And let there be weaving!

Finally! The loom is dressed – let the weaving commence! To start, I use toilet paper to spread out the yarns from the knots (I can’t take any credit for this lovely idea – Tammy Deck taught me that one!). The pattern of the fabric is a simple plain weave, which allows the gorgeous colors and textures of the yarn to shine. But, it also puts more pressure on me to do something interesting with the fibers.

I prefer to use a long, rag shuttle for the weft. (The weft yarns are those in the shuttle, versus the warp yarns which are threaded through the loom.) I’ll group anywhere from 3-8 yarns together and wind the shuttle by hand. The good news with this method is that the yarns play nice with each other. The bad news, it takes a little longer. But, I love the effect!

Because this will ultimately be cut into pieces for handbags, I don’t worry about the edges being perfect. The ends of the yarns don’t need to be worked back into the fabric like they would if the project was a table runner or a scarf. And the magic begins! Where I started with just a few tubes of yarn, now there is fabric! Once all the yarn has been woven into yardage, it’ll come off the loom and you can really see it! Stay tuned…

Let's Weave!

Fabric Edge

Multiple Yarns in the Shuttle

Shaft is Lifting the Yarns

Shuttle is Running Through

Side View of the Loom Front

Yardage Winding On

Ah, the Magic!