Tips & Tricks for Weaving & Spinning

This is a page for your Tips & Tricks.

Soooo....... if you have any that you would like to see on this page, send them to me at:
info@weavingworld.ca

FYI:
"Warping" is making the warp chain, presumably on a warping board or mill.
"Beaming" is winding the warp onto the warp beam. (I have included this in "Warping".)
"Drawing-in" is the process of threading the warps through the heddles and ("Sleying") the reed. I call this "Dressing the Loom". (I have included "Tying-on" in this.)

Decision Making Time! The Preparation

Warping	Dressing the Loom	General Weaving	Finishing & Miscellaneous Touches	Spinning
Care of Your Equipment	Bag Loom Twining Instuctions	Dyeing	Sewing

Decision Making Time! The Preparation

Hints for finding sett
Wrap the yarn around a ruler for one or two inches (two is better.) Count the number of wraps. Divide by two for plain weave and its cognates. Multiply by 2/3 or 3/4 for twills. You may round up or round down to fit a pattern, reed, etc. without doing damage to the final fabric.
From: Michelle Darmody at: darmody@t130.aone.net.au

May I add a small suggestion...when determining the sett for a warp where the weft will be a different yarn to the warp, wrap both yarns ,side-by-side, around the ruler and then count the warp ends for the correct sett.
Hilary, from sunny Queensland , Australia at: darmody@t130.aone.net.au Toowoomba

Another hint for finding sett: For those who have been asking for assistance with warp end count design calculation, the following may be helpful:
Because yarns are compressible in woven fabric, there is no fixed number of ends/picks per unit for which a yarn may be suited. This is always, in the final analysis, a design decision. However, there are several formulae which can serve as a starting point from which variations based on sampling can be made as an aid in reaching the important design decision. The folmula outlined below is one of the more simple ones and should prove useful.

			S =  D - (I X D / I + R)

  Where:	 S = reeding in maximum number of ends per inch in warp.
 	      	 I =  number of warp/filling intersections per weave pattern repeat.  
 		 D = number of yarn diameters per inch (low tension ruler wraps).
 		 R = number of warp ends in one weave pattern repeat.

Warm and Cool Colors
In regard to warm and cool colors, when designing I sort of go by the guidelines in Color Me Beautiful, the book that purports to analyze what "season" a person is and what colors look good on him or her. There are two cool "seasons" or palettes--winter and summer-- and two warm palettes, spring and autumn. I have found that it is true that if you stay within one palette, you will have pretty good color harmony, nothing too garish or glaring, and it will be becoming to the person whose season it is. I make most of my stuff in the summer or spring palette, since I am a summer and if I can't sell it, I can wear it, and my sister is a spring. But many people are winters also. Autumns are rare, but their palette--the oranges, golds, and browns--is what I'm working with right now, on a vest and table runner warp.
From: sstoney@midtenn.net (shannon stoney)

From: susanne@mbox301.swipnet.se (Susanne Kallstenius)
Determining what fiber a yarn is made from, the burn test is always mentioned.

My chart uses burning mainly to sort out animal fibers, cellulose fibers, acetate fibers, and synthetic fibers from each other. It's important to smell while testing.
Animal fibers (wool, hair, silk) are hard to burn, the flame soon dies. The smoke smells like burned hair. Black, lumpy ashes.
Cellulose fibers (cotton, linen, rami, rayon etc) burn very well. The smoke smells like burning paper. Like paper ashes, except pure untreated rayon that gives almost no ashes.
Acetate fibers burn well, the smoke smells vinegar. Hard lumpy ashes.
Synthetic fibers burn in different ways, most just melt away from the flame, the smell of the smoke varies with type of synthetics. Usually hard shiny ashes. Now one has an idea of what it might be and can continue with the rest:
Take a piece of yarn and tear it apart slowly until it breaks. Did it snap off? What do the torn ends look like? Cotton and rayon both snap. Cotton shows short fibers with a crimp, filament rayon shows long straight fibers and staple fiber rayon may be short and straight or crimpy. This hasn't yet told what fiber it is for sure, so go on with next step.
Take a piece of yarn and wet it through in a spot. It's adviceable to use ink or something couloured so you can identify the wet spot later. Tear apart as before. Where did it brake? Dry part? Wet part? On the border between the two?
Cotton is as strong or stronger when wet as when it's dry, so it will brake on the border or in the dry part. But wet rayon is week and it brakes in the wet part. So it's really easy to find out whether it's cotton or rayon.
I've done these tests many times and it's amazing how well they work. But if one has a mixed fiber it is difficult to tell what it is.

