In the last chapter we looked at hand-manipulated weave structures. These offer much in the way of design potential, but they have the downside of taking a long time to weave. In this chapter we look at ways to make the loom do more of the work.
In plain weave, any floats that occur are regrettable mistakes that we learned how to fix. Now we’re going to make floats on purpose, to create patterns in the cloth.
One of the first things to understand about floats is that every warpwise float on the front of the fabric corresponds to a weftwise float on the back of the fabric, and vice versa. (Compare the right and wrong sides of the bottom photo at right.) This occurs because if a warp thread is floating over the top of the fabric, it is not catching the weft on the underside of the fabric.
The other thing to know about floats is that they allow the fabric to deflect. Where floats occur, the warp and weft are more loosely tied together than in areas of plain weave, and threads can shift around, especially when the cloth is wet-finished and the threads relax the tension they had on the loom.
By combining warp and weft floats, you can create lacy and waffle-weave patterns in cloth. One caution though: don’t let your floats get too long, or the structural integrity of your cloth will suffer. Depending on the size yarn you are working with, a float that crosses over three threads is generally safe; floating over more threads than that may create open or loose areas in your cloth. Sometimes, however, that’s exactly what you want.
Warp and weft floats
Warp and weft floats
Weft floats (left); warp floats on reverse side (right)
In the previous chapter, when a pickup stick was used to make a shed, it was placed in front of the heddle and, as a consequence, had to be reinserted for each pick of weaving. Betty Davenport, a rigid-heddle pioneer, popularized placing the pickup stick behind the heddle. This allows you to save the pattern in memory, and makes weaving much faster. We’ll use this technique in the following sections to create floats in the warp and weft directions to add texture and create new patterns in rigid-heddle cloth. There are several principles necessary for making this work:
Put the heddle in the down position when you pick up threads. You do this to ensure that you pick up only slot threads on the pickup stick. This is important because hole threads are locked in place by the hole and can’t create a shed when you turn the pickup stick on end. Only slot threads have enough space to slide and open up a clean shed. If you start working with this technique and aren’t getting a good shed, check that you haven’t inadvertently picked up hole threads.
Pick up threads behind the heddle. This makes it possible for you to store the pattern between weft picks. If you pick up in front of the heddle, you’ll have to repick them with each pick.
“Turn stick” means turn the pickup stick on edge. In the pattern notation below, where I’ve written the instruction “turn stick,” it means, with the heddle in the neutral position, turn the pickup stick on edge to make the shed.
“Up and slide stick” means slide the stick. Here’s how: Put the heddle into the up position. This raises the hole threads. Then slide the pickup stick forward without turning it on edge. This raises a subset of the slot threads. If you do this properly, the stick should be easy to move, and you’ll have only one shed. If you find yourself with two sheds, check to make sure you haven’t turned the pickup stick on edge.
This first structure creates a series of weft floats across the fabric. It’s a simple and easy-to-weave structure that’s a good introduction to this technique.
Put the heddle in the down position, so only the slot threads are up. Insert a pickup stick into the slot threads so that the first slot thread is on top of the stick, and the next slot thread is beneath the stick. The easiest way to do this is to wiggle the tip of pickup stick up and down so that it weaves into the slot threads. Continue to do this across the warp. You’ve now stored the pattern shed “in memory.”
This cloth is essentially plain weave, with the exception of some weft floats every fourth pick. It’s simple to weave and creates a richly textured fabric. Here is what’s happening in the fabric: Steps 1–3 are pure plain weave; step 4 creates floats in some areas (where the threads were picked up above the stick) and plain weave in others (where the threads were below the stick. After a few repeats of the pattern, you’ll find it easy to remember.
Now that you understand how the technique works, I’ve written it and the following patterns in tabular form, so they’re easy to parse. The patterns that follow are a subset of what’s possible. Experiment and you may discover your own patterns.
