Weaving

Clasped Warp Quechquemitl Wrap – New Class!

What on earth is a quechquemitl anyway?!

Well, it’s a traditional Mexican upper body garment for women and it’s the inspiration behind my new class.

From what I understand, it is pronounced something like “kech- ka – mil” (please do correct me if I’m mistaken!)

I started researching the quechquemitl because I wanted to find a flattering and easy garment to make with my clasped warp fabric. The clasped warp technique gives a striking appearance to the fabric, and I wanted to utilise that and put it on show.

I started (as all projects should!) with some gorgeous yarn. Tencel and bamboo are both soft and light with an amazing sheen. Perfect for this project!

These fibres made a supple and drapey fabric, and the simple yet contrasting colours make the piece really special.

There are two ways to wear this wrap – in a poncho fashion as pictured above or you can swivel it around so that horizontal lines run across the body. Either way is totally beautiful!

This is a low sew project, so great for those who are dipping their toes in the world of sewing.

This class is available now at my Online Weaving School. You can make a single purchase, or, if you’re already a member you can simply login and enjoy.

Happy Weaving!

8 shaft Strickler sampler

by Kelly 2 Comments

If you follow me on Instagram you will have been viewing the progress I’ve made on my 8 shaft sampler.

*This post contains affiliate links, meaning that if you click and purchase, I will receive a small commission at no extra cost to you.

I didn’t have any specific plan for this sampler other than to explore some 8 shaft drafts on a rose path threading from Carol Strickler’s 8 Shaft Pattern Book.

If you’re not familiar with rose path threading, it is a point twill variation and can be used for both 8 and 4 shaft patterns. An example of rose path threading for 4 shafts would be 1,2,3,4,1,4,3,2,1 and for 8 shafts 1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8,1,8,7,6,5,4,3,2,1.

Something I really love about having an 8 shaft loom is the range of patterns or motifs that can be woven. I wanted to explore:

Which combinations of yarns would be most effective for the designs I wanted to weave.
How many different patterns I could weave on 8 shafts by changing my tie up often.

Once you have threaded a multi shaft loom, there is no going back, no changing the order of threading (unless you want to go back and start again and no one wants to do that!) By changing the tie up though, you can vary the combinations of shafts as you’re weaving, therefore changing the pattern without having to change the threading.

By “tie up” I’m talking about attaching my treadles to various shafts with texsolv cording. Different types of looms have different ways to tie up the treadles and one thing I love about my Louet David is how simple it is to tie up. This means that if I want to change the tie up to alter the pattern, it doesn’t take long and isn’t hard to do.

My loom is a sinking shed loom, so I was aware that the actual pattern would be woven on the underside. I didn’t mind that (in other words, I couldn’t be bothered messing around with the treadling to make sure the pattern would weave the right way up). Interestingly, I discovered that I often preferred the weaving on the underside to the right side anyway.

I started with 8/2 unmercerised cotton for the warp in white and warped at 20 ends per inch. I made my warp around 10 inches wide on the loom, as I like to have plenty of space to see my pattern. A narrow warp doesn’t always give enough pattern repetitions to give a good representation.

Beginning on page 30 of the book, I randomly picked motifs to weave according to the number of treadles required. My loom has 10 treadles, so 8 were tied up for the pattern weft and 2 were tied up for tabby.

I initially started weaving with some dk weight cotton (pink) and Bambu 7 (blue) and changed to 8/2 Cottolin (grey). For these designs I used tabby throughout (which means that following every pattern weft row is a row of plain weave) in an 8/2 mercerised cotton in a very light blue which looks mostly like white in these photos.

I wasn’t too thrilled with the initial results but it showed me something valuable. For the designs to have more impact I needed to use a heavier weight of yarn for the pattern weft and to choose my colours with intention. I wanted bold, not “meh” designs!

I switched the tie up and the yarn, and presto! Much better result this time. I alternated between a variegated orange/pink and teal fingering weight hand dyed wool, keeping my pale blue 8/2 cotton tabby. The top design is a burgundy dk/light worsted wool. I find both sides of this design equally pleasing. Between the hand dyed and burgundy you can see that the design looks slightly different – this is as a result of changing the treadling around but keeping the same tie up. So many variations are possible! If you’re looking for this design in the book, it is number 132 on page 32.

