Weave Together 2025

Posted on by texasgabi

This year’s Weave Together retreat is starting today. I won’t be joining in person in beautiful York, Pennsylvania, but that doesn’t mean that we can’t chat about it!

I had the opportunity to get my hands on some of the yarns that will be available at the retreat’s Marketplace, and i used those for a few projects that I want to share with all of you over the next days.

The first project is a little Weave Together 2025 table runner, inspired by the colors and the logo of the event.

Loom maker Louët carries Venne yarns, and I used BIO Cottoline and BIO 8.2 Katoen (Cotton) for my project.

While those yarns are designed for multi-shaft weaving, I used them very successfully double-stranded on our F-fine sett looms. The fibers are smooth to weave, resulting in a project with vibrant colors and a beautiful gentle sheen that is second to none.

Here are the instructions for making the little table runner:

Looms

Looms may sell out quickly. We list more as they become available, or contact us to setup a custom order.

Original TURTLE Loom™, F – Fine sett

Original Diamond, F – Fine sett

Original Trapezoid, F – Fine sett (this loom is optional. Instructions for weaving half hexagons on a hexagon loom can be found here)

Yarns

Venne BIO Cottoline in 3-4043 Darknixe, 3-4053 Gentian, 3-4039 Deep Blue, and 3-5052 Poison Green.

Venne BIO 8/2 Katoen in 5-7100 Cream and 5-5003 Kentucky Blue.

Venne yarn is available at Louët dealers, one example is The Lonestar Loom Room.

Weave the following shapes … remember to weave the yarn double-stranded. The chart also provides total number of shapes and yardage in case you want to use your own colors:

HexagonsDiamondsTrapezoidYards per color (rounded)
3-4043 Darknixe, light blue1225
4053 Gentian, medium blue1225
3-4039 Deep Blue, dark blue1225
3-5052 Poison Green, medium green1225
5-7100 Cream,
natural		745
5-5003 Kentucky Blue, dark green532
Total number per shape4128
Total yardage for the project177

Assembly: Use whip stitch to sew the pieces together according to the following chart. I found it easiest to sew the hexagons and trapezoids together first into columns, and then “fill in” the diamonds.

Make it your own! You can easily adjust the length by adding/subtracting more hexagon/trapezoid columns and diamond spacers. If you wish to use your own colors, feel free to print or download the following chart for your design:

Don’t miss the next project story! Sign up to be automatically notified when new projects and news are posted:

We will also do a SPECIAL GIVEAWAY this Tuesday, March 25th, 2025. This event will be one day only, so make sure to check the blog that will post that day.

For blog readers this is an opportunity to win, for Weave Together attendees this is a second chance to win.

Details in Tuesday’s blog.

Whether you are attending the Weave Together retreat or are at home … HAPPY WEAVING!

Let’s Face It! (Part 2)

Posted on by texasgabi

This time, integrating patches into pin-loom weaving is about “creating scenes“. The small fabric pieces that we weave make perfect puzzle pieces to put scenes together, and adding patches (with faces) will bring them to life!

I thought of two popular autumn themes to demonstrate … we don’t always allow enough time to craft for this beautiful season:

  • Autumn nature. The heat of the summer is replaced with cooler temperatures, harvests, and colorful leaf changes. Time to slow down and relax.
  • It’s the spooky season! Some people claim that the month of October is far too short to get all the spooky stories told!

FOR THE NATURE LOVER I designed the “Autumn Meadow” table runner on which the animals of the forest gather during a golden sun set.

I used the “Harvest” yarn pack from Herrschners to make the table runner. I like that Herrschners offers budget-friendly yarns in great color combinations for multiple holiday occasions.

The project is woven on the Original TURTLE Loom™, the Original Jewel, and the Original Diamond looms, all in R-regular sett for worsted weight yarns.

I hand-selected a set of “Forest Animals” patches for this project, including bunnies, squirrels, and foxes (two of each), now available in our Etsy store.

