Weaving

Affordable weaving tools I use every day

When you start a brand new hobby, it is easy to feel that you need to buy “all the tools” before you can begin and weaving is certainly no different.

But, once you have your loom (and the tools that come with the loom) there is not actually too much more you need to make a start.

And really, why overwhelm yourself by having to learn every new gadget and gizmo available when you can minimise your tools, stay within your budget and focus on using your loom?

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

Today I want to share with you the affordable tools I own and use constantly in my weaving studio.

Clover Bent Tip Jumbo Tapestry Needle

I have talked about these needles frequently (ok, perhaps a little too often!) but I can’t really sing their praises highly enough.

If you do hemstitching with any amount of regularity, you need these needles in your life. They are smooth but not slippery to hold, they have a large eye for easy threading, they slide through hand woven cloth like butter, they are gold (so they are hard to lose!) and the bent tip makes the angling of the needle for hemstitching just right.

2. Ashford Double Ended Threading Hook

I was so happy when I first discovered these double purpose hooks. I abandoned my former metal threading hook and separate reed hook very quickly and have not used them since!

These double ended hooks are made of flat, durable, flexible plastic, which makes them perfect for manoeuvring through holes and slots on your rigid heddle loom. I also use them for floor loom and table loom weaving, the hole threading end is just right for threading string heddles.

Rather than having to use two different tools, you simple switch the end of the hook with a quick hand swivel to swap between threading holes and slots or string heddles and reed dents.

Their flat design makes them easy to store (I even use them as bookmarks in a pinch!) I suggest that you have several in order to have spares for the times you, ahem… can’t quite locate one when you need it! 🤭

3. Pick up Sticks

Pick up sticks are one of the most economical ways to drastically increase the possibilities of weaving patterns on your rigid heddle loom.

A multi shaft loom can be quite a financial investment, but with your rigid heddle loom and a couple of pick up sticks, maybe a heddle rod or two, you can increase your shafts from two to three, four or more!

Using pick up sticks can be completely planned or quite random, depending on what you want to do. I think the really cool part for newer weavers is that you don’t really need to know what you’re doing to get some awesome results.

They are low cost to purchase new, or if you or someone you know are crafty with wood, you can make your own.

4. Boat Shuttle

This is a bit of a luxury item, but something that you may want to consider purchasing eventually. You can certainly just use your stick shuttles with no problems, but if you’re going to be weaving with finer yarns very often, a boat shuttle is really useful for quick weft winding and smooth weaving.

One thing to be aware of is the price difference in boat shuttles, depending on the company of manufacture, size and function, the wood used and whether it’s hand or machine crafted. My Ashford boat shuttles have served me very well for many years and were very affordable.

One day I may splash out on a special shuttle, but I’m very happy with these for now.

5. Dressmaker’s Shears

I love my dressmaker’s shears and have been using them for around 15 years. In that time, I’ve only had them sharpened a few times, so they have been a great deal for me.

My shears are the Stag brand, which unfortunately does not seem readily available now.

What I recommend is to not buy the cheapest, nor the dearest pair of shears, but go for the middle ground. Something similar to these looks good.

So, why dressmakers shears as opposed to regular or smaller scissors? Adaptability!

I can use my shears to snip yarn at the loom, make my warp, cut across my warp to take it off the loom AND cut through my handwoven fabric when I want to do that for a project. All of these things can be done with the one pair of shears, making them a very economical tool.

Well friends, although I do use other weaving tools, these 5 tools are the ones that are on regular standby and that I use almost daily in my weaving studio.

I hope this has been an informative and interesting post for you! If you would like to see this in video format you can do that right here:

Until next time…

Happy Weaving!

49 Weaving Project Ideas

by Kelly 10 Comments

Feeling a little stuck for ideas for your next weaving project?

The options are almost unlimited, but here are 49 weaving project ideas to get you started!

Whether you’re weaving on a rigid heddle loom, a table loom or a floor loom you are sure to find these weaving project ideas super helpful.

Weaving a scarf is the perfect starting point for the new weaver.

It’s a narrow piece, which makes it easy to tension. It’s a long warp, but not so long as to be likely to cause any real issues. And once you’re done weaving and wet finishing, you have a completed woven piece, ready to wear.

That is so rewarding and empowering to the beginner weaver!