Warping

Janet Stollnitz wrote:
A tip that has served me well was winding the warp onto the back beam slightly wider than the intended weaving width (width in the reed when weaving). If you warp ftb, it requires resleying in the reed before weaving.

Robin in Northern Vermont added:
When you warp ftb, you can simply tie onto the back beam or rod *wider* than the width thru the reed, and thereby eliminate the need to resley your reed. Essentially, it's the same process, whether you sley/thread/then beam/ or beam/thread/then sley. Either way, you can sley the reed only once at the correct density, and wind onto the back beam at a slightly wider width than through the reed.

Beaming Aid:
From: Vernice Myers at: vmyers@wavecom.net
This is something my husband did for my two table looms. (4s & 8s). We used two of my wooden leash sticks that fit the two looms. On each one he drilled holes through it one inch apart from each end toward the center (as far as you care to do) and drilled the same into the back beam of each loom. After the warp is tied onto the back rod, then place the leash stick over the warp, and drop a long screw through both the leash stick and the back beam. This keeps the warp even on the back beam It is especially useful when wanting to use the entire width of the loom. Then the yarns are unable to slip into the back rachets. Any of my students and weavers in workshops who have seen this setup always want to go right home and do it to their looms.

Lease Stick connectors:
At a talk on making weaving easier, Harriet Mitiguy (one of my most favorite weavers) suggested using notebook rings to hold the lease sticks together. I've done it ever since, as it saves time and aggravation.
She also suggested a figure 8 style sling make of long shoe laces to hold the lease sticks (the slings stay on the loom always and you clip the lease sticks through them when needed).
Heavy rubber bands to hold the raddle in place.
Using those three things takes 20 min or more off every warp I wind on!
Contributed by Laurie Autio at: autio@pssci.umass.edu

Winding on a rayon chenille warp, or any sticky warp:
" As I get to say the second yard the chenille begins to knot around the cross of the lease sticks making it hard to move the sticks forward as I wind on."

Get rid of the lease sticks! When winding the warp create two crosses one at each end--a threading cross and a raddle cross. The raddle cross does not need to be thread by thread, it can be in groups according to the spacing in your raddle and the epi. Once the warp is spread and secured in the raddle, remove the lease sticks and wind on. After you've wound on, insert the sticks through the threading cross and tada you're ready to go.
From Margaret Coe at: MargeCoe@concentric.net

Another idea with sticky warps:
From Sue at: suebye@accessone.com
Try putting a sleeve of PVC pipe over each lease stick. Use PVC pipe with a diameter not too much bigger than the lease stick. I haven't woven with chenille, but this helps with other sticky warps. You just have to cut the PVC pipe a little shorter than the lease sticks so you can still fasten the lease sticks together.

Reel Warping Aid
Here's what my aunt did (she had her reel in a fairly permanent position): she put some screw eyes into the door frame and used them as guides to the reel. It just worked out that way for her.
What I did was grab some scrap wood from the garage and build a wooden stand. The upright in the stand has two screw eyes on each side of it (I think it's a 1 x 1 or 2 x 1), so I can wind from 4 cones at once. The upright piece of wood is high enough to come up to my warping board. The bottom stand (to which the upright is attached) is big enough for the cones to sit on. I think I did this in about 20 minutes, and it has worked very nicely over the years. Anne in Annandale at: arwells@erols.com

Diane Mortensen 's really useful approach to weighting warp.
She uses it primarily for weighting supplementary warp off the back of the loom while she's weaving. It is a good method for weighting the warp while winding on b/c it allows you to fine-tune so neatly the amount of weight you add to each chain.
Start with empty milk jugs (or any other jugs that have handles). Take a stout cord (perhaps a yard or so long), loop it through the handle till it's doubled, and tie it to the handle. Then tie a series of knots perhaps 8 or so inches apart in the now-doubled cord. You have made what look like buttonholes for a giant's coat (or Texsolv loop cord for a giant's loom).
To use the jugs, put as much water in them as you need for weight (marked with permanent marker for 2 cups, 3 cups, & 4 cups), even out your warp chain, and make a slip knot in the chain. Now just hang the jug over the slip knot from one of the "buttonholes" in the cord. It will stay.
As the chain advances, you can move to a new buttonhole in the cord or tie a new slip knot.

