Rug Weaving
Here is information about weaving rugs and what makes a good loom for weaving rugs.
Loom Types| Counterbalance | Jack | Countermarch |
Rug Loom Weaving
Loom Types
Counterbalance Looms
This type of loom is found in nearly every country and is the traditional type of loom used in this country. Pulleys and horses or roller dowels are used to hang shafts so that when at rest the warp threads are neither pulled up nor down. When a shed is made some shafts go up and the rest go down. All of the shafts are responding to the weaver's foot, giving smooth, quick and quiet treadling which helps the weaver to develop a rhythm while weaving.
The shed
Counterbalance looms allow one to open a small shed or a large shed by giving a light touch or a stronger touch on the treadles. Small sheds give much nicer selvages. A counterbalance loom can do this because you can weave on a tighter tension and the tension on the warp threads is the same on the top and bottom of the shed at all times. The pressure on treadles regulates the size of the shed. Another advantage is that all of the shafts are moved by each treadle. There are no shafts left to keep their place only by their weight. A clear shed can be made even on closely sett or sticky warps. Also, a large clear shed can be made even on a very tight tension by pushing harder on the treadles. This is one reason that rug looms are counterbalance. The wefts can also be beaten in more securely because the warp travels straight from the breast beam to the back beam.
Loom Tie Ups
When weaving three shafts against one, on a loom which is more than 3' deep, the shed will be normal. On a small loom, the one shaft that moves opposite the three will have a tighter tension. You can adjust this by changing the height of the shafts. All counterbalance looms have a way to adjust the height of the shafts. If the loom is a deeper loom there is no problem with unbalanced sheds.
Counterbalance looms commonly have from two to ten shafts, but most have four. If you want three, five or more shafts, you need to tie them up differently. This is done after the warp is tensioned, and you will need to use more pulleys or horses. But most weavers purchase the countermarch for tying up more than 4 shafts.
Jack Looms
This type of loom is popular mainly in the US where it was created in the early part of the 20th century for handloom weaving. It is the type of loom used for table looms and small folding looms. The shafts work independently, moved by jacks which can be placed above the shafts on the castle or below the shafts. The later type eliminates the need for the castle frame above the loom and is the reason so many small looms are jack type.
The Shed
The shafts work by being placed a few inches below the usual path of threads going straight from the breast beam to the back beam. This lower position is maintained by having the shafts heavy enough for their weight to resist the tension on the warp threads. Weaving with a slightly looser tension is needed to keep the shafts down, especially on a wide warp. If you try to weave on a tighter tension by tightening the loom's tension, the shed becomes smaller and the tension only tightens on the top of the shed.
Warp Tension and Sympathetic Shafts
You must observe that the reliance on gravity to hold heavier shafts down, rather than having them attached to the treadle, gives some disadvantages which are most notable on wider or more difficult warps. These problems may not be very noticeable on a 4 shaft loom when weaving light weight fabric less than the full width of the loom. But, the looser tension required can give you skipped threads from sympathetic shafts which don't fall all the way down. Sometimes it takes an extra step on the treadle to make the falling shafts fall completely down. Jack looms can have sheds which will not separate properly, poor selvages and the inability to weave a tight weave. Rugs cannot be woven on these looms very satisfactorily.
One problem is the extra wear jack looms put on warp threads causing them to weaken and perhaps break. The reason for this is that when a shaft is raised, the warp loosens until it arrives to its highest position. This causes a snapping against the metal heddles which can weaken threads. Even when the loom is not being used, the warp threads are at their tightest tension. When you try to make a tight weft turn at the selvage, the looser tension cannot resist the pull of the weft, so the selvages draw in. Excessive draw-in of loose selvages can also cause broken warp threads.
The reed also causes friction on the warp due to the raised position of the reed. Instead of having the warp threads in the center of the reed where they can move freely, they rest on the bottom of the reed. The beater is raised to give an even bottom shed and make the threads sit on the shuttle race.
Another problem is the unequal tension on the top and bottom of the shed. When a shed is made the upper threads become tighter than the threads remaining on the bottom of the shed, especially on small looms. This makes weft faced weaving more difficult as every other thread is slightly loose. To increase the tension on the bottom of the shed you need to increase the weight of the shafts.
Weaving Rugs on a Jack Loom
When using a jack loom I would recommend avoiding weaving the full width of the loom when you are weaving rugs, as weaving full width exaggerates the jack loom problems. You may also have to put metal rods on top of the shafts to make them heavier, so that they will stay down. Treadle springs can be added and weighted selvages will also help make up for the looser tension. If you decide to add weights to your beater, make sure they are removable for when you want a light beat. You should take frequent breaks as it can be tiring to push on the treadles. You can try standing as you weave. You may also need to have a more open sett on your warp as it is difficult to beat hard enough to get a tight weave. When you use a jack loom to weave rugs, you may want to use a hand beater to beat the weft more tightly.