For this design I once again changed the tie up and swapped to a black fingering weight wool. This design is number 133 on page 32. The red design is number 128 and was worked in a dk/light worsted weight cotton. You can see how different this one looks on each side! I also tried it in a lighter weight and colour of cotton, which sort of just shrunk into the background.

This design is one of my favourites – number 139 on page 33. I changed treadling and yarn again for this one, using dk/light worsted weight wool (I had figured out by now that a heavier weight wool gave the kind of effect I liked).

I finished up with design 120 on page 31. The Strickler design looks like little trees, but mine are upside down and look more like balloons, which I find quite cute. I experimented with my tabby yarn by using a hand dyed, variegated tencel against the blue wool. I quite liked the effect (you can see the rainbow-ish colours in the middle of the panel.

This was a really fun project. I loved having something on the loom that had no particular commitment and didn’t need finishing quickly – it was purely for my own enjoyment and learning. That’s the kind of weaving I like!

I may just keep this as a sample or I may cut it up and use it for a small project. For now, I like the way it looks just hanging off my studio shelf.

If you are intrigued by multi shaft or floor loom weaving, I have a very popular class for beginners, the Introduction to Floor Loom Weaving. It takes you through all the step by step basics of getting started on your loom and weaving a beautiful cowl project. There is also a follow up class to go onto afterwards. You can even purchase the two classes together for a special price.

If you take out a Yearly Membership or Monthly Membership to my Online Weaving School, the floor loom classes are included.

I hope you found this post interesting and inspiring!

If you have any questions about this post or my Online Weaving School, please leave me a comment below.

Until next time…

Happy Weaving!

Tote Bag Weave Along, Lesson 7

by Kelly 2 Comments

Now we’re ready to sew the bag together! If you missed the last post on taking your fabric off the loom and wet finishing, you can take a look at it here.

*This post contains affiliate links, meaning if you click on the link I will receive a small commission at no extra cost to you.

Lay the fabric out on the ironing board with the WRONG side facing up. You will notice that your fusible interfacing has a shiny side and dull side. It’s the shiny side that will fuse to the fabric, so you want to place the shiny side down so that it meets with the wrong side of your fabric. This is worth doing properly. If you place the shiny side up instead, you may find yourself in the market for a new iron!

It is best to place a presser cloth over the fabric and fusible interfacing before you begin to iron. I just use an old sheet for protection. Set your iron to “cotton” steam setting a press evenly over the fabric. You can peel back the sheet here and there to check whether you have a good bond happening. Bear in mind that the bonding is not complete until the fabric has cooled.

Your piece should look like this when ready. The interfacing is completely bonded to one side of your fabric.

Fold the fabric over on itself so that the sides are all touching. Line up the pieces to fit as best you can.

Press the fold at the bottom of the bag to make a crease. This will become your cutting mark. If you’re a bit worried about cutting your fabric, don’t be! The fusible interfacing keeps it all very secure.

Cut right through the fabric, using the crease mark you just made.

Now you have two separate pieces, or bag panels.

At this point you will also want to cut your lining fabric in half after ironing a crease in it as you did before. There are so many choices you could make for lining fabric but if you’re really not sure, broadcloth is a good option.

If you’re not sure where to find all the measurements, they are in the Essential Info PDF in this post.

The next task is to fuse your interfacing to the bag handles, using the same method that was used for the main bag panels.

Fold the bag straps in half lengthwise and press. Open out and then fold in each long raw edge by about 1/4 inch and press. Fold the whole piece to the middle and press again. The raw edges will now be encased.

At the overlocker (serger) I run over all the raw edges. You can use a zig zag stitch on a sewing machine if you don’t have a serger.

This is what we have now. 2 X serged bag panels, 2 X lining panels and 2 X prepared bag handles.

Place a bag panel on top of the other, with RIGHT sides facing. Pin around all the edges except at the top, where you need to keep and opening. Do the same with the two lining panels, keeping the top open and leaving about a 6 inch gap at the middle of the bottom for turning later.