Dressing the Loom

From: Brad Mowers at: bdmowers@earthlink.net

As a way to help keep selvedges straight, after warping the loom, I measure out 2 more groups of warp yarns for the selvedges, tie them to the front beam stick, thread them through reed and heddles, drape them over the back beam then tie 2 oz. weights to each group. this gives just a little more stability to the selvedge yarns, keeping them from pulling in yet not making the selvedges so much tighter than the other warp yarns so as to create a looseness in the final fabric compared to the selvedges. Brad Mowers, Hawthorne, CA, professional weaver.

From: "KarenInTheWoods" at: pfundt@netnet.net
Date: Tue, 26 Oct 1999
I read this one a few months back and it REALLY works:
when threading up your loom back to front.... you can thread the heddles and the reed all in one fell swoop!

All you need is a longer reed hook, like the LeClerc one that is about 6" or 7" long. And some creative "wedges" like books or coffee cans.
First I raise all my harnesses and wedge a coffee can underneath them to hold them up.

Then arrange your warp on the back beam and suspend lease sticks between the back beam and the castle... so the threads are easity reached from the front of the loom through the harnesses...

Now---- remove your beater bar and place it upright as close to the castle and the harnesses as it will possibly go (3 books on under each side of the beater frame wedged in on a support brace of my Harrisville lets the reed lay almost right next to the harnesses at about half the height so you can reach the heddles too) fasten the bar to the castle... I use little short bungee cords.....

Now, using a long LeCLerc hook, you can place it through the reed, and also reaching over the top of the beater bar through the harnesses, grap the appropriate thread and then the appropriate heddle, and pull the yarn through both the heddle and the the reed all in one swoop....

So you are only handling and counting threads only one time instead of two... and with a complicated threading like the Lee's Surrender Coverlet that I'm doing next -- with over 800 ends threading..... it goes much faster.

I did it for two coverlets now so far, and it is much easier and you can see the errors at any time by "testing" the harnesses up and down while carefully holding the ends of the yarns running through the reed.

The "Nyquist Tie-on" method.

1. Divide the warp into bouts of no more than an inch. I find about 3/4" is better. Tension all the ends in each bout together & tie an overhand knot at the end of the bout. That's the easy part to explain.
2. You'll now need one doubled length of stout cord for each bout. I use seine twine, about 15" per bout. Double the cord, slip the looped end around the apron bar and put the two ends thru the loop. Do this as many times as you have bouts of ends. (After the first time you do this, just leave 'em there.) You should now have two loose ends of cord for each bout.
3. This is the hard part to put into words. You need to put a snitch knot in the bout. Here's how I do it (I think Janet Stollnitz, who taught me, does it differently, but the result is the same). Put both thumbs into the center of the bout. Twist your hands up & around (or down & around, it doesn't matter), till what you have is a loop of each side of the bout on each thumb. Put the two loops together so that they form the snitch knot, and slip the two ends of the cord thru the loops. Tie the cords to each other in what is the first part of a square knot.
To tighten the tension on a bout, tighten the half-square knot of the cords.
What's so beautiful about this method is that the more tension you put on the warp, the *tighter* the snitch knots become in gripping the cord. They just *do not* slip. If you find a threading error, you just open the half square knot, slip the bout off, fix the error & redo the bout. Takes 10 seconds.
I use this in front and a similar system in back (shown on p. 52 of my edition of Chandler--she calls it "Lark's head knot method") and have my loom waste on an 8-shaft floor loom down to about 18"-20". Combine this w/ a dummy warp and the only waste you have is a bit at the front & whatever is left when the knots from your dummy warp are right up against the heddles.
Contributed by Ruth.

From: Sue Bye at: suebye@accessone.com
The best tip of the year for me was the suggestion to partially fold the Baby Wolf while threading it -- prevented a lot of back pain for me.

General Weaving

Cutting Rags
From: "Norma Goff" njgoff@dellnet.com
By far the easiest way to cut strips of material for rag rugs is to remove the needles from my serger and use the knives to do the job. Just run your material through the serger and it cuts fast and clean. Norma Goff

Weights for the Beater
Handwoven (Nov/Dec. 1994) had a letter from some one who had used wrist weights to weight her beater. She had put them on each side, just outside the reed. The velcro fastening sounds like a natural way, and of course, they come in different weights. Credit: Valerie Musselman, of Plymouth, Michigan.

Yarn Butterfly

jeannie

Jeanne b. at: aBates@3-Cities.Com

offers: the drawing of the way I do a butterfly for tapestry. The extra wrappings are so it works more like a mini shuttle and the loops don't get stuck on things. Not always necessary, but I like it.

