Plain Weave and Threading the Rigid Heddle

 Plain weave automatically weaves patterns into your work.

The arrangement of different colors create the patterns.

Possible patterns include stripes, checker boards, bars of different lengths, chains and flowers

This is a warping pattern for a 17 thread Shoe String

Numbers at the top indicate the numbers in the sequence.

It is read in a zig zag pattern, ignoring empty squares.

Pick out  colors for the edge, background, flower and flower center and color in the squares for each. 

1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17
E		B		F		F		C		F		F		B		E
	E		B		B		F		F		B		B		E

E = Edge B=Background F= flower C=Center

Read the pattern: E, E, B, B, F, B… in a zig zag fashion.

To warp it, Place clamps 30-36” apart. 

Start with the edge color. 

Make a slip knot and place on the post of your clamp. 

2 edge color are needed, so go to the second clamp and around, extending your thread about 1.5” beyond the clamp post. Cut it here and with an overhand knot, tie on the next color. Continue adding warp threads, forming a figure 8 around the clamps until all 17 threads have been added. 

Finish with a slip knot around the last post. 

Place lease sticks and tie ends of warp to secure them.

Take the warp off the clamps and lay across a table with one end towards you. 

Threading the rigid heddle

Clip the end facing you so it can be threaded through the heddle.

Center is very important. It is marked with a C on the pattern, and it is also marked on your heddle. Here it is also the center of the flower pattern. 

Put your heddle gently into one clamp and lay the clamp flat on the table. This hold your heddle up for easy threading.

Thread your heddle: start in the center of the heddle and thread the center thread of your warp through the center hole or slot. Work your way out to the ends using the order of threads in the lease sticks.

After threading @6 threads, gather them and tie a slip knot toward the ends to keep them secure and untangled. Do this all the way across.

If catastrophe happens and your heddle gets knocked, it will not get unthreaded.

When threading is complete, put your backstrap on and tie on to your front rod using the Larkshead #2 “knot”. Use a slip knot, not a square knot as it often takes 2-3 times of tying on to get your tension even.

Patterns in order: Single Cable, Adjacent Cable, single flower, alternating bars

 

b - background color    X pattern Color     x 2nd pattern color     C/ Center color

Ignore White spaces 

Read pattern from left to right and alternating top to bottom. These charts show the Warping / threading pattern 

When warping, warp according to the chart, cutting and tying on the new color as often as every row, depending on what the chart calls for.

In warp faced weaves, The Weft thread only shows on the edges. Warp threads are pulled together. The Weft should be the same color as the borders

Baltic Weave

 The Baltic weave is a pick-up warp faced band weave

 Baltic patterns only show the Pattern threads. (Here, 5.)

But there are two threads between each pattern thread that weave tabby (one up and one down) not shown in pattern.

 This is the warping layout for a 5 Pattern Thread Baltic Weave. The large purple rectangles are your pattern threads. They should be larger and high contrast to the background. Add a border to both sides if desired.

Notice the dots on this grid.

Each line represents one row of weaving.

One row will have 2 pattern threads and The next row will have three.

  Look at the pattern and notice where the dots and X’s are.

This is a simple pattern. There is only one change per row. (Orange squares)

Orange X mean’s that thread comes UP

Orange dot means that thread pushes Down

Start at the bottom of the pattern and read and weave one row at a time.

Start on the correct row. This pattern starts on the row with 2 pattern threads.

Baltic is easy to weave on a rigid heddle loom like this one, or it can easily be done on a traditional backstrap loom. There is a special loom made specifically for Baltic Weave, called a pattern loom. It allows the pattern threads to float between the tabby weave so they can be easily picked up. You’ll see several in the following pictures.

Both of these books have wonderful patterns and directions for Baltic Weave and other structures.

#3 Back strap weaving with a rigid heddle

 

This blog covers rigid heddle set-up

Weaving with a rigid heddle

Advantages and disadvantages of using a rigid heddle

Winding a multi-colored warp

Shortening the warp while weaving

Materials:

3 dowels 12-14” long x 3/8 diameter: back beam, tension rod and shortening rod

Small rigid heddle (purchase on Etsy or try your hand at making one)

Fiber

Scissors

Tape measure

C clamps or other method of warping - see previous blogs

Shuttle : cardboard, wood, small dowel...

Set-up and weaving

Instead of using string heddles on a heddle stick, you will need to purchase a rigid heddle.

I got mine out on Etsy. I have a small one for bands and one with 121 holes that is @12” long for scarves and other bigger things.

One advantage to using a rigid heddle is ease of weaving. You don’t have to work with two rods to change your sheds; simply push up for one shed, and pull down for the other.

Disadvantages include; having to thread all warp threads as opposed to half with string heddles. Another possible disadvantage is the increased amount of waste when doing warp dominant weaves - bands. This is due to the angle of the threads coming out of the rigid heddle as the weave becomes wider. The closer the weaving comes to the end, the harder it is to keep an even width due to the wider expanse of warp threads at the rigid heddle. Yet another disadvantage is that there will always be ends to tie onto the tension rod in order to thread it. Most of the time fringe is not an issue.