Once you’ve completed your first scarf, you may want to build on that success and hone the skills you learned by weaving another. Great! Another beautiful scarf to wear!

What is next? Another scarf? Well, I guess you could either add to your scarf collection or start giving them as gifts. Some weavers will continue weaving scarves until they have so many they’re not sure what to do with them. That could be a time to start selling for some extra income, if that is something you are interested in.

But not everyone wants to continue just weaving scarves for the rest of their weaving lives.

I often see weavers chatting and asking questions online, wondering if there is anything beyond the humble scarf.

Well, rest assured, there are SO many things you can make as a weaver!

Once you take up weaving, you become a maker of cloth. In quite a magical way, you are able to produce your own fabric.

You can either choose to weave an item that is basically finished when it comes off the loom, or you can use your hand woven cloth as a stepping stone or starting point for something else.

If you have, or can learn basic sewing skills, you are well on your way to creating unlimited projects with your handwoven fabric.

Here is a list of ideas to get you started:

Scarves (obviously! 😉)

Shawls

Bags (totes, handbags, shopping bags, carry bags)

Rugs

Wallhangings and tapestries

Blankets

Pillows/cushions

Purses/ pouches

Kitchen, bath and hand towels

Face washers

Apron

Book covers

Bookmarks

Kitchen cloths

Soft toys

Ponchos

Jackets

Tops

Read about my hand woven tunic project here

Skirts

Dresses

Pants

Coats

Framed art

Lampshade covers

Loom covers/bags

Upholstery fabric for unique furniture pieces

Historical re-enactment costuming

Hats

Jewelery

Wallhanging from the Krokbragd 101 Online Class

Baby wraps, carriers and blankets

Drink coasters or mug rugs

Curtains

Patchwork and quilting projects

Hair accessories/ head wraps

Saddle blankets for horses

Dog beds, coats

Potholders/trivets/oven gloves

Dining table ware – table runners, place mat sets

Bedding – throws, coverlets, pillow covers, blankets, quilts

Well, what do you think, have I convinced you that you can weave more than just scarves with your loom?

If you’re looking for some free projects to get you started, check out my Free Projects list and be sure to check out my Youtube channel for even more ideas and tutorials. My design store contains my original project designs as digital downloads as well as my ebooks.

At the Online Weaving School you will find many classes to choose from, and as most of my lessons are project based, you can often complete a finished woven item.

So, as you can see, the possibilities for woven projects is really unlimited! Please add your own ideas in the comments to share with other readers.

Until next time…

Happy Weaving!

How to fix snags in your weaving!

by Kelly Leave a Comment

That awful moment when your lovingly hand woven piece catches on something sharp and pulls, leaving an unsightly loop.

I’m sure we’ve all been there and collectively cringed when this has happened.

Thankfully, the fix is a quick and easy one, once you know how.

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

If you are interested in the fabric I’m working with here, it is a sample from my Plaid Double Width Ebooklet.

All you need is the snagged piece of cloth and a tapestry needle. My favourite tapestry needles are the Bent Tip Needles by Clover.

The first thing to do is to have a look at the loop so that you can determine which row of your weft has been affected. We want to work on this row to redistribute the slack that occurred when the weft was snagged. Have a look at the way the weft row is running. This will tell you the direction in which you need to work.

Here you can clearly see the loop and the way in which it runs through the cloth (horizontally, not vertically).

Using the tapestry needle, go to one of the weft stitches either side of the loop. It doesn’t matter which side at this point, as we’re going to be alternating.

Pull up gently on the weft stitch so that some of the slack goes out of the loop and into this stitch.

Now go to the opposite side of the main loop and repeat with the stitch next to it on this side. The aim here is not to pull up big loops, but just to begin to ease and decrease that main loop. The weft stitches you are working on will become looser as you do this – that is normal and expected.

Once you have redistributed some of the slack among the other stitches (I started by doing 3 stitches either side of the main loop) it is time to get a bit rough on the fabric.

Holding onto the fabric either side of the main loop, pull it outwards, away from the loop. It is very helpful to use a “snapping” action for this. The idea is to shock the fabric and re-tension it in order to settle the weft back into the pattern it belongs in.

After snapping the fabric several times, you may see that the weft loop is now laying flat. If this is the case, your work here is done! However, if any of your wefts are still raised (either the loop itself or the weft threads around the loop) then more attention is required.

