I have lost count of all the times that people have asked me how to sew hand woven fabrics together by hand.
This little video shows quick and easy ways of stitching together fabric that you have woven, no matter what loom you use:
I made a video tutorial showing how to weave on every other nail on the triangle loom when weaving with bulky yarns.
This creates an open lacy weave that drapes beautifully.
The shawl was woven on the 7 foot Dewberry Ridge Triangle loom,using super bulky yarn made by spinning together cotton threads with knitting machine and lace weight yarns.
The every other nail technique also works fine when 2 or 3 strands of medium or fine yarns are held together as if they are a single strand.
This is a very quick and easy way to weave a soft and drapey shawl.
The shawl in the video is a prayer (compassion) shawl made for a dear friend when she lost her Dad.
She loves the shawl, so I am pleased, because of course, I want her to feel that there is love in every stitch and that she can wrap herself in that love whenever she needs it.
Details: I spun a super bulky yarn by combining 7 strands of very fine crochet cotton and knitting machine boucle yarn- cotton and acrylic, on a bulky head spinner. The wpi is 5 wraps per inch. I plied it so it is 14 strands thick.
Here’s the video:
I love weaving tapestries on small looms, and the hexagon loom is no exception.
Because of the nature of the hexagon loom, it’s perfect for weaving in a circle, working round and round.
I’ve been weaving tapestry (the warp strands are all covered, only the weft strands show) on the hexagon loom, in a circle.
I call this, ‘Mandala technique’, as you can weave beautiful mandalas this way.
Mandalas are meant to be meditative, and this technique is very contemplative, as well as being a lot of fun.
I’ve made a video tutorial, showing how to weave the mandala technique.
Gamers who make their own hexagon tiles will be able to use this technique to make one of a kind, absolutely gorgeous tiles for their games.
The hexagon in the video was woven on the 4 inch hexagon loom from Dewberry Ridge Looms LINK
Mandala technique works on all sizes of the hexagon looms.
The metallic threads are from Kreinik Threads LINK
Happy weaving!
I made a video that shows how to weave square, triangle and diagonal motifs on the Thumbelina, Mollie Whuppie and Vasilisa looms.
But… it was 2 hours long! Whoa! That’s just too long.
So, I thought: I wonder if I can figure out how to ‘fast forward’ it?
And, I did!
But, I think that I got a little enthusiastic with the fast forward function- LOL!
I turned a 2 hour video into a 2 MINUTE video!
Prepare for take off… buckle your seat belt…. here we go!
Um…. next time, I might not speed things up ~quite~ so much!
Happy weaving!
I have posted a new video tutorial that is the second in a series of how to weave tapestry on the Mollie Whuppie and Vasilisa looms.
I designed the Mollie Whuppie and Vasilisa looms and Dewberry Ridge makes them. They’re wonderful!
This video shows how to
1- Start the weaving at the curved edge while weaving side to side.
2- How to fill the curved space that will form by using eccentric weaving (weaving that doesn’t go all the way from side to side).
3- How to weave dots of color.
4- How to use hatching to make a pattern- in this case, a circle shape in the middle of the weaving is made by alternating 2 colors of yarn.
5- How to finish the straight edge at the end of the weaving.
Here’s the video:
To see how to set up the Mollie Whuppie loom please go to my previous post, which will take you to the first video in this series: LINK
To buy the Mollie Whuppie and Vasilisa looms, please go to:
www.dewberryridge.com
The Bound Double Damascus Edge works beautifully to finish Peg loom woven fabric:
It’s sturdy and secure.
Here’s a video about how to do the Double Damascus edge and then how to stitch over it for a Bound finish.
People keep asking me for help with advancing the warp on long peg loom weavings.
So I have made a video showing the stages of how to move the weaving down the warp strands- on long, wide warps, it takes a lot of effort!
I wove my husband a mat for his morning pilates and he loves it.
So do the dogs, so the mat does NOT live on the floor!
It’s 2 feet wide by 6 feet long.
The loom is from Dewberry Ridge Looms and the yarn is from Briggs and Little.
It’s 100% wool and makes a scrumptiously cushioned rug.
Here’s the video that explains the process of advancing the weaving:
I use weaving hooks in all kinds of weaving- everything from potholder looms and frame looms to triangle looms, and a fair few looms in between.
Crochet hooks are okay for some weaving, but they can be too short and too round for some weaving.
I have found that making weaving hooks from chopsticks is quick, easy and very satisfying. It’s a great way to upcycle.