You can also pin the bag handle pieces together just so that they are held in place when you begin to sew them together.

Now all of our pieces are pinned and prepared for sewing. Stay tuned for the next post where we will sew the bag together!

You can watch the videos for this post:

And if you feel you need to learn more about cutting your hand woven fabric, I have a post for that here as well as videos:

Until next time…

Happy Weaving!

Tote bag Weave Along, Lesson 6

by Kelly 1 Comment

Now for the really exciting part! Once you’ve finished your required amount of weaving (check the Essential Project Information free download here) you can cut your weaving from the loom. Yay!

If you missed the last post about weaving and advancing the warp, you can find that here.

Release the warp tension at the back of the loom a little. If you want a fringe or are worried about your weaving unravelling at all, you can cut behind the reed which leaves plenty of fringe space.

Then, back to the front of the loom to release the brake, allowing you to easily unroll your weaving from the front beam.

You can either cut or undo the knots from the apron rod. I usually prefer to undo the knots (especially important if you want a fringe). Also, if you wove in a header with waste yarn at the beginning, now is the time to take that out.

Before wet finishing, it is essential to secure the raw edges of your weaving. A serger will make this job super easy, or a sewing machine set on zig zag stitch is also good.

You can find basic wet finishing instructions at the end of this video:

Or more detailed instructions in this blog post or video:

At the end of wet finishing and drying, you have some beautiful woven fabric ready to use and sew with. That’s what we’ll be talking about next time, I hope you can join me for that!

Until then…

Happy Weaving!

Tote Bag Weave Along, Lesson 5

by Kelly Leave a Comment

In today’s post we carry on with the weaving of the tote bag panels and also talk about advancing the warp.

An important aspect of good weaving is advancing your warp. Of course, you can’t actually continue weaving unless you do so, as your weaving will fill right up to the heddle/reed and you won’t be able to weave any further.

Advancing the warp exposes more of the empty warp threads so that you can keep weaving. It basically involves releasing tension at the back of the loom, rolling the warp forward at the front of the loom, regaining your tension and then continuing to weave.

There is always a “sweet spot” for your weaving, the position is where the tension feels right and the beating is easy. If you wind forward too far, when you beat, the reed will touch the cloth beam at the front and the beat will be uneven. It’s also uncomfortable for your body to have to bring the reed so far forward, it puts strain on your wrists and shoulders.

Advancing often, and the right amount also helps you to keep weaving at the same tension.

My “sweet spot” for weaving. Not too close to the front cloth beam, not too close to the reed.

The best tip that I have for advancing the warp is “little and often”.

This video may help you to become more familiar with your loom’s tension system and gain a little confidence for advancing your warp.

I hope this post has been a help to you! Please leave me a comment and let me know, or ask any questions you may have.

The next post will cover removing your weaving from the loom and preparing for wet finishing.

Until next time…

Happy Weaving!

Tote Bag Weave Along, Lesson 4

by Kelly 1 Comment

Now you can really get excited about your tote bag project – it’s time to get weaving! If you missed the last post on threading, you can go here to read it.

Just one more teensy thing before you start to weave – the header. The header helps to spread the warp so that you don’t have big gaps at the very start of your weaving. As with most things in weaving, there is more than one way to put in a header.

*This post contains affiliate links.

My preference is (I think) the easiest. I use 2 cardboard separators (or warping sticks as they are also called). With the heddle/reed in the up shed I insert one stick, then change to the down shed to insert the second stick. Then beat to push them into place. You may want to weave an additional header with spare yarn if you feel your warp is too gappy (I demonstrate this in the video at 1:10) Pop the heddle into the up position again and you’re ready to weave!

Don’t forget to wind your stick shuttle.

It doesn’t matter which side you enter into the shed with the shuttle, but it is useful to develop a habit when working plain weave to always enter from the same side to avoid any confusion as to which shed you should be in and to easily develop a weaving rhythm.

I give yarn recommendations in this post, but a variegated yarn is particularly effective and makes the plain weave look more fancy than it is. I dyed my own yarn for this project. You can also get a bit fancy by using a novelty yarn as a feature. I used an eyelash yarn as an occasional stripe to accent this bag.

