Backstrap loom

Weaving textiles on a backstrap loom is ancient practice in Mesoamerica (and all over the world!). The loom itself is quite simple, basically a collection of different sized and shaped sticks. It i…

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Hello again everyone! I am recently finished with my doctoral training and in a new job and back to crafting again. Well... technically, this post's topic of weaving I originally started as a stress-relieving activity during the height of my studies. Weaving is meditative and creates satisfying, well-ordered structure in front of you with minimal mental gymnastics. At least if you're not making any complex fabric. "Weaving" probably initially brings to mind images of gigantic, unwieldy…

Long skirt lengths are warped for the backstrap loom by Montagnard (Vietnamese hilltribe) weavers on long stakes driven into the ground. The heddles are ingeniously added as the warp is wound.

I learned to make a Discontinuous Warp the other day. Now all I have to do is learn how to finish weaving it.... (caught the flu somewhere in there and missed the lesson on how to completely weave something). I'll get there though. It's still really strange, this idea that the weavers here often weave all the way to the end of their warps. That's just unheard of on floor looms, and I've still never done it before, even though I've been here since the end of August (and the belt looms don't…

The backstrap loom is probably one of the oldest machines invented by humans. Although various versions have been used by cultures around the world for thousands of years, they are usually ...

Clever way to warp a backstrap loom with a rigid heddle.... Doorway? I don't need a doorway...

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Here are step-by-step photos for making continuous string heddles. The kind of thread I use for the heddles depends on the kind of warp yarn I am using. When using medium to heavy-weight mercerized…

When looking back on my long trips away, it is always good to contemplate what went well and what could be improved. There are different ways of looking at success. One success for me on this trip …

Click on these linked titles to access my tutorials. The tutorials are not listed here in any particular order but I do give suggestions for the order in which to study them here. I strongly sugges…

Backstrap loom from the Otomi community of Ixmiquilpan, Hidalgo. Seen at the Museo Regional de Pueblailes

This page features the parts of a backstrap loom from Jacaltenango, Guatemala.

Ravelry: mac-kat's Maple leaf guitar strap

Typical indigenous backstrap loom from Hidalgo, Mexico showing a weaving in progress. Museo de Arte Popular. Mexico City

Welcome to my new Home page. I hope you enjoy reading my posts about my passion for backstrap loom weaving. If you are viewing this on a mobile device, you can find additional content such as backstrap loom FAQs, tutorials, pattern charts, articles, videos and other resources by clicking on the Menu tab above left…