policy.

The good news is that, these days you don’t need a super duper fancy camera to take good photos. I do use my DSLR camera when I want to take photographs for classes and my patterns, however for everyday use and social media, I always use my phone.

Phone cameras are now way more advanced than they used to be and can make your “photo to platform” experience really quick and seamless. Considering most of us possess a fairly modern phone, (though at nearly 5 years old, I’m not sure my phone could be considered modern any more!) it makes sense to be familiar with your phone camera and make the most of it.

I’ll start with what I consider 3 essentials to taking a good photograph:

Light

Clarity

Composition

We’ll begin with light. If you’re taking photos indoors, try to choose a sunny rather than dark or overcast day. Set up close to a window at a time of day where the sun is not shining directly onto the area you want to photograph. This will avoid too much shadow and the possibility of patches of light and dark.

I often use my studio lights for filming classes but rarely for photography. This is because natural light will always trump artificial, and give lovely tones to your photo without harshness of light and shadow.

Next is clarity. This is so important! No one wants to look at a blurry photo. Hold your phone or camera still or, if this is a challenge for you, use a tripod to unsure stillness. Also, if you have enough light, this greatly decreases the chances of your photo lacking sharpness.

Composition is something you can practice to improve on if it doesn’t come naturally. It’s basically about arranging and framing your “scene” so that it is visually pleasing and balanced. Try out lots of arrangements. Introduce some props to add interest and relevance to your photos eg. lemons with kitchen towels. Try folding, draping, scrunching your hand wovens. Have fun and don’t worry if some of your photos don’t look so great, that’s the point of experimenting – to find out what you like.

A word about editing.

Editing is a great photography tool and an excellent way to finish off and give that final polish to your photos. But it should never be relied upon to “fix” a photo. The aim is to get the best photo that can, in camera, so that when it comes to editing time you hardly have any work to do.

Photography for sellers.

If you are selling your hand woven pieces, good photography is really crucial. Remember that your potential customer can’t see and touch the items the way you can. You want to be able to bring them as close to “knowing” the piece as possible. Provide as many photos as you can from different angles. Include close ups with detail as well as distance shots.

Ensure you have an appropriate backdrop. Carpet and tiles are not a good look. If you think about it, if you were buying some beautiful hand woven towels, would you find them as appealing if they were photographed on a bare floor? I use professional vinyl photography backdrops for many of my photos. These are expensive, but well worth the investment if you are taking a lot of product photographs. I bought mine from Oz Backdrops and Props in Australia, but these backdrops are very similar.

If you are interested in learning more about photographing your hand wovens using your phone, check out my 49 minute Photography for Weavers Workshop. In this workshop, I take you through exactly how I set up product photos for my Diamond Stripe Towels and show you other arrangement possibilities to inspire you. I also take you into the free weaving software Canva, and show you how it can be used for basic editing.

Did you enjoy this post? Let me know in the comments below, I would love to hear from you!

Until next time…

Happy Weaving!

New towels for our new home!

by Kelly 19 Comments

I had two reasons for warping up my floor loom for some new towels recently.

With our house moving date looming closer, I felt the need for a “sanity project”. While all of my yarns and equipment were being packed away, I kept a few cones aside so that I would have something to weave during the in between time of packing up house and moving to the next one.

*This post contains affiliate links. Please see my disclosure policy for further details.

I also wanted to have some brand new kitchen towels to adorn our “new to us” kitchen, as all my current towels are ageing and starting to look a little shabby. I wanted special new towels for our special new place. This project turned out to be special in another way, but I’ll tell you about that shortly.

I chose one of my all time favourite drafts for kitchen towels, a 4 shaft twill on M and W threading. I love the design and I love the resulting fabric so I didn’t have to think too hard on that one!

The threading for this draft is not difficult and the tie up is a regular twill tie up – all things that I’m very familiar with and that make the process easy for me. I used my Louet David 2 Floor loom (link is for the new David 3), which has 8 shafts but for this project I wove on 4 shafts.

Having woven kitchen towels with this draft before, I was also sure of the yarn I wanted to choose. My favourite weaving yarn for soft and absorbent tea towels is 8/2 cottolin. The cottolin I use is 60% organic cotton and 40% linen. It’s a great yarn for those who want to incorporate a little linen but want something that is a bit easier to use than 100% linen.

