Weaving tartan (pics)

**cloves** · 1st August 07, 01:52 PM

O' Neille makes his own tartan too?????? jeez...is there anything he can't do??
*so jealous*

**Alan H** · 1st August 07, 02:07 PM

I am thoroughly enjoying this thread (great pun...a "thread" on weaving tartan!)....thanks to everybody who's contributed to it.

**Mr. MacDougall** · 1st August 07, 02:37 PM

There's a lady in BC who teaches hand-weaving of tartans. She used to operate out of a B&B, but it's been sold, and she's looking for another venue. If you're interested, it might be worth keeping an eye on her website to see when she resumes.

**ChromeScholar** · 1st August 07, 07:35 PM

O' Neille, my girlfriend wants to know how wide your loom is, and what you mean by weaving a double width? Forget the double width question, we figured it out, and it is feasible, if ungainly.

**ChromeScholar** · 2nd August 07, 02:58 PM

One thing we discussed last night was actually widening the loom we have now by enough to do kilt-width fabric, say 30 or 36 inches.

And there's a question all you weavers and kilt-makers can answer for me. How wide a fabric do you actually need to sew a kilt?

**Barb T** · 3rd August 07, 05:38 AM

The absolute minimum is the overall length of the kilt from the top edge to the bottom. Most kilts are in the range of 22-25". You'd have to be pretty tall to need a kilt longer than that. A kiltmaker typically uses the strip cut off from the selvedge edge to make the top band so that the tartan can be matched across the apron, so a kiltmaker uses more like 25-28" of width. But, that's not really necessary if you have a bare minimum of width. You can always piece a bunch of weft-wise strips if you absolutely have to. Your belt will cover the top band seam anyway.

The only way I know of to weave a double width on a hand loom is to double the ppi and set up the loom so that you weave the top half of the cloth on one pass and the bottom half on the other, with the weft thread turning and going back at the fabric midpoint. It's complicated, but it can be done. That's a lot of threads per inch, though, and the web will be _really heavy_.

Barb

**ChromeScholar** · 3rd August 07, 08:06 AM

The only way I know of to weave a double width on a hand loom is to double the ppi and set up the loom so that you weave the top half of the cloth on one pass and the bottom half on the other, with the weft thread turning and going back at the fabric midpoint. It's complicated, but it can be done.

Yeah, that's pretty much what we figured out. My girlfriend (who keeps threatening to join the forum) sees it as a challenge, though.

**MysticMead** · 3rd August 07, 08:35 AM

Originally Posted by ChromeScholar

Yeah, that's pretty much what we figured out. My girlfriend (who keeps threatening to join the forum) sees it as a challenge, though.

I dare her to join!! (maybe that'll get her to join

)

**Mr. MacDougall** · 3rd August 07, 08:41 AM

Originally Posted by MysticMead

I dare her to join!

I double-dog dare her to!

Seriously, we're not a boy's club exclusively, here. There are a handful of other women.

**Red_Raven** · 4th August 07, 01:46 PM

I had a nice long thread and it didn't post so here goes again...

I always love a Dare, guess thats why I'm always stuck on top of a hill in my WRX.

The Tartan is my first official weaving piece. I have done one practice piece to learn the treadling and warping. it has taken me about 3 years to get this far, but that is because I'm learning as I go. I have had to take apart and re warp twice and restart numerous times as I didn't like the way it was progressing. I'm just a little on the obsessive compulsive side and if it doesn't look right I start over. I'm still having to hand beat one side of the weave because the warp is not tight enough.

I love a challenge and the gal at my weaving store just shock her head when I told her my first piece was going to be a tartan. She said the only other person she knew of that did one as their first piece was an Engineer. Since I'm in the Architectural and Engineering field I figured I was on the right track.

My good friend Russel Gilmer in Maryland will be the lucky recipient of the tartan. You will probably see him at the Maryland Rene Faire. He is not going to use this for his kilt but as his shoulder piece. (of which the name escapes me, guess is should read some more on the forum

).

I have learned a bunch with this weave and enjoy hearing that it looks good. I will make sure the pictures of the loom we plan to build as well as the tartan we (chromeScholar and I) decide to make get posted as well.

As soon as I get my new sewing machine home (WRX took this month check) I will also show you the sporrans I plan to make.