Pickup stick setup: 1 warp up, 1 warp down, repeat across all slot threads.
row |
heddle position |
|
1 |
Up |
|
2 |
Down |
|
3 |
Up |
|
4 |
Turn stick (neutral heddle) |
Repeat rows 1–4 to continue lace pattern.
Change the number and pattern of threads picked up on the stick.
Insert the pickup stick so it weaves floats only in certain areas across the warp.
Create a checkerboard of floats by changing where the pickup stick is creating floats.
This pattern is similar to the preceding one, but it adds warp floats in addition to the weft floats, creating a windowpane effect around areas of plain weave. You can weave it on the same warp as the preceding example without changing the pickup stick. The pattern weaves the weft floats in the same manner as the preceding pattern, but extends the last step to also weave a series of warp floats. It’s a good approximation of waffle weave on the rigid-heddle loom.
If you turn the cloth over (one nice thing about rigid-heddle looms is that it’s easy to flip them over and view the underside of the fabric you’re weaving), you’ll see that warp floats on one side of the fabric correspond to weft floats on the other side.
Advance the fabric frequently. As the fell gets close to the heddle, it can be hard to get a good shed on the “up and slide” sheds.
Pickup stick setup: 1 warp up, 1 warp down, repeat across all slot threads
row |
heddle position |
|
1 |
Up |
|
2 |
Down |
|
3 |
Up and slide stick |
|
4 |
Down |
|
5 |
Up |
|
6 |
Turn stick (neutral heddle) |
You can use a contrasting colored thread in the fabric where the warp and weft floats are. The color change will emphasize the windowpane effect. This is particularly attractive if you use black to outline brightly colored plain weave, or vice versa.
Honeycomb is an interesting weave structure in that it creates undulating waves in the fabric. These can be outlined with a thicker or contrasting yarn. The way you get curves is to weave floats next to areas of plain weave, so that when the fabric is washed, the threads in the densely woven areas of plain weave push out into the float areas, creating waves and curves. This weave structure is ideal for highlighting an expensive or precious yarn, as very little yardage is needed for the yarn that outlines the cells. The caution with honeycomb is that there are long floats on the reverse side of the fabric, making honeycomb best used in textiles where only the front of the fabric shows, such as pillows and lined jackets.
If your pattern goes all the way from selvedge to selvedge, there will be some picks that do not catch the edge warps. To avoid that problem, plan your design so that five or six warp threads on each side weave a plainweave border.
You use two different patterns, A and B, to weave honeycomb, so it is useful to have two pickup sticks. You’ll store the first pattern (A) on the pickup stick closest to you and the second pattern (B) on a pickup stick behind that (1). As you switch between weaving pattern A and pattern B, you’ll remove pickup stick A to weave pattern B. When you weave pattern A again, you’ll pick it up in front of stick B. Pickup stick B stays in place the whole time. This halves the amount of time you spend inserting pickup sticks. If you use only one pickup stick, you’ll have to insert it into the new pattern each time you switch between pattern A and pattern B.
Pickup stick A setup: 5 up, 5 down
Pickup stick B setup: 5 down, 5 up
row |
heddle position |
yarn |
|
1 |
Down |
Pattern weft |
|
2 |
Up and slide stick A |
Ground weft |
|
3 |
Down |
Ground weft |
|
4–7 |
Repeat steps 2 and 3 twice or more |
|
|
8 |
Up and slide stick A |
Ground weft |
Repeat rows 1–8 with pickup stick B
Note: To get a complete honeycomb, when you begin a section of honeycomb on a plain-weave fabric, start your design with row 8, which weaves the bottom of the cell consisting of the pattern weft.
Here’s an exotic and soothing pillow for your couch or bedroom. This project uses the honeycomb weave structure to make the most of an expensive yarn. By weaving most of the fabric in 3/2 mercerized cotton and using the recycled silk yarn just to outline the cells, you can weave a substantial amount of fabric and use only a bit of your special yarn. Sewing the fabric into a pillow hides the long floats on the reverse side of the honeycomb fabric.
| project stage | width |
length |
| Off the loom |
16" |
33" |
| After wet-finishing |
141⁄2" |
30" |
| Shrinkage |
9% |
9% |
Wind a warp 2 yards long and 204 threads wide. Thread the heddle as described in Threading the Holes.