For the warp I used:

Maurice Brassard 8/2 cottolin in Blanchi

For the wefts I used (one colour for each towel):

Maurice Brassard 8/2 cottolin in Charcoal

Maurice Brassard 8/2 cottolin in Magenta

Maurice Brassard 8/2 cottolin in Royal

Maurice Brassard 8/2 cottolin in Brick

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Tips for working with cottolin:

Cottolin sheds a lot of fibre whilst on the loom. It is a more course yarn than just cotton on it’s own, which is very smooth. I sometimes opt to wear and apron while weaving and try not to wear anything black! The shedding nature may be irritating to some who are sensitive, it’s not a big problem for me but does make me sneeze sometimes! It also means that you will want to vacuum your loom when your project is finished or even during the project if the tiny stray fibres bother you.

It feels quite stiff on the loom. I remember the first time I wove with cottolin, I felt disappointed that the towels felt a bit rough. A hot machine wash was like a touch of magic – the towels softened up and the pattern came together beautifully. This is another thing that I love about cottolin, it softens more with each wash.

Your first one or two uses of your towels to dry dishes will not be optimal. The cottolin can leave small fibres on your dishes initially, and the towels are not as absorbent as they could be. Don’t lose faith! With a bit of use and a couple of washes, they will become a huge asset to your kitchen!

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I tried some different techniques in the weaving of these towels, to help counteract some of the issues arising as I wove.

Firstly, I doubled my floating selvedges – something I haven’t done before. My reasoning for this was that for the towels I’ve woven in the past, the first place they would start to wear down was at the edges. A doubled floating selvedge gave a more defined, and stronger edge to the fabric.

Secondly, I switched to beating on an open shed. It is very much my habit to beat on a closed shed, but my beats were feeling a little stiff and the weft wasn’t settling as nicely as I would like. As soon as I switched to open shed beating, everything settled down and became much more fluid. Lesson learned – Don’t be stuck in your ways, be open to experiment from project to project as needs dictate 😉

And thirdly, when hemming my towels, I decided to also hem the long edge. I have never done this before, but as I already mentioned, the edges are susceptible to wearing and I think this single turned hem will make a difference. Time will tell, but perhaps I will make this a regular technique for my towels.

Hemming the long side of the towel with a single fold hem.

Finished hems. The ends of the towel have a double fold hem.

I mentioned that this project turned out to be special in another way. My husband has been interested in having a go on the floor loom for some time now, so I decided the last towel of the warp would be a good opportunity. I wasn’t too worried if it didn’t turn out well, as it was just for us.

Imagine my surprise when he took to it like a duck to water, quickly declared that it was “fun” and promptly finished off the second half of the towel I had started on! After giving him a few basic pointers, he surprised me with how quickly he picked up the steps. Now he is very interested in weaving more and even learning how to dress the loom. Victory! 😀

If you love this pattern draft as much as I do, you can find it on page 88 and 89 in Anne Dixon’s Handweaver’s Pattern Directory – a most excellent book and awesome resource for 4 shaft drafts.

I also recommend Patti Graver’s Next Steps in Weaving for weaving at this level.

If you’re interested in getting started in floor loom weaving, check out my Introduction to Floor Loom Weaving, my Follow Up Floor Loom Weaving, or save by purchasing a bundle of the two courses together.

I made a little video to compliment this blog post to help you feel confident about cutting your hand woven fabric. I explain my 3 Key Ingredients to cutting without fear:

If you have any questions about my towel project or using cottolin, let me know in the comments below!

Until next time…

Happy Weaving!

Krokbragd Patterns Interview and Giveaway!

by Kelly 287 Comments

Have you all met Debby Greenlaw before? I hope you have, but if not, you may want to read over this post where I reviewed Debby’s first book, the wonderful “Krokbragd – How to Design and Weave”.

*This post contains affiliate links. For further information, please see my disclosure policy.

I am so excited to share the news that Debby has written and released a brand new follow up krokbragd book, titled “Krokbragd Patterns”.

I am doubly excited to announce that, thanks to Debby’s generosity, one of you lucky readers will have the chance to win a personally signed copy of Krokbragd Patterns! Entry details are available at the end of this post.

I thought it the perfect time to have a chat with Debby so that you can all get to know her a little better and find out more about the new book, so grab a cup of tea and get comfy!

Thank you for taking the time to be my blog guest today 😊 Can you start by telling us a little about your weaving journey so far?

“Weaving was my entry into the wonderful world of fiber arts. I am a relatively “late bloomer” in this area, not starting the journey until I retired in 2016 after a 40+ year career as a nurse/nurse practitioner. I purchased an Ashford Sampleit loom at a local fiber festival just to see if I would like this weaving thing . . . I loved it. That lead to a floor loom, a dye garden, a spinning wheel, and eventually knitting needles and crochet hooks!”

