Mirrix Tutorial

TAPESTRY TECHNIQUES

W I T H T H E S H E D D I N G D E V I C E

• CHAPTER 1 •

This tutorial will go over some of the very basics of weaving tapestry. If you are interested in learning how to weave tapestry, we suggest you get a good book on tapestry. We sell them on our site but you can also get them elsewhere, including at the library. It's like having a dictionary when you write, a good place to look up things when you aren't sure or need reminding.

To begin, warp your loom for tapestry (This means you will put on warp thread in each dent (space) in your spring but do not put on the shedding device. You can learn how to warp for tapestry here: http://www.mirrixlooms.com/images/warpinginstructions/tapestry.pdf .

COMBINING BEADS AND FIBER WITH THE SHEDDING DEVICE

Note: The photos in the tutorial were taken on a loom with a bottom spring kit on it. This kit is not necessary for this project. It can be purchased on the Mirrix Looms website (under accessories) and is used to help organize your warps on the bottom of your loom. It is most helpful for small-scale tapestry and wide bead pieces.

Techniques: Pick and Pick, Wavy Lines & Hatching

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In the second case, the top thread will pull the second thread and by doing so the top thread will cover the selvage thread twice. These techniques take some time to master but are well worth the effort.

A short explanation of pick and pick and wavy lines:

Both of these techniques require that you alternate the weaving of two different color threads. In pick and pick, you alternate them one after another. In other words, thread one, thread two, thread one, thread two, etc.. Wavy line technique requires that you weave thread one twice, thread two twice, thread one twice, thread two twice. Pick and pick produces vertical stripes, wavy lines produces the effect of wavy lines. These two have in common the necessity to deal with the selvages in a slightly unusual manner. You will have to manage these two threads in a way that will guarantee the selvage thread has enough weft around it. In the first case, depending on the position of your threads you will have to wrap one of your weft threads around the selvage thread in order to guarantee complete coverage.

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In our example, we've used magenta and a golden yellow to begin our pick and pick. We alternate the colors thereby creating vertical stripes. In other words, weave the yellow thread once, and then the magenta thread once (making sure to change sheds every time you weave a new thread) then the yellow, then the magenta, etc... Follow the pictures for a visual of what we did:

First line of yellow

Second line of magenta (refer to earlier in this tutorial to learn how to deal with your edges). Remember to change your shed every time you bring a thread across. 

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Notice the beautiful vertical stripes emerging 

To continue with this design, but to add something extra, we stopped the magenta in the middle of the piece and started a purple thread at that place, thereby replacing the magenta with the purple. This allows us to continue the design but with a different color scheme. You could theoretically keep replacing threads as they run out with new ones for the entire bracelet and allow that to be your design. One way to approach this would be continue with the yellow thread and only replace the other ones. That would give you the most interesting effect.

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Wavy lines are very similar to pick and pick but instead of making one pass with a color, you make two passes creating what looks like wavy lines. 

Here, we started with two passes weaving with green, then two with yellow, then two with green, etc... 

The first pass through with green.

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Continue on like this.

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This technique also involves two threads but the left thread will stay on the left and the right thread will stay on the right. In a full scale tapestry this is a great way to blend two colors together to create shading. This technique also involves warp interlock because when the two ends meet at a warp thread they each wrap around it before changing direction.

The way hatching works:  The two threads will come meet each other at any place within the tapestry you would like.  The threads must be woven toward each other.  They will then wrap around a common warp thread and head away from each other in the next shed.  These two colors will dovetail into each other.  A lot of other techniques can spring from this one including adding additional colors.  For now and for such a small piece we suggest you keep it simple and just use two colors.

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The yellow and blue thread heading toward each other.

Wrap the two threads around the common warp, change sheds and head in opposite directions.

A clear visual of the threads wrapping around a common warp.

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See how the dovetailing is beginning to reveal itself! That’s it! Some

basic tapestry techniques.