String Repair Heddles

           \ /
            &          (knot)
- ----------  1|  ------ 
- ----------   |  ----(heddle bar)
           | |
           | |
           \ /
            &        (square knot)
           /2\
           | |         (eye)
           \ /
            &
           /3\
           | |
           | |
- ------------ |  -----(bottom 
- ------------ |  -----heddle bar)
           \4 /
            &
           / \

I hope that doing two diagrams in one isn't confusing -- obviously one uses the jig *or* the on-loom method.

From: AE Silas at: asilas@linknet.kitsap.lib.wa.us

For a repair heddle, I cut a piece of string several inches over twice the length of a heddle (pretty general here) and double it around the bottom heddle bar. At the level of the bottom of my other heddle eyes, I tie a firm square knot. At the level of the eye tops, I tie another, making sure that I start it in the same direction as the first. Both knots should be as tight as you can make them, so that they won't migrate or turn into hitches. Tie the ends over the top heddle bar and trim them to 1/4-1/2" so they don't wrap themselves around other bars, passing warp, etc. The heddle shouldn't be too tight on the bars; it should have enough give to be moved about.
The bit about making sure the square knots run the same direction (which most people probably do automatically) ensures that the eye doesn't twist. And the eyes stay open nicely: I just took one off my loom to check, expecting it to collapse (8/2 unmercierized cotton, getting fuzzy), but it's lying here by the keyboard all ready to thread.
Of course, if you want to make them in quantity, four nails and a scrap of wood will make a great jig. I'm going to try a bit of ascii art here -- The numbers are to show the placement of nails for a jig. Proportions, obviously, are way off.

Temples (how to set up)
I learned how to set up a temple from this list a couple of years ago, so I'll pass it along to you:
1. Separate the two parts of your temple.
2. Turn them upside down (teeth pointing up) and rest them on your shuttle race right next to the reed.
3. Move the two parts till the *bottom* of the teeth (i.e., where the teeth meet the rest of the temple) are even with the second thread from the edge.
4. Now reattach the two parts of the temple without changing the width.
5. To use the temple, insert between the end thread & the next one in.
You also asked if you were perhaps inserting it into the cloth or removing it wrong. Be sure you open the temple before doing either--not take it apart, just shove the little rubber stopper to the side so the two rods can relax into a V. Then insert one side, then the other, then press down on the V and slide the stopper over. Or to release from the cloth, slide the stopper over, pull the temple up into a V, and remove first one side, then the other.
Also important: move your temple at least every inch of weaving.
Contributed by Ruth.

Chenille (or any fiber) Hemstitching
I saw something that works extremely well on any type of chenille for trim . weave about 4 or 5 shots of sewing thread at the beginning and end of the scarf, matching of course. The threads hold everything in place, nothing comes undone. One weaver had her husband test drive a scarf for a month. still looked great.
vivian in colorado springs at: sparrowv@juno.com (Vivian E Sparrow)

Johnnie at: weavingmom@roxboro.net added:
If you havent tried this one you have to try it as it works like a charm!

Tapestry Hint

When weaving on a tapestry frame, tie the selvedges to the sides of the frame at regular intervals (every inch or two), to stop the sides drawing in. Zoe at: zoe@themount.demon.co.uk

Problems with Mohair
From: Barbara Nathans at: bnathans@li.net
I urge anyone with problems with sticky warps to use hair spray or spray starch as you are rolling on and/or weaving . Spray it on the warp as often as needed. It will keep those little fuzzy balls from forming between warp threads.
I do sectional warping and cannot dip a completed warp into a solution before winding it on, which is the classic way to apply a warp size. For me, the spray works all the time--and it sure is easy..

Another tip when weaving with Mohair:
Some people, when they weave with mohair warp, thread drinking straws onto the ends (keeping them behind the castle) to keep the ends from grabbing onto one another.
Contributed by Ruth.

