Lazy was inspired by the same knitting pattern as my Lion. He’s been done for quite awhile, but I couldn’t locate buttons in the stash for eyes. (These are from an old mother-of-pearl cuff link.) The yarn is Stacy Charles Pasha, which I really like for weaving animals. I used 4”x6” Weavette rectangles for the body and head, 4”x4” squares for the legs and tail, 2”x2” squares for the muzzle and spots.

Original source (out-of-print)
Knit a square & make a toy: simple toys to make from knitted squares
by Norma Campbell
Published in 1999 by Cole’s Home Library Craftbooks
ISBN 1-56426-256-1

No comments about not posting for four months. Title of this post says it all.

A belated birthday present for DIL-to-be. One plain black bag. Three little squares. Some leftover strands of red wool. Ta da.

Bag machine knit with two strands of Brown Sheep Top of Lamb sport wool. Felted in the washing machine.

Weave-It squares made of space-dyed wool that was recycled from a Gap sweater (a thrift store purchase).

Hand spun and hand dyed red wool yarn because I can never throw away red yarn scraps, no matter how short.

These soap bags, made with Euroflax sportweight linen on the 4”x6” Weavette loom, are fun and easy to make. They are a great vehicle for experimenting with patterned weaves. Two rectangles are joined by a running stitch on three sides. (Pull out enough yarn at the beginning of one rectangle to sew the seam.) I use a battery-powered hair braider to twist the cords. Overtwist two individual strands and then ply the opposite direction. It can be done by hand but the hair-braider does it in a fraction of the time.

If you haven’t already experimented with adding length to warp, do that before attempting leno lace on small looms. It shows up best in a stiff yarn like linen or hemp and the twist looks nicer if the warp is somewhat relaxed. At the same time you’re adding length to the warp (vertical threads), skip a row of weft while wrapping the second layer (horizontal thread). I did this twice, skipping only one row at a time. You should wrap FIVE pins. I skipped rows 14 and 19. The blue arrow in the photo shows where I made a mistake and only wrapped four, but that was corrected when I started weaving. Skip an even number of rows total, which will allow your weft to end up in the correct place at the end. You could experiment with leaving only one strand between rows of leno. That works, too. Just a different look.

Weave plain weave up to the skipped weft section. Then use another needle or small knitting needle as a tool to pick up and twist two (or more) adjacent warp threads. From the right, use the tool to pick up a bottom warp thread; go over a the next top warp thread; rotate the back end of the tool 180 degrees to the left. What you see above is after rotating the tool. Slide the weaving needle into the space where the tool is; remove the tool and proceed across the loom. You may weave the first and last thread or two in a regular fashion, or not—whatever works for you.

This example is double leno.

If you need more ideas and better illustrations for hand-manipulated leno lace, download the article by Karen Searle (middle of the page, under Minnesota Weaver) that I linked in the previous post.

WAL PARTICIPANTS LIST
I’m redoing the WAL list due to bad (or no) links and people moving on to other things. If you want to be listed (or relisted) with your link of weaving content, contact me and I’ll be happy to add you.

…to your weaving warp on small looms that have no mechanical tensioning device. (As long as I have to deal with daily comment spam, I might as well have a bit of fun with it.)

Seriously, this odd technique may keep you from bending or pulling the pins out of your loom, or breaking your needle, and it will allow you to use some weaving techniques that would otherwise be impossible. I invented this “fix” while weaving leno lace with linen on a 4”x6” loom. Heck, I can’t even do 4″x6” plain weave in linen without this remedy. That’s to be expected. Linen has NO elasticity. Plus plain weave takes up more yarn than a patterned weave. You can always weave the weft looser, but what about the warp which is already on the loom and getting tighter with every woven row? Gotta add some length to that warp!

Here’s what I did. Begin as usual, but every time you wrap the warp around pins at the top of the frame, make an extra loop around one pin before continuing to the bottom of the frame. At the same time, keep the warp wraps (layers one and three) relaxed and loose. (Layer two, the first weft wrap, should be normal tension.)

Photos above show first, the loom as you are looking at it while wrapping and second, from the top, to show how the loops look on the pins.

Photo above shows the third layer of yarn, illustrating how the loops appear at the top of the loom.

Measure yarn for weaving length and weave as usual to about half the length of the loom. By now the yarn is starting to get tight, and it’s time to unleash those extra loops at the top.

Anchor your weaving needle at the bottom. Keep an extra needle or double pointed knitting needle handy in case you need a third hand. Beginning at the upper right corner, lift off the last two top loops.

Rehang the bottom loop on its pins, then the upper one. This is exactly what you do when you accidentally lose some loops while weaving. Only on purpose this time.

Work across loom in this manner, anchoring the loose loops with your needle if you worry about them popping off. Don’t forget that the very last loop, which goes around the corner, needs a loop before being repositioned. Look at it carefully before you remove it.

After another woven row or two, the newly loose loops will fall right into place and you’ll have enough warp length left to make the finish without pulling out the loom pins—or your hair.

If you plan to weave leno with me on the next Square Deal Weave-Along posting, I seriously recommend that you practice this warp tensioning device first, using non-elastic cotton, linen or hemp.

OK, once you’ve mastered this, go to this page of the On-Line Digital Archive of Documents on Weaving and Related Pages. Under Articles> Minnesota Weaver, there is a fine two page article by Karen Searle about leno on the rigid heddle loom. Download and print that out for next time.

The final 3D Challenge entries are two from Sylvia Cannizzaro of West Glover,Vermont—a prolific and talented craftswoman who also gave us the Sampler Binder. Her Christmas wreath is a timely and attractive project that many of you will want to make for the holidays and the gift bag is useful year-round. Thank you, Sylvia!

