Weaving without a shuttle or beater.

I have been exploring others ways of weaving a narrow band.  I have just uploaded a video about weaving with a butterfly weft.

https://youtu.be/HBhotrWs4-s?si=KUwtb9KqyZ8Hm1jv

However, what about weaving without a shuttle, beater, or a rigid heddle?  I have made a short video to show the process. I used six warp ends because the Roman heddle found in Lingenfeld Germany can only accommodate six warp ends. 

Weaving with 6 warp ends. https://youtu.be/BLaA0_JcadM

Weaving without a shuttle, beater and heddle is known from 19th century Iceland and early 20th century Ireland. The crios belt of the Aran islands is made in this way.  Crios weaving was known as weaving 'on the foot' as one end of the warp was attached to the weavers foot. The other end was held in the hand and the two hands were used to pickup each shed.  

I wove a copy of the Crios belt in the Pitt Rivers Museum in Oxford

Close up of the Crios belt

You can view the original on the Pitt Rivers online collection.

https://www.prm.ox.ac.uk/collections-online#/item/prm-object-131617

The Crios has 60 warp ends.  You can see my attempt at weaving it using a circular warp on one of my YouTube videos.  Five ways to weave a crios. 

I found it easier to weave a wider band than these narrow ones which only have 6 warp ends. All the bands are warp faced. 

Using a replica Roman heddle

I decided to explore this method of weaving using a Roman rigid heddle and then trying with no heddle. 

The Roman era heddle from Germany only has three slots and three holes - spaces for 6 warp ends.  I wove narrow bands in chunky wool, 3 ply wool and Dk cotton.  Using only a few warp ends makes the tensioning slightly tricky and I will need to practice more to get an even 'beat'.  The weft thread is placed into position, then the shed is changed and the two layers of warp ends are pulled slightly apart to 'beat' the weft into place. I am using a butterfly of the weft yarn. 

Here is the Crios belt and the three very narrow bands using only 6 warp ends. I found it easier to weave a wider band than these narrow ones.  

Tapestry Band

I have tried using the small Roman heddle from Germany to weave a tapestry band.  Six warp ends was a useful way to trial a narrow tapestry band.  I found that the heddle holds the warp ends at a fixed distance apart.  I used the my first loom.  I was about 8 years old when I was given this loom as a Christmas present. 

My first weaving loom and the beginnings of the tapestry band.

I am exploring many avenues in my research about Roman era heddles for the workshop at the Pitt Rivers Museum in October. There are still a few places left on the Friday workshop.  https://www.prm.ox.ac.uk/event/band-weaving-workshop

Happy weaving

Susan J Foulkes  July 2025

Band weaving with a small rigid heddle

Threading the rigid heddle

I make a warp with a singles cross in the same way as I make a warp for my floor loom. I put the cross sticks through the singles cross which means that the warp is in threading order.

Having a stand in which to support the heddle at an angle is very useful.  I use a mobile phone stand which I bought in IKEA.

 I use a drawdown to check the warping order.  This pattern is from my book   The Art of Simple Band Weaving   which is published by blurb.com. This book has many designs using different threads and widths. 

The first 15 patterns show the weaving effects that can be made by altering the warp order from simple stripes, off set ladder, bead, off set 1:2 stripe etc. There are 114 other designs as well as suggestions for how designs can be altered and created.

Narrow rigid heddles only use a small number of warp ends for the narrow band.  The original pattern had 29 warp ends in double knit cotton which produced a band of 20mm in width. 

 I only needed 25 warp ends for this heddle.  I took off the two red warp ends at each side which left 25 warp ends. This gave a weaving width of about 14 mm. Of course widths  are not exact as you can pull in the warp ends very tightly or leave them a bit looser and still cover the weft. 

The band is very sturdy and was easy to weave with a backstrap. Only the centre row of holes is used. 

Weaving this band was useful as it gave me a chance to feel the heddle in action. 

I also tried using just the centre holes and slots in the narrow heddle.

This band has four blue threads in the slots and three pattern threads in the centre holes. There are seven warp ends in total.

Using the two rows of additional holes.