Finishing & Miscellaneous Touches

Keeping Records:
I like to put a small sample of each project I make on small indexcards (3X5) and add the name of the fabric, yarn size, the pattern (twill or whatever) and the sett. I punch holes in the index cards and put them on a large binder ring you can find in a stationery store. It's a quick reference for the next project if I want to guestimate a sett for a project using the same yarn size. Sometimes I add a small washed sample and the amount it shrank.
Joan Mogilevsky : mmogi@bellsouth.net

Tying a Fringe on the Loom:
I will attempt to describe the process.. This is for wool blankets that I do this.
Starting at the begining I weave my header to bring all my threads in order. Do about 3". Then leave the amount needed for two blankets fringe. Then weave the beginning for the blanket about 3"
Then I get a needle full of wool at least 1 and 1/2 times as long as the blanket is wide and tie it on to the bottom header woven at the edge. . . I count out how many threads I want in a group of fringe then divide that group in two. Taking one in each hand I twist them around each other till they are too tight to move then take my thread on the needle and thread it through the fringe in the approximate middle point of the fringe ( fringe above this point for the blanket being woven and fringe below for the blanket or in this case the header below.) I wrap the thread once around the fringe to secure and hold the thread on the needle under tension ( usually in my mouth 8^} ) and go onto the next group .
Do the same thing all across the warp. At the end knot the thread with the needle to the last fringe to keep it secure.
It will seem like all thumbs till you get the hang of it. Do this for all your fringe.
Wet finish the blankets ( I never do less than 2 on a warp ususally 3) and when dry you can cut the fringe apart.
The wool will have fulled enough to stick the twisted fringe together. I also tie a quick knot in the end of each fringe to help it last.
When figuring out your fringe length be generous as twisting and knot tieing takes up alot.
This is the only way I do fringe when doing wool blankets. Learned it years ago at Cherryville B.C., Canada when I took a weaving course.
Any questions write me. Pamela Marriott
Dancing Sheep Studio
Weaving & Graphics
Swan Hills, Alta. Canada
pmarriot@telusplanet.net

Favorite way to finish off the rugs and why.
My favorite way is to weave a narrow (1 inch) band at each end of the rug using a weft of the same yarn as the warp, and in a plain weave structure. Then, when the rug is off the loom, I finger weave the cut warps. Finger weaving may be hard to describe, but here goes. Start either at one end, or in the middle if you are a symmetry freak. Pick up 9 (more or less) warps. Make a plain weave shed with your fingers, and pull the last warp through it. Drop that thread, and pick up another so you have 9 again. Do the same thing again, making sure that the new shed raises the threads that were down previously. Then just keep going. When you have worked all the way across, you can apply a bead of fabric glue, and once it is dry trim the hanging threads off very close. I like this finish because it is smooth, no knots, no fringe, and very sturdy. You need at practice a little to make sure that the tension in the finger weaving isn't too tight, or the edge will draw in.
My tie for favorite is to weave a wider band (maybe 4 inches, to make a 2 inch edging), again in plain weave using the warp yarn. When the rug is off the loom, pull bouts of 4-8 warps through the web at the base of this band, so that the band doubles over. Then tie a half Damascus edge all across using the bouts, not individual threads. The half/full Damascus edge is explained in Peter Collingwood's "Techniques of Rug Weaving" and other books as well. It's very simple, just pick up two bouts, tie as you would a shoelace, drop one bout, pick up another, and do it again. This is half Damascus, if you make two such rows it is full Damascus. Naturally, you drop the "oldest" bout picking up the new one from the direction you knotting is moving (?? does that make sense??). You can tie the bouts so that the one you will drop faces the rug or faces away from the rug -- but whichever way you do it you must keep it up all the way across. Again, you may want to apply fabric glue before trimming. It is also very smooth, no knots and very sturdy.
My third favorite is overhand knots and fringe, with about 2" of plain weave band to make a bit of a taper between the floor and the thickness of the rug. The way you're doing it now. Hands down the fastest way to go.
From Bonnie Datta: brdatta@netcom.ca

Favorite way to finish off the rugs and why.
From: Al and Su Butler at: apbutler@mc.net
I like the method of weaving about three inches of plain weave, with the warp used as weft, doubling the weft yarn, on each end of the rug. When the rug is removed from the loom, I roll the plain weave over twice and stitch in place for a hemmed finish. The reason I use a doubled weft thread is to help eliminate the inevitable draw-in (as in shrinkage) which happens within the hemmed area. When washed, I usually have to tug a little on the hemmed area to return it to the same width as the rest of the rug, but I find the finish stands up to years of wear.

- -- the use of vinegar to get those towels absorbent
Well, the softener was great for most things, but it really was NOT great in anything which required any absorbancy. So, the hint was: use vinegar !! I've used 2 cups to my smallest wash-load (4 lbs).
From Lili at: ak355@lafn.org

From: Vera L. Hazelgrove at: vermiro@arcom.com.au
Mothproofing organic:
I make lavender water for rinsing, by putting dried or fresh lavender in a large clear jar which holds about 2 l water, fill about half full with lavender (you can collect it together from your bush til you have enough) and then fill with water and add 2 cups of cider vinegar and leave it out in the sun for 2 or 3 days. Strain the lavender out and then add enough to your rinse water so that you can smell it.You can keep the rest of the lavender water for the next rinse.