“This project is fairly simple–inspired by the yarn, Lamb’s Pride “Christmas Green”, worsted weight. It’s a Christmas wreath, of course. I used my Hazel Rose Tiny Weavers, which produces squares on the bias. The bias weave really helps to form a smooth circle.

I crocheted the beginning sixteen squares together in a rectangle, fulled it, then crocheted the long edge together, turned it inside out, closed up most of the circle and stuffed it with wool batting, completing the wreath. (If you plan to hang the wreath, a wire sewn to the back will help hold its circular shape and also function as a hanger.)

The leaves are combinations of triangles and either squares or diamonds. I fulled them after forming the leaf shape, but not much–I don’t have a washing machine, and can only stand at the sink for so many minutes at a time. Then I simply sewed them together, then sewed them to the wreath. It’s easy to hide the ends, and also easy to adjust the shape with the needle and yarn. The berries are red roving from Peace Fleece in Maine. I initially felted them in my palm, wet with water, then finished and attached them using a felting needle.

I thought this would also make a lovely centerpiece, with a candle in a jar in the middle. I actually don’t use candles much, so I didn’t have one to show, but this gives the idea.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

This one is my second small loom project, and my first using the Weave-it type looms. I wanted to experiment with the seaming, and that is what inspired the design, along with the fun wool, thick and thin, monochromatic, and easy to weave.

To make the bag I used nine 2″ squares each for the front and back panels, and two 2”x6” rectangles for the sides and base. I sewed the front and back panels with a basic whip stitch in a smaller, darker green yarn. By the last seam, this was becoming virtually invisible, but I still need practice. I used needlepoint wool (3 strands) to embroider over the vertical seams with a feather stitch. I crocheted the panels together using a single strand of needlepoint yarn, and then just continued the line across the top for decoration. I had imagined more elaborate decoration, but the bag seemed finished at this point, so I didn’t push it. I think the feather stitch draws the eye away from the horizontal seams, but I also think that if I did this project again I would stick with the 2″x6″ rectangles, although the 2″ squares are so quick and fun to make. (I have four young children, so working with smaller pieces is both more practical and in the end satisfying, since a project can be completed in a week, as this one was.)

The handles are also woven. I used a Hazel Rose Tumbling Blocks Loom (7″) for this, but anything would work.

I sewed the handles on first, then formed the lining out of some muslin and hand stitched it in. (I could provide more detailed instructions, if you like, but I just kind of made it up as I went along.)

This was a fun project, and the bag is so cute! I’m saving it to give as a Christmas gift, filled with some homemade goodies. (Of course, I also plan to enter it at the county fair.)

Sandy H. of Claremont, California, came up with this whimsical idea and it works beautifully, taking full advantage of the bias layout, ability to add non-fiber elements (beads, in this case) to the woven grid, and lacy patternwork. Lit and unlit, it’s an inspirational 3D tour-de force and makes me want to weave/sculpt something. Thank you, Sandy, for this fun entry!