What looms do you have and which one gets the most use?

“I have a Leclerc Nilus 4-shaft floor loom, a Kromski Harp Forte rigid heddle, and a Louët Jane 8-shaft table loom. By far the Jane gets used the most!“

You are perhaps most well known for your krokbragd weaving. What is about krokbragd that you love?

“First, I’m drawn to the Scandinavian aesthetic. My heritage says I’m German through and through, but I think there must be some Norse hidden in there. I love the simplicity of design and the color combinations of Scandinavian weaving. Krokbragd embodies both of those characteristics.”

Your first book, “Krokbragd: How to Design and Weave” had been immensely popular. What lead you to write a book all about krokbragd?

“Simply, there wasn’t a book written on the subject. In fact, several years ago, there were very limited resources available on krokbragd. I saw a social media post that said, “someone should write a book,” and I thought I can do that!”

You are just about to release your second book, “Krokbragd Patterns”. Did you decide to write a follow up book based on the feedback received from your first book? What excites you the most about this book?

“You’re absolutely correct. I received emails, comments, and even a review asking for a krokbragd pattern book.

Hmmm . . . what excites me the most. It would have to be the test weavers. Eighteen delightful women answered my request to be test weavers for the book’s projects. Seeing my designs come alive in their talented hand was so exciting. Their feedback, enthusiasm, and encouragement were invaluable to me during the designing and writing process.”

You are blessed to live in a beautiful location. How do you most enjoy spending your days? What should visitors to your region look out for as a “must do”?

“God has graciously blessed my husband and me with a beautiful place to live, a small farm in rural South Carolina. We share our space with 21 dairy goats, a mini donkey, chickens, a barn kitty, and a playful pup! There are many routine farm chores to keep up with, along with the occasional urgency/emergency. I’ve found my nurse practitioner skills translate well to farm animals! In addition to fiber arts, I also like to garden.

South Carolina is diverse in natural beauty. It is one of the smaller U.S. states but stretches from the seashore to the mountains. It is also rich in history and historical sites and gardens.”

You can find more great weaving information on Debby’s blog, Flora & Fiber. Books can be purchased through the blog, on Amazon or in selected stores.

Purchase Krokbragd – How to Design and Weave

Purchase Krokbragd Patterns

Now, about that giveaway! To enter, leave a comment below that describes why you would love to win a signed copy of Krokbragd Patterns. If your comment doesn’t show up right away, don’t worry, I will approve it when I see it (I have to keep those spammers at bay!)

Open to anyone worldwide.

I will draw the lucky winner on the Saturday 17th of April, 2021.

THE GIVEAWAY HAS NOW CLOSED. CONGRATULATIONS TO THE WINNER, CHERI SUTHERLAND!

Until next time…

Happy Weaving!

What can I weave on a small loom?

by Kelly 15 Comments

There are many looms that could fall into the “little loom” category.

Today I’m going to be talking specifically about the smallest rigid heddle looms available.

There are many reasons why weavers opt for a smaller loom. Some of these may include:

Affordability – a small loom is also a smaller financial investment to get started with.
Portability – you can literally pick these little looms up with one hand and take them with you
Space – some people have very limited space for storing a loom.
Testing it out – a small loom is a great way to test out weaving to see if it’s something you really want to pursue.

*This post contains affiliate links. For further information, please see my disclosure policy.

Many small loom weavers will later upgrade to a larger loom. Or some, (like myself!) will purchase a smaller loom later on, in order to have an extra loom on hand or just for sampling new ideas and designs.

Let’s have a look at the small rigid heddle looms currently available for purchase:

Ashford Sampleit 10″ (also comes in a 16″ weaving width)

Kromski Presto 10″ (also comes in a 16″ weaving width)

Schacht Cricket 10″ (also comes in a 15″ weaving width)

Beka beginners rigid heddle loom, available in 4″ and 10″ weaving width

I’ve come up with a list of finished items you can weave on a little loom as some ideas for getting started:

Samples

The number one function that a smaller loom serves is to make samples. If you are one of those people who think that sampling is a waste of time and yarn, I get it – I used to be exactly the same. But, throughout my weaving journey I have learned the true value of sampling before committing to a project.

In some cases, its actually a false economy to not sample and that is because the sample teaches you what you should and shouldn’t do for that project. In short, it guarantees the success of your project!

