Utilitarian

I was heading towards the end of this indigo blue cotton warp…. but there wasn’t quite enough to weave another scarf…..so I finished it with a set of washcloths.

Soft, simple and useful.

I am sharing my weavers notes here, in case anyone would like to have a go at making something similar. They would make great eco-friendly gifts, especially if teamed up with a nice hand-made soap.

Warp –

• 3 ply denim cotton.
• Total of 173 ends (width approx 8.5inches by 1m/1.15yards long – this was the end of a warp).
• Sett at 20 ends per inch (10’s reed with 2 warp ends per dent).
• Herringbone threading plan (see diagram below)

Weft –

• a mixture of 4 ply and 8 ply cotton and linen,
• woven in a 2/2 Twill (sometimes reversed to weave diamonds)
• 12-16 picks per inch depending on which weft yarn was used.
• Each cloth was woven 11-12 inches long on the loom but did shrink a bit when washed.
• I added a fine plain weave turnover seam at the top and bottom of each washcloth using 2/20’s cotton weft. And a crochet chain tie in one corner to hang them up to dry.

Loom – Four shaft Ashford table loom, with a direct tie up pedal stand. This is the thread up pattern I used.