Learn to weave your own stories and make personalised woven wall art with this guide to tapestry weaving. A collection of wonderful woven hangings for you to build your tapestry weaving skills. Learn all the techniques you'll need to create your own woven tapestries with a unique, personalised element.

Welcome to Weaving!           5

Tools  6

Making Your Loom    7

Warping Your Loom   10

Choosing Your Yarn   14

Creating a Template  18

Using Your Template 20

Starting a Weave with Tabby 22

Rya Knots       24

Weft-facing Weaving 26

Soumak          28

Diamond Twill 31

Pile Weaving  34

Overweaving  36

Bobbles          38

Inverted and Continuous Rya 40

Embroidery    44

Beading          45

THE PROJECTS

Flower Face    48

Love Those Stems      52

Up on High     56

A Pair 60

Bright Dorky Love      64

Blush Breeze  68

Get in Line      72

Girl’s Got Hair 76

Mo Bro           80

Peace, Sister  84

Summer Recall           88

Yarn Upgrade 92

Your Name Here        96

Oh! The Texture!       100

Milkshake       104

The Lovers      108

Fur Gets on Everything          112

Templates      116

Troubleshooting        118

Finishing Your Weaving         120

Acknowledgments     126

About the Author      126

Suppliers        126

Index  127

Woohoo! And welcome to the introduction. Many different crafters may hold this book in their hot little hands so here's what I've got for you: perhaps this is your first try at weaving, and to that I say welcome! This book will start you off with the basics, giving you an idea how to dip your toe into the world of weaving without having to invest hundreds in a fancy loom, bespoke tools etc. I think I used a fork from the kitchen drawer for my first year of weaving, so there is no shame in starting low tech and ramping up as your interest grows. There's also no shame in discount store acrylic yarn while you're getting a handle on things, and no shame in copying projects while you find your own style. This book is about not taking things too seriously. The overarching message: if that's what you like, go for it. If you've already had a go at this weaving caper and are looking to add some new skills to your repertoire, this book can help you there too. After learning the basic steps of weaving from tutorials and websites, I felt like the standard weaving pieces that you see around just weren't doing it for me, so I experimented with different ways to create pieces that I liked - bold graphic illustrations, detailed intricate images, chunky relaxed textures. There are always new places to take this artform, and I hope you will be able to learn a few here and transpose them into your work. Finally, please don't expect this book to be your typical 'make this piece for yourself' craft book. There are a few projects that you can copy straight from the page, but I'm much more interested in holding your hand while you learn how to create your own pieces for your own space. Translate what is in this book to what suits your style. If you're anything like me, you've tried a thousand different mediums and have a craft drawer or cupboard that is a roadmap of creativity. Weaving is one artform with so much flexibility and where a bunch of different mediums converge into one. You'll get to illustrate and sketch up ideas for your designs, play with balancing colour and matching the feel to your home, you'll dive into the wonderful world of yarn and fibre and get the chance to embrace the textures and finishes that feel right to you. And at the end of the day, you're making things for you, so GO FOR IT! Good luck and happy making.

abstract patterns 56–9 animal portraits 112–15 back stitch 44 beading 45, 55 Blush Breeze 68–71 bobbles 38–9 bowing 118 Bright Dorky Love 64–7 bubbling 22, 118 cleaning weaves 119 CMYK overlay effect 84–7 copying work 119 Craft Yarn Council 15 curves 10, 15, 20, 36, 45, 50–1, 54–8, 71, 79, 94, 98, 102, 106–7, 114, 119–20 cutting work 123 diamond twill 10, 31–3, 98, 102–3, 110 double string warping 12, 20, 54, 58, 74–5, 78, 91, 94, 106, 110, 119 dowelling 6, 124–5 edges, curling 118 embroidery 44, 55, 79, 107, 111, 115 ends, tying in 122 finishing techniques 120–3 Flower Face 48–51, 117 frames, for looms 7–9 freestyle 24, 98, 100–3 fringes 20, 22, 24–5, 40–3 projects 48–115, 123 scalloped 99 Fur Gets on Everything 112–15 Get in Line 72–5 Girl’s Got Hair 76–9, 117 hanging weaves 124–5 hemstitching, top rows 120–1 ladder stitch 44, 55, 63, 67, 75, 79, 87, 91, 95, 107, 111, 118 looms cutting work off 123 making 7–9 rigid heddle 118 tension on 12–13 warping your 10–13 Love Those Stems 52–5 Lovers, The 108–11 Microsoft Excel 19, 98, 114 Milkshake 104–7 Mo Bro 80–3, 117 Oh! The Texture 100–3 overweaving 36–7, 83, 110, 114–15 Pair, A 60–3, 116 Peace, Sister 84–7, 116 photographs, working from 19, 104–15 pile weaving 34–5 portraits 76–83, 104–15, 117 rya knots 24–5, 119, 123 continuous 42–3, 63, 110 inverted 40–1, 98, 110 projects 50, 55, 58–63, 67, 70, 74–5, 78, 82, 86, 90, 94, 98–9, 102–3, 106, 110, 114 snagging 119 soumak 28–30 fishtail 28–30, 98 using multiple yarn threads 30 Summer Recall 88–91, 116 support lines 20 tabby 48–51, 123 and beads 45 and bobbles 38 and overweaving 36 and pile weaving 34 projects 52–5, 58, 63, 67, 70, 74–5, 79, 82–3, 86–7, 90, 94–5, 98, 102–3, 106, 110 and rya 42 starting a weave 20, 22–3 troubleshooting 119 tablets 19, 56–9 templates 18–21, 116–17 tension 12–13, 22, 36–7, 118 tools 6 top rows, hemstitching 120–1 tracing 18 troubleshooting 118–19 typography 64–7 Up on High 56–9 warp spacers 12 warping your loom 10–13, 20, 119 and diamond twill 31, 33 and fishtail soumak 28 and hanging work 124–5 and hemstitching top rows 120 projects 50, 54–5, 58–9, 62–3, 66, 70, 74–5, 78–9, 82–3, 86, 90–1, 94, 98, 102, 106, 110 and rya knots 40, 42 and visible threads 118 and weft-facing weaving 26 weaving posture 118 weft-facing weaving 15, 26–7, 54, 63, 82, 103, 118 wonky weaving 118 yarn acrylic 5, 14, 16, 66, 87, 91 bouclé 16, 112–15 choice of 14–17 chunky 15–16, 26–8, 30–1, 34–5, 38, 42, 52–5, 60–3, 80–3, 100–2, 112, 118 cotton 10, 12, 16 effects 16 gaps in yarn changes 118 hand-painted/hand-dyed 16 leftover 119 mohair 16, 100–3, 112–15 snagging 119 weight 15 wool 16 Yarn Upgrade 92–5 Your Name Here 96–9