16 steps to weaving on a floor loom - creating a luxury handwoven merino lambswool scarf

I am often asked how long it takes to weave a particular scarf. The answer is not straightforward as it is determined by a number of things. Here I have outlined the steps involved in the weaving of a fine merino lambswool scarf on a floor loom with a few hints and tips which might be useful to another weaver.

This blog will demonstrate why each handwoven accessory is a totally unique handcrafted item making them a perfect luxury gift for the person who would appreciate receiving an individual traditionally handcrafted item which has been woven with a significant investment in its design and creation.

Step 1. Textile design - designing the weaving of a luxury scarf on the floor loom

The very first step to creating a handwoven item is to decide upon the design of the textile. The colour, design, yarn and weaving pattern all need to be considered. I weave predominantly with fine 2/17nm merino lambswool. I have this yarn in a range of colours and am experienced in weaving with it.

I wanted to weave a simple colour block pattern with squares. I chose 5 colours of yarn, a mid pink, pale pink, turquoise, orange and pale blue. I was confident these colours would weave well together providing sufficient contrast in the final weave. The plan was to weave the scarf in a twill or simple 8 shaft straight 8 pattern with a required weaving sett of 15 ends per inch. The aim was for the scarf to double as a shawl which would be sufficiently wide to drape over the shoulders so I decided to have a warp width of 22 inches in the reed. This necessitated having 330 warp ends. I chose to have the colours equally distributed across the warp so needed 66 ends of each of the 5 colours.

Step 2: Measuring the warp for the handwoven merino scarf

I often put a warp of around 10m onto my loom which enables me to weave 3 scarves and a few snoods, thus spreading the time involved in preparing the loom across all of these woven items. I use my warping mill to measure the warp as this enables a long length of warp threads to be measured. It is important that each thread is laid onto the warping mill in order and the mill has some pegs at the top which allow a cross to be formed. Each warp thread is laid in sequence by forming a cross over the designated pegs which maintains the order and prevents tangling of the threads later.

Step 3: Removing the warp threads from the warping mill

Once all the warp threads are measured and the cross is secured with thread the warp is removed in a chain which makes the warp threads neat and manageable.

Step 4: Dressing the loom - spreading the warp threads over the raddle.

The loom has a raddle at the top of the castle. Because I wanted a sett of 15 ends per inch I needed to place 3 threads in each of the slots in my raddle. Raddles do vary with respect to the number of slots per inch but my raddle has 5 slots per inch so with 3 threads per slot the result was that the warp was spread out for the desired sett of 15 ends per inch. The image below shows a yellow thread, this has been secured either side of the raddle and serves to stop the warp threads jumping out of the raddle when the warp is wound onto the back beam.

Step 5: Dressing the loom - winding the warp onto the back beam.

This step is one which I have traditionally found very difficult and time consuming. However, more recently I have perfected the technique thanks to some advice from another weaver. The first image shows the back of the loom. You can see the warp threads are evenly distributed across the raddle on the castle of the loom. You can also see that the warp threads are going over or under the lease sticks. The cross formed when using the warp mill has been threaded onto the lease sticks thus keeping the order of the threads.

The image below shows the front of the loom. I now use a wide toothed comb to untangle any of the warp threads. I start at the castle and work my way down the warp threads. This step is incredibly effective in helping to straighten the warp threads which in turn helps it to be wound onto the back beam without tangling at the heddle - this has previously been a big issue for me and the combing has really helped to speed up the warping process whilst preventing the snapping of warp threads.

Once the warp has been combed I hold the warp and keep it under tension before placing the threads on the table and weighing them down with books. These books keep the warp tensioned and as the warp is wound onto the back beam the books and warp threads move across the table towards the loom. Once the books reach the edge of the table I stop winding and repeat the process of combing and weighing down. If any of the warp threads loose tension I find that they tangle at the heddle and with finer yarn will often snap.

Step 6: Using paper, strips of wood or floor lino to separate the warp chains as they wrap around the back beam.