No materials list is given, because the project is so variable, depending on your loom, fiber, and lampshade. Read Sandy’s notes that follow to come up with your own list.

~~~~~~~~~~~

I named this piece after the children’s’ book, Pinkalicious, by Victoria and Elizabeth Kann. I was shooting for a funky, wonderful, controlled chaos look—the kind of lampshade that would be at Pippi Longstocking’s house.

Certainly one could make something more serious and elegant with the same technique by choosing tamer tone-on-tone colors and a cylindrical shade so no clever shaping would be required. Also, a larger lampshade made from a 4×4 or 6×6 loom would look more serious, I think. This one is very small—made from a 2×2 loom.

Weaving two types of squares, I auditioned different yarns and threads, as well as beads, in several combinations. I was looking for something open-weave enough that the light would highlight the textures and beads in an interesting way.

After sampling several patterned weaves, I finally settled on two as follows:
Square type #1: Beaded Rigby Weave. The first two wraps were with thicker yarn (DKish weight) and the second two were out of perle cotton. The third wrap included 49 seed beads distributed into each “window.” -7 / row X 7 rows. These were secured by the fourth (the weaving row).

Square type #2: Plain Weave out of perle cotton with a cube-shaped crystal bead woven into the center. I threaded thru the bead on the fourth and fifth pass of the first wrap and then also on the fourth pass of the third wrap (which was pretty much right down the center). The second wrap threads just found their place over and under the bead and the woven rows went over and under each thread as usual, the three threads that went thru the bead were just a little closer together.

I meant for the joined woven squares to be the lamp shade, but when I went looking for hardware, I found this sticky decorate-your-own lampshade first. (Editor note: self-adhesive lampshades available from from craft and hobby shops.) It had a paper label that peeled off like wax paper and revealed a thin, very sticky lampshade underneath. I shaped and stiffened my squares with spray stiffener and then decided to take advantage of the sticky shade and just stuck the individual squares on the shade to position them. I started with the middle row of type 2 squares. Five nice flat squares fit corner to corner around the shade.

Now comes the fun, make-it-fit, sculpting part: The remaining squares placed above this first row need to scrunch up narrower and taller because the circumference of the top of the shade is narrower than the middle. Yet they must fit in with the existing row of squares and in a checkerboard pattern as well.

Likewise, the remaining squares placed below this first row would have to scrunch down shorter and wider than that first row because the circumference of the lampshade is wider at the bottom than the middle.

Two squares exactly fit on the shade top to bottom on point, so the type 2 square with the crystal bead that made up the middle row around, needs two half-squares. (A stiffened square cut in half on the diagonal works fine) The right angle corner of one half-square will meet the top corner of the center block and the same corner of the other will meet the bottom corner of the center block. The cut edges will be flush (after trimming) with the top and bottom edges of the shade. The raw edges will be covered by the trim.

After all the stiffened squares and half-squares were fitted on there, I glued on the beaded trim. Then I joined them with the lacy join.

I stitched up and down the diagonal lines, hiding all of the ends in the ribbon trim. I placed my confidence in the stiffener and glue and didn’t tie any knots.

When it was all stitched, I sprayed it again with stiffener and made sure everything lay the way I wanted it to, including the bead fringe. I stiffened the fringe straight out for a gravity-defying continuation of the Pippi Longstocking theme. Also to make it look like a twirling skirt or a hat. I put the shade down on a piece of paper, making sure all the strings of beads were out and untangled and sprayed them well. When that was dry, I turned the lampshade over and did the same thing to the top. ENJOY!

Sylvia Cannizzaro of West Glover, Vermont, is a resourceful weaver who used her Square Deal Weave-Along squares to construct a notebook cover. Incorporating the practice pieces into one project where you can refer to them is an idea that will pay off when you’re looking for inspiration. Thanks for sharing this project, Sylvia! (More projects coming from Sylvia. She’s prolific and has some great ideas!)

Materials
4×4, 2×6, 6×6 Weave-It type looms
crochet hooks, 2.5 mm and 4.0mm
weaving yarn:Lamb’s Pride Worsted from Brown Sheep
assembly yarn (and weaving for the black squares and rectangles): Single ply sport weight wool from Brown Sheep. [I limited myself to yarn I had left over from other projects.]

Directions
1. Choose a binder, notebook, or whatever, to cover, figure out how many squares/pieces you need to approximately fill the space. A little small is easier to work with than a little big. I decided to use at least one of each of the square deal weave along patterns in my cover, as a sampler. There is at least one extra square in there (stars). I added the extra black squares and rectangles for the flaps and binding, because I couldn’t bear to cover up the patterns with pockets.

Weave in the ends as you go.

2. Assemble in rectangles to fit the book/binder. I used the crochet slip stitch to assemble squares–overlap mirrored loops and slip stitch in each loop. I worked vertical seams first, then horizontal seams, pulling the crochet loop under the vertical seam at the corners, continuing across. (Work in the ends as you go–it’s so easy if you are crocheting the piece together.)

3. Using the small hook, edge each rectangle with a row of single crochet, working three single crochet stitches in each corner. Block the rectangles.

This would also be a good time to mark the squares, if you intend to use them as a sampler, as I have done. I used roman numerals because they are so easy to embroider. The patterns are in the binder of course, and I prepared a sheet for quick reference (is that furrows or wide wale corduroy?).

4. Attach pockets (if used). A good place to keep pens, scissors, or yarn labels to keep track of your favorites. I used several different stitches: crochet slip stitch, running stitch, back stitch, and stem stitch.

5. Assemble rectangles. With wrong sides together, and using larger crochet hook, work vertical seams with single crochet.

6. If necessary, adjust height/width by working additional rows of single crochet, using the larger hook.

7. Finish/close up the top and bottom:

Fold over the front pocket flap and attach to front/top using single crochet. Continue across the top, fold the back pocket flap and attach in the same manner.