Simply go back in with your tapestry needle and gently repeat the process, including the fabric snapping afterwards.

By this time your wefts should all be happily settled back into place and laying flat. Ideally, it is now hard to see that there ever was a weft loop. I am pointing to my original loop in the photo above.

If you want to see this whole process in the form of a video, please enjoy watching this one:

I hope this tutorial was really helpful to you! Thank you for visiting me today and until next time…

Happy Weaving!

Do I need to pack the front beam?

by Kelly 17 Comments

When warping our rigid heddle looms, we are careful to pack the back beam as we wind on the warp. This may be done with a variety of materials, and some are more effective than others. It can be a personal preference too!

What a lot of weavers don’t seem to be so familiar with is the idea of packing the front beam. Quite often, when I’m troubleshooting with a student and I ask if they’ve packed the front beam, they seem surprised by the question. Packing the front beam? I’ve never heard of that!

*This post may contain affiliate links. For more information, please see my disclosure policy.

So, why would you want or need to pack the front beam? And what exactly do I mean by that?

Let’s start with the definition so we’re all on the same page!

Packing the front beam is simply introducing something extra to separate the warp as you weave and it begins to roll around the front beam.

Now we can look at the why. There are a couple of reasons as to why packing the front beam is a really good idea.

When you have finished warping and threading, you then need to tie or lash on your warp onto the front apron rod. Doing this results in knots or bumps on the apron rod.

As you begin to weave and advance your warp, you will reach the point where your warp is rolling around the front roller beam and onto itself. As this advancing of the warp happens, the knots, plus the apron rod ties can begin to have a detrimental effect on your weaving.

Firstly, you will likely begin to see some lumpiness at the bottom of your weaving (note that the white line of weaving that was previously straight is now a bit wavy!)

This is caused by the knots or apron ties pushing against your weaving from the underside. There are two problems with this happening:

The raised and lowered parts cause a change in the warp tension. The bumps tighten the tension and the dents lower the tension, so you end up with slightly uneven tension.

The worse case scenario is that your weaving is irreparably damaged because the knots or ties push the weaving apart. This can be more likely to happen when using a slippery thread like tencel, silk or bamboo, where your woven threads can move more easily, rather than something like wool, which is more “grabby” and unlikely to move out of place.

Fortunately there is a really simple solution to the problem, and that is to pack the front beam, or insert something that will separate those layers of fabric and act as a barrier between your weaving and the knots and ties.

Weavers use a variety of materials for packing, and it can really be a personal preference or what you find most effective. Initially I used the cardboard separators that came with the loom, and while they do work well, I find that the brown craft paper on a roll that I now use to be the superior choice.

What I love about the paper on a roll is that it’s thick and sturdy (a thinner paper will not work in the same way as it tends to crumple while you’re trying to advance your warp), you can purchase it to the width of your loom (or if the same width is unavailable, it’s easy to cut pieces to size) and you can use it over and over, so it’s very economical.

The roll that I bought years ago is still going strong and there is still a huge amount left.

An additional benefit of packing your front beam as you advance the warp is that your overall tension will vastly improve, and will continue to do so as you continue to weave.

I pack the front beam, whether I’m weaving on my rigid heddle, table or floor loom, it is beneficial for many types of weaving.

If you would like to see how I insert the paper roll at the front beam of my rigid heddle loom, please watch this video-

Until next time…

Happy Weaving!

Kelly’s Basic Raisin Bread Recipe

by Kelly 2 Comments

OK, so you can call it raisin bread, fruit bread, or whatever. I don’t mind, I just know that I love to eat this stuff!

It tastes absolutely wonderful on the day of baking, spread with soft butter or as toast on following days. My girls are slightly disgusted that I absolutely love to slather my raisin bread toast with peanut butter, but there you have it 😋

Jump to Recipe

I’ve been making this version of raisin bread for years, but most of the time I will call it fruit bread, as I tend to use sultanas rather than raisins.

*This post may contain affiliate links. Please see my disclosure policy for more information.

The beauty of it is you can add whatever dried fruit you like. Dried figs are gorgeous, currants, raisins, sultanas and dried apricots (I recommend dried organic apricots if you can get them, they taste so much better!) all work very well.

