I hadn't even finished the first piece of weaving on my new table loom before I began thinking about a weaving project that anyone could weave without owning a traditional loom or any weaving tools. I also wanted the project to be a "work in progress" that could be left on the "loom" as wall art.
And here it is...
...A wall hanging designed to be a "work in progress," as if the weaver had just been interrupted in her work. Of course it can be completed, but the concept is that it becomes a wall hanging from the moment you add the first few rows of weaving. It will be in a constant state of change, whether you choose to finish it or leave it as a "work in progress".
The best part of all is that by its very nature and design it cannot be perfect - so you can concentrate on just simply having fun with it!
However, as I was happily weaving, I began to come up with some really fun ways to share the actual weaving process with friends and others in the community. So, my original intention has morphed into two possibilities: 1) an unfinished "work in progress" piece of wall art for your home, or 2) a finished piece of wall art completed by a community of people with the intention of gifting it. More about all of that in a moment.
But first I wanted to let you know that I'll be sharing the tutorial for constructing the "loom" and simple weaving techniques in two separate posts (to follow in a couple days), so that in this post, I can concentrate on all the fun ways you can share this project.
To give you a sneak peak at the technique:
The "loom"...
Warping the "loom"...
Weaving...
Finished... for now! Like I said... NOT perfect! But so much fun!
Now ~ some ideas for sharing!
~ In your home, place a basket of yarn (balls and scraps left over from projects works great) near your hanging weaving. Every time a friend or relative visits, ask them to select a piece of yarn and weave it in.
~ For an even more adventurous take on this idea, ask your friends to bring along yarn from projects they have finished or are currently working on to weave into your wall hanging.
~ Invite several friends to a potluck party and while munching, each guest can weave a row or two. Having them bring yarn from their own stash will make for interesting results! Provide a basket of yarns you would prefer your guests to use if you want more control over the finished piece.
~ A unique bridal shower! Weaving would not only provide entertainment and conversation, but a gift for the bride-to-be as well! Or get together a group of her friends, do not invite her, and create a lovely wedding gift for her new home.
~ Wouldn't it be cool to ask your special internet friends to send you a bit of leftover yarn from recently-completed projects to weave into your wall hanging? Think what a beautiful reflection this would create of their support and friendship.
~ A classroom project! Ask each student to bring in a piece of leftover yarn from home, or pull together a basket of yarns from your own projects or those of generous, crafty friends. Students could earn a turn at weaving through good behavior or finishing tasks - just be sure everyone does get a chance to weave a little.
WHAT TO DO WITH THE COMPLETED CLASSROOM PROJECT:
~Donate it to the school to decorate a common area.
~Donate it to a local business that has provided support to the student body in some way (band uniforms, sponsorship to sporting events, etc).
~Present it to a local children's hospital.
~Make it a gift to a retirement home or community center.
~If you are a teacher with a blog, no doubt you have followers and friends who are teachers living in other countries. A weaving exchange between classes might be a fun way to raise students awareness of the world around them. Perhaps in the process, they could connect with each other through the internet or, oh dear, do I dare say it - snail mail!
~ If you are fortunate enough to have all of your family living near you, have all the grandchildren weave a wall hanging for Grandmother. And since it is designed as a work in progress, more grandchildren can add to it as the family grows. Make it something each child gets to do on a certain birthday - maybe using a yarn in their favorite color!
If YOU are the grandmother - or mother - allow each child to weave yarn in their favorite color as a part of every birthday! Or make it a summertime project!
~ Sunday school classes could create a wall hanging for the sanctuary or other community spaces in their church home.
~ How cool would it be for a bride to begin a wall hanging with a few rows and then ask wedding guests to each weave a row during the reception! I would suggest a narrow piece - 8" to 10". Also to make it easy and quick, allow the yarn to extend beyond the warp to create a fringe. (See my upcoming tutorial).
(The stick has absolutely NO function - I just added it for fun!)
To keep in mind...
~ Your weaving can be any size. Mine is about 14" wide and 45" long. Yours can be longer, shorter, wider or narrower. (For classroom or sunday school weaving projects, I would recommend keeping the width under 10".)
~ I used tree branches at the top and bottom, but you could use dowels, PVC pipe, copper tubing, broom handles, curtain rods, even a wooden frame made from narrow moulding.
~ You can use almost any yarn. I used basic sweater yarn, roving, looped mohair, slubbed yarns, fancy yarns and plain yarns.
~ Your color choices are endless and you could even select them to coordinate with the colors already in a given room. I happened to have a ton of earth tone yarns in my weaving stash, so that is what I used. But I spiced things up a bit with more colorful yarns from my God's eye stash.
~ You can weave embellishments such as beads or buttons into the design or add them later.
~ Your weaving can be a totally green project by using only leftover yarns or by selecting organic yarns. If you choose to make your weaving "green", the top and bottom of the "loom" should be branches or something that is recycled, like broom handles or old pipe from a salvage yard.
Or rescue an old multi-pane window frame and create mini weavings in some or all of the openings. Deb from Pretty+Simple came up with this clever idea in a recent post. She attached scrapbook papers to a multi-pane window frame to create a patchwork window to use as wall art. I loved the idea and realized it could be used to hold a series of mini weavings. (If you aren't already reading her blog, I suggest you start soon or you will miss good stuff!)
An invitation!
I have just scratched the surface of all the possibilities for making this a "co-operative" project, or a "green" project, or just a lovely piece of personal wall art. I would love to hear what other ideas are bubbling up in your minds, so please share your own inspirations in the comments so that others can benefit from them. Thank you!
Oh! I almost forgot! I did finish that little piece I had on the table loom!