Repeat across the bottom.

8. (Optional) Admire your work each time you work on the Weave-Along. Do this project again in a different yarn. Think of another project to show off the Weave-Along patterns as they come along, that will also keep the squares handy for quick reference. Quick, before WAL #18 comes out!

Notes: I love the worsted weight Lamb’s Pride for the Weave-Along. The gold and orange don’t look very good in the photos, but they have so much depth and shine. They really bring out the beauty of the textured patterns. That said, the yarn is a bit too heavy for color and weave or Rigby weave. I had to cut the Rigby short with a fringe (I just cut off the extra warp from the second layer and wove in the ends), and finish the color and weave square with wide wale corduroy to make it work. Also, I made frequent use of my weaving fork from Hazel Rose Looms to keep the weaving in line as I worked. The sport weight is a bit light for plain weave, for my taste, but works beautifully for Rigby weave, which I love.

Kudos to Debbie S. in Virginia for this interesting purse design! Debbie designed the star featured in the Six Square Smackdown, so I expected great things from her and was not disappointed. Our judge, Margaret Arafat, loved the freeform look of it, the crocheted edging and Kumihimo handles and commented that it was very well made. The weaving kit with 2” loom, needle and scissors in a Hello Kitty container is winging its way to Debbie for this entry. (More 3D Challenge projects coming soon!)

Materials: -Worsted Weight Yarn in 3 colors. I used Red Heart Heathers, 1 skein each of Purple, Lavender and Maroon
-A 6 x 4 Weavette™ loom
-A 4 x 4 Weavette™ or Weave-It™ loom
-A size F crochet hook .
- A Kumihimo disk or another way to make a cord for the handles.
- Magnetic clasp for closure
- Two buttons or other doodads to cover back of magnetic clasp

Weave 6 light purple and 6 dark purple 6×4 squares and 6 maroon 4×4 squares. Sew the squares together in this configuration:

DP = dark purple squares
LP = light purple squares
M = Maroon squares folded in half to make triangles

Sew it together flat, then sew side A to A and B to B.
Sew arrow edges together and dot edges together.
The bottom of the bag is not flat!

Crocheted edging, with Maroon yarn and through two layers (folded edge) of the top triangles:
Round 1: Sc around the top of purse, join with sl st in the 1st sc.
Round 2: Ch 3, skip first sc, Dc in next sc and each sc around, sl st into top of ch 3.
Round 3: Ch 1, sc in each stitch around, join with a sl st in 1st sc.
Round 4: same as round 2.
Round 5: switch to light purple and repeat round 3.
Round 6: switch to dark purple and repeat round 3.
Round 7: switch to Maroon and do a row of crab stitch (reverse sc) around, join with a sl st and fasten off. Sew in ends.

Fold bag, so that one triangle on each side of the top folds into the bag and tack each side together at the top.

Make two cords for handles. I use a Kumihimo disk and made 2 - 16 strand round cords that are each about 30” long I used all three colors of the yarn used for the body of the purse. I knotted each end of the purse handles and stuck them through the second row of dc, eleven dc from each end, and tacked them to the inside. I fastened a magnetic clasp to the center of each side and covered them up on the right side with a decorative button.

Variations: Use whatever size looms you have to make the 4×6 strips. You could line it even though I didn’t. Make the handles whatever length you want.

The Off the Grid—3D Challenge is over and we have a first place winner of the vintage Weave-It™ Rug Loom! Our illustrious judge, Margaret Arafat*, was bowled over by Lynn Manning’s strikingly beautiful piece. Some of her words were “unusual that it isn’t fiber”, “very innovative”, “airy”, “so lovely”—and I totally concur. Lynn, if you remember, made her first small loom project just a few months ago for the Six Square Smackdown contest. Lynn is from Peru, NY (Ravelry name—ADKzookeeper). I think she has a future in designing small loom projects for publication.

If you’ve experimented with wire on a small loom, you know that the needle-weaving part is the hardest thing to do. Lynn has creatively avoided that final step with an innovative technique that preserves the integrity of each piece. While technically not “woven”, this project points out yet another way to use our versatile little looms—one that I had never considered. Thank you, Lynn!

This is a “fly by the seat of your pants” project. My challenge was to use supplies I already had to complete this project. There are no hard and fast rules to how to put this together…..it’s whatever works for you!

Tools
• 2” Weave-It™ or Weavette™ loom
• 2” x 4” Weavette™ loom
• jewelry pliers with rounded tips
• wire cutters or old scissors that will not be used for paper or cloth

Materials
• 24 gauge wire
• jump rings
• assorted beads
Instructions
• Construct eleven squares in the following manner:
1. With wire, warp 2” loom using standard warping pattern. Bend starting end under wooden loom frame for later.
2. Measure wire end 2.5 times around outside edge of loom. Cut.
3. At each cross around the edge of the loom, weave wire end around the “X” and continue on to the next one. This holds the wires in place so you can take it off the loom.

4. Finish by wrapping wire neatly and trim excess.
5. Remove from loom and wrap starting wire end neatly. Trim excess.
• Following the same instructions, weave one piece on a 2×4” Weavette™ loom.

Planning & Assembling
• Lay out squares and beads in an arrangement that pleases you.

• String beads on sections of wire, use jump rings to attach beads to squares.

• Wrap groups of wire in the squares to create openings to suspend beads.

• Make a hanger by twisting 2 strands of wire together and attaching to corners of 2”x4”woven piece.

*Margaret Arafat (our 3D Challenge judge) is the current president of the Fort Worth Weavers Guild and newsletter editor of Contemporary Handweavers of Texas. She is also a member of the Handweavers Guild of America and Complex Weavers. In addition to her considerable skill with a floor loom, Margaret is a small loom weaver!

All 3D Challenge projects will all be posted in coming weeks, so keep watching. There are some interesting ideas that you won’t want to miss!

I know you’re all madly busy with weddings and graduations and gardens. I am, too. The 3D Challenge deadline was supposed to be today, but I’m extending it until Monday, the 26th (Memorial Day) to allow a few more of you to get your project done. If you haven’t started, there’s still time! Here are the rules and particulars.

If you haven’t taken a peak at Syne Mitchell’s online weaving magazine, Weavezine, check it out now! Yours truly has a how-to on making a continuous weave on Hazel Rose square looms.