Pickup stick A setup: 4 up and 4 down
Pickup stick B setup: 4 down and 4 up
row |
heddle position |
yarn |
|
1 |
Down |
Pattern weft |
|
2 |
Up and slide stick A |
Ground weft |
|
3 |
Down |
Ground weft |
|
4–7 |
Repeat steps 2 and 3 twice more. |
|
|
8 |
Up and slide stick A |
Ground weft |
Repeat rows 1–8 with pickup stick B.
Weave a 3" header in plain weave using the ground weft.
Work the Honeycomb Weave Pattern for 33".
Weave another 3" section in plain weave using the ground weft.
Cut the finished fabric off the loom and serge or zigzag-stitch the ends. Do not be concerned if the honeycomb cells look rectangular at this point; the honeycomb structure doesn’t fully bloom until the fabric is washed and the yarns have shifted into the less-densely woven areas. This is one example where wet-finishing substantially changes the cloth.
Handwash the fabric in warm water, agitating gently. Rinse, and allow to dry.
With right sides together, fold the fabric in half, and sew a 1⁄2" seam along each selvedge. Press the seams open, and then turn the fabric right side out. Insert a pillow form into the pillow cover and hand-stitch the final seam closed. Alternatively, if you would like a removable pillow cover, insert a zipper in the opening before sewing the side seams.
The main feature most people want in a pillow is something soft to snuggle. Pillow covers are a great way to use up odds and ends of fabric — pieces too big to throw away but too small to make something else. You can also patch together scraps of handwoven fabric to make a pillow cover. They can be made of almost any material: cotton, linen, silk, rayon, wool, as long as the cloth is durable enough to hold the stuffing in and take a bit of squeezing. You may want to check what size pillow forms are available at your local fabric store and plan your handwoven fabric accordingly. Another option is to stuff your pillows with woolen thrums (waste yarn from your weaving projects), a thrifty way to recycle weaving waste into a new project.
If you design your fabric with floats interspersed with plain weave so there are isolated areas of floats, you create spots. An attractive way to weave spots is in a checkerboard pattern. Depending on the sett and the yarn, this can result in deflection around the spot areas, creating diamonds or circles in your cloth.
Pickup stick A setup: 4 up, 2 down (across)
Pickup stick B setup: 1 up (do this once to shift the pattern), 2 down, 4 up
row |
heddle position |
|
1 |
Up |
|
2 |
Turn stick A (neutral heddle) |
|
3 |
Up |
|
4 |
Turn stick A (neutral heddle) |
|
5 |
Up |
|
6 |
Down |
Repeat steps 1–6 with pickup stick B.
This Spot-Bronson Scarf pattern features a checkerboard of spots. Although I used a slightly heavier pima cotton set at 10 ends per inch, the scarf also looks lovely woven in 3/2 mercerized cotton with a sett of 12 ends per inch. It makes a lovely addition to a spring or summer wardrobe. Or weave this project 20" wide and create delicate placemats for your table.
| project stage | width |
length |
| Off the loom |
71⁄2" |
68" |
| After wet-finishing (not including fringe) |
63⁄4" |
60" |
| Shrinkage |
10% |
12% |
Wind a warp 21⁄2 yards long of 86 ends. Thread the heddle as described in Threading the Holes. Insert two pickup sticks as follows:
Pickup stick A: 8 up, *2 down, 3 up; repeat from * four more times; end 2 down, 8 up.
Pickup stick B: 6 up, *2 down, 3 up; repeat from * five more times; end 2 down, 5 up.
Weave a 11⁄2" header in plain weave.
