Krokbragd Mug Rugs
This pattern is from Handwoven Magazine March/April 2001; Krokbragd Pattern in Twill on only 3 Shafts.
The pattern has instructions and drafts for using a rigid heddle loom with 2 pickup sticks. Having never done Korkbragd or used pickup sticks on my rigid heddle, I thought it would be a good project to try. I wound on more warp that was specified so I can make extras as gifts.
Playing with weft
PLaying around with various weft faced patterns including clasped weft and krokbragd
Earthtones Krokbragd Study Runner
This was a study to relearn krokbragd after taking a Martha Stanley rug workshop over 20 years ago! With what I learned, I'm going to make krokbragt rag rugs for Christmas presents.
Krokbragd 1 sampler
This is the first Krokbragd sample pattern for the Rigid Heddle WAL. The pattern is from Jane Patrick's book, The Weaver's Idea Book, and it's called Flame Point 1. I used a 10 dent heddle, along with a string heddle and a pick up stick. I'm going to make my samples into mug rugs, so I used a black 8/4 cotton warp because I want the fringe to be black to coordinate with the black weft that I placed in the middle. I'll add pictures of each sample as I finish them.
Krokbragd WAL for the Rigid Heddlers Groups
Krokbragd draft for the Rigid Heddle groups Krokbragd WAL
END OF WARP KROKBRAGD EXPERIMENT
After finishing off my Pendleton selvedge rugs, I decided to play with the remaining warp. I never wove Krokbragd before so I re-threaded and re sleyed. I had some hand spun, hand dyed wool, some that I spun, some from a retired weaver that I wanted to use before the moths ate it. It was all heavy duty rug grade, not enough of one color for an entire project. The weaving started slowly, but went a little faster after I got started. I really enjoyed playing with the colors.
My only question is, how do I get the ends to stop curling up? I read in Collingwood's book that to eliminate this problem with a weft faced weave, one has to use the plain weave shed during the weaving, which I did. I had the rug rolled the other direction for about a week, I even weighted it down with bricks. It still wants to curl a little. Other than that, it was fun to do.
Weft-faced Patterning
Katherine Larson's book The Woven Coverlets of Norway shows two samples woven in a mix of techniques (page 94 & 113). These samplers reproduce many of the patterns in those pieces, and in others that I have photos of from my trip to Norway and the weaving class I took there. I've posted a picture of me weaving on a warp-weighted loom in that class which was 5 years ago.
These samplers were woven on a 4-shaft Leclerc Fanny, threaded in straight draw.
The patterns combine plain weave, tapestry, krokbragd, 3/1, 2/2 and 1/3 twills, hand pickup and inlay. It's a lot of fun playing with the colours and designs. I used 5 colours, and carried all 5 up the selvedges for the full length of the piece. That reduces the breaks and joins but it does make the selvedges a little wobbly. I plan to make these samplers into a shopping bag or maybe pillows, so I didn't concern myself with perfect edges. The mix of techniques requires careful control of weft tension -- I found that anything over about 1" of plain weave made a bit of a bulge, but the twills were very consistent.
I washed a pressed them and now need to think about making them into something.
krokbragd rug
I modified a pattern published by Lin Epplinger (Handwoven, March1981) in weaving this rug as a long project in my weekly weaving class. The wool I used must have been rather softer/more lofty than hers, as I soon ran out of one of the colors and had to adapt the pattern. In any case, I wanted the runs of color to be longer than specified, so the finished rug is rather different. It's now beneath my grand piano where the dog is less likely to lie on it . . . .
