Adventures in Pin Loom Weaving — ‘Tis the Season?

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‘Tis the season for loom building, I guess. Several people on the Facebook Pin Loom Weaving Support Group have been posting pictures of their latest hand-built loom. In fact, I have posted one myself. My husband built it, a 2.5″ x 2.5″ loom with ultra-skinny pins–a replica of the 4″ x 4″ Weave-it in miniature. The same patterns suitable for the Weave-it can also be woven, with finer thread, on this loom. It has a tighter weave and produces (obviously) a smaller square.

The 2.5" x 2.5" loom nesting inside the 4" x 4" Weave-it. And a look at the two needles.

The 2.5″ x 2.5″ loom nesting inside the 4″ x 4″ Weave-it. And a look at their two needles.

I had to try out my signature stitch, “Horizontal Xs,” to break in the new loom. Quite a difference between the two!

"Horizontal Xs"

“Horizontal Xs”

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Adventures in Pin Loom Weaving — How to add colors and weave in ends as-you-go

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While some patterns might look best in only one color, far more of them look better with two or more. But what to do with all those pesky ends? If you’re not a knot fan, you’ll want to leave yarn tails, but wouldn’t it be better to work in as many as possible while you’re weaving instead of saving them all till the end?

Yarn tails everywhere!

Yarn tails everywhere!

In this post I’ll briefly discuss selecting colors that look good together (according to principles of art and my opinion). Then I’ll demonstrate how to use two colors and prepare the loom so you can work in some of the ends as you weave.

Hopefully everyone knows what complementary colors are (“A secondary color that, when combined with the primary color whose wavelength it does not contain, produces white light” Dictionary.com). One color completes the other, making a complement. So, complementary colors are a safe bet when choosing colors, right? Yes, sort of. You also have to take into account color temperature and value (the lightness or darkness of the hue). Read More →

Weave-Along, Week 7—Two-Layer Warping (Nothing to fear but fear itself)

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UPDATE (22 AUG 2019): For updated and better information on Two-layer Warping (2LW), please see the Topical Guide on Adventures in Pin Loom Weaving. Scroll down to the bottom for several links to instructions.

Two-Layer Warping (2LW) opens the door to a world of ultra-cool patterns. It’s a step closer to weaving on other looms. You’ll learn a bit more about how weaving works, and 2LW will help you understand the three-layer warping process more fully.

Three samples of two-layer warp patterns.

Samples of two-layer warp patterns.

This post covers 2LW on the Weave-it and comparable looms. Loomette offers a slightly different approach which will be covered in a subsequent post. Read More →

Adventures in Pin Loom Weaving — Bucilla Magic-Loom: “It’s good and it’s bad.”*

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Almost everything I need to know about pin looms I learned on the eloomanation website. I found pattern books, little-loom trivia, and I learned about looms I might not otherwise have known existed. That’s good and that’s bad. It’s good because you want to know there are other options, and it’s bad because you may or may not be able to get your hands on them.

I’m lucky. When I first learned about the Loomette with bars I searched for it on eBay, found one, and “buy-it-now” bought it. I purchased a Jiffy Loom (JL) before I even knew what it was. I saw Wonder Weave looms in abundance before I decided to buy one.

With the Bucilla Magic-Loom (BML) I was not so instantaneously lucky. I looked for over a year and never saw one. When I finally found one, it was offered on eBay as a package deal with two other looms I already own–and that’s good and that’s bad. I knew a package deal would cost more which is good because the higher price would scare away some bidders, but it’s bad because it would drive the price up for me as well. Too bad the loom didn’t come with the “adjusta bar,” but it’s good that it came with its original instructions and box.

I won the auction, so now I own one and I’m really happy about that.

Bucilla Magic-Loom with(out) adjusta bar

Bucilla Magic-Loom with(out) adjusta bar

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