You also have the option of playing with the spice levels. Although this recipe only uses a mild dose of ground cinnamon, you can alter this if you are a spice lover and want more flavour. Add in some Christmas spices like nutmeg or other mixed spices if that is more your style!

This recipe makes 2 good sized loaves.

A word about bakeware. I generally bake 6 loaves of bread a week, all at one time. Sometimes they will all be just regular bread, often I do 4 regular and 2 raising bread and this tends to last my family a week.

I have fancy bread tins and non fancy bread tins. To be honest, I don’t find any difference between the two. A tin like this one will not cost you a fortune and will last for many years if you look after it.

My routine for bread tins is that I line them with non stick baking/parchment paper. I reuse these pieces of paper until they are so used that they are breaking apart. I haven’t counted, but I do know that I get many, many reuses from one piece when baking bread. I don’t care if they end up looking all browned and ratty, I conserve them as much as I can so I’m not overusing paper.

Using the paper also means that I don’t wash my bread tins very often and don’t need to.

Kelly’s Basic Fruit Bread Recipe

A simple fruit bread that is delicious fresh or toasted

Print Recipe Pin Recipe

Servings 2 loaves

Ingredients

1 kg White flour
2 tsp Dried Instant Yeast
2.5 tsp Salt
2 tsp Cinnamon
2 tbsp Brown sugar
3 tbsp White sugar
2.5 tbsp Melted butter
550 ml Warm milk *More may be needed
1 Large Egg, whisked
1 cup Sultanas *Raisins and other dried fruits may be used

Instructions

Warm the butter and milk together until butter is mostly melted.
Add sultanas to warm liquid and set aside.
Place all dry ingredients together in a large bowl (or the mixing bowl of your stand mixer).
Whisk dry ingredients together briefly until blended.
Add whisked egg to the warm milk and whisk in
Add wet ingredients into dry. You can use the dough hook on your stand mixer, or mix by hand. If mixing my hand, spend a few minutes kneading the dough on a lightly floured bench until smooth.
If your mixture seems too dry, add a little more milk in small amounts until the consistency is better. You don't want a super stiff dough, nor do you want a sloppy dough. Something in between is good!
Place dough in an oiled bowl and cover. Allow to rise until doubled in size – usually this takes around 1.5 hours, depending on the room temperature.
Remove dough from bowl and knead lightly. Cut into 2 equal portions.
Place in lined bread loaf tins or place rounds on lined trays.
Cover and allow to rise once more, this time for around 30 minutes.
Preheat oven. Fan forced 210 celsius (410 Fahrenheit), regular 220 celsius (428 fahrenheit).
After the second rise, slash the loaves and place in oven for 35 minutes. *Please note, this time can vary between ovens.
Remove from oven and tins and place on a cooling rack.
It is best to allow the loaves to cool completely before slicing – if you can wait that long…

You can see me baking this recipe in this video:

I have some other recipes you may be interested in:

Soft and Sweet Bread Rolls

Milk and Honey Bread

No Knead Whole Wheat Bread Recipe

Easy Flat Bread Recipe

Christmas Trees Weaving Tutorial on a Rigid Heddle Loom

by Kelly 2 Comments

With Christmas just around the corner, my head has begun swimming with festive ideas!

Christmas, as the song goes, “is the most wonderful time of the year” – at least I think so, I love to celebrate the birth of Jesus.

I also love the atmosphere, the colours, the change in mood to one of joy and relaxation. The excitement of finding the right Christmas tree and the wonderful scent of pine filling the house is a real highlight for our family.

You may have previously seen my Winter Trees Tutorial but I thought it was high time we do a good and proper Christmas Tree Tutorial.

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

This tutorial is inspired by the Russian Branoe technique and involves picking up threads with a pick up stick in front of the heddle on a closed shed. We then use a “pattern weft” to build up pattern as we weave through the rows. It’s a lot of fun and you can make some super cool characters and pictures.

The threading for the loom set up is just plain weave, and all patterning is done by picking up warp threads. There is no need for specialist knowledge, just a bit of patience!

You can choose to weave plain Christmas trees, or there is an option to “decorate” your tree at the end of the tutorial.