Jack looms have a shuttle race. If it can be removed, you will have more space to weave. If you cannot remove it, check to see if you can turn it around so that the race is behind the beater. You can also try lowering the beater. This can give you a larger shed and make throwing the shuttle more comfortable.
To read more on adjusting sheds on Jack looms visit: Jack looms
Countermarch Looms
This loom of Scandinavian and European design gives advantages of a counterbalance loom: quiet, smooth and light treadling on a tight tension. But, an extra set of lamms allows the shafts to be tied up more easily if you are weaving with more than four shafts. This extra set of lamms is the reason that there are twice the number of ties to the treadles. You must put a warp onto the loom before tying up the lamms and treadles, as the shafts need the warp threads in order to work.
You can add any number of treadles and shafts so it is a good choice for those who want more than four shafts. There is a castle as the countermarch jacks are at the top of the loom and there is usually a hanging beater attached to the castle.
To read more on Countermarch looms, visit Types of Looms top
Rug Loom Features
Loom Frames
The features of traditional looms are also good for rug weaving. The traditional handloom frame is tall, strong, easy to assemble, comfortable for weaving, comfortable for threading and deep enough to give better results. The framing pieces are large and the large ratchet wheels make turning the beams and tightening the tension much easier. The frame usually has a knee beam and a foot rest. The frame is assembled with wedges, is about 5 feet deep and is convertible from counterbalance to countermarch. The overall look is of a serious piece of wooden equipment.
Hanging Beater
The traditional loom has a frame with a tall castle, which allows for a hanging beater. With a tall castle, the beater is tall and will give a longer, easier stroke. Hanging beaters beat perfectly square, are quiet, and don't require a lot of strength. You are not having to lift the weight of the beater as you beat. This means that the beater can be heavy and the weight is doing most of the work. You can beat a heavy beater without much effort.
Treadles
Treadles attached in the rear give better leverage and easier treadling. They are tied with cords so they are adjustable in height.
Beams
Even when there is not room for a large loom, rug looms need to be strong. Cross beams and beaters should be made from laminated wood to make them stronger. It also keeps these pieces from warping and causing a crooked beat. The uprights which hold the breast beam get the most stress and should be laminated. Some even have a bolt through the upright where the breast beam is attached, as this part of the loom takes a lot of stress from warp tension. The circumference of the laminated cloth and warp beams should be from 9" to 12".
Fabric Protector (breast batten)
Another nice feature of a traditional loom is a fabric protector, which is a thin board placed outside the breast beam. This allows you to sit very close to your weaving without touching the weaving. This board when raised slightly, acts like a fence to keep shuttles from falling off the loom when you are beating. This is especially helpful when weaving with more than one shuttle.
Shafts and Heddles
Since the shafts on a traditional loom don't need to be heavy, they do not need to have sides and should not have heavy heddles. Being simply two heddle bars, it is easy to add more shafts to a loom and extra ones are easy to store.
The kind of heddles your loom has is determined by the type it is. Jack looms need weight and so they have the heaviest heddles which are the metal ones. Wire heddles are lighter than the metal ones. Counterbalance and countermarch looms do not need to add weight to the shafts, so they can use string heddles or Texsolv heddles.
Texsolv heddles are quiet and cause less wear on the warp threads. You do not have to choose which is the top or bottom and they do not slant right or left. There are no hooks in the centers of the shafts.
Texsolv heddles come in many sizes and can be put on most any loom. If you replace your jack loom's metal or wire heddles with Texsolv, you may have to add back some weight to the shafts. If your shafts do not have sides, any size texsolv heddle will fit. The largest heddles will give a bigger shed.
Loom Depth and Comfort
Traditional looms have a depth of about 50-60 inches, or even more. The greater depth of a traditional loom means that the treadling will be easier. When the treadling is easier, there is less tension in your legs, you are more comfortable, can weave more easily, and you will not tire as you weave. This depth will provide a better shed and lessen the strain on the warp. Mary Atwater, who is partially responsible for reviving weaving in the 20th century, said that a loom should be deeper than it is wide. This large frame also gives you plenty of space to get inside for threading and sleying. This is much easier and more comfortable than bending over the loom to reach the center.
