My Top 5 Favorite Weaving Books

Do you have a cluster of books in your collection that are just too precious to part with?

Some of them old as the hills and others more recently acquired treasures?

I think everyone does.

Recently, a friend asked me about weaving books.

If I had just a handful of weaving books in my studio, which ones would they be?

Great question.  A handful… hmmm… five fingers on a hand, so five favorite weaving books…..

I could cheat and list the ones I have written, but I think that she was asking me for five books ~AS WELL AS~ the books I have written

I am going to start with an oldie but a goodie.

I bought my copy of

NEW DESIGN IN WEAVING

by Donald J. Willcox,

copyright 1970,

in our favorite 2nd hand store.

At first, I didn’t love it.

Why?

Because all the photos are in black and white, and I am spoiled by the lusciousness of being able to feast my eyes on full color any time of day or night, courtesy of the interwebs.

BUT…. once I got past the dreariness of black and white photos, I have been awestruck, over and over, by the knock out whammo inspiration that this unprepossessing little book is chock full of.

There are almost 200 photos in the book. They are clear and show a combination of closeups and full figure images.

There’s a little of the Seventies Silliness, but only the teeniest bit.  In fact, most of the pieces in the book stand the test of time, and are fine and handsome work 40 years after their creation.

I did a little scoping around on the net to see if you can still find copies of  New Design in Weaving, and yes, indeed you can. Some of the prices made me gasp, but, there were a fair few copies available through Amazon.com at rock bottom prices.

My next vote to stay on the island is

INKLE WEAVING

by Helene Bress

I’ve had my copy since 1994.

This book is, quite simply,

the Bible of Inkle Weaving.

If you want to learn how to

weave on the inkle loom,

then you will want to own

this book.

It’s just that simple.

My one difference of opinion with Ms. Bress is that she is very anti- double sided inkle looms. Personally, I love having the stability of a double sided inkle loom, and have learned to compensate for the inconvenience of having both sides closed.

Her instructions are excellent, and she is generous in her charts and graphs. Again, the pics are just in B&W, but they are clear and comprehensive.

I googled to see if she has a website, but didn’t find one.  I did find a heap of links to buy the book, so if you don’t have it, then you are in luck, as it is still available.

My next choice is  another classic.

If you have

treated yourself

to a Cricket  or

an Asheville

Knitter’s loom , or

other  rigid heddle

loom,

you MUST treat

yourself to

this book.

Hands On Rigid Heddle Weaving is beautifully written, with clear and articulate instructions, and joy of joys, the photos are in color!

Betty Linn Davenport proves that there is a lifetime’s worth of exploration in the humble rigid heddle loom. She shows all kinds of techniques that will have weavers honing their skills for years.

It’s a lovely book!

ZATI: THE ART OF WEAVING A LIFE by Susan Barrett Merrill is a gorgeous book. It is an exploration of the mindful, contemplative and healing art of weaving.

Ms Merrill has designed a very simple loom: The Journey loom that is a lovely version of a frame loom. It looks like a pictograph of ‘home’.

She has also designed larger versions of the loom, The Earth looms, that are an invitation for groups to weave together in a meditative way. It’s accompanied by an instructional DVD and booklet.

I love the Zati book, as Ms Merrill describes and explains how she has built her life around weaving. She then walks the reader through 7 projects that  are heartfelt explorations of creativity and soulfulness.

Susan Barrett Merrill’s website is Weaving a Life – you can get her book, loom and other goodies there.

Last, but certainly not least, is another

lovely book  about

mindfulness, healing

and wholeness in

weaving.

Saori was invented 40 years ago

by a wonderful weaver,

Misao Jo.

Saori weaving is all about

weaving with an open heart, and

a belief in there being no mistakes

(in life) and in weaving.   Misao Jo’s family has continued her work, developing and building beautiful 2 harness floor looms, and spreading her philosophy of creative and exuberant exploration in weaving.

My dear friend, Terri Bibby, teaches all kinds of wonderful workshops on Saori weaving. You can order the book from her, as well as looms and other accessories. Wonderful!  Terri’s website is Saltspring Weaving