Weaving a handwoven scarf and snood using a hand dyed yarn
As a birthday gift to myself I purchased a Reimagined yarn box from Birdstreet Yarn. The idea behind the boxes is that they contain one 100g skein of hand dyed yarn with 5 mini skeins dyed in each of the 5 colours used to dye the larger skein. I chose the Darkside box and this blog details how I used it to create a handwoven scarf and snood including a weaving pattern for each should you wish to do the same.
What loom did I use to weave with?
I used my TabbyandTweed weaving loom kit which is a compact loom perfect for scarf weaving. I used the 10 epi heddle as the yarn was 4 ply. As you can see from the picture the 5 mini skeins are dyed in the colours which have been used to dye the larger skein.
Scarf pattern
Warping Instructions: The loom was threaded according to the details below using the 5 mini skeins
DG=Dark Grey O = Orange R = Dark Red G = Grey LR = Light Red
Total Number of warp threads - 100
I warped 2.2m in length
Weaving Instructions:
The 100g skein of handyed yarn was used for the weft. This then created a scarf with stripes as shown below. The final dimensions of this scarf were 21cm x 164cm with a 11cm fringe at each end.
The snood pattern
The yarns colours were:
DG=Dark Grey O = Orange R = Dark Red G = Grey LR = Light Red M = Mixed
Total number of warp threads - 98.
I used a warp of around 1m.
Weaving Instructions:
Step 1: Weave 2 mixed weft rows (picks)
Step 2: Weave 2 orange weft rows (picks)
Step 3: repeat steps 1 and 2, 4 times
Step 4: Weave 2 mixed weft rows (picks)
Step 5: Weave 2 dark grey weft rows (picks)
Step 6: repeat steps 4 and 5, 5 times
Step 7: Weave 2 mixed weft rows (picks)
Step 8: Weave 2 light red weft rows (picks)
Step 9: repeat steps 7 and 8, 5 times
Step 10: Weave 2 mixed weft rows (picks)
Step 11: Weave 2 light grey weft rows (picks)
Step 12: Repeat steps 10 and 11, 5 times
Step 13: Weave 2 mixed weft rows (picks)
Step 14: Weave 2 red weft rows (picks)
Step 15: Repeat steps 13 and 14, 4 times
Step 16: repeat steps 1 to 15 until you have woven the warp.
This design of alternating coloured yarns created areas of houndstooth pattern diagonally across the fabric.
After the fabric was washed and ironed it was sewn with an infinity twist to give a final circumference of around 75cm.
What is the difference between superwash yarn and normal yarn and how does this impact the final woven fabric?
The yarn in the box was superwash yarn. This means that it has been treated prior to dyeing which makes it less likely to felt when washing. This does have the impact that when the woven fabric is washed it doesn't full like an untreated wool yarn. The result is a more open structure to the fabric. One of the benefits however of a superwash yarn is that it can be washed without the same degree of concern with respect to felting and shrinkage.
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If you are looking for a unique luxury handwoven scarf, shawl or snood including the two detailed in this blog then do visit my website shop by clicking here.