Image 1 of 4
Image 2 of 4
Image 3 of 4
Image 4 of 4
Weaving is an ancient craft, dating back 27,000 years. Virtually all cultures on every continent have practiced weaving for both functional and artistic purposes, and today’s weavers work in much the same way. Weaving consists of interlacing two sets of threads, one vertical and one horizontal, usually using a loom. The weavers in SisterWeaves primarily use inkle looms, rigid heddle looms, and larger four and eight shaft floor looms. Small looms, and even handmade looms made of cardboard, can also be used to create fun and colorful textiles that can be used as wall hangings, coasters, or put to other uses.
Bandweaving, the process of weaving narrow, colorful bands of fabric, has a long history. Tablet weaving (or card weaving), is a technique of threading yarn through cards with holes to create the shed through which the weft is passed. The tablets are rotated to create different patterns on the band. This technique is at least 3,000 years old! Heddles, made of string or wood, are also used to create the sheds for the weft to pass. Bandweaving can create very beautiful, intricate, and detailed patterns.
Bands can be created on many different looms, including an inkle loom, which can accommodate a band four to five inches wide. Larger looms can be used to make wider bands. Even without a freestanding loom, bands can be woven by securing yarn around a solid object on one end, and around the weaver’s waist, adjusting the tension of the weave with their body. This technique has its roots in Central and South America.
Bands can be made with cotton, silk, wool, linen, and many other yarns. The bands can be used for pet collars and leashes, bracelets, baskets, belts, camera straps, guitar straps, bookmarks, lanyards, keychains, and bag handles. Bands can be sewn together to create bags and items of clothing, and can be used as trim and accents on clothing, pillowcases, and curtains. The possibilities are endless!
Penny Seay is an Austin fiber artist who loves to weave, and especially to create colorful bands on one of her inkle looms using tablets, heddles, pick-up techniques, and imagination. Sandy Rice weaves on multiple looms at her Southeast Austin home with her husband, 3 elderly cats, and a very spoiled Rottweiler. Penny and Sandy, along with Denise De La Garza, make up SisterWeaves, fiber artists based in Austin.