I used my rigid heddle loom to weave this on, but all you really need is a loom that is capable of tensioning a warp and opening 2 sheds. A frame loom would work, it would just be a bit more work for the weaver

If you find this technique interesting, I have plenty of other resources and tutorials for you to delve into:

Baubles and Candles

Little Trees

Exploring Branoe (Online weaving class)

Gift Boxes

Reindeer

Snowmen

You will find all the materials and instructions for the Christmas Trees in this downloadable, printable PDF. I recommend that you use this PDF in conjunction with the instructional Youtube video for best results. Click on “download” at the bottom of the file.

Christmas-trees-PDF Download

The free video tutorial is available to view here-

I hope that this tutorial and pattern brings some Christmas cheer into your homes and lives!

Until next time…

Happy Weaving!

2 Tips for Rigid Heddle Warping

by Kelly 6 Comments

Warping a rigid heddle loom can be quite daunting when you’re just starting out, but with a little bit of practice and some simple tips to follow, it doesn’t need to be a headache!

I actually love direct warping my rigid heddle loom, I find it so quick and easy compared with indirect warping.

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

What is direct warping?

When you purchase a rigid heddle loom, it should come with a warping peg and clamp. This peg will allow you to start making your warp directly on your RH loom, rather than having to make the warp on a warping board or mill first and then transferring to the loom.

You use the peg to measure out and hold your warp, while the other end is tied on or looped to the back apron rod of the loom. The added bonus here is that you save time by doing part, or all (depending on your yarn and project) of your threading at the same time as the warping. Efficiency at it’s best!

While warping a rigid heddle loom is fairly straightforward, like anything new, it will take some getting used to. Today I have 2 tips to share that are easy to learn but will help you to have a more positive warping experience.

Tip 1 : Use more than one peg

Although your loom will only come with one peg and clamp, you can purchase more separately.

Doing this has a couple of benefits.

Waste efficiency – If all of your warp threads are travelling to just one central point, some threads will travel further than others. You will find that, when you take all your warp threads off the peg, ready to thread, you will need to cut them all to an equal length for ease of threading and tying on, which creates more waste.

Overloaded peg – If your entire warp is on one peg, the peg can get overloaded. This does depend on the width of your warp (number of warp threads) and the thickness of your yarn.

If you don’t want to purchase an additional peg, there are other options. Coat racks can be a perfect solution, and some weavers prefer to use more than 2 pegs, which also works great. If you opt for a coat rack, just ensure that it has straight, smooth pegs, like this one does – otherwise it could be hard to remove your warp from it.

Tip 2 : Be gentle!

This stage of the warping process is not the time to tensioning your warp, ready for weaving. Yes, you want to maintain a consistent tension whilst warping, so that your threads stay fairly even and everything is nice and neat, but the proper warp tensioning will occur in the winding on of the warp.

Winding your warp around the peg/s too tightly can actually be detrimental to the process. This is because the pegs are holding a lot of tension. If the tension increases too much, that carefully clamped peg can come loose, and if you have any experience with this, you know what happens next! 😆

The peg can come loose with a “ping” and make spaghetti out of your carefully wound warp in a second flat!

Even if your peg manages to stay in place with your warp threads too tightly wound around it, once you are ready to take the warp off to start threading, you may find it difficult to remove from the peg.

Ideally, you should be able to get a couple of fingers inside the warp at all times, this ensures that you’re not winding too tightly around the peg.

An easy way to ensure that you’re warping around the peg with a loose enough tension is to have your yarn feeding off the cone or ball adequately. A cone/warping stand is ideal for cones of yarn, as it allows the yarn to wind off freely.

I also like to use 2 fingers inserted into the loop after pulling it through the slot with the reed hook. Then I simply walk towards the peg, keeping my fingers in the same place. I don’t pull on the warp, but just walk with it, then drop the loop gently over the peg.

I hope these tips make a difference to your warping experience! If you would like to see this post in video format, please view that here-

Until next time…

Happy Weaving!

Why weaving is more important than ever!

by Kelly 2 Comments

I made a video on this topic during the height of the 2020/21 pandemic, and although it was very relevant to the time period and experience we were all undergoing, it is still very relevant today.

I was inspired to talk about this by watercolour artist, Angela Fehr – a fellow Teachable creator. Although I spend very little time doing watercolour painting these days (thanks to weaving kind of taking over my life!) I am still very inspired by her emails and encouragement.