I wanted to try using the additional rows of holes in the two heddles which I got from Robin. His ETSY site is thedancinggoats.

These two heddles were inspired by the Bryggen heddle from Bergen in Norway. 

The wider version of the Bryggen heddle.

Two versions of the original heddle.

Using the wider Bryggen heddle.

I started by threading the wider heddle using two rows of holes. 

In this diagram, E means that there are no threads in this hole or slot. 

The red and white warp ends float over one pick.  The pattern is relatively neat on both sides of the woven band.

The weaving sequence is: 

Pick one: raise the heddle. As you put the shuttle through the shed, pick up the five white threads in order with the blue warp end in between. These will form part of the under layer with all the blue threads in the slots. In fact the white threads will be hidden in the centre of the woven band.

The red threads remain on top.

Pick 2: lower the heddle. As you put the shuttle through drop down the five red threads in order with the blue warp thread in the slot, in between. These will be hidden in the centre of the woven band. The white threads remain on the reverse. 

Alternating these two picks will produce a horizontal stripe of red threads on the top of the band and a horizontal strip of white threads on the reverse. 

The pattern threads rest closely together and float over one pick.

Red floats on the top of woven band

White floats on the reverse side of the band

Alternating these two picks will produce a horizontal stripe of red threads on the top of the band and a horizontal strip of white threads on the reverse. This is shown on the photographs. 

Using the original size version.

The miniature version of the heddle is the actual size of the archaeological find. The original was made from elk antler and it thought to date from 1228 - 1332. An earlier heddle made of pine which does not have these additional rows of holes dates from 1170 - 1198.

Warp 1

Here is the threading chart. 

There are 7 blue warp ends in the center holes and slots.  There are 3 red ends in the top row of holes and 3 blue ends in the bottom row of holes. 

16 warp ends in total.

The weft is white and the weave structure is warp-faced plain weave. I used dk cotton for this band for warp and weft. 

Lower the heddle

Lower the heddle

Raise the heddle

Raise the heddle

You can see how there are two layers close together when raising or lowering the heddle. 

I found weaving with the small version very difficult.  I tried the weaving sequence of two picks like the wider version. However, I could not achieve a neat band.  There does not seem to be enough background threads to make a solid foundation for the pattern threads. 

I tried a four pick sequence so that the pattern threads float over three picks. 

Weave Sequence.

1: Raise the heddle.  The weft goes through the shed with the white pattern threads and red background threads on top and the blue pattern threads and the red background threads in the centre hole on the bottom.

2: Lower the heddle. The weft goes through the shed with the white pattern threads and the red background threads through the centre hole on top and the blue pattern threads and the red background threads through the slots on the bottom.

3: Raise the heddle. The white pattern threads and the red background threads in the slots are on top. You need to select each white pattern thread and bring it under the red background threads. You can see that the pattern threads are offset between the slots.  It is easy to select the correct pattern thread so that it goes between the appropriate two red background threads. 

4: Lower the heddle: The white pattern threads and the red background threads in the centre holes are on top. The blue pattern threads need to be selected in turn to go between the adjacent red background threads in the slots. 

Pattern.

The finished band will have the white pattern threads on top and the blue pattern threads underneath. The pattern threads float over three picks and then are hidden in the centre of the band. 

White ends on top of band

Blue ends on  reverse side of band

I decided to try an extended weaving sequence where the warp ends in the top and bottom row of holes each float over three picks.  Even with this sequence, I found it hard to get and even beat and have the pattern threads move close together. 

Warp 2.

I was not happy with this band so I tried a different warp. This time in a thicker wool.

The threaded heddle

I thought I would try a dk wool to see if  it was easier to weave.  The weft is white. The pattern threads are red and black. 

Here is the threading chart.

My attempt was slightly better with the wool version. However, the two pick weaving sequence was still  unsatisfactory. 

I tried the four pick sequence where the top and bottom rows of pattern threads float over three picks. This produced a better looking band. However, I will need to practice to improve the even beat.  The band is very chunky because of the four layers. 

I took this heddle to my Guild meeting in November  and experimented with the band .

At the Guild meeting

Close up of the woven band. 

