modern art and Scandinavian design offers endless inspiration for weaving. In both disciplines proportional blocks are utilized beautifully. Tapestry, a weft-faced plain-weave technique, is a great way to place pure color blocks next to one another. Only the weft yarn shows in tapestry (there are no visible interactions between the warp and weft), which makes it easier to choose harmonizing colors. The only trick is to be consistent in how the two colors are handled at the color changes. In this project, the green always lays on top of the brown at the join.
About 7" (18 cm) wide by 8½" (21.5 cm) long, with 42" (106.5 cm) strap.
Weft-faced tapestry.
12-dent rigid heddle with a 7" (18 cm) weaving width; two 8" (20.5 cm) stick shuttles; two 6" (15 cm) stick shuttles; tapestry beater or fork (optional).
Sett (epi)
4 (using a 12-dent rigid heddle).
Weaving Width
7" (18 cm).
Picks per Inch (ppi)
34.
Warp Length
60" (152 cm; includes 30" [76 cm] for loom waste and take-up, and 10" [25.5 cm] for sampling).
Number of Warp Ends
28.
Warp
2-ply worsted-weight wool (900 yd [823 m]/lb): 47 yd (43 m) olive green.
Shown here: Harrisville Design Highland (100% wool; 450 yd [411.5 m]/8 oz): Cypress (olive green).
Weft
2-ply worsted-weight wool (900 yd [823 m]/lb): 60 yd (55 m) olive green, 15 yd (13.5 m) forest green, 9 yd (8 m) brown, and 39 yd (35.5 m) brick red. Additional yarn will be needed for sampling.
Shown here: Harrisville Design Highland (100% wool; 450 yd [411.5 m]/8 oz): Cypress (olive green), Evergreen (forest green), Teak (brown), and Russet (brick red).
Strap
60" (152.5 cm) of ⅛" (3 mm) tan leather cord.
2-ply worsted-weight wool (900 yd [823 m]/lb): 8 yd (7.5 m) each forest green, brown, and brick red.
Shown here: Harrisville Design Highland (100% wool; 450 yd [411.5 m]/8 oz): Evergreen (forest green), Teak (brown), and Russet (brick red).
To pack the weft in tightly, you’ll need to use a heavy beat. You may find it helpful to hold the beater firmly against the fell of the cloth as you change the shed. You may also want to use a tapestry beater (a heavy-handled short comb) or fork to pack the weft in tightly.
Warp the loom (see page 24), following the specifications on page 89. To space the warp in the reed, *thread a slot, skip the next hole and slot, then thread a hole, skip the next slot and hole, and repeat from * across the width. Every threaded slot must be followed by a threaded hole in order to form plain-weave sheds.
Wind one 8" (20.5 cm) shuttle with olive green and the other with brick red. Wind one 6" (15 cm) shuttle with forest green and the other one with brown (it’s easier to weave smaller blocks with shorter shuttles).
Weave 2" (5 cm) of header with a firm beat to spread the warp ends and to provide a ground to beat against (see page 40).
Using the 8" (20.5 cm) shuttle, weave 8½" (21.5 cm) with olive green, using a heavy beat to maintain 34 picks per inch. Change to brick red and weave 5¼" (13.5 cm).
Faced Fabrics
By making the warp denser than the weft, or vice versa, you can create a bevy of interesting fabrics from sturdy rugs to tapestry bags. The secret is all in the beat.
Step 1: Open the next shed and place the forest green shuttle in the shed from left to right, exiting to the right of the 18th warp thread. Rest this shuttle on the woven cloth. Starting at the right side of the shed, pass the brown shuttle through the same shed to the left of the 10th warp thread from the right and exit to the left of the warp thread. Both wefts will be exiting up through the same space. Rest the shuttle on the woven cloth so that the brown yarn is on top of the forest green weft that has exited the warp. Change the shed and beat.
Step 2: Pick up the forest green shuttle so that it catches the brown yarn and pass it back through the shed from right to left. Pass the brown shuttle through the same shed from left to right. The two wefts will be clasped together to form a tidy join where the colors meet (see illustration below). Rest the two shuttles on the cloth again, change the shed, and beat.
Repeat Steps 1 and 2 until the blocks measure 3¼" (8.5 cm) tall. As you work, be sure to keep the line between the two colored blocks straight. You can fine-tune the join by gently pulling on the weft threads after the first beat. To readjust, simply open the shed, make the adjustment, then beat. Weave a few picks with scrap yarn to keep the last weft picks in place.
Wrap the two colors of weft around the same warp end to prevent holes at color changes.
Remove the fabric from the loom (see page 46) by untying the warp ends off the back and front apron rods to leave enough length to needle weave the warp ends back into the fabric later. Remove the scrap yarn in the header.
Using a tapestry needle, push each warp end through the space to its left (between it and the adjacent warp end, following the path of the adjacent warp) and exit it through the warp about an inch from the top. Trim the tails close to the cloth.
Fold the cloth in half at the transition between olive green and brick red so that the brown block is on the left side. Using olive green and the baseball stitch (see page 120), sew the sides together, needle weaving the beginning and ending tails back into the fabric. Remove the scrap yarn from the weft.
If you plan to launder the bag later, gently handwash the fabric in warm water with mild soap. Rinse. Press the fabric between a folded towel to remove excess water. Lay flat to dry.
Cut two 90" (229 cm) lengths each of forest green, brown, and brick red. Tie these lengths together with one end of the leather cord to the leg of a sturdy table. Be sure you have plenty of room to move back as the braid grows. Using two groups each of one forest green, one brown, and one brick red held together with the leather cord, make a three-strand braid (see page 120) about 45" (114.5 cm) long. Tie an overhand knot to secure the end. Remove the strands from the leg of the table and tie this end into another overhand knot.
Turn the bag inside out and use a whipstitch (see page 121) to sew the strap to one side of the bag above and below the knot on the strap. Repeat on the other side. Trim the ends about ¼" (6 mm) below the knots.
