Weaving

After seeing some lovely pics on Pinterest of beautiful woven wall hangings I decided I'd give it a go myself. Why not? 

I'm always on the hunt for a new craft to learn and I've found that weaving is a really cheap and easy craft to master. It's also quite therapeutic and is perfect for when I'm having 'me time' just sat watching TV or listening to music. It doesn't require too much concentration (it's not as hazardous as felting!) and it's become my little wind down hobby for when I come in after a busy day of work.

I started using a cardboard loom for my first attempts:

(I took these pics on my phone so apologies for the varying quality!)

Then my Grandma lent me her old tapestry loom, which still isn't ideal but works better than the cardboard keeping the tension in the warp threads. The warp threads do slide around a bit at the top, meaning that so far I haven't successfully made a perfectly straight-sided weaving (the sides seem to wobble in and out a bit) but I quite like that they look a bit quirky and handmade.

The weaving below is the straightest-sided one I've managed to make so far.
I started with the patterned bits then filled in around them with a brown flecked white wool.

I liked the chevron pattern on the previous weaving, so decided to incorporate a more complex design on my next weaving which has a blue/green colour scheme.

This was also my first experiment using 'Rya Knots'. These can be tassels on the weaving but layered up and trimmed they produce a fluffy effect. I's like to try this technique to make a completely fluffy weaving one day.

I added a double tier of tassels at the base of this weaving. I cut the top layer a bit shorter than I intended originally but I like the overall layered tassel effect.
My next weavings are going to be a bit more ambitious, incorporating different shapes and even some animals if I can manage it, so watch this space!