Chopstick weaving hooks are longer than crochet hooks (afghan hooks can be hard to find) and are flatter, and work beautifully.
You can customize your weaving hook to be the absolute bees knees by fine tuning it with a little sanding or whittling as you work with it.
Here is a step by step ‘how to’ video tutorial that shows you how you can easily carve or whittle your own perfect weaving hook with just a few simple tools:
Recently, I had a lovely conversation with my darlin’ grandson.
He said to me: ‘Nanma, I LOVE your dolls. Will you make me one for Christmas?’
I was thrilled that he is pleased with my work and that he wanted me to make him a doll for Christmas.
What an awesome 7 year old he is!
I asked him if he wanted a wooden one or a woven one, and I was convinced that he said, ‘Wooden’….
So, I stayed up very, very late one night, and got up early, to carve him a wooden doll:
I used a birch branch from our son’s neighbour’s tree. It’s been drying for a year and a half and is lovely to carve.
Tottie Tomato cheered me on as I carved.
She comforted the new doll, because she knows that the knives, chisels and sandpaper are very uncomfortable, and that paint brushes tickle….
After he was done, and I had knitted his sweater and jeans, Tottie Tomato and New Boy went to hang a few ornaments on the tree in the village.
Something was feeling not quite right….
I thought: I have to check and see if Grandson actually said that he wanted a wooden doll…..
So, I asked him which dolls he loved?
Wooden or the woven art dolls?
We were out at a concert of his Grampa’s music, so I sketched the shape of the 6th Sense art dolls in the air.
YES! he said, firmly!
THOSE are the ones I love!
Oh oh….
I asked him to draw in the air and show me what shape he had in mind.
Yup….. Woven Women 6th Sense art dolls, and NOT 6 inch tall wooden dolls….
oops.
He specified that he wanted it soft to cuddle and that it had to wear black shoes.
I asked him to draw exactly what he wanted…..
He held his hands up in the air and showed me the size.
So…………………………
I have been weaving up a storm……………. well, a doll, along with a few other things……
I used the tapestry weaving technique to weave the body front, and plain weave for the back.
I did a clasped warp technique for the arms and legs to make the color changes work for the arms and legs.
I hope that he approves of how I interpreted his design!
I hadn’t thought of making him a doll for Christmas, so I am incredibly grateful that he asked.
And, because I didn’t get the brief right first time around, our little sweetheart gets TWO dolls, not one!
For now, they are chilling out by the Village Christmas tree, enjoying themselves in knitted armchairs that I designed for Findlay and Flora Bear.
The pattern for the chairs is in my etsy shop:
I can’t bear to wrap them until the last moment, so I will have a chance to enjoy them, too!
Merry Christmas, Happy Channukah, Happy Solstice, Happy Yule, Happy EVERYTHING to you and yours!
Love and blessings all round.
May 2017 bring Peace, Wisdom and Compassion!
Last month, when there was a spectacular Super Moon, we stepped outside to admire it.
The gigantic moon looked like it was suspended in the huge trees that line our street.
The image of the Great Tree Mother, rocking the Moon in her arms, rose up in my mind….
and I knew that I had to build one of my 6th Sense one of a kind art dolls.
Here she is:
Great Tree Mother Rocked The Moon in Her Arms:
While I was contemplating how to build the Great Tree Mother piece, my husband and our daughter took the dogs for a walk one morning.
Chloe came home with a wonderfully gnarly branch that had been pruned from someone’s tree and tossed into the alley.
She just knew I needed it…. even though, at that point, I hadn’t told her what I was mulling about 🙂
We have a very deep connection!
It is perfect.
So’s our daughter….
Anyhow…
The faces….
Years ago, my dear friend found a moose antler that had been shed and she asked me if I could use it.
I cut 3 faces from it, and carved them and painted them.
Two of them became part of this piece:
Tree Mother’s face.
She also has a ‘Hidden Face’ that is hidden inside the piece and will never be revealed.
Too bad I didn’t photograph it! Oops…
Here is Moon’s face:
I carved the hand from wood.
I wove the bands on 2 different looms and knitted the grey hand spun cloth of her robe.
All of the 6th Sense Woven Women have 6 pennies incorporated into them, as a metaphor for coming to our senses, and embracing intuition, intelligence and inspiration.
She is 29 inches/72.5 cm tall and the branch spreads out to 15 inches/37.5 cm wide.
She is not for sale.
By the way, she is also a celebration of creative adaptive re-use and upcycling. I love that.
Noreen Crone-Findlay, designer and author