If you’ve woven any of the Square Deal Weave-Along patterns in more than one color per sample, you know that you add visual complexity by simply changing colors at different points in the warping and weaving process. Even using two threads at the same time in two colors that are close in hue will add visual depth to the cloth. When you plan the arrangement of those two (or more) colors, it’s called Color and Weave. Plaids, checks, log cabin, and houndstooth are some common examples of Color and Weave.

We can wrap layers of yarn in different colors on Weave-It type looms—OR we can warp and weave with two colors at once—OR we can start with two colors and drop one out at intervals throughout the four layers. That’s how I wove the sample above. One strand of both red and white; drop the red; pick up the red when I got back to that side—all the way through, including the weaving step. Weaving this requires rethreading for each pass.

Another thought—you could do all of one color in a layer, then follow up with the second color separately, before turning the corner for the next layer. Definitely. I’m doing that next time.

For the red and white sample, I took care to always have the red to left or on top of the white. For the blue and white sample below, I just let them fall wherever…The result is that sometimes I got DLDL (dark light dark light), sometimes LDDL, sometimes LDLD, sometimes DLLD.

For the black and tan sample below, I wove with two strands of light weight wool at the same time, with some care in the wrapping, but not obsessing over it at all. I like it!

The last square was wrapped with light and dark linen/cotton at the same time, then woven with a red hemp blend.

What you’re looking at is not the center motif, but the four corners, each composed of two triangles. You don’t have a triangle loom? No bother—they can be woven with any square loom that you have on hand. While I wouldn’t want to make tons of triangles on a square loom, it gets easier with practice and neatly solves the problem of fill-in triangles for a bias design. Sarah at Knitting-and.com posted about this technique and then followed up with a photo of her seamed triangles that you’ll want to look at.

Triangles woven in this manner have straight grain on the long edge (hypotenuse). The two shorter sides have bias edges. You can make a loom-sized square with two triangles, or a larger square with four triangles. Triangles are essential when you’re creating a bias design and don’t want sawtooth edges. (I like sawtooth edges, but sometimes it just announces that you didn’t know what else to do.)

In addition to a square loom and weaving needle, you’ll need a thin knitting needle or piece of stiff wire that’s a bit longer than the diagonal measurement of your loom and a skinny crochet hook. Lay the needle or wire from one corner to the opposite corner. Small rubber bands anchored around the needle tip, around the frame and back to pins above the corner—on each side—keep it all together until you get the weaving started.

I’m not going to give you step-by-step instructions because there are a number of websites that already have done that, better than I can.
• Workstead Fiber Studio
• eBay guide: Learn to Weave on a triangle loom
• Wayne Schmidt’s Triangle Loom page
The only difference is that you’ll have a needle across the long edge of the triangle, where these instructions all show nails. Yarn goes over the needle instead of over nails.

Several things to remember when weaving triangles on a Weave-It or Weavette:
• Grouped pins and spaces do not affect your weaving.
• You’re weaving on the bias now and the threads are set more closely, so if you’re using the same yarn that you used in regular squares, you’ll want to loosen up the sett by skipping some pins. (I skipped every 5th pin for the sample.)
• Remove the knitting needle or wire from long edge of triangle before removing the piece from the loom. Then use your needle to stroke threads toward the long edge, filling in the loops that went around the knitting needle. Get everything adjusted before you take the triangle off the loom.

This gets easier and faster and nicer looking with practice. My first two triangles were throw aways, but after that they looked decent and even had nice corners.

Handwoven Magazine is running a Bag of the Month series with a free PDF download of the pattern on their website. The March/April 2008 bag is called Patchwork Peg-Loom Bag, designed by Maria Cristina Capellotto of Sao Paulo, Brazil, and I couldn’t wait to make it.

Maria calls for a 10” square loom. The closest I had without getting too big was my Hazel Rose 7” loom. In retrospect, I wouldn’t want it any larger. The finished bag is 9.5″ square. The original bag was made of sisal, but any stiff yarn would work and I had the perfect candidate in mind:

Himalayan Yarn Co. TIBET 100% Aloo

Aloo (nettle) is stiff and difficult to use. It can be brittle, overtwisted, slubby, wiry and just downright contrary. It takes a firm hand to tame this stuff. I’ve tried knitting it, crocheting it, and weaving with it on a Weavette—with varying degrees of success. Basically I’m at the point of wanting to use it up and get it out of my life. This pattern is a perfect vehicle.

The bag calls for five woven squares, assembled just so, lined, with a braided strap. It wasn’t difficult at all. The lining is supposed to be interfaced, but I didn’t do that and probably should have. Next bag. All but one of my squares was plain weave. The flap square is a twill. I added a linen yarn to that square. My strap is composed of various linens along with one strand of aloo.

Weaving this made me appreciate my square Hazel Rose loom all the more. The latched loop seams were fun and I hope to revisit this idea (with another yarn!) soon.

All of the projects submitted for the first contest were three-dimensional (or displayed that way) This is certainly one of the strong suits of working with small pieces that can be easily manipulated. Let’s continue that theme with larger projects.

Perhaps the first thing that you ever thought of making with your handheld loom was a blanket or afghan. Assemble lots and LOTS of pieces, add a border and there you have it. Nothing wrong with that—I’ve done it and appreciate the ones that others have made, too.

But if flat pieces were the end of it, I would have abandoned these looms long ago. I’m always on the lookout for projects that take advantage of the four finished (albeit loopy) edges, the bias stretch, the pulled warp and the small size of Weave-It or Weavette pieces.

Your challenge is to create something three-dimensional with at least twelve or more pieces. Your creation should invite views from different angles. Make us want to hug it, crush it, wear it, play with it, turn it upside-down, or display it in an unexpected way. Feel completely free to marry the weaving to another fiber technique. But if we need to see it stretched out on a flat surface to appreciate the lovely design—save it for a different contest.