You can get the photo-guided step-by-step pattern HERE. The pattern will be 50% off until the end of this month. No code necessary.

FOR A SPOOK-SURPRISE, I designed the beginner-friendly table topper “The Cats’ Eye”. Enjoy a group of black cats gathering during the day, and then, when you turn off the light at night, their “eye” will be watching you! The finished table topper measures about 22″ x 17.5″.

The seasonal orange hexagons are woven in Lion Brand’s Truboo rayon yarn (color 837-133 Tangerine, 1 ball) on the Original TURTLE Loom, F-fine sett. The yarn is listed as a light DK yarn, but it is so smooth that it weaves up beautifully on our fine sett looms.

I used Lion Brand’s DIY Glow -Natural yarn (1 ball), woven on the Original TURTLE Loom, R-regular sett, for the special glow-in-the-dark effect. The yarn (which is polyester but looks and feels like cotton) weaves up beautifully on our R-regular sett looms, and the uses go far beyond “spooky”. In my opinion the glow effect works very well. If you want to try out the yarn, we offer a limited supply for your order convenience in our Etsy store.

I found a fun patches set of black cats that are ready for a social gathering on a table topper … get the “Black Cats” patches in our Etsy store.

Ready to make The Cats’ Eye?

Instructions:

  • Weave 14 orange hexagons on the fine sett and 9 white hexagons on the regular sett hexagon loom.
  • Working whip stitch and using the chart for guidance, sew the hexagons into rows first, then join the rows.
  • Weave in all ends and block.
  • With a sharp needle and sewing thread OR using fabric glue, add the cat patches to the right side of the table topper onto hexagons marked with an “x”.

I hope that you will take this opportunity to “craft for fall” this year … enjoy!

Ta-Da! The Original Jewel F – Fine Sett is Here!

Posted on by texasgabi

The first batch of Original Jewel F looms is ready, and we know that some of you have been really, really waiting for it.

Without further ado, here is the new Jewel F loom, “Original” size, which means it works well together with other “Original” TURTLEs like the hexagon and diamond shapes. “F – fine sett” for sock/fingering yarn … American weight 1 – 2 and British weight DK with a knitting stitch gauge of 24-26 work best. Slightly thicker/thinner yarns will make beautiful denser/lacier fabrics.

This wheel sampler shows just a few examples of yarns that work very well on the new Jewel F.

Here’s a closer look at the sampler yarns:

  • Inspirations Patons Kroy Socks yarn is a sturdy, squishy sock wool that comes in many solid and variegated colors.
  • Desert Garden by Dyelicious Yarn has some colors that are dyed with TURTLE looms in mind. I used Lupine for this sample.
  • Many of Berroco’s yarns are perfect for (pin-loom) weaving. I am in love with Lumi, which creates a solid fabric with a festive sheen.
  • Holst Garn Titicaca is a lace weight yarn. Two strands held together create an amazing, super-soft fabric. I found this yarn at the Yarn Barn of Kansas.
  • Another Berroco yarn, Vintage Sock, is a very pleasant to weave, sturdy and easy-care blend that comes in many colors.
  • Fine-sett TURTLEs can’t be without one of the best cotton yarns that I know of, Scheepjes Catona.

If you miss out on the first batch of Original Jewel F looms, don’t worry, there will be more. Batch 2 is in the making and will be ready before Christmas. You can signup on Etsy to be notified when we list more, or you can contact us to get onto our list. That way you will keep your space in line and we will let you when your loom is ready.

When you get your Jewel loom, a great first project is to make some tree ornaments!

The yarn I used here is Chaos Fiber Co Christmas Time, a variegated green/red fingering weight yarn that creates a plaid-like effect while weaving.

