This was a serious fail. This was an early project, too, and you know, learning stuff is tough. I found the pattern in a Japanese Saori book. It was very simple — really just a sewn rectangle — so neither weaving nor sewing seemed to present a challenge.
ISBN978-4-907038-03-8
(English version)
The book is great, clever and inspirational. My poor project was none of these things!
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Once I knew they existed, I couldn’t help myself, and I bought one. A triangle loom! Who knew?
It came unassembled, but putting it together was simple — just connect the corners and off you go! Read more…
Although this was one of the first few experiments I made in handwoven clothing construction, and it definitely shows its beginner bones, it’s one of my favorite projects.
ISBN4-99009761-0
Try Kinokunyia — they ship in
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This is design 12 in the treasure-trove that is SOARI, a volume chock-full of styles created and woven by a women’s collective in Japan.
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It looked like a totally impractical top, but why should that be an impediment?
The Burda top, from the December 2020 magazine (12-2020-127) is basically a sweatshirt-like garment with a looooong attached scarf. What’s not to like? If there’s one thing I can produce, it’s looooong fabric!
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I’ve written about this pattern before, but this time I’ve made a version a little closer to the original. This one works much better than the previous one, thanks in part to the softer fabric, which drapes much more nicely than the first version.
I love that it’s a fast, easy and rewarding one for beginning weavers. It’s also amusingly versatile to wear, since it makes up into a vest-like wrap, a shawl, and a sort-of-a-poncho.
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This is a rather fun garment which lends itself to all kinds of yarns — and can be woven on a 10 inch/25 cm loom. I wove it on my Cricket, which is wider, but (more or less) kept the dimensions of the Schacht pattern, which is called, amusingly, but not succinctly, It Was A Vest at Times It was a Wrap at Times. (Whew!)
I wove with an 8 dent reed, using a 100% wool Turkish yarn called Poems from Wisdom Poems Yarns, in colorway Arles 601 for the weft — and my well-loved Harrisville Highland in Iris for the warp. I’m not sure I love the way the variegation of the Poems worked in this case, but, no matter, the colors are wonderful.
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Plain weave isn’t usually very exciting by itself, but learning to do it well is an essential for rigid heddle learners. A clever way to make beginner projects more interesting is to choose a variegated yarn in colors you love.
This cowl wasn’t the first thing I wove on my Cricket, but it might have been, as it’s so simple to make that anyone can do it. It’s just a rectangle of cloth, but I love how the variegated yarn makes it look so much spiffier than a solid color plain weave!
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