Two months will give you time to call upon your muse, but don’t drag your feet on getting started because there will be fabulous prizes and you don’t want to be doing this at the last minute.

PLEASE READ THE RULES

• Project made of twelve or MORE woven squares or rectangles. (No upper limit to number of pieces.) Pieces can be all one size or any combination of sizes.

• Pieces must be woven on a handheld loom.

• You are encouraged to incorporate other craft techniques (embroidery, knitting, crochet, beading, rubber stamping, etc.), but weaving must be an integral part of the project, not just an embellishment.

• Finishing counts. Complete the project, with all seaming done, ends woven in, etc.

• This is your ORIGINAL idea. That doesn’t mean that you cannot use another idea as inspiration, but I don’t want to see your project, with a few minor variations, already on the web.

• Give your project a name.

• Project photos and written directions (or photo tutorial, if that is more appropriate) are to be submitted to me by Wednesday, May 21. (Please send your best quality photos to me in a separate email. Up to 2 or 3MB is OK.) There will be outside judges this time, although I will weigh in, too. Winners will be announced on Wednesday, May 28th.

• Entrants grant me permission to post the project and instructions on this website first. After I post it, you can publish it wherever you wish.

The first fabulous prize is a Weave-It Rug Loom with original box, leaflet and needle. You all know this is my favorite loom in the whole world because I can weave funky stuff on it. And they’re pretty difficult to obtain. No one makes an exact reproduction (yet) and the prices on eBay can soar. So here’s your chance.

Honorable mention fabulous prize is a 2” Weave-It loom with original box, leaflet and needle, and my favorite folding scissors, all packed in a Hello Kitty lidded tin with room inside for a skein of yarn. Pack that in your purse.

Of course the real prize is that you will be famous to a small group of readers—for a few days at least—and will have the undying admiration of small loom weavers worldwide. And the knowledge that you’ve added to the repertoire of a wonderful fiber craft.

Next week I’ll be back with more Square Deal Weave-Along. It twill be interesting, so I hope you’re all caught up.

Almost everyone’s first introduction to weaving was a potholder loom on which they wove stretchy loops to make a potholder for Mom. Most left it at that, having learned how to take skinny strings and turn them into solid fabric with simple interlacement. Today, when you mention handheld looms to the uninitiated, they often respond with a snort or a smirk. (YOU know!) They are remembering the childish play and the rather primitive-looking product and maybe mom used it for awhile and then let it go the bottom of the linen drawer. That’s too bad for them, because potholder looms are great tools, but that’s not really what this is about. It’s about exposing children to crafts, weaving in particular, at a young age.

My 17-month-old grandson’s favorite toy at Nana’s house is the basket of Weave-It samples. He flings them, rolls in them, examines them carefully, puts them in a bag and pulls them out, drops them on the dogs, picks out his favorites and carries them around all day. They end up in his pockets and hoods and under every piece of furniture. The angora ones have been felted to tiny squares from his fondling them. This kid is into textiles. I can’t wait to teach him how to weave and knit and dye and spin and felt.

I don’t know how soon I can get a loom in his hands and what kind it will be. A friend of mine has a Brio table loom for her grandsons, which she warped and they get to weave and beat in the weft. That sounds like a good start. It would take more coordination to handle a potholder loom and more than that for a Weave-It or Weavette. Please post your weaving-with-child reports in the comments because I, for one, am interested in hearing them.

All of this is leading up to our last, but NOT least, Six Square Smackdown project, woven by Princess Peach of Sydney, Australia. She was ten years old when she created her Lovely Heart Pincushion on a handmade loom, after having learned to weave at age nine. She embellished the top with a cross-stitched heart (while still under tension on the loom) and entered it in an Agricultural Show and won a prize! Princess Peach (now eleven) also knits, crochets, spins and dyes. She says “The hardest part is finding time for everything!” Well, I guess so! Somehow I think she’ll learn how to juggle it all, making time, in turn, for her favorite textile pursuits.

Homespun Pixies

Limiting yourselves to six squares (or pieces) for the Smackdown might have seemed very limiting. But here we have three little projects, made from a total of five squares. Barbara Giguere of Shelburne, Massachusetts (Rav handle: llamalady), knocked my socks off with her adorable dolls and the flower that accompanies them.

Directions for Homespun Dolly:

Wrap Weave-It loom, first round with a lightish color, suitable for flesh. Then continue to wrap the round perpendicular to the first with 5 rows of the same color for the head. Then switch to 5 rows of the shirt color and wrap the remainder with the skirt / pants color - wrapping the opposite two pegs from the usual way for these two colors. Leave the ends of the skirt/pants and shirt color with long enough (a yard will be plenty) tail to also use for weaving. Wrap the last round before weaving with the first light flesh color. Weave a plain over one, under one, with the flesh color up to, but not past the last wrapped row of that color. Thread the needle with the shirt color and begin weaving on the pants side (the row with the number on the side you are), and weave every row back towards the head until all rows are woven. Lastly thread your needle with the skirt/pants color and weave the remaining rows. See the picture of the woven square (it is easier to see than to explain).

Weave another plain weave square using fingering weight yarn held very taut to make a slightly smaller square. (This will be the headscarf for girl doll.)

Take the first square and sew it into a tube up the back, using the tails of yarn that you have left. Gather the top of the head. Stuff the head firmly down to the neck. Gather the neck up fairly tightly. Stuff the shirt and sew from front through back along the arms (see picture). Wrapping the yarn right around at the cuff helps to define the bottom of the arm. Gather the waist slightly. Stuff the bottom. If it is to be a girl, sew flat across the bottom for her skirt. If it is to be a boy, continue by sewing up the middle to separate and define the legs.

Sew on several strands of yarn for hair and for the girl use the second, lighter weight square to tie on as a headscarf. Use the tails of yarn from the headscarf to lightly tack it to the head. Trim hair as necessary.