If you are a newer weaver, you may be worried about obtaining neat edges. This is very much a matter of practice makes perfect, but this video shows you my pinching technique that has helped many newbies improve their edges.

You also want to try to keep your beat consistent and even. One way to see if you’re beating evenly is to stand up and look at your weaving from time to time. You will see quite clearly whether you are beating straight or at an angle.

Don’t forget to measure your weaving as you go. I do this in a simple manner by using a tape measure and marking my last measured place with a plastic or glass head coloured pin. I always write down the measurements as I go so that I don’t have to try to remember!

You will be advancing your warp every so often, and this video will show you how to do that.

Remember to refer back to your essential information project sheet, available as a free download for all the measurements you need to follow.

In the next lesson we will be talking more about continuing to weave and advancing the warp. Be sure to leave me a comment if you need to ask questions or are unsure of anything.

Until next time…

Happy Weaving!

Tote bag Weave Along – Threading and getting ready to weave, Lesson 3

by Kelly 2 Comments

Now you’re ready to wind on your warp.

Your warp is secure with the choke tie you already put in place. If you need to read over the last lesson, please go here first.

Decision time! Are you going to warp with a helper or independently? This decision can often come down to whether you have someone to help you or not. But, if this is your first warp or if you’re not too confident with warping yet, I always recommend warping with a helper. This is a time to get to know your next door neighbour better! Or invite that friend or family member around for a cuppa and just casually mention that you need their help with something and that it won’t take but a minute!

*This post contains affiliate links

If you feel like you really need more information on warping at this stage, I have an excellent class, Warping for Beginners.

To roll your warp onto the back beam your will need something to use a separator. In the Youtube video demonstration I use my cardboard separators (also known as warping sticks) but you can also use a roll of paper or a blind if you prefer a continuous separator.

Having a helper takes the pressure off the newer weaver. You can concentrate on turning the clicker and pawl system which rolls the warp on without having to worry about uneven tension. It also means that you have two hands free instead of just one.

Place 1 cardboard separator for each full warp rotation.

I like to keep winding until the end of the warp is just over the front apron bar. This ensures that I have enough length in the warp for comfortable threading.

At this point I cut the warp ends, then undo the choke tie.

Time to begin threading! Before you start, I highly recommend that you watch my free Threading Tips video. So, for plain weave, I thread one in the left hole and leave one in the slot. It doesn’t matter whether you thread in the right or the left hole, but the left is my habit and I stick to it.

Keep threading in this simple fashion right across the width of the warp.

Now we tie on to the apron rod. Some weavers prefer to leash on but I only do that for slippery threads as I find I get better tension when I tie directly on to the rod. For this section, I will refer you to the video near the end of this post – it is much easier to show than to explain the knotting system.

Go back over your knots and tighten them all to an equal tension. You are trying to obtain firm and consistent tension, not necessarily to get them as tight as you can. If you have consistent tension, everything will tighten up when you advance the warp in readiness for weaving.

Here is the video that goes along with today’s lesson, I think you will find it very helpful!

Well, now we are almost ready to weave and things start to get exciting. Join me next time for options for putting in a header and beginning to weave!

Until next time…

Happy Weaving!

Tote Bag Weave Along – Warping, Lesson 2

by Kelly 4 Comments

In today’s Tote Bag Weave Along post, we will cover warping. The last post containing details about materials can be found here.

You can download the PDF with essential project information below.

tote-bag-weave-along-essential-info Download

Prior to warping for any project I find it very useful to mark out the width of the project with some waste yarn to avoid having to count and re-count slots, which can be a bit tedious! I just thread the waste yarn through the slot and tie it at the bottom of the reed. Easy peasy.

*This post contains some affiliate links, meaning that if you click and purchase, I receive a small commission at no extra cost to you.

You can begin warping on the left or the right side of the loom, it doesn’t matter, but my habit is to start on the right. Tie your first length of yarn onto the apron rod, take it through the first slot and around your warping peg, back through the slot and then around the apron rod again. Alternate so that your thread goes over then under the apron rod each time.