Lavender Water -
2 ounces of Oil of Lavender
1/2 ounce of Camphor
4 ounces of water
2 pints of alcohol

From: Lynn Heglar at: kamco@ricochet.net
Shoe Laces:
The best I've come up with is using heat shrink tubing from an electronic supply store. The best size for me has been 3/32. I do have to wind thread tightly around the lace end to make it small enough to go into the heat shrink tube. Then you shrink the end. I get the entire end of the lace wet then with tongs hold the tip that now has the heat shrink on it over my electric stove burner (set on high). Shrinks up to about 1/2 the size and it stays on quite well. The heat shrink comes in several colors besides clear.

Spinning

Some tips on carding long staple fibers.
From: Kate Shaffer at: peanuts@net1plus.com
I am assuming that you are carding with handcards. The biggest thing is to make sure that you make a complete pass through with the card that moves/transferrs the fiber.
Holding the dressed card in one hand and the empty card in the other hand draw the empty card to the dressed card without having the tines touch roughly. Comb the fibers all the way to the end until the card is completely clear of all the fiber ends. Then again raise the card and comb until all the fiber is transferred from one card to the other.
If the fiber is static prone, you have several options. One is to use a light spritz hair conditioner. Another (my favorite) is to spray water around in the air around you periodically to raise the humidity. The reason I prefer this method is that the exotics tend to get limp and difficult when wet. Raising the humidity in the air solves the problem of static without wetting the fiber.

Annette J. at: glassewe@telusplanet.net
I, personally, use thrums to card into my wool for spinning. I love the novelty yarns that come up.

Rough Hands
I have heard when spinning silk and your hands are too rough, use cornstarch. It really works. One of the best tests I have to see if something is silk is to touch it! My hands snag it every time. Georgean Curran
I asked Karen Selk what she used to keep her hands smooth enough to handle silk. She said lemon juice! Iris in the U.P.

Care of Your Equipment

From: Anne in Annandale at: arwells@erols.com
Rust
I have a borrowed Dorset that has lived by the seaside for 15 years. It had rust everywhere! I found that a little Windex sprayed on a rag wiped the rust right off of the heddle bars.

TWINING

Elsie H. Spencer/Joanne S. Orwell

September, 1965/ Lily Mills Company - Practical Weaving Suggestions

This fascinating and useful form of bag weaving has been of considerable interest to us for several years. It is a simple form of finger weaving employed by the American Indians of yesteryear and still in use by them today as well as many other craftsmen. The fine illustrations in W. Ben Hunt's book "Indiancraft" were very helpful to us in the development of the material for this project. Twined bags have many uses. Depending on the size and the material with which they are made, they may be durable and simple in design for shopping, knitting and book bags or more elaborate in design and handsome in material for dressed up occasions. Because of the low cost of necessary equipment and the simplicity of the technique, they make excellent projects for school, camp and hobby groups. Materials may range all the way from cotton roving to very fine linens. The frame on which they are made should be sturdy and of the correct size as the one shown here from Lily Mills.
Several people on the digest have given deminsions for the wood frame loom.

(these 'how to' instructions courtesy Chris Weiss )
You need two flat pieces of wood (top and bottom) and two dowels. Drill two holes in each flat piece of wood the distance apart that you want the width of your bag to be. If you bought 1/2" dowels, drill the holes 1/2" also. Actually you can buy one dowel and cut it in half so that you have two sticks. Put a dowel in each hole. Fit the bottom on the same way. There is your bag loom!


		
    ________________________
   |________________________|  <----flat piece of wood 
    | |                 | |	(mine is about 18" wide)
    | |                 | |
    | |                 | |
    | |                 | |
    | |                 | |	<----dowels
    | |                 | |	 (mine are 17" high)
    | |                 | |
    | |                 | |
    | |                 | |
    | |                 | |
   _| |_________________|_|_
  |_________________________|

The following yarns are excellent selections and are available in a large range of colors:


Warp:  Heavy carpet warp			Weft:  Rug Filler
	Rug Weave Yarn				Chenille Yarn 3 and 6 cut
	Jute Tone  				      Jute Tone
	Double Quick				Four Strand Filler
	Linen Size 8/5				Sports Yarn