When certain world events come to the forefront (and we have certainly seen a variety of world events in the past 2 years!) it would be easy to say that something like weaving – a hobby for many of us, a career for some, is not all that important in the grand scheme of things.

I have to disagree by saying that it’s more important than ever. I’m going to talk about the reasons why.

Weaving is a skill

In difficult times, I think it’s those of us who are skilled with our hands and knowledgeable about our craft who will find it easier to be useful. Currently, those of us who sell our woven pieces do so at a luxury level. Our items are priced high, they are unique and special. But, in a time of shortages, recession, or actual depression, the ability to make cloth from yarn could become a valuable and tradable commodity.

In the event of a depression, where no one really has any money, trading or bartering handwoven items could really help your situation.

I’m not saying that I think we’re headed for global financial collapse, but I’m realistic to know that things can change very quickly, and it’s interesting to at least consider ideas for preparedness.

2. Weaving is beautiful

The first thing that attracted me to weaving was the possibility of creating such beautiful items with my hands and some tools. To use beautiful, natural and often locally produced yarns to make unique pieces. To me, weaving is like a beautiful piece of art, it adds something to the world that wasn’t there before, and that has an impact.

In a world that is, on many fronts, increasingly ugly and hostile (been on Facebook lately?) I feel wonderful about quietly sitting at my looms, lovingly preparing warps and projects, and then sharing them with the world.

We can help to bring happiness to others through gifting, selling or otherwise sharing our work and we have the additional joy of being able to help others look through a window into the weaving world. Some of those will be so enamoured by what they see that they too will want to be a part of it. What a privilege to be in a position to share such a gift!

For many of us, the lockdowns allowed us to get to work, weaving beautiful things for others. I wonder if you’ve seen my free projects I put out during that time, in hopes that weavers would bless others by weaving for them?

Wash Your Hands Towels Free Project

The Heart Scarf Free Project

3. The world can be crazy

Am I right?! Things have been noisy and unstable for some time, and there always seems to be something new happening. Amidst all this, many are searching for more peace, less stress. How can weaving help bring peace to our lives?

Purpose

I have been in touch with a great deal of new weavers in the past couple of years. Many of them had been wanting to explore weaving for years (some for most of their lives!) but never had the opportunity. Weaving requires focus, patience, often research for a new project or technique. It can take us away from what is happening externally, at least to some degree, and shift from things we can’t control to something we can. It makes us feel like we are doing something positive and useful.

The research, planning, calculations and sourcing of materials that occurs with every new project is very directed and purposeful. All of these processes can be so calming in turbulent times, and that brings me to my next point.

4. Weaving contributes to our own wellbeing

Weaving is an avenue to express our creativity. I firmly believe that everyone is, and in some respects, needs to be creative. This makes complete sense to me, as we are created in God’s image and likeness (Genesis 1:26-27), and God is VERY creative!

It also contributes to our wellbeing through a sense of accomplishment. How rewarding, and amazing it is to take yarn and turn it into something wonderful. It can take a lot of practice, learning and hard work to accomplish weaving goals, but every time we complete a project successfully, we prove to ourselves that we are capable.

Weaving can be very relaxing. The methodical and repetitive actions allow us to get into a “zone” and just enjoy what we’re doing.

5. You are in control

I touched on this a little back at point 3, but now I will expand further. How many things that happen in our lives do we have control over? We can’t prevent war, certain sicknesses, hard times, beyond hoping and praying. But in weaving, we get to make decisions, plan colours and patterns, and predict the outcome.

The project is yours, and that can be quite empowering!

6. Inspiring others

Inspiration is contagious, and although we might not always feel positive and happy, when we share our passions and interests with others, we ignite something that can take off and have a huge impact. When you inspire another person or people, that will often come back to you in waves.

You never really know the impact you could have on a fellow human by inspiring them. It’s not just about inspiring to take up weaving, it’s so much more than that. For someone who has lost hope and feels like giving up on life, to see somebody else living life with joy and passion and being more than willing to pass that on to others, could make all the difference and shift their focus completely.

One of the reasons I think suicide is so tragic is that I can’t help but wonder whether one more day, or a chance encounter, or a new interest could have changed that person’s mind. I’m not trying to oversimplify the tragedy of suicide, I’m well aware of the very complex factors involved – but I know for certain, that one more day can make all the difference.

