Project 4-SHAFT
YEARS AGO, WHEN I LIVED IN COLORADO, I had the
opportunity to take a class with Jean Scorgie through the
Northern Colorado Weavers Guild. Although I had never
met Jean before the class, I knew of her as a past editor of
Handwoven and always thought of her as a revered
weaving authority.
Many of Jean’s past projects in Handwoven were garments,
and although I knew I could never match her sewing skills,
I wondered how I might incorporate just a bit of sewing
into a project that honored her body of work. Deciding on a
runner, I found myself attracted to the cloth for a blouse
Jean wove for Handwoven March/April 1992. It had wide
stripes, areas of Bronson lace, and lots of plain weave. I was
particularly drawn to the hems on the sleeves of her
garment, and it gave me an idea for adding a smidgen of
sewing. I remembered Jean stating that “plain weave makes
the thinnest fabric,” and I could use plain weave on the ends
of the runner to sew tidy hems.
Bronson lace is usually a six-thread unit* weave, and on
four shaft s, two blocks are possible. Block A is commonly
threaded as 1, 3, 1, 3, 1, 2; block B is threaded as 1, 4, 1, 4,
1, 2. Plain weave is threaded on shaft s 1 and 2. Because
Jean’s blouse had weft fl oats on the right side, I decided to
follow suit.
It is possible to warp, weave, and fi nish this project in a
day—a long day. If you measure your warp very early in
the morning and dedicate most of the day to this project,
you may fi nd yourself sewing the hems and ironing the
runner as you are catching up on the evening news.
Jean has made an immense, lasting contribution to the
weaving community. Whether you decide to weave this
simple runner or explore the many writings of this fi ne
weaver and teacher, have fun and maybe pretend to be Jean
for a day.
*A unit is the smallest group that weaves all of the
characteristics of a structure; there are threading and
treadling units. Units are repeated in succession to create
blocks. In unit weaves, there are no shared pattern shaft s
among the blocks.RESOURCES
wScorgie, Jean. “An Introduction to Bronson Lace.” Handwoven,
March/April 1992, 52–53 and 84–85.STRUCTURE
Bronson lace.
EQUIPMENT
4-shaft loom, 20" weaving width; 8-dent reed; 2 shuttles;
2 or more bobbins.
YARNS
Warp: 5/2 pearl cotton (2,100 yd/lb; Valley Cotton;
WEBS), #7382 Madder Brown, 640 yd;
#7198 Burnt Sienna, 160 yd.
Weft: 5/2 pearl cotton, #7382 Madder Brown, 275 yd;
#7198 Burnt Sienna, 60 yd.
WARP LENGTH
320 ends 2½ yd long (allows 5" for take-up, 40" for loom
waste and sampling).
SETTS
Warp: 16 epi (2/dent in an 8-dent reed).
Weft: 12 ppi.
DIMENSIONS
Width in the reed: 20".
Woven length: (measured under tension on the loom)
45" or desired length.
Finished size: (after washing and hemming) 17½" x
35½".1
Wind a warp of 320 ends 2½ yd long following the warp
color order in Figure 1. Count your heddles to be sure
there are 160 on shaft 1. Warp the loom using your preferred
method following the draft in Figure 2. Centering for a weav-
ing width of 20", sley 2 per dent in an 8-dent reed.Jean for a Day Table Runner
PATTIE GRAVER2
Wind a bobbin each with Madder Brown and Burnt
Sienna. Note: Madder Brown is the main color, so it can
be helpful to wind more than 1 bobbin of this color.3
Weave about 2" with scrap yarn. This will protect the fi n-
ished piece from raveling during fi nishing.36 | HANDWOVEN http://www.interweave.com