Woven Flower Power

Weave two squares for the flower in any of your favorite patterns. Two different, but complimentary colors seem to work best.

Take the first square and fold two opposite sides to the middle and tack them together and to the back in the center. Then fold the other two sides of the square into the middle and tack those down…being sure not to catch the corners. Pull out each corner and turn it back a little to make a petal. Attach this to the middle of the second square. Turn each side in and tack to near the center, folding back the petals when you are done. Push a pipe cleaner up through the flower, then turn a loop and push the end back down through, twisting underneath to hold. Sew French knots or beads or whatever you like to make the center of the flower. Single crochet or wind green yarn tightly around the pipe cleaner to fake a stem (or just use a green pipe cleaner, if you prefer)

Giselle, from Portland, Oregon (Rav name: parsnip), not only has some clever ideas about using small loom pieces, but she generously shares a great idea about making looms and how to keep track of square sides. I am adding her tips to my own weaving. And Giselle is a prolific weaver and designer! I hand you over to her~

Box Bag

Yarn: TLC Essentials acrylic
Pattern: Plain weave
This bag uses three 4”x 4” squares and three 2.5” x 4” rectangles (rectangles can be woven using as described in Square Deal Weave-Along #8—or you can make loom to whatever size you need, using pins or finishing brads and foamcore).

Weave squares as usual. I like to put a little piece of scotch tape on the upper-left corner of each finished square, so that I don’t have to figure it out as I assemble them. (eLoomanator’s note: Brilliant! That would save so much time and many errors in layout.)

If you stack the shapes as you join them, rather than holding them flat, you get a more defined box shape (this shows up better on the green/gray stripe version). I joined them with a crocheted slip stitch. With some yarns, you can pull the skeins apart to make a thinner yarn that makes a less definite ridge.

- join top flap (2) to back square (1)
- join side rectangles (3 & 4) to back square
- join front square (5) to side rectangles (forming a box with a top flap and no bottom
- join bottom rectangle to front square, side rectangles, and back square

Add handles by crocheting once around the top of the bag, to stabilize it, and then adding a chain (I used 50 stitches) and securing it to the back corners of the top. Repeat for the front corners. To add a button and loop, crochet across the front flap, then repeat, adding a short chain of about 10 stitches for the loop. Sew on button.

Here’s another version, made with green and grey yarns, and no button closure:

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3-Corner Pincushion

Pattern: Plain weave
Yarn: unknown miscellaneous

This little triangular cushion-thing could be a pincushion, juggling bag, sachet, paperweight… It uses six 2” squares. Each three-square side is sewn together flat with a crocheted slip stitch. The sides are then sewn stacked, right sides facing.

- join squares 1, 2 & 3
- join squares 4, 5 & 6
- join triangles to each other, right sides together (leaving opening)

Leave the last squares unstitched so that you can turn the whole thing inside out, and then stuff it with wool or cotton stuffing for a pincushion, muslin-wrapped rice for a juggling bag, or scented filler for a sachet. Close up the last squares with a whipstitch.

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Cubes

Blue& white pattern: Plain weave
Yarn: 1st & 2nd rows unknown bulky irregular acrylic, 3rd & 4th rows lightweight cotton

Green pattern: Seven Diagonal Stripes
Yarn: unknown acrylic

This cube uses five 4” squares. Four squares are stitched together flat (using a crochet slip stitch), with the last square (the bottom) stitched together with edges held flat. (For the green one, each square was stitched together with edges stacked on top of each other. This made a more defined square shape.)

For the cube to keep its shape, you’ll need to make an open cube out of cardboard, with each side slightly less than 4” tall. This can be made out of corrugated cardboard or from a cereal box, depending on how sturdy you need it to be. The sides of the box need to be slightly shorter than the woven squares, so that the box is completely hidden when you look at the cube from the side.

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Foldover Clutch

Pattern: Loomette Weave #7 (see below)
Yarn: unknown wool

Join six 4” squares with a crochet slip stitch (join squares flat, not stacked), with the wrong side of the squares face down so that the ridge created by the crochet will be on the inside of the clutch.

Block joined rectangle. Fold bottom of rectangle about 4” up and top of rectangle about 3.5” down (see photo – this only sounds complicated). Adjust folds so that the flap part at top falls where you want it. Slip-stitch sides of clutch.

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Pencil Holders

Pattern:
Turquoise/blue: Loomette Weave #9 (see below)
Beige: Loomette Weave #7 (see below)
Pink: Loomette Weave #9 (see below)
Yarn: various unknown yarns

This is a good quick way to turn squares and an empty soup can into something that you can put on your desk at work and admire all day (since sometimes just sticking a woven square on the bulletin board can seem odd). It uses just two 4” squares, and they don’t even have to match. Join squares on each side, held flat, wrong sides facing up, with a crocheted slip stitch. Once they’re joined to form a sleeve, turn it inside out.

Slide the sleeve over an empty 10 oz. can (Campbell’s soup comes in this size, as well as some other random things like baby clams). Some yarns will weave a square that’s large enough to cover the can from top to bottom, so you may be able to just leave it at that. If part of the can shows, crochet one or two rows of single stitches at the top and bottom of the sleeve – this will cover the edges of the can and also draw the top and bottom in just a little, which adds a nice finish.

Or you could use a woven sleeve on an unopened can, if you wanted to your canned goods to have fancy little coats. ☺

P=Plain weave
U-Under
O=Over

Loomette Weave #7
First five rows – P. Across
6R – U3- O1- U3-O1- U3-O1- U3-O1- U3-O1- U3-O1- U3- O1- U3
7R – P2- U3-O1- U3-O1- U3-O1- U3-O1- U3-O1- U3-O1- U3- P2
8R – same as 6R
9R – same as 7R
10R – same as 6R
11R- same as 7R
Last five rows – P. Across

Loomette Weave #9
1R – P. Across
2R – U3-O1-U3-O1-U3-O1-U3-P16
3R – P14-U3-O1- U3-O1- U3-O1- U3-P2
4R- same as 2R
5R- same as 3R
6R- same as 2R
7R- same as 3R
8R- same as 2R
9R– U3-O1-U3-O1-U3-O1-U3-P16
10R- P14-U3-O1- U3-O1- U3-O1- U3-P2
11R- same as 9R
12R- same as 10R
13R- same as 9R
14R- same as 10R
15R- same as 9R
16R- P. Across