7. Connection

Even the most introverted of us (👋) can benefit from connection with others. The easiest way to do this is by sharing a common interest. It can be so much fun to share your projects, have discussions and just chat to other like minded folks and be part of a community.

Thanks to the internet, we can connect to others without having to leave home if we don’t want to, or if it’s not possible. Facebook groups are a great way to interact, or if you want more involvement you may want to join private communities. When you purchase a membership to my Online Weaving School, you also gain access to the private member’s group, which is not just a great learning tool, but also a fantastic support network.

If you would like to watch the original video, here it is:

Until next time…

Happy Weaving!

Rigid Heddle Weaving books I love

by Kelly 2 Comments

In a previous post I detailed some of my favourite books for 4 shaft or more weaving, but today I’d like to talk about some great rigid heddle books.

If you have a really good local library, you may be able to borrow some of these books. This is a great way to check out a book first and decide whether you want to also add it to your home library. If you belong to a weaving guild, they will often have a healthy library for your education.

If, like me, your library is rather lacking in the weaving book department, I hope that this list provides you with some more direction for the type of book you may be looking to purchase.

I already have a video on this topic, but I know some people prefer to read rather than watch, plus I’ve added some extra books to the original list, so here we go!

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

I’ll start with my favourite and most used book. In fact, this is the first rigid heddle weaving book I bought and I believe it has taught me more than any other weaving book I own.

The Weaver’s Idea Book by Jane Patrick This book has so much content and is great for beginners. It allows you to start with the basics and build as you go. Just about everything you need to know initially is contained within these pages and I think of it a little like a training ground for new weavers. Although it’s great for beginners, it has plenty of information for weavers who want to learn more and level up. It is also hardcover with spiral binding, making it easy to lay flat and view while you’re weaving. Highly recommended!

Weaving made Easy by Liz Gipson. A lovely little book that includes information on loom set up. The projects are simple enough for beginners and interesting enough for all weavers.

Woven to Wear by Marilyn Murphy. I also read this book as a newer weaver and loved how it stirred my imagination. It contains simple garments with lots of plain weave, making it great for beginners, particularly those wanting to get a taste for sewing with your handwoven. The sewing projects are simple rather than finicky, with the use of large shapes instead of small pieces.

Inventive Weaving on a Little Loom by Syne Mitchell This book is awesome value for beginners to intermediate with lots of ideas. For the newer weaver, there is practical information and plenty of inspiration for once you have the basics down. I think of this book as one that you may not fully appreciate until you have some more weaving experience, perhaps a book that will grow with you through your weaving journey. Towards the middle and later part of the book are projects and ideas that may be too challenging for a new weaver, but that an enthusiastic and curious weaver will definitely want to make use of later on. There is a lot of information, it is attractively set out and a joy to flip through.

Weave, Knit, Wear by Judith Shangold This book is responsible for opening my eyes and quickening my heart over the range of possibilities with a rigid heddle loom and garment making. Judith uses mostly plain weave, colour and design to make fabric look special. She includes design layouts and illustrations to help you wrap your head around how garments can be constructed. What I really love about this book is the fusion of weaving, knitting and crochet added in. It really has encouraged me to think outside the square and maximise my rigid heddle loom.

Simple Woven Garments by Sara Goldberg Another really great book on making simple garments with simple, colourful, hand woven cloth. There are more than 20 projects and they are all wearable! There are also details on adjusting garments to your own specifications.

Debby Greenlaw’s book Krokbragd: How to Design and Weave. is a wonderful addition to any weaving library, especially if you are a lover of krokbragd. I actually like this book so much that I wrote a review for it here, so pop over and read if you want to find out more about it. Since the release of this book, Debby has written Krokbragd Patterns as well, great for those who want to delve in even further with patterning possibilities.

If you’re after some slow weaving with big impact, you can’t go past Myra Wood’s Crazyshot – Creative Weaving for the Rigid Heddle Loom. This book takes the simple techniques you may have seen in my Branoe/Overshot videos on Youtube and takes them to the next level. The projects in this book are absolutely gorgeous. Myra has followed up with another book, Crazyshot Companion.

To see all my book recommendations is one easy to access place, visit my Amazon Shop.

You may be interested in checking out this video I made several years ago. Although it’s missing some of the books that are on this page, there is more in depth discussion of each book:

I hope this booklist is helpful to you!

