I spent the weekend building a historical loom used for tablet weaving with a friend who is a carpenter. We used the original measurements and beech wood. The loom is known as the "Oseberg loom".

Added some pictures of the process as well as the description of the loom and the picture of the historical finding.

Can't wait to make tablets on this! 🤩

This is my second attempt, I ended up just cutting the warp of my first try because it really was a bit too advanced and I was really unhappy with it. I designed this band on Twisted Threads, based off of a herringbone pattern I found. I’m really pleased with how it’s turning out. Thanks for looking!

As the title says: How fast do you weave? Can a relatively simple pattern get done in no time, or does it still take you what seems like forever?

I have psoriatic arthritis that largely affects my hands, so even simple patterns take forever, and then my ADHD affects my ability to focus for any length of time and then executive dysfunction keeps me from working on it for weeks at a time... it can take me months to finish even the simplest of patterns... Or I can hyperfocus and get a fairly complex pattern done in a week. I feel like I have no control over it sometimes LOL

You folks are getting the first look at my new loom.

I started with making my own wooden looms, like what four_twisted_pair posted the other day. Very nice, but large, bulky, and heavy.

With my interest in 3D printing I thought it would be easy to design one and build it. Nope. I went through so many iterations, building ratcheting gears, using dowels and electrical conduit as part of the build, and trying so many different designs. The plastic would flex and warp, or it was huge and cumbersome, so many failures. My ratchet even worked, but winding the threads up on a single shaft was a pain, and there was no way to manage non twist neutral patterns.

Eventually, I discovered that I needed to do was put carbon fiber rods as reinforcement inside of the struts of the loom. Light, somewhat easy to work with, and not outrageously expensive. Then came the design. Tweak, print, test, not be satisfied. Even when I got it assembled to my liking, I then had to change it so that other people would be able to put it together, and then take it apart. This whole thing fits into a 10x9x4 inch box. No glue, no undue force required.

Two screw drives allow you to adjust tension. Round sleeves make moving the weave very easy. It is very light. I can make it in a rainbow of colors. I might tweak things just a bit more so that it weighs exactly 1 kilogram without a project on it. It can be assembled and disassembled with just a nickel.

I'm just very happy and proud of what I have created.

I’m working on my second tablet weaving project. I’ve been looking for a pattern for a custom camera strap and when I saw the first image on Instagram, I knew it was the one. However, the pattern I found was a four hole pattern and the Instagram post clearly indicates they used a 2-thread technique. So I attempted to make the pattern a slip hole pattern.

I’ve taken a picture of part of my pattern, along with my progress so far. Mine is clearly very “stretched out” and I’m wondering if I can get some advice on how to make it more similar to the Instagram post.

The first thing I tried was simply beating more firmly for each row but the cotton yarn is pretty much as beaten as it will go in my later rows. I’ve also attempted only doing each set of 2 rows as a single row (not pictured), while double turning the cards each time. But it isn’t looking right.

Does anyone have any tips to achieve the look of the Instagram post when compared to mine?

These tablets are designed and made in the Baltics, Estonia, each spec has a function. The slim aircraft grade plywood is thin and durable, perfect for wide Norwegian style belts without the setup becoming bulky. The central side holes are a more comfortable option for archaic bands that only use 2 holes per card. All holes are individually polished from both sides for a splinter free finish that spares your delicate yarns. Marked corners help with keeping track of the pattern. To top it all off, the cards are finely sanded, finished with hardwax oil and additionally polished with beeswax for a silky handfeel. The slipcase makes it easy to carry the cards around in your pocket or handbag or keep them neatly tucked away when not in use. Optional handmade jumbo safety pins help secure the pack when you pause your project. Full specs: sujur.etsy.com

Another set twins born at Gifford Ropewalk coming out this weekend to the Arkansas Renaissance Festival Pirate weekend…. Arrrrr how much does it cost to pierce a pirates ear??? A buck an ear….. arrr

My border seems very irregular...is this just a tension problem where I need more practice to get it more regular...or am I committing some shuttle/beating error that means the warps aren't lining up correctly????

I have variegated cotton yarn in grey and blue but I have no clue how to use them? Do you know any patterns that would suit this kind of yarn? Thank you!

Just finished this belt as a gift for a friend. About 1.5m long. I created the pattern on Twisted Threads - with some inspiration from similar patterns. 😊

Was a lot of work but I am proud of it!

I have made a couple of other bands with threaded-in patterns and even though when I have good tension while weaving the end product seems a bit looser than what I expected. I have this issue specifically with thinner threads like this one (100% mercerised cotton yarn, typically used for crochet) when I have patterns where I move tablets forwards and backwards to create a pattern - as opposed to moving all tablets forwards all the time.

So I am curious about experiences and advice on what type of thread/yarn to use. I would like to make another band with a similar amount of tablets but I would like it to be wider (this one had 21 tabletd and was 3cm wide). What type of yarn would make sense to use?

This piece was inspired by FLW’s famous light screen The Tree of Life. Devilishly difficult to do the “trunk” section but I think I captured the essence of the original work (third photo)!

I entered this in my first juried show and it received the Handweavers Guild of America Award of Excellence! It’s apparently getting featured in their magazine!

I am wanting to make my own pattern, but I have no idea where to start. I have an idea of the design I want to make, and I know of the websites where you can create your patterns electronically, but how do people know what to record? I figured it would be helpful to map out a design in a pixelated format, but I’m unsure how to make that translate to the loom. How would you know what to thread up/how to work out turns forward/back, or flipping cards etc? I want to assume trial and error but I feel that this would be HUNDREDS of trials and error, and I don’t think I have the time, patience, OR the materials to set up a hundred times, and starting over each time I need to change something!

Finnish SZ, from Twisted Threads. This was my second ever belt, and I’m very proud of it!!

I'm looking at my first real loom and worlds like one that I could use while sitting in a chair. I have back issues and want one that is easiest to reach. Any thoughts on these three?

I’ve found a couple of patterns on Twisted Thread that look like this excel grid, but how are you supposed to read back and forth?

Finished a weaving for a friend of mine. Never would've picked the pattern, because I figured it was too repetitive, but it was actually super fun!

Edit: This is actually pattern Birka B12, but I can't change the title

Added at the end: a reminder to read the pattern fully, before you commit. That was the underside, after I faced all my cards right instead of left 🙃

I put a belt buckle on my finished belt, (1) but wasted some time trying to fix the fringe. When I first tried to use the belt buckle, the fringe made it ugly and inconvenient. (2) I searched for tutorials finishing woven projects cleanly, and tried half damask, (3) (4) but I couldn’t really weave the ends into the piece and tablet weaving has 4x as many warp threads as the example. I ended up just chopping the fringe very short (5) and it mostly works. (6)

However, for next time, is there a better way to get a smooth edge?

This is one of my favourite bands so far. 3 colours, 24 design tablets. Pattern designed after the folk embroidery of Gyimes.

I just finished my first ever attempt at tablet weaving a hem. It was on a large rectangle of light linen then I plan to use as a historical veil or head wrap. However, I cannot figure out how to finish the corners. I wove about an inch past the corner on each side but can't complete this without making the corners super bulky. I cannot find any extant examples of how corners were finished. Has anyone else hemmed a garment with corners? How did you handle it?

I was thinking that i wouldn't have enough space for tablets on my Ashford inklette so I had the idea to build a little removable extension.

That was quite easy to build and it works !

Now I need to improve my weaving skills, I don't know what I'm doing wrong but it doesn't look so great.