The beautiful bell pull that you see here is the very first little loom project of Lynn Manning, who is from Peru, New York (Ravelry handle—ADKzookeeper). I’m impressed with her sense of design and think she made the most of the two-color weaving pattern. Simple lines—not in the least bit gaudy. The branch display is brilliant. And don’t miss her “what if?” variations at the end of the pattern.

Lynn writes that this is the first time she’s joined two pieces together and that she isn’t happy with the way the stitches show. I used to be uptight about my own seams, thinking they should be invisible, but I’ve come to view handsewn seams as part of the “look”. (In the same way that I want my handspun yarn to reflect that it was made by hand.) The product of a little loom will never look like it came off of a multi-shaft floor loom. We can accept that and move on. When I look at a little loom project, I don’t critique the seams. It just doesn’t bother me as long as they’re consistent and the ends are woven in. What about you? I give you Lynn, seams and all…

Directions:

Weave five squares on a 4″ Weave-It, Weavette or Loomette loom
1 square in plain weave
3 squares in Crossroads pattern
1 square in Envelope pattern from the Weavette pattern book

Arrange them as you see and stitch together using an overcast stitch.
The top plain weave square is folded in half and stitched to form a rod pocket.

The bottom square (envelope) I turned the bottom 2 corners up in back to make a point.

I dug out an old brass bell and polished it. I attached it to the point with a macrame (square knots) cord. (eloomanator’s note: You could also crochet or make a braided cord.)

I used a branch I had kept from a camping trip to go through the rod pocket.

Other things to do with this project:

• Attach a ring to the top instead of using a branch. (or anything else that catches your fancy!)
• Hang something other than a bell from the bottom:
1. small bouquet of dried flowers
2. feathers
3. Loom Blooms
4. felted fairy or a menopause doll (Noreen Crone-Findley patterns)
5. a special rock in a wire woven nest (oops! better be a small one)
6. small wooden shapes (tree, flower, snowman) that you could change with the seasons

I also thought that without the 6 square limit, you could:

• For your front door:

1. make a “Welcome” bell pull. Stitching one large letter onto each square
2. make a street address bell pull. Stitch on large number onto each square
3. name plate for your child’s bedroom with their name on it

My old leather wallet is falling apart. Zipper broken, etc… I’ve been considering replacing it. This little project fills the bill. Or the bill fills it. Designer Karrie Weaver of the California Bay area, promotes little loom weaving at her blog, Girl On The Rocks, and with her great YouTube weaving tutorial. Thank you, Karrie!

Woven Mini-Wallet

The wallet has spots for at least 2 credit cards, and a pouch for cash.
There is a protective cover that folds over the cards, and snaps shut to
keep everything in place.

Weave:
three 4” squares
two 2”x4” rectangles
one 2” square.

• Sew a credit card pocket (2”x4” rectangle) to a 4” square, positioning it near the top. Check to make sure a card will fit in it. Sew only the bottom edge of the pocket (the long edge of the 2”x4” rectangle).

• Position the bottom pocket (2”x4” rectangle) along the bottom edge of the previous work to make a bottom pocket. This will overlap with the top pocket a little bit, and that’s okay.

• Take the second 4” square and stack it behind the work. This will allow you to take care of several seams at once. Now, if you seam around three edges of the entire work you will be sewing the three edges of the money pouch leaving an opening at the top. This will also attach the bottom pocket to the wallet. (See red lines in the attached figure.)

• Position the last 4” square to serve as a flap to cover the credit cards. Sew it on! Then add a 2” square for a closure flap. Add a button or snap and you are done.

This could be made to have more pockets, but Jana said only 6 squares!

Two projects today from weavers who are thinking along the same lines—that is, how to contain some of the paraphernalia that we fiber folk accumulate and drag around. Crochet Hook Case is from Angie McCormick (Rav handle—mountainangel) in North Carolina. What a great idea to keep those pokey hook points from snagging everything in your tote bag. And a very clever use of a weaving pattern, I might add! The Scissors Cases are from Chris Kaden (Rav handle—mymindiswhorling) of Bordentown, New Jersey. I like her idea of fulling to make a thicker fabric for pointy objects. Congratulations to Angie and Chris for keeping us all in order!

Crochet Hook Case

Materials:
4×4 Weave-It Loom
Scraps of Lion Brand CottonEase: I used Lime and Wheat
Tapestry Needle
Size 00 Crochet Hook

All six squares are in the Diagonal Stripes Pattern from Weave-It Weaves. Three squares use Lime for first three layers and Wheat for the final layer
Three squares use Wheat for the first three layers and Lime for the final layer.

Line up the squares so that the raised threads fall vertically so it will hold in your crochet hooks. Sew together with tapestry needle and yarn as in the picture.

Cut three 30” strands of Wheat and three of Lime. Braid the strands using two Wheat and one Lime for one strand and 2 Lime and one Wheat for the other. Tie overhand knots in the ends so that the strands measure about 19”.

Fold in half, find the center of the outside of the cover flap and using a crochet hook, pull the loop through a few stitches, push ends of the woven strands through the loop and gently pull snug.

Roll up starting at the narrower end, fold down the top and bottom squares, wrap the braids around and tie in a bow.

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Scissors Case

Chris says:
“This was a fun project! Not only did I get to weave on my Weavette, but the finished product will help keep me organized with my future weaving projects.

The scissors holder is made from two 2”x6” Weavette rectangles. After weaving the rectangles, simply sew one on top of the other, folding the top rectangle down on itself, about 1 1/2” to 2” from the top. I used a running stitch just inside the edges, with a back stitch at the top opening where the holder will see the most stress.

The variegated scissors holder is made from Woolbearers worsted weight mohair/wool blend. The purple holder is Patons Classic Wool Merino. I chose to full my scissors holders in the washing machine. The Woolbearers holder would have been fine, since the thick yarn made a nice tight weave. The purple holder woven with the Patons had a loose enough weave that it was hard to slip the scissors in. As you can see from the picture below, the Patons wool shrunk a lot more to make a smaller case. In addition to holding scissors, both are great for holding a Weavette weaving needle and a yarn needle.”