How To Make A Tree Ornament:

  • Weave two jewels on your new Original Jewel F loom (or use your Jewel R with thicker yarn).
  • Sew the shapes together along the edges, leaving an opening for stuffing.
  • To give the ornament more strength, insert a piece of cardboard or plastic canvas (you can find the cutting template here).
  • You could also bend into shape or weave a fairy light chain, which will ad a romantic lighting to your ornament. Or use any stuffing of your choice for a more 3D effect.
  • Add a hanger.
  • Embellish with anything you like: Bows, bells, garlands, or embroider a name or a date.

Ready to make, give, enjoy!

My 2022 No-Stress Patchwork Project

Posted on by texasgabi

I’m a little late in chatting about my 2022 no-stress patchwork project because I needed some lead time to be able to show the idea … all no-stress, of course!

This year’s project idea is a culmination of my love of yarn cakes … and getting stuck out of town a few weeks ago. I “had” to stop at JoAnns to find something to do, and I discovered Freelance yarn cakes by JoAnn’s Big Twist yarn line. These cakes feature pleasant color combinations in worsted weight acrylics. While the knitting gauge says 14 sts/4″, it certainly looked and felt “just right” for a regular sett TURTLE . Later sampling confirmed that indeed this yarn is pleasant to weave. It creates a dense but not stiff cloth.

The yarn comes in 10 color combinations. I got “one of each”.

Doing less than one cake per month should be doable, even if life gets hectic. The idea is to do some relaxing weaving just off the cake, then put the hexagons together to make a blanket.

The first cake resulted in 43 hexagons on the original TURTLE Loom™. The design will be in rows of 14, which will yield about three rows per cake, enough to get a good impression of the color run of that cake.

The “First Cake”

  • Yarn is Big Twist Freelance, color Purple Red Orange Multi.
  • One cake yielded 43 hexagons on the original TURTLE Loom R-regular.
  • I wove off the cake, but I cut the yarn to make solid colored hexagons, except for some white/purple sections where the colors just changed too frequently.
  • Leftover yarn ends that I cut out be fore color changes will make nice tassels.
  • The yarn is fun to work with, but it changes sometimes from thinner and shiny to slightly thicker/puffier and dull. Those changes do not affect the weaving, though.
  • Based on the yield of one cake (43 hexagons) I plan the blanket to have 3 rows for each color with 14 hexagons per row. The spare hexagon is saved in case another color is one short, or it will be used in another patchwork project.
  • I did block my work, because a reviewer of the yarn had shared the concern that the yarn bleeds. I do not detect any color bleeding in my piece.

The next color – randomly selected – will be “Blue Green Multi”, which is a nice combination of wintry pastel colors.

I’m excited to see how this will work out.

Will you join in this year? What are your plans for a no-stress patchwork project?

(S)Watch This!

Posted on by texasgabi

One useful application of pin loom weaving is that you can test a new yarn for weave-ability in just minutes. It will not replace proper sampling for a project, but it is a quick way to find out what a yarn looks and feels like when it is woven, and it provides an instant piece of cloth for blocking.

Take for example this collection of scrumptiousness, which was part of my haul from this year’s Yellow Rose Fiber Fiesta where I “discovered” Winterstrom Ranch, a full service mill, with an intriguing variety of yarns in different blends, weights, and colors.

For my sampling, I used the Original TURTLE Loom™ R-regular (about 7.25 epi) for the thicker weight yarns, and the Original TURTLE Loom™ F-fine-sett (about 10 epi) for the lighter yarns.

My conclusion is that all yarns weave up and block beautifully.
The yarns have only little stretch, perfect for weaving. The yarns are smooth and not stiff.
I wove a hexagon each and sewed them together into a flower shape prior to blocking, just for fun. I blocked in cold water with a little bit Eucalan, for about 20 minutes. All fibers gently fulled, minimal shrinking, all color fast.

But see for yourself!
Winterstrom Ranch is one of the vendors at the CHT 2021 Conference Marketplace this weekend …

Swatch … Always …