Work the Spot-Bronson Weave Pattern for 65" starting with stick B. When you are done weaving with stick B, remove it and weave with stick A. To weave stick B again, reinsert it into the warp in front of stick A.
Work another 11⁄2" section in plain weave.
Cut the fabric from the loom and finish the ends with a braided or twisted fringe (see Fringe).
Wash the scarf in a washing machine on a normal setting and tumble-dry in the dryer. Remove while the scarf is still slightly damp to avoid wrinkles.
This weave uses two wefts, one to weave a plain-weave background cloth and a second supplemental weft that floats on the surface of the background cloth to create pattern. What makes the second weft supplemental is that it’s not an integral part of the fabric. You could cut it out of the cloth and the background fabric would remain, holding everything together.
Pickup stick setup: 1 up, 1 down on a down shed
row |
heddle position |
yarn |
|
1 |
Up |
Ground weft |
|
2 |
Turn stick (neutral heddle) |
Pattern weft |
|
3 |
Down |
Ground weft |
|
4 |
Turn stick (neutral heddle) |
Pattern weft |
With supplemental weft inlay, the pattern yarn needs to be thick enough to cover the background yarn, but not so thick that it distorts the ground cloth. If you have a really thick pattern weft and the background cloth is being stretched thin beneath the inlay, you can weave a couple of extra picks of plain weave (picks 1 and 3) so the ground cloth can catch up and fill in under the pattern weft. The goal is for the background cloth on the reverse side of the inlay areas to look like the plain-weave areas of the rest of the background cloth.
Alter the pattern you use when you insert the pickup stick into the slot threads (a), for example:
Weave with a heavier supplemental weft and omit step 4 (b).
Do free-form inlay (c).
Weave with two pattern wefts of different colors, one on step 2 and the other on step 4 (d).
Remember how time-consuming weaving leno was (see Leno)? How you had to insert the twist by hand on each row? Wouldn’t it be great if you could establish the twist pattern once and then reuse it row after row?
You can, by using doups, a type of string heddle. On a shaft loom, the string heddles are threaded on one shaft, and when that shaft is raised, the doups twist the warp threads. The same technique can be woven on a rigid heddle by using a rod instead of a shaft to control the doups.
In addition to the normal weaving tools, you’ll need the following to weave doup leno:
Because leno has a tendency to draw in, if you are weaving a project (such as curtains) where it’s important that the leno stays a consistent width, you may want to use a temple to counteract the draw-in. For information about temples and how to use them, see Using a Temple.
Leno makes a light and airy curtain fabric for windows where you want to filter the incoming light and don’t need to provide total coverage. The size of the curtain you weave depends on the window you’re trying to cover and whether you’ll mount the curtain inside or outside of the window frame.
Wind a warp 55" long of 216 threads. (Note: Measure your window and adjust length accordingly.) Thread the heddle as described in Threading the Holes.
Cotton and linen are traditional curtain materials, as these fibers stand up to sunlight. When designing curtain fabric, keep in mind that most curtains are translucent, unlike drapes, which are opaque. Here are some ways to weave a fabric that lets light through:
Curtain size. The size of the curtain depends on the size of the window you’re covering. When you measure the window, be sure to allow for shrinkage in the width and length of the fabric (sampling is your friend) as well as extra material for the hem and a casing or other top edge treatment to attach the curtain to the window.
Attachment to rod. There are several treatments you can use to attach a curtain to a curtain rod: a sewn sleeve (casing) at the top of the curtain, tabs, grommets, and curtain hooks. A trip to the home decor section of a fabric store will give you ideas.
Hem. If you don’t want the bulk of a hem at the bottom of your curtain, you can finish the bottom with hemstitching or a series of overhand knots. Because they are not washed often or subject to much handling, you can use delicate finishing techniques on curtains.
Lightfastness. Curtains are exposed to sunlight and subject to fading. This is one reason why light-colored fabrics are traditional. If you want to use a dark fabric, test the yarn for lightfastness first, or line the curtain.