By the time you are finished warping, you should have 2 threads in each slot. Place your yarn gently on the peg – we are not aiming for tight tension at this point, just consistent.

When you are finished warping the required number of ends, cut your yarn and tie off on the apron rod.

Now you’re ready to place a choke tie around the warp near the peg to keep it all together as you wind the warp onto the back beam. A piece of waste yarn in a bow is perfect for this.

The step by step video instructions for this lesson are available for free.

If you need the basic equipment to get started on this project, here are my suggestions:

I have a 24″ Ashford Rigid heddle loom (most looms will come with a 7.5 or 8 dent reed, a threading and reed hook, one stick shuttle and a direct warping peg.

Ashford also have a 16″ rigid heddle loom that is appropriate for this project.

A sewing machine is really invaluable for making bags or any other sewing you want to do with your handwoven fabric. You do not need to spend a fortune on a fancy schmancy machine with all the bells and whistles, just a basic straight and zigzag stitch machine. I have a basic Janome and am very happy with it.

I’m not going to tell anyone that a serger is a must have for sewing hand woven, but the truth is, if you do a fair bit of sewing it will make your life a whole lot easier. I have an old Toyota serger that I bought cheap many years ago as it was an ex demo model. Sergers have actually come down in price since I bought mine, so a new one would set me back the same as what I bought my old one for. I do recommend checking out Janome sergers if you’re in the market for one though.

Yarn suggestions area covered in the last post.

If you have any questions at this stage, please leave them in the comments below.

Next time we will learn how to wind the warp onto the back beam, then thread and tie on in readiness for plain weave.

Happy Weaving!

Tote Bag Weave Along Lesson 1

by Kelly 13 Comments

It is almost 3 years since I first posted my Tote Bag Weave Along series on Youtube. It has been my most popular series ever, and I’ve been thrilled to see so many bags woven by others!

I’ve wanted to add extra functionality to the series for those who desire it, and that is what I’ll be doing here over the next couple of posts. I will be giving yarn details and help, printable PDF’s, as well as some step by steps for some sections of making the bag.

I’m beginning with the materials list that you can now download and print out.

totebagweavealongmaterialslist Download

OK, lets get into some extra details and questions you may have from the list.

*This post contains affiliate links, meaning if you click and purchase on the link’s given, I receive small commission at no extra cost to you 😉

Do I need to have a 24″ or 60cm rigid heddle loom?

Not necessarily! Although weaving the bag in one piece is the easiest option, it’s not the only way. If, for example, you had a Sampleit loom, you could weave 2 panels, 10″ wide and sew them together for each bag panel you need. (So that would be 4 panels you would weave for one bag). You could even make a design feature of your panels by weaving the wefts in different colours so that each side of your bag would contrast. Where there’s a will there’s a way!

Do I need to sew the handles myself?

Nope. You have other options for the handles too. If you have an inkle loom, you could weave them yourself, in either matching or contrasting colours. You can also purchase ready made handles and these come in a huge variety nowadays. You can choose from metal, acrylic, wood, rattan, and faux leather, to name a few!

I can’t get Australian 8 ply merino – what are my other choices?

There are many yarns you can substitute with and you don’t have to use wool. Cotton, acrylic, bamboo and others can be used too. One world of caution though. When you iron on your interfacing, your chosen yarn needs to be able to take the heat without being scorched. Cotton or superwash wool are good choices.

Here are some suggestions for you:

Lily Sugar n Cream is a range of cottons that come in the most gorgeous colours and varieties. Their variegated cottons are wonderful and they even have curated colour packs! Cascade Ultra Pima is another possibility.

For wool, you have Cascade Superwash, Patons Classic, Carlton Merino and so many more. Yarnsub.com is an excellent resource for checking and comparing yarns.

Do I have to line my bag?

No, but it does give a really nice, more professional looking finish.

Do I need to use a sewing machine?

Technically, you could hand stitch this whole project, but that is not something I would do! If you decide to, make sure your stitches are small and strong, a bag needs to be hard wearing. Whether sewing on a machine or by hand you should always use a good quality thread like my favourite, Gutermann. Cheap thread is cheap for a reason!