Knee Beam
The frame on traditional looms includes a knee beam, which is absent on most small looms. This beam raises the material and protects it from the weaver's knees. The traditional loom provides many features which make weaving easier. If you compare weaving on this larger frame to a smaller loom, you will feel how the solid frame makes the weaving more comfortable. Treadling is very light, so there is no need to have a slanted bench or to sit teetering on the edge of the bench. You can sit comfortably on the bench and you will not tire as fast.
Benches and Comfort
A proper bench the correct height is essential for comfortable weaving, as well as more accurate, faster and less tiring weaving. Not only should it be adjustable in height but it should allow you to sit very close to the loom. Sometimes your balance will be the best if you are actually touching the breast beam as this will support your back. If you must lean forward to get closer to your weaving, your balance will not be good, your posture will not be good and there will be tension in your lower back.
Bench Height
To determine the correct height of the bench, you should check to see that your elbows are above (just clearing) the breast beam. If your elbows are below the breast beam, you will need to raise your shoulders to throw a shuttle and this will cause tension in your shoulders. If the bench is too high, you may have trouble reaching the treadles, and your knees may be pushing on the fabric. A knee beam will help to prevent this problem, especially if you have long legs.
When you are sitting on the bench, your knees should be much lower than your hips. This gives you better balance and keeps your back straight. If your knees are too high, you are more likely to slump and not sit up straight. With your knees too high, it is more tiring and uncomfortable to lift your legs to treadle. This can cause poor posture and backaches.
To read more on benches and comfort visit: Benches
Treadling
Most weavers learn to weave without looking at the treadles to find the correct one. The first step to achieve this is to take your shoes off. Most treadles are too close together for weaving with shoes on. Wear wool socks or very thin slippers. Whatever is comfortable and allows you to feel the treadles. If you have to push so hard on the treadles that you must have shoes, then the treadling is too hard.
The most important recommendation for maintaining balance and comfort while treadling is to use both feet alternately. If you are using only two treadles, tie them up in the center so that you will use both feet. If you are using more treadles, plan your treadling so that you can alternate feet. This is called "walking on the treadles". The easiest way to do this is to start with the outside treadles, alternating feet until you reach the center. With four treadles, you would start on the far left with the left foot, second, the right foot on the far right. Then the left moves in toward the center to the next treadle, then the right foot moves in to the next treadle. From left to right, they would be 1, 3, 4, 2. To read this, treadle in order of the numbers (first the treadle on the left, second the treadle on the right, etc). If you were using 6 treadles, it would be 1, 3, 5, 6, 4, 2.
If you are weaving on a jack loom with many shafts, you may have difficulty with lifting them. This can also happen with a very wide warp or with a warp faced weave which will tend to stick. You might try standing to weave. Especially if you are weaving a rug, or a weft faced weave where the shed will not want to open. It might also help to tie up the treadles to just one shaft and use two feet for treadling.
If you are tall and want to work on looms which do not give much leg space, put blocks of wood under the feet of the loom, so that the whole loom is taller. Then lengthen the cords which tie up the treadles. If your legs are short, look for a loom which has cords for tie-ups. You can shorten the cords on the treadles to raise them.
Warping the Loom
Good warping techniques will produce a rug which is square. The most important part of the warping process is the winding and beaming of the warp. The winding should be done carefully in bouts which do not make more than six to eight inches of the warp. The warp beam should be large so that the warp will not have to build up too much. The warp should be beamed as tightly as you will be weaving which is very tight. The warp on the beam should look like a perfect cylinder. To achieve this you need to beam with many sticks, preferably with selvage papers.
Selvage papers
Selvage papers are described in Ulla Cyrus's book, Manual of Swedish Hand weaving. They are heavy paper which has been folded so that the folded section has eight layers and the other edge has one layer. The eight fold section lies outside the selvage threads and helps to prevent them from slipping out of position. It also gives better support for the beaming sticks that follow, making them parallel to the beam. Use a paper 16" x 24" and fold the long edge 1/4 in toward the center. Fold this section two more times so that it is eight thicknesses and the other edge is one thickness. The single thickness is placed under the selvage threads as the warp beam is turned and the eight fold section is outside the warp. This thicker side gives support to the sticks to keep them from bending. Selvage papers should be used with beaming sticks. Ordinary paper for beaming a warp is not sturdy enough to replace beaming sticks.
Tying up the Warp
There are three or four different tie-up methods, and they all work just fine. It is important to tie up carefully. To determine if you have done it well, look to see if there is any draw-in. If there is, the selvage ties may have too many warp threads. The selvage knots should be made with only 1/2" of warp. And the other knots should have no more than 1" of warp. If there is more, the threads which are spread out the most by the weft will be tighter than the center threads and there will be tension problems. Use bows instead of knots when tying up so that you can untie and adjust the tension. If you have a very slippery warp thread, you may have to tie them into knots when the tension is even.
