How to Make Hand Weaving Looms

The next time you think of making a bag, whether it is to be a small, dainty affair just large enough to carry a handkerchief and vanity-case, or a larger bag to hold pick-up sewing, or even a school-bag, try weaving it on a loom that you can make yourself out of cardboard.

To make weaving looms the cardboard must be very stiff. Stein-bock board is the name of one kind. Bookbinder's board is good, too; in fact, any cardboard so heavy that it will not bend. Cut a strip the exact width that the bag is to be when finished, and twice as long, plus two more inches. The cutting should be done with a sharp knife against a ruler's edge, because cardboard that is heavy enough for a bag loom could not be cut with the necessary clean edge if scissors were used.

After the strip is cut, rule a line one inch below and parallel to each end. The threads over which the weaving is to be done (the warp) are to be stretched between these two lines. So holes must be punched through the cardboard on the lines, in order to fasten the warp. A thumb-tack is a good hole-puncher. Their distance apart depends upon how close together the warp threads must be, and that in turn depends upon the kind of material to be used for weaving. Various kinds of materials and combinations for bags will be talked over a little later. For this particular loom, suppose the warp threads need to be one-eighth of an inch apart. The holes must then be punched one-fourth of an inch apart, because two warp threads will be held at each hole.

To fasten the warp into the hole, take two heavy needles threaded with strong thread. The kind used to sew on shoe-buttons is good. Fasten the end of the warp thread into the first hole on one end of the cardboard by means of a knot or pin. Then carry the warp across to the first hole on the opposite end. Stick one of the threaded needles up through this hole, cross the warp thread, and stick the needle back through the same hole. In this way the warp is held by a loop of the needle thread. Carry it again to the opposite side, and here the second needle should secure the warp to the second hole. Continue warping the loom until each hole holds a warp loop. It is more convenient to roll the warp in a ball or have it on a spool when warping. When the last hole is reached, do not cut off the warp, but fasten the threads of both needles and cut these.

Bag Loom

The loom must now be doubled through the middle, with the warp threads on the outside. Very heavy cardboard bends with a cleaner edge if it is scored first with a sharp knife. The scoring of the loom through the center must, of course, be done before it is warped.

Here is an important detail - often there is not enough elasticity to the warp threads to stretch over the turn when the loom is bent double. An allowance for this can be made by placing a half-inch-thick block of wood across the loom and warping over it. Just before bending the cardboard the block is removed and the slack that follows will be taken up in the turn of the cardboard. The two halves of the cardboard must be fastened together at the top, so that they will not shift after the weaving begins.

When the loom has reached this stage there will always be an even number of warp threads, and it is necessary to have an odd number in order to weave around over and under each warp thread without skipping. The odd thread is added by carrying the ball of warp from the last hole in which it was secured down to the bend of the loom. It should be fastened there, and the remainder cut off. This finishes your handmade weaving loom.

Continue: How to Weave on a Weaving Loom.