This image shows the warp being wound on to the back beam. I will often use some floor lino to separate the warp chains resorting to using wooden separators when my 6m long piece of lino runs out. The lino is great but you do need to place it on straight and it does increase the weight of the back beam resulting in more pressure being needed to lift the back beam when weaving on my loom.

Step 7: Threading the heddles 

The warp threads are wound onto the back beam leaving enough length for each warp thread to travel through the lease sticks and a heddle to the front of the loom. The threading pattern I chose to use was a straight 8. This means that the first warp thread went through a heddle on shaft 1, the second warp thread through a heddle on shaft 2, and the third warp thread through a heddle on shaft 3 etc.

Step 8: Threading the reed

I chose to use my 10dpi reed. As I wanted a sett of 15epi I threaded two warp threads through one slot, then one thread through the next with this pattern being repeated across the reed.

Step 9: Tying the warp threads to the front of the loom

Once the reed was threaded around 15-20 warp threads were tied onto the front beam leader.

Step 10: Winding the yarn onto the bobbins

I am fortunate that my son 3D printed me some bobbins for my shuttles which had a long end to fit onto an electric drill. I use the electric drill to rotate the bobbin enabling it to really quickly wind the yarn onto the bobbin. I did this for each of the 5 colours of yarn that I had chosen to weave with.

Step 11: Programming the dobby bars

I have a Louet Octado dobby loom with 8 shafts. There are two ways that I am able to lift the shafts, either mechanically using the dobby bars as shown below or by using my homemade computer dobby. If you want to read about my computer dobby made by my husband I have written a blog about that which you can read about by clicking here: computer dobby.

For this weave I decided to use my mechanical dobby system so had to programme the dobby bars. The first pattern was a twill design which only requires 4 dobby bars. Later I used a more complex design which required more dobby bars.

Step 12: Weaving the design

I chose to weave a colourblock design so to replicate the warping design I wove 64 weft threads in each colour.

Step 13: Cutting the fabric off the loom

After weaving sufficient fabric for a couple of scarves and a snood I cut the woven fabric off the loom. I often remove the first metre of a weave and finish it as this allows me to check the sett, and to ensure there are no threading errors. I find it easier to spot when the fabric has been washed and finished and it is wise to correct errors at this stage before weaving a long warp.

Step 14: Removing knots and repairing errors

Before washing, any knots in the yarn are removed and the ends sewn in. Any weaving errors can also be repaired at this point too.

Step 15: Washing the fabric for a handwoven merino scarf

This step is really important when using merino lambswool. The yarn that I use is very fragile and is supplied in spinning oils. |The spinning oils serve to provide the yarn with a little more strength. The woven fabric doesn't feel very soft when it first comes of the loom but the washing removes the spinning oils and allows the fabric to full and soften. I wash the fabric using hand wash detergent and hot water with a couple of washes and rinses. The final rinse has some fabric conditioner in it. I am really careful during the washing process because too much agitation at this stage causes the fabric to felt which is then not as soft in the final scarf.

Step 16: Drying the fabric followed by pressing the final scarf to create the finished luxury accessory

I tend to spin my fabric in my washing machine on the spin cycle but only for around 1 minute on the high spin. Any longer and felting is likely to occur. I then hang the fabric on the line to air dry.

The dried fabric is pressed, the ends cut and frayed to create a fringe at each end to create the finished item as shown below.

Gift ready presentation of a luxury handwoven accessory

All of my handwoven scarves and snoods are presented thoughtfully in a gold embossed tissue paper lined gift box. The hope is that this thoughtful wrapping will create a lasting impression as it serves to lift the gifting experience.

Weaving a luxury merino lambswool scarf on a floor loom is a complex journey of many steps. Each step contributes to the scarf's unique character, transforming it into a thoughtful, personal gift. If you want to know more about my weaving work then do sign up to receive my weaving news emails by clicking here.

If you are looking for a unique luxury handwoven scarf or other accessory then please visit my website shop by clicking here.