In response to the oft repeated plea, “How does pin loom weaving work?” or “What am I doing wrong?” I take pen to paper (metaphorically) and attempt to make it all make sense. Quite likely someone has answered these questions already on the World Wide Web, but I want a post of my own. 🙂 No, I mean this post will be easy for me find and refer other folks to.
- Where do I begin?
The basic tools: yarn, a pin loom (Schacht’s Zoom pictured), scissors, needle threader, needle, fork.
- What kind of yarn is best?
Honestly, you can use just about anything you can fit through the pins, but some yarns work better for beginners than others. Here are a few of my favorites. They come in many colors and are soft, inexpensive, and easy to find (WalMart, JoAnn, Micheals, etc.).
Lion Brand “Heartland, ” Red Heart “Soft,” Caron “Simply Soft,” and Bernat “Satin.” (Bernat is a little harder to find, but JoAnn Fabrics sells it.)
Thickness of the yarns in ascending order. Though all are designated size 4 (formerly known as “worsted weight”), some are thicker and springier than the others.
- I can’t make heads or tails of the diagrams showing how to prepare the loom. Wha-a-a-at do I do with this stuff?
Start with a reverse slip knot. It’s not the only way to secure your yarn (also called “tying on”) to the loom, but it’s reliable, easy, and leaves no mess behind itself. The reverse slip knot is demonstrated in the video below (part 1), but you can also find a good visual lesson here: http://www.recrochetions.com/2015/09/tutorial-tuesdayreverse-slip-knot.html
I recommend you learn this handy knot because it’s useful when you do multi-color work on the pin loom.
Close-up of the knot.
Tighten the knot around the second pin in the four-pin group at the bottom left corner (corner #1) of the loom.
Now we’re about to enter the realm of the videos I made specially for this tutorial. I’m an amateur videographer, and hope to improve as time goes by. I’m also camera shy, so the videos are silent. And it’s been a long day (though it’s only 2:00 A.M. I’m still up from the day before), so that’s all I have to say in this tutorial for now. Feel free to ask questions and I’ll do my best to answer them.
Basic Pin Loom Weaving—Part 1 of 6
https://youtu.be/L06y4zbrVvo
Basic Pin Loom Weaving—Part 2 of 6
https://youtu.be/ccJlaPosvo4
Basic Pin Loom Weaving—Part 3 of 6
https://youtu.be/dUoPQos0nUA
Basic Pin Loom Weaving—Part 4 of 6
https://youtu.be/riH0RoUmHH4
Basic Pin Loom Weaving—Part 5 of 6
https://youtu.be/-4d81b40gk8
Basic Pin Loom Weaving—Part 6 of 6
https://youtu.be/hUqu1haudKY
Thanks for all the hard work to produce this! Excellent reference.
Love the videos, however, I have yet to see anyone show what you do when one completes a square. When you pull the needle through the very last loop, then what do you do with the yarn that hangs off the end of the loom? How do you end it off as if you don’t the square will unravel.
Thanks for your comment, Coe. Just to let you know, the square will NOT unravel–weaving is different from knitting and crocheting. However, you will want to secure those ends in some way because if you pull on them the fabric of the square will “gather” or pucker. Some people immediately weave the ends back into their work which is one way to keep them neat and tidy while you make the other pieces for your project. I don’t do this because it affects the way the square looks and I think it’s kind of a waste of time. However, the ends must be dealt with at some point. The reason I use 5 wraps around the pins is because it leaves me a tail long enough to whip stitch one seam (sewing two squares together). You could also leave a longer tail at the beginning of the square and use that for stitching seams.
I am currently working on learning about joining techniques because I’m not wild about my past “success.” I will be happy to videotape my experiences in the near future or, at least, post a pictorial tutorial here on my blog.
You’re welcome, Michele! So glad it could be of help to you. 🙂
Thanks so much for this wonderful blog and your facebook pin loom weaving group little did I know last Friday, when I received my loom, I would have gleened all this wonderful information you have produced.
You’re welcome. I’m glad to hear this. It’s so rewarding being able to help someone learn new things.