I found weaving with the small heddle a challenge. I was unhappy with the way the pattern threads do not lie close together and the pattern thread from the bottom shows through slightly. I will need to practice with this heddle to see if I can achieve a neater weave. If you have any hints let me know!

Here is a YouTube video from Robin about this heddle.

Weaving bands with the Bryggen configuration

https://youtu.be/mqJ8DDE0Dv0?si=tGxibtquESl3626g

He has a YouTube channel and the video he made about this heddle is Bryggen Heddle Pick Up Threads.

https://youtu.be/gdJeCHgZ4kU?si=LlnD5IgEJMCyeV_r

POSTSCRIPT

I realised that I had not included the weaving instructions for the Bryggen heddle. Here are two charts which indicate the sequence.

This chart shows what is happening when you raise and lower the heddle.

The next chart indicates when the pattern threads should be picked u or pushed down.  The weaving sequence is four picks.

The column on the shuttle action indicates whether the pattern threads are left in place or picked up or pushed down. 

Basically for this weave sequence the pattern threads, top and bottom layer,  float over three picks and are then secured in the centre of the band. 

The top pattern threads a are pushed down in between the background threads in the slots. 

The bottom b pattern threads will be picked up through the four background threads and secured in the centre of the band. 

I am intending to do a short YouTube video of the sequence as it is much easier to see than describe. 

Seasons Greetings  and happy weaving

Susan J Foulkes  December 2024

Weaving with a small rigid heddle: Questions and debates

 I have received a set of small wooden heddles from Robin Goatey. from TheDancingGoats etsy store. He has an excellent YouTube channel as well.

http://www.youtube.com/user/TheDancingGoats/videos

A selection of beautiful heddles.

These beautiful heddles are recreations of ancient weaving tools from the Roman period and the early Middle Ages. 

I am enjoying using each of these heddles with a variety of threads. I have picked out designs from my book The Art of Simple Band Weaving https://www.blurb.co.uk/b/11486284-the-art-of-simple-band-weaving

Heddle one        Bryggen Norway

Here is the weaving drawdown. 

seven warp ends in 3 ply sock yarn

Heddle two   - Briord France

There are only 13 warp ends but the simple bead pattern is very effective. 

thirteen warp ends in 6/2 American cotton

The Roman heddle recreation.

I particularly loved the heddle based on one from Aquincum, in Hungary. The original is broken but one side was decorated with two dolphins.  Robins' recreation of this heddle is beautiful.

Here is the weave drawdown for the 11 thread pattern

eleven warp ends in 16/2 linen

The Handle

The unusual feature of this heddle is the handle - the two dolphins, on one side.  Usually the 'handle' is on the bottom of the heddle.  This means that the heddle when on a horizontal warp will be stable with the handle - the weighted part of the heddle, underneath.  On a horizontal warp this Aquincum heddle has a tendency to shift sideways and downwards.

To make the shed when the weighted part of the heddle is on one side requires the heddle to be moved vertically up and down with one hand.  This involves using the right hand to change the shed each time.  (or the left hand depending upon which way you set up the warp and heddle.).  Holding the handle to keep the shed open with the the right hand means that the shuttle is taken through with the left. The right hand then takes the shuttle. Changing the shed by lowering the heddle with the right hand involves holding the shuttle and the heddle in the same hand. 

Another way of using the heddle.

What if the heddle has the weighted part, the handle, underneath?

Heddle pulled to the left

Heddle pushed to the right 

In this position, the weft would need to be inserted vertically, first from the top and then from underneath. Once the shuttle is in the shed, the heddle can be released. 

There are many Medieval images depicting tablet weaving on a loom consisting of two vertical poles with a cross piece. Here the shed is vertical and the beater can be seen inserted vertically through the shed. 

The warp spacer appears to be in the wrong position

The third and fourth  pictures are interesting as they appear to show a vertical frame with holes to keep the warp threads from each tablet separate. In picture three, the weaver is manipulating the tablets but has not yet commenced weaving. However, picture four shows the warp spacer in front of the woven part of the band. Clearly, this would not work. The shed would not extend through the warp spacer. 

