Since the shop is opening next week, I thought this was a good time for this subject. Something a lot of weavers struggle with is pricing. It may be a shock to some, but I thought if I share what it takes to weave a piece of cloth, pricing would be better understood. If I could weave and give everything away, I would. I wish I could, but it’s an expensive hobby. The equipment is very expensive, the education can be expensive and the threads and yarn are a lot more than you’d think, especially since I’m using high quality thread and a lot of hand-dyed warps (the threads that go on the loom). Then there’s time and skill. Like software engineering or plumbing, it’s a skill and that skill took time and practice to learn. That alone deserves compensation. It amazes me when someone will spend $100 on a mass produced shirt because it has a certain name or emblem on the chest, but they think a handwoven scarf should be $25 because it’s “hand made.” Especially when using hand dyed warps or silk, the yarn to weave the scarf cost more than that. A couple of years ago I documented the steps involved in weaving some towels to show just how much work is involved. These are the Dorothy Towels that I wove in March 2017. This is a fairly simple project, but you can see how much work it takes from planning to towel.
First, the planning…. I believe that if I’m going to put this much time into hand weaving cloth, I’m going to use the highest quality thread I can. These threads are Egyptian cotton milled in Sweden by a company called Bockens. The colors are glorious and light-fast and the thread is top quality. It produces wonderful thirsty towels. Tracy Kaestner (Lone Star Loom Room) and I chose these colors together.
Then I enter the draft into my computer program so that I can play with the design and colors.
I then wind the warp. The warp are the threads that go on the loom. The warping mill keeps all those threads in order. The pattern calls for a 13-yard warp for 12 towels. I wound 14 yards. It’s more work to get the project on the loom than it is to actually weave, so I always put a longer warp on. I’d have gone longer if I had more of the required thread. Like most weaving tools, the warping mill is an expensive piece of equipment, but worth every cent for the wear and tear it saves my body. Kind of mind boggling that my fingers touch every single thread several times, but in winding the warp, my fingers touch every single inch of every single thread. This is 491 threads that are 14 yards long… kinda cool….
Threads are measured and wound on warping mill to keep in order. 
491 threads – 14 yards long. The warp is wound and off the mill. All chained up and ready to go on the loom.
The threads are drawn through the reed so the project will be the desired width. This is called rough sleying. I’ll do it again later at a finer rate that sets how many threads I want per inch. The two sticks (lease sticks) running through the threads at the top of the photo are what keep the “cross” (between the sticks) and keep the threads in order, which is imperative to the process. I formed the cross while winding the warp on my mill. Should have taken a picture of that, but didn’t think of it at the time.
Winding on to the back beam… I warp back to front unless I’m using a hand dyed warp, then I warp front to back so I can design at the reed. I usually have a “volunteer” to hold the warp, but I used books to weight it this time. Keeping tension on the warp is what makes it behave. If you get tangles in a 14-yard length of 491 threads… that’s a huge waste of money. Thread is expensive. It’s also a giant headache and kind of ruins the calming effect weaving has on me. 😉 A round of sticks are inserted every fourth round on the back beam so that the threads don’t bite into each other causing tension problems when you weave.
Threading time… I used to dread this step as a beginner. I’ve learned some tips and gained a lot of confidence over the years. The biggest breakthrough was that it doesn’t have to be done all at once. I usually finish in a couple of sittings, but there have been times when life was busy that it took several days to get the threading done in bits and pieces. This warp had 491 threads and a more difficult threading sequence than some. Per the draft (pattern), the threads are threaded through the eyes of the heddles. On this loom I have Texsolv heddles. I don’t need a hook to thread and I enjoy these much more than the metal heddles I have on one of my smaller looms. Another tip I’ve learned is to check and recheck my threading every couple of inches worth of thread or after so many repeats. I still find errors now and then when I start weaving, but I usually catch them before it’s a big deal.
Now it’s time to sley the reed for the final time. I know. It sounds funny. Perhaps some medieval weaver likened dressing the loom to fighting a dragon. It’s not as awful as it sounds. It’s actually kind of relaxing unless you make a mistake that you don’t catch before you start weaving. The reed holds the cloth at the desired width and the threads at the desired threads per inch to have an even cloth. This is a 12 dent reed. I’m placing two threads in every slot, which puts them at the required 24 threads per inch. Pretty standard sett for the size of cotton I’m using in a twill draft. The two white threads on the far left are just temporarily holding the reed steady on that end while I work my way across from right to left.
I learned this method of tying on at Vävstuga, the Swedish Weaving School in Massachusetts. I thought I loved it at first, but it was puppy love and we’ve since broken up. I’m going steady with my old way of lashing on (those medieval weavers sure were brutal…). It’s my favorite and I like to give things a try, but lashing on saves thread and it’s just easier to get even tension and get going… at least for me. Every weaver has their reasons and their favorites. This is lashing on. It’s quick, easy and saves thread:
You might think we’re ready to start weaving now. Nope. Not quite yet.
Now we have to set the pattern to the treadles so the pattern will magically appear as you treadle and weave. When I first bought this loom I nearly threw my back out trying to do this. Seriously. It was a lot of climbing under the loom in unpleasant positions tweaking and tweaking until I finally got it right. I have since changed the way I have this loom and the smaller loom from Finland set up. I can make all the changes on top (where the black and white beads are) instead of underneath the treadles. SO. Much. Easier. For any Weavers with a countermarch loom, if you’re interested in what I did, all the deets are here on my Ravelry page. It’s been a while since I did it, so you’re really going to have to rely on what I wrote and the videos I did.
Now we check to make sure we have a clean, open shed … and we do! Actually, the top isn’t great, but I only worry about the bottom. It needs to be flat so the shuttle can glide across without getting caught up or picking up the wrong threads. I do a little happy dance in my head when the shed is clean on the first look.
And finally the fun begins. The actual weaving is actually the shortest part of the process. If I change the way the treadles are tied up, I can change the patterns. I’ve worked all this out previously in my computer program. I can also change it just by treadling a different way.
So there you have it…. a lot goes into a piece of woven cloth. What seems tedious to some is very calming to my OCD mind. And pulling that cloth off the beam at the end of a warp is so satisfying to me.
If only it ended when I pulled the cloth off the loom. There’s still plenty to be done. It all needs to be finished. Everything gets washed, either by hand or in the machine, depending on the fabric. Everything gets pressed. Scarves get fringes twisted. My towels, for now at least, all have a little handwoven tab added to the hem. I weave these on small inkle looms when we’re traveling or I just need to keep my hands busy.
And finally… there’s the photography and admin work of getting it all posted online. Truth be told, this probably takes me longer than all the rest of it. It’s a lot of work, but I love it all. Okay… I’m lying. I don’t love the ironing part. 😉