The tie-up rod can bend when you are weaving narrower than the weaving width of the loom. To prevent the rod or stick from bending, attach the rod to the apron only as wide as the weaving will be. The extra length of the rod does not need to be tied. Even if it is slightly bent, the beater will make the weaving straight, so it will not hinder your weaving.
Temples and Selvages
A beautiful, square rug that will lie flat on the floor requires that all parts of the warping and weaving are done correctly, but one of the most important things that you need to do is to use a temple. Not only will it give you better selvages, but it will produce wefts that are straight across the rug, giving you a finished rug that is square.
The weave which never needs a temple is tapestry. Rugs require the use of a temple. The purpose is to improve the weaving, but it will also increase your speed and give you better selvages. It will improve the quality of the weaving, keep selvage warp threads from getting worn or broken, give you a tighter weave, a more even beat and make the beating easier.
When the weaving is not as wide as the warps in the reed, you have draw-in or narrowing of the weaving. This causes the warp threads at the selvage to be to closer together. This closer sett means that the weft cannot be beaten down as much as in the rest of the weaving and it will build up. A temple will not correct this problem; it can only prevent it.
If you try to prevent draw-in by leaving the weft slack at the selvages, your wefts will form loops at the selvages. The selvage turns should be snug against the weaving. Then place the weft at an angle or bubble to get the weft long enough. If you leave your weft loose at the selvages, the selvage warp will have less take up and will become loose. The loose selvage threads will eventually make the weaving more difficult. The temple will prevent this by keeping your weft tight at the selvages without drawing in.
Loose selvage threads can also result when the warp is not beamed tightly enough. If the warp threads are then pulled by the shuttle or your hands, they will become loose. Weighted selvages can be used on jack looms and shallow looms. Larger rug looms should not need them as the tension on the whole warp will be tight. Floating selvages are used primarily for catching the edge warp threads on twill weaves or two shuttle weaves. It is easier to weave without them.
To read more on Temples and Selvages, visit Frequently Asked Questions.
Beating a Tight Rug
It is not difficult to get a tight beat on a large counterbalance or countermarch loom. On small looms it is more difficult. The short underslung beater attached to the bottom of the loom requires more strength for beating. Of course, you must always put your hand in the center of the beater for a level beat. If you cannot use a deeper loom with a hanging beater, try these things:
- Advance the warp more frequently.
- Use a temple so that draw-in does not hamper or resist the beat.
- Be consistent in the angle you place the weft across the warp.
- Add weight to the shafts if it is a jack loom.
- Add weight to the beater if it is lightweight.
- Cut rag wefts into two strips instead of one.
For more information on beaters, visit Swedish Looms
When to Beat
A tight beat might require beating two or three times, beating on a closed shed and again after changing the shed. You can try beating first on an open shed, but often this causes large weft loops at the selvages. A closed shed will hold the weft where you want it to be.
Stabilizing the loom
There are several things that you can try to keep the loom from moving when you beat. Stadig loom feet are small cradles which keep the loom from moving. No other solution works as well as they do. They will not work if you have a cross piece on the front or back of the loom which is close to the floor. A folded piece of rubber backed carpet with the rubber on the outside will work but it may stick to your floor. A large piece of wood placed between the loom and the wall can work, but you will need to protect the wall and the loom from marks. The wood does not always stay in place, so you might use a cross piece to connect and stabilize them. The Stadig loom feet are the best solution if they will fit your loom. See how stadig look.
Shuttles
Stick or flat shuttles cannot be thrown and must be unwound as you weave. For rug weaving, ski shuttles or double ski shuttles work very well and hold more weft. They can be thrown across the warp because the ends are curved inward like a ski. They do not require a very large shed. 20" is a good length, although for very wide rugs, the longer ones are useful.
You can insert rags into the shed without a shuttle, although this can be more difficult with short fabric strips and wide rugs.
Filling the Shuttle
It is nice to have one shuttle for each color in the rug. If you don't have extra shuttles, you can estimate the amount of weft you need when you fill them. Measure the length of the shuttle and compare it to the width of the rug. Determine how many wefts produce one inch of weaving. If the shuttle is 2 of the width of the rug, one wrapping of weft equals one weft on the rug. If you need 3" of a color and there are 5 wefts per inch, wrap 15 times around the shuttle.
For more information on shuttles visit: shuttles
For more information on selecting a loom visit: selecting a floor loom
Glimakra-USA... 866-890-7314 or 406-442-0354
update 1/08