Of course, depictions in art of craft activities may not be accurate. The depictions could be intended to show the craft as visible as possible rather than the actual position of the weaver in relation to the warp. The Oseberg Tablet Weaving loom has been reconstructed and the warp is shown as being in the same position as these pictures. Here is a link to the reconstruction.

https://sites.google.com/site/thasthimindunna/home/recreations/loom

One re-enactor says that although it looks fantastic, the weaver has sit next to the warp and to twist her torso. This proves to be very uncomfortable for long periods.  

Trying to find a modern weaver using this particular method is not easy.  Most re-enactors seem to use the  Oseberg style loom as if it were a modern day inkle or backstrap weave with the cards positioned so that the weft is inserted horizontally. 

The Swedish Band Loom

The Swedish band loom is designed so that the weaver also has to sit in front of the warp.  Here is a link to band weaving at Skansen Museum, Stockholm.

https://youtu.be/jPeBqxW6ZUw?si=gR5ZQdD4giYvLckf

Personally, I find this position very uncomfortable and I weave on my band loom from one end. My band loom is the second method shown on my YouTube video. Five ways of weaving narrow bands

https://youtu.be/ZzhuDomPtxE

So, although the Oseberg loom and subsequent depictions in Medieval art show the warp as stretched between two posts and vertical, this is not an easy option for a re-enactor. 

The dolphin heddle may have been used in this position with the warp attached to the two uprights; not in a horizontal position which we are used to, but in a vertical position.  The heddle handle would then be moved horizontally to the left and right to provide the shed. The weft would be inserted vertically downwards then upwards. 

There is no definitive answer. It is only through trail and error that we can reconstruct ancient methods of weaving, and spinning. I do feel that we need to remember that just because we weave or spin in a particular way that this has always been the case. 

For example, when weaving a narrow band using a rigid heddle and backstrap, we weave so that the woven part of the band is nearest to our waist.  In North Sweden, the Sami in one area have always woven using a rigid heddle and backstrap with the warp tied to the waist band and the woven part beyond the heddle. The weft is beaten in, away from the body, on the other side of the heddle.  It is thought that this method reflects the action of a warp-weighted loom where the weft is beaten upwards. Side borders in tablet weaving on a warp weighted loom use this method.  

So, the side handle on the Dolphin heddle is an anomaly. 

What do you think?

Happy weaving and exploring!

Susan J Foulkes

October 2024

Inspiration for designing striped bands

 Here is an excellent YouTube video about weaving narrow bands with a backstrap.  I love the humour and the clear way everything is explained.  I have not tried weaving whilst vacuuming!

https://youtu.be/kkFHLT-RbJ4

I weave most of my narrow warp-faced bands on a Swedish band loom. I thought that this month I would talk about one aspect of inspiration for designing stripes

Inspiration from paintings

My inspiration for the colour stripes on these two bands comes from Kazimir Malevich. He was  born in Kiev to Polish parents.  He was part of the Ukrainian avant-garde which was an avant-garde movement in Ukrainian art from the end of 1890s to the middle of the 1930s.  I love his work. One of my earliest blogs was about an exhibition of his work in London. 

https://durhamweaver64.blogspot.com/2014/11/inspired-by-malevich.html

Here is a mug decorated with one of his painting .

  I used the colour order of the stripes to design a cotton band. 

cotton band on band loom

This cotton band has 36 ends of 16/2 cotton. 

Here is the drawdown.

The warp order is

Black - 4; Blue - 2; Orange - 4; Green - 8; Black - 2; Pink - 6; White - 2; orange - 4; Yellow - 4.

I used a yellow weft so that on the black selvedge is shows as a dotted pattern along the edge.  

I like the asymmetry of the colour order. 

The second band

The second band is from another painting called the Red Army. 

Two mugs with Malevich paintings.

It has 78 warp ends of 16/2 cotton in six colours. the colour order is asymmetrical.

Here is the drawdown.

Here is the warp order.

Black  2               2              6             8                            6

Red         4                                     2                           2

Blue            4                                                4

Yellow            2       2                              6            4

Green                           10                                 6

White                                       4

Both these bands were very easy to design.  I used the colour order on the painting and tried to ensure that the width of each stripe was in a similar proportion to the original.