Clothing

You can make garments, even with a small loom, with a bit of creative design. Strips of woven cloth can be seamed together in order to make larger pieces of fabric, which can then be cut and sewn into garments. People often have the idea that only large, drapey garments (like a ruana) can be sewn with hand woven fabric, but that is not so. All kinds of clothing, including fitted pieces can be made, with a bit of planning ahead of time to ensure you are weaving an appropriate weight of fabric, with appropriate yarns for the garment you want to make.

In my Rigid Heddle Garment making class, we weave and then sew a loose fitting, open front cardigan. The class is not specifically for small looms, but it is easy to see how you can build a garment by building panels to seam together. A woven fabric with vertical stripes incorporated into the design would be perfect for camouflaging seams.

The Clasped Warp Quechquemitl class is another example of panels sewn together to construct a beautiful garment. Again, the class is not specific to small looms but the weaver could opt to weave 4 panels to join rather than the 2 demonstrated in the class.

The most obvious garment choice for a little loom would have to be a scarf, as you don’t need a wide width and you can wind on a warp that is long enough for one or two scarves.

Art

I have created a variety of art pieces on my 10″ Sampleit loom. A small loom is perfect for a petite sized wall hanging, tapestry or framed piece. I discovered an added bonus to my Sampleit for weaving art recently. When not in use, I store this loom by hanging it on the wall. I was working on some krokbragd recently and noticed when I hung the loom up for the day, that it was a perfect way to display the work on the wall while it’s being completed!

Another thing I have not yet done, but desperately want to, is to frame some of my smaller woven pieces. I love the way krokbragd looks in a beautiful frame.

Tapestry can also be woven on a little loom. You can see a few of my small tapestries in this post. I will freely admit that nowadays I weave tapestries almost exclusively on my Big Sister, but prior to the purchase of that loom I honed my tapestry weaving skills on my Sampleit. I even made a class about weaving Tapestry on a Rigid Heddle Loom!

Freestyle tapestries are great on a small rigid heddle, as they are more of an “anything goes” project. They can be very planned or completely unplanned. My Freestyle Tapestry series and Van Gogh Inspired Tapestry series are both great starting points for some inspiration.

Accessories and jewellery

You can weave some awesome gifts on your little loom. A bookmark is a quick project and a fantastic way to use up leftover yarn.

I wove a tapestry necklace on my tapestry loom, but the same could be done on a rigid heddle loom. A wrist cuff is a great small loom project and very straightforward to make.

I’m often asked if inkle bands can be woven on a rigid heddle. I have not done it myself, but I have seen bands woven by others. My advice would be – if you want to weave a lot of bands, make the investment in an inkle loom. They are quite affordable and they hold the amount of tension required for weaving really neat bands. Click here if you want to find out more about inkle weaving.

Notebook covers are fun and useful to weave. You can make them to fit your notebook, like I did for my Stashbuster Notebook tutorial series. You can also view that series here:

Some more accessory ideas could include:

A clutch, a purse or small bag, a phone case or wallet, glasses case, gadget case, pouches, or a drawstring bag.

Homewares

The range of projects you could complete in this category really narrow down to how comfortable you are with seams in your finished piece (though I will mention double width weaving shortly!)

Small items could include kitchen cloths, drink coasters, mug rugs, small placemats, teapot rests, and napkins and pot plant or coffee mug holders.

If you don’t mind the idea of seaming pieces together, you can expand on this list of projects to include:

Cushions and pillows, kitchen towels, table runners, throws and blankets. My Rainbow Blanket project is the perfect of example of how seaming panels together to make a larger project can really work. It was woven entirely on my 10″ Sampleit loom. It is lap blanket sized, but could easily be expanded to become bed sized! I woven panels and hand seamed them together.

Children

Options for woven items for children could include little hats, vests, pants, baby blankets, toys and plushies.

Double width

I couldn’t possibly finish up without mentioning that you have the ability to weave double width on your rigid heddle loom. For my 10″ Sampleit, this means that instead of the 10″ weaving width available, I would have 20″ instead! Just to temper that statement, this doesn’t include draw in, so the actual finished piece would be narrower than 20″ – but you get the idea. Weaving double width is just that – you increase the width of your finished item to twice the size it would have been.

This is a great option to small loom weavers who do not have the option of upgrading to a larger loom but would love to weave larger items. Does double width weaving sound like some kind of sorcery to you? Well, it’s actually very practical and with the right steps, is very doable. I have some resources that can help you get started:

Weaving with Two Heddles Online Class

Doubleweave Baby Blanket Online Class

I’m sure I haven’t covered all the ideas that are possible on a smaller loom, so if you have any other thoughts for projects, please share with other readers in the comments below.

Until next time…

Happy Weaving!