Next time we will go through some of the steps for the project. If I have missed anything or if you have questions about the materials, please let me know in the comments. Also, please let me know if offering the series in this format is helpful to you.

In the meantime, if you want to take a look over the Tote Bag Weave Along video series, you can start with the introduction video below.

If you have any questions about the project or anything from this post, please let me know in the comments!

Until next time…

Happy Weaving!

How to Use Pick-Up Sticks

by Kelly 24 Comments

Pick-up sticks can be a game-changer for rigid heddle weaving. These simple tools expand your loom’s capabilities, allowing you to create intricate patterns beyond plain weave. Whether you’re a beginner or looking to elevate your skills, this guide will help you understand how to use pick-up sticks effectively.

A rigid heddle loom has 2 shafts, essentially the hole threads and the slot threads. These 2 shafts allow you to work plain weave, which is a perfectly lovely weave structure on it’s own, but most weavers will begin with plain weave and then want to increase their own skills and their loom’s capabilities.

*This post contains affiliate links, which means that if you click a link and purchase, I will receive a small commission at no extra cost to you.

This is where pick up sticks enter and shine. Basically, they are simple, flat and smooth lengths of wood. You pick up warp threads and operate the stick/s from behind the heddle/reed. Your pick up sticks need to be longer than the width of your project, or they won’t hold the picked up threads. For my 24″ rigid heddle loom I use 24″ pick up sticks. I can use these same sticks whether my project is narrow or full loom width.

Incorporate one pick up stick and you can weave on 3 shafts. Incorporate two pick up sticks and you can weave on 4 shafts. And you can keep going from there, although you will probably want to learn about installing heddle rods to increase time efficiency. I happen to have a video showing you how to do that:

If that is a bit much for you at the moment, you can run with the knowledge that pick up sticks allow you to weave pretty patterns!

One of the rules of picking up warp threads with a stick is that your heddle needs to be in the “down” position. The threads we want to pick up must be slot threads, as the hole threads are already committed and are therefore inflexible.

Trying to pick up hole threads would be like trying to pick up the same threads twice! The slot threads are normally our shaft 2 threads and when we place the heddle in down position, they are raised.

Because we push our pick up stick/s to the back when not in use and they lay flat between the warp threads, they do not hinder you from being able to still operate shaft 2, as well as an additional shaft when the stick is engaged.

But I don’t think that you need to understand any of the above in order to use one or two pick up sticks, I certainly didn’t know what I was doing when I started with them. I just played around and liked what I saw and you can do the same!

Even if you are using a written pattern, you still don’t need a lot of understanding to follow them. If you see the instructions “1 up, 1 down” for your pick up, it simply means 1 warp thread will sit on top of the pick up stick, the next will sit underneath it and this will repeat across the warp.

The instructions for the actual weaving will be a little different, but easy to follow. Here is a simple weaving sequence as an example:

Up (heddle up)
Down (heddle down)
Up, pick up stick (heddle up and slide pick up stick behind the heddle, leaving flat).

If you want to see pick up sticks and examples of pick up patterns demonstrated, watch my free Youtube video:

If you’re interested in exploring pick up in the form of a project, I can help! My Kitchen Cloths on a rigid heddle loom project is available as an online class.

In my Etsy shop, you will find my Lux Hand Towels pattern, which also uses pick up.

Oh, and let’s not forget the free pattern you receive when you sign up to my email list, the Moroccan Dream Scarf, which is easy enough for beginner pick up stick adventurists and can look so varied, depending on the yarn and colours you decide on.

I have some really cool pick up patterns for free, along with a video tutorial in this post.

I’m quite sure that you will be interested in taking a look at my Pick Up Stick Playlist on Youtube:

I also have a comprehensive course, Pick Up Perfection, available for purchase. If you have a membership to the Online Weaving School, this class is included for free.

I hope this has helped you to understand how pick up sticks can be utilised in your weaving. If this post has been useful to you or if you have any questions, please leave me a comment, I love to hear from you 😊

Until next time…

Happy Weaving!