When I began weaving warp dominant bands, the rigid heddle instructions were all I could find. So that’s where I began. Working with a rigid heddle on pickup patterns is truly a joy. An inkle loom may also be used, but a rigid heddle on a backstrap loom is much easier and freeing, in my opinion.

Try it all and make your own observations. It’s good to be familiar with different methods. It will help when you are planning a piece of weaving.

When using a rigid heddle, the normal warping system works well (Create a cross- see either of the first two videos.) but, since we’re not using very many threads, there is a quicker way.

Forget the cross.

warp all the background, then all the flower, then the single center. 

10 background, 6 flower, 1 center. 

This gives you the number of threads for the pattern.

Take the warp (all the threads you wound) off the pegs.

Tie one end in an overhand knot, 

Put a dowel through and lash to a stationary object. Try to keep it perfectly horizontal. 😉

   A ladder back chair is ideal! A bed frame also works well, porch railing...

   You may just put this end back around one c clamp without the dowel. 

   Or tie on a strong string and tie it around a doorknob.

thread the heddle in the above pattern.

start from the center and work out both ways. 

(Your heddle is balanced this way.)

(I use a clamp to hold my rigid heddle up for easy threading.) 

Here a cross is being used and is being held by chop sticks (lease sticks) 

If using the quick method for minimal warp threads, start from the center and just be careful to thread according to the pattern.

See the center yellow thread on the bottom of the center slot. Begin with that. 

If using the cross, lay the lease sticks out so you can see the order of threads and follow it.

There is no question which thread is next when using this method.

Once it is threaded, (Double and triple check. Are the sides mirror images? Does the threading truely match the pattern? Walk away and check it again when coming back. There’s nothing more frustrating than finding you have a mistake in your threading.)

Pull all threads to create even tension. 

Tie an overhand knot.

Put a 12 x 14” dowel through the center of the warp. 

Make two loops each 8-10”  long from strong small cord. A shoe string works great!

Slip them onto your belt on either side of the buckle

Put the end of the dowel through each of these loops, 

circling the dowel a few times on each side so it won’t come off. 

If your dowel does not have a “neck” on it, use rubber bands to secure it to the loops.

When you begin weaving wider pieces, Or even with this narrow one,

the ends will be tied to the tension rod with a special knot.

When working with a wider warp, divide the threads evenly and make multiple knots.

Check that the tension is even all the way across. (Lean back and bounce your hand gently over the warp. Does it feel the same all the way across or is a section mushy?)

You are ready to weave. 

Sit in a chair with the weaving stretched out in front of you 

with your warp tied onto the tension rod and the rod connected to your belt

Move forward or backward to achieve a nice tension.

To weave with a rigid heddle: 

Lean forward

pull the heddle up

Pass the shuttle 

Lean back

Pull the weft through

Lean forward

Pull the heddle down

Pass the shuttle, pass the end of the weaving back through this shed to secure it.

Lean back

Pull the weft the rest of the way through. 

Lean forward

Pull the heddle up

Pass the shuttle

Catch the fiber that has not yet gone through the shed (which is forming a loop) with your pinky or ring finger

Pull the loop and shuttle thread toward you until weaving Width is achieved

   Use both hands for this. It sounds confusing, but it’s easy. Just move both hands back toward you 

Pinch with the hand on the loop side with thumb and index finger

Pull the weft thread through

Pull the heddle down

Pass the shuttle

Catch the loop with your pinky or ring finger

Pull the loop and shuttle thread toward you until weaving is desired width

Pinch with The hand on the loop side

Pull shuttle thread through

Pinching as you pull through allows you to feel how tight or loose your weft thread is. 

This is how you control the width.

We are doing a warp dominant weave here. The weft should only show at the edges where it turns around.

Continue weaving, alternating between up heddle and down heddle, until you can’t reach the fell line (the edge of your weaving.)

To shorten the warp

Get the last dowel (the same length as the others)

 Unwrap the tension rod dowel from your belt loops. Keep the tension up!

Place the new dowel under the tension rod dowel

Roll the weaving Under and away from you

When you’re an inch or so from the fell line,:

Whichever dowel is on top, reconnect to your belt loops

Move your chair forward, adjust the tension

Continue weaving.

Continue weaving as far as you can. 

The rigid heddle will not allow you to weave as far as the string heddles because of the width of the warp at the heddle.

Secure the end of your weaving

Cut the weaving off at the lashed rod

Tie an overhand knot.

Trim fringe.

What to do if you need to put it away mid-weave.

Once the weaving is on the dowels, just wind it all the way up from the tension rod 

(the one connected to your belt) 

to the back beam/rod. 

Tie it and it’s safe until you get back to it.

Check out the YouTube video for more visual learning.

I hope you keep exploring this wonderful art.