Another design inspiration.

Recently I went with my friend Moira to the Durham Book festival for a reading of  Cuddy by Benjamim Myers.

I thought that I would design a narrow band using this cover as an inspiration.  

I liked the design of the waves.

Here is the simple design that I made.  The colours are not straightforward as I wanted to give the feeling of merging in the colour order.  Each warp end is two strands of 16/2 cotton.  This means that I can mix colours. So for some warp ends there are two shades of blue. 

This drawdown was the starting point for making the warp of 60 doubled ends. I used two shades of yellow, two shades of green and five shades of blue.  The drawdown was a guide not definitive.

The weft was two shades of yellow 16/2 cotton. 

Weaving length approx.: 6.75 inches

Weaving width approx.. 0.75 inches

The plaited end is made with four groups of threads. Both ends are whipped using West Country Whipping.

West Country Whipping.

This way of finishing a cord or band is found in the Ashley Book of Knots. 

West Country Whipping

1. Take a length of thread for the wrapping.
2. Tie is around the end of the band with a simple reef knot.
3. Turn the end of the band over and tie another reef knot so that is is close to the first.
4. Turn the band back to the front and tie another reef knot.

This forms a neat way of wrapping the warp ends.

You can finish the ends with a double knot and feed the end back into the wrapping if you want. 

A Five-end plait

I plaited the other end. I divided the warp ends into five more of less equal groups.

Plaiting with five ends is easy. 

1. Take the right hand group and go over the adjacent group and under the next group to the centre.
2. Now take the left hand group and take it over the adjacent group then under the next group to the centre.

These two 'rows' form the sequence.  

Continue plaiting until you reach your desired length.

Finish by wrapping the ends using the West Country Whipping technique. 

The completed bookmark

My friend wants to try weaving so I have designed this bookmark for her. I have set the band loom so she can weave her own bookmark. It is going to be a surprise when she comes to visit next week.

Band on Swedish band loom

I have also put a narrow band onto my four shaft table loom so that she can have a go on a second type of loom.  Should be a fun morning.

Narrow band on four shaft table loom

This band is a variation of the  bands I designed for my book The Art of Simple Band Weaving. 

Published by Blurb. https://www.blurb.co.uk/b/11486284-the-art-of-simple-band-weaving 

The three designs on page 50; bands 85, 86 and 87 

St Cuthbert and Durham

St Cuthbert stained glass window in Durham Cathedral.

I thought that you might be interested in learning about St Cuthbert.  I went up to the cathedral today to take some pictures.

The book Cuddy is about St Cuthbert (684 - 687) who was Bishop of Lindesfarne. He is buried in Durham Cathedral. His shrine was a focus of pilgrimage in the middle ages.

Notice at entrance to shrine and tomb of St Cuthbert.

His shrine is behind the altar and choir.

steps leading to the tomb and shrine

The red banner dedicated to St Cuthbert is modern.It was designed by Northumbria University academic Fiona Raeside-Elliott and embroidered by local textile artist Ruth O'Leary.

 To find out more about this lovely modern embroidery there is a YouTube video to watch. the St Cuthbert Banner.

https://youtu.be/i1xi0pZJbzo?si=-lAMn37oxsCb7IfP

Tomb of St Cuthbert

The Life of St Cuthbert was written by Bede ( 672 - 735) who is also buried in the cathedral.

Outside the cathedral there is a carving. It depicts a cow and two milkmaids .

This relates to a legend about how the resting place of St Cuthbert was found. One of the monks accompanying the body had a vision in which St Cuthbert told him he was to go to 'dun holm'.  They did not know where this was. Fortunately they came across a milkmaid looking for her lost cow  - or dun cow - meaning a brownish grey colour - who told them she had last seen her cow at dun holm.  

.......and so the legend was born.

Update

Moira enjoyed her first weaving experience. She tried weaving on a four shaft table loom and on the Swedish band loom.  Once she had finished I showed her how to bind the ends.

Moira's woven band and the bookmark.

She will be coming back for another go at weaving - including disc weaving.

Susan J Foulkes November 2023