Once the wool had been spun, it was necessary to weave it to form a textile or cloth.

Weaving is simply a way of entwining one quantity of yarn (the warp) with another (the weft).

The warp threads are positioned lengthways and the weft thread is worked widthways over and under to make the weave. Any piece of machinery which helps in this process is called a loom.

Although spinning had been seen as a woman's occupation, weaving was usually done by men.

The earliest looms were those where the warp threads were weighted before the start of weaving.

A weaver might attach warp threads to a tree branch or piece of wood, and weight or attach them to the ground….. hence the name warp-weighted loom.

The weft threads would be pushed backwards and forwards through the warp with a stick, the fore runner of a shuttle.

It soon became practical to insert a rod between the warp threads ( perhaps every other ) to form a space that would allow a shuttle to pass through the whole width of the warp.

Next to be developed were ground looms. These were horizontal machines, where the warp would be strung between 2 rows of pegs and the weaver would need to lean over the machine in order to work.

Although they were efficient it was tiring work, and as a result, pit looms were invented. These allowed the warp to be strung over a pit enabling the weaver to sit with their legs underneath the threads. Much more comfortable!

By the 17th century most spinsters would take their spun yarn to a visiting weaver, or to someone in the village who had their own loom,as looms were quite expensive items to construct, and took up lots of room within a cottage.

By the 19th century most small cottage industries had died out and villagers were suffering much hardship, so cottagers denuded their homes of furniture to make way for more spinning wheels and large looms.

In Berkshire, for example, agents from Reading & Newbury would arrive at cottages with their pack horses laden with wool for the women to spin, and would call back the following week to collect the spun yarn to be woven by clothiers in their workshops.

This industry also came to an end when powered machines in factories took the place of spinners and weavers in their homes.

The first power loom was built by Edmund Cartwright in 1785.

Portable Looms

Some weaving can be done with very simple tools or with a portable loom. Such weaving is called "off loom" weaving.

Most off loom weaving produces narrow bands of woven material for use as belts, bands, carrying handles or for decorative edging. However, if sewn together widthways, these bands can be used for wider items, such as bags,small pillow cases and blankets.

The bands are very strong and slightly springy, so are hard wearing, but soft to the touch if made of wool.

The following are examples of 'off loom' weaving:

Frame looms worked on the same principal as ground looms. They were made of sticks and boards attached at right angles which produced a box-like shape. The loom was small, light and portable and could be held in the weaver's lap.

Back strap looms as the name suggests, was when the warp threads were attached to the weaver's waist at one end, and to a tree, post or door at the other. The whole process was held taut by the weaver leaning back.

Stick weaving (see picture below) is a very simple and highly portable way of weaving. All that is needed is an odd number of sticks ( as many as can be comfortably held in the palm of one hand ) with a hole in the end of each one. The weaver would thread each stick, as they would a needle, with a desired length of wool, and knot each thread in place to make the warp. The weaver would then tie the loose ends of the threads together.

Next, taking a ball of thread they would tie the end around one stick and begin to weave over and under the warp. The work was then pushed off the sticks onto the warp threads.

When the work was completed the weaver would carefully cut the threads going through the sticks and tie them off securely.

Tablet weaving, also known as card weaving, is a very ancient craft.

A partially woven band of 52 tablets was discovered, still mounted on the weaver's frame, during the excavation of the Osberg ship burial in Norway.

The ship was believed to have been buried about 800 A.D. Cards or tablets were punched with holes in each corner, and yarn threaded through each one to make the warp.

The weft could be interwoven in many ways, by turning the cards over and back from left to right, or by flipping the cards from top to bottom, resulting in complicated patterned bands.

Inkle weaving is very similar to Tablet weaving, but the cards are punched with only 2 holes in opposite corners. The card would be turned one half turn forward, one half turn backward and repeating.

Shakespeare talks of inkle weaving 3 times in his writings, the earliest reference being in "Love's Labours Lost " written in about 1590

Lucet This weaving is believed to date back to Viking times.The lucet , or lucet fork, is normally made of wood, with 2 prongs at one end and a handle on the other. Yarn is wound round the fork, forming loops, which are lifted over the working yarn and tightened to form a cord.

The card is wrapped around the lucet handle as it grows. The resulting cord is square and slightly springy, and can be used for draw strings, decorative edging or wherever a strong cord is necessary.

Lucet cord, because it is made of loops, will unravel if cut.

Throughout history there have been times when it was thought that spinning and weaving in "the old fashioned way " would die out, but thanks to historical re-enactors and craft groups the arts are still very much alive.