Until next time…

Happy Weaving!

Tips for Weaving with Finer Yarns

by Kelly 6 Comments

Working with finer threads on a rigid heddle loom can be quite challenging when it comes to adequate tensioning.

Why is this?

A rigid heddle loom does not hold the same amount of tension that a table or floor loom will. Particularly when weaving with thinner and rigid weaving yarns like 8/2 cotton you may encounter some frustrations like the following:

Tension too loose, especially in the down shed
Sections of warp that are more loosely tensioned than others
Single warp thread/s that are more loosely tensioned than others

Now let’s go over some tips that are going to make a big difference when you experience these issues.

Avoid snagging threads with your stick shuttle by using correct technique.

Due to the shape of a stick shuttle (usually with “prongs” on each end) you can accidentally snag a thread or threads when weaving a pick. Snagging will usually result in a saggy thread, as it is stretched and pulled tighter than the other warp threads.

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This can be avoided with correct technique. When entering the shed, I have the stick shuttle on a slight angle upwards initially, and ensure the end of the stick shuttle is touching the plastic part of the heddle.

Entering the shed in this way means that you are utilising the widest part of the shed, giving plenty of space for the stick shuttle. Roughly half way across, I then flatten the shuttle out.

At this point, if the tension is good you can “shoot” the shuttle across the rest of the way and it will slide beautifully on the bottom of the shed to the other side.

What if I have already snagged a thread? 🙁

Don’t panic, we can fix this! This is where you will need to make friends with an “S” hook or similar weight. I love “S” hooks because they can be hung over a thread and are an ideal weight. You can pick them up from a hardware store or online.

Locate and isolate the slack thread at the back of the loom.

Loop one end of your “S” hook over the slack thread so that it hangs off the back of your loom.

Yes, it’s really that simple.

Weighting general threads.

The weighting of a single thread can be used not just for snagged threads, but in the event that you have one or several threads that are looser than others.

Usually you will only need to take action on a looser thread if it is actually impacting on the quality of your weaving. The 2 main ways this problem will present are:

Bunching of the loose thread as you beat your weft. It will show as little vertical lumps as the slack of the warp thread is caught between weft picks. How noticeable this is depends on how loose the warp thread/s are.
The thread/s sag out of the shed they should be in, resulting in floats in your weaving.

Dealing with loose sheds.

This is one of the biggest issues that the rigid heddle weaver will run into when using finer threads. One shed will always be looser than the other, commonly this happens when you put your heddle in up and find that all your down shed threads (the slot threads) are lacking good tension.

The first step to improving this situation begins in the warping process, make sure that you are using adequate warp separation as you roll it into the back beam. You can use cardboard separators, but my preference is thick brown craft paper on a roll for continuous separation.

To address the problem on the loom though, we can use various forms of tensioning. Here is one that works really well:

Open a shed by placing your heddle up or down. Insert a pick up stick or spare stick shuttle into the opened up space behind the heddle. Turn the stick on edge to prop the threads up, then insert a cardboard separator or similar into the space behind the pick up stick.

Push the separator right to the back of the loom so that it’s firmly in place, then continue weaving. This separator will need to be repositioned as you advance your warp forward.

Here is another form of wedging to try that helps in a similar way:

Place your heddle in the neutral position. Use a cardboard separator or similar and take it underneath the whole warp. Wedge it under the threads at the back beam and continue weaving. This will also need to be repositioned as you advance the warp.

What about loose sections?

Sometimes while you are weaving you will be presented with loose sections in the warp. This commonly occurs at the middle of the warp, where it is trickiest to maintain tension while winding on.

If it happens that you have a section of warp that is looser than the rest, then you can employ targeted wedging.

This is just what it sounds like – wedging, but targeting a specific area that really needs it. I have a full video tutorial on Youtube that goes over the technique if you need to see how it works.

Basically, you want to take smaller sections of whatever you’re using for wedging material and place it in the specific areas that need help. I find paper folded up is great because you can really customise the width and thickness according to your needs. Smaller cardboard stick separators or pieces of large ones (I sometimes cut up old ones when they’re not in great condition anymore) can be used for this too.

I hope these ideas are helpful to you and that you give them a try. I think you will be pleasantly surprised with the results.

Until next time…

Happy Weaving!