Over the last decade, I’ve formed a passion for the rigid heddle loom, encouraging hundreds of new weavers throughout the east to get started with this craft. Together, we love the affordability, portability, and quick results associated with the small, rigid heddle loom. Along the way, I am repeatedly asked, “What can I make besides […]
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It’s not every day that you are given the opportunity to spend a month in a foreign country. When the moment came for me to decide if I should go to Mexico with my wife for a month as she studies opera, I said yes! Since I knew that I would be away from my studio for […]
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The appeal of the School Loom became apparent when I paired two of my favorite things: fiber and flowers. I am drawn to the large garden looms, woven using natural grasses and flowers, and decided to create a small scale piece with non-perishable elements. This small loom was the ideal tool for my endeavor. As a child […]
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Hello! I am Heather McVickar, Schacht Spindle’s new Sales and Marketing Director. I have somewhat of an eclectic job history, but most recently come from spending 12 years in the yarn industry. I love fibers, how they are used, and how they combine to make so many amazing beautiful and useful items. Much of my […]
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The funky home decor trend continues to pop up all over Instagram, Pinterest, Etsy – you name it! I couldn’t resist making one for my studio. Here’s how to make your very own fringed wall hanging with a selection of yarns and a Schacht School Loom. Equipment: Schacht School Loom 2 Pick up sticks Stick for […]
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The second issue of Interweave’s popular magazine Easy Weaving with Little Looms features 23 projects with top-notch education and inspiration from master weavers such as Deb Essen, Stephanie Flynn Sokolov, and Sara Bixler. In this year’s issue, the editors have added inkle weaving projects and home textiles so that you can turn your house into […]
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Many thanks to Interweave for sharing this sneak peek from Felicia Lo’s new book, Dyeing to Spin and Knit. We’re thrilled to share this discussion of how staple length affects color. Be sure to read all the way to the end for an interview with Felicia as well! How Staple Length Affects Color A factor that […]
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Designed by Stephanie Flynn-Sokolov Plaids and checks are popular again in day and evening wear for both men and women. Ranging from earthy hues to bold and bright, plaids and checks are mixed and matched with prints and solids. This asymmetrical plaid scarf woven in soft hues and luscious Berroco Briza yarn is generously sized […]
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Blanket Cape By Melissa Ludden Hankens This is a simple and fabulous project to take a bit of the wind out of Old Man Winter’s sails. I don’t know about you, but when I cozy up on the couch this time of year, more often than not, a blanket is my companion. While I love […]
Read MoreBorn Estherville, Iowa, September 7, 1936 Departed Plainfield, Iowa, February 21, 2017 If you ever attended SOAR or a spinning conference, you more than likely met Rick Reeves demonstrating and schmoozing with spinners. Rick, tall and lanky, with a ready smile and chuckle, delighted in showing his latest wheels. He had both the craftsman’s touch […]
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Many people celebrate Valentine’s Day by giving tokens of affection to loved ones. Nothing says “I really love you, friend” like a friendship bracelet. While growing up, all my friends had hand knotted bracelets made from embroidery floss. This take on the friendship bracelet uses the same concept here to creatively declare how most of […]
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For the past 10 years, I’ve been weaving on the Flip or Cricket Loom, exploring and writing about rigid heddle weaving. Now I’m yearning to get back to working with shafts (also called harnesses) to study weave structures again. If you are currently weaving on a rigid heddle loom, the difference between a rigid heddle […]
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Handwoven transparencies are related to tapestries in that you can weave intricate pictorial designs with both techniques. Transparencies are lighter weight, with inlaid patterning on a sheer plain weave background. Two wefts are required: a background weft which weaves selvedge to selvedge and a pattern weft that weaves the pattern or design. The background is […]
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A few years ago we collaborated with Interweave to create a project for the “DIY Holiday” special issue. We are thrilled share this project with you now as we head into 2017. The Schacht Team pulled together to create another community project, with each of us choosing a color of embroidery floss and weaving a number […]
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Just about every time I finish sampling dyed roving or top and knit a swatch, I wonder what it would look like woven. This week I finally gave in to my curiosity. I spun some divine Shetland from Into the Whirled, colorway: Element Number Five into a singles yarn and a 2-ply yarn. Then I […]
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When you graduate from a stick shuttle to a boat shuttle, you’ll exclaim that you’ll never go back. The spinning bobbin unwinds the yarn automatically as the shuttle passes back and forth. Your weaving speed increases and you’ll notice a marked improvement in consistency. Here are a few tips for choosing the right boat […]
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The holidays are right around the corner, and when you’ve spent so much time and effort making your handmade gifts, it would be a shame not to have the same handmade touch for the packaging. In this post, we share three ways to add hand-crafted wrapping to your special gift. Sugar Pines Band, woven by Jane […]
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By the time you read this blog post, there will be 36 days left until Christmas. Don’t Panic! Many of us try to get our gifts made early, but it is inevitable, there are always a few that fall through the cracks. Here are five of our favorite quick and easy projects from the Schacht Blog […]
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Zoom Loom Turkey Benjamin Krudwig Here’s a quick project you can weave up just in time for Thanksgiving. The project requires only 4 squares, so you could easily finish in time to include Mr. Tom for your Thanksgiving table décor. Or, if you’re feeling ambitious: weave one for every place setting—a take-home gift for all […]
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Have you ever wanted to spin a certain type of yarn, but didn’t know how to adjust your wheel to get there? Your treadling speed, whorl size, choice of tension system, and the amount of tension all contribute to spinning different fibers into a wide variety of yarns – the possibilities truly are endless. There are three […]
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The holidays are right around the corner, and it seems like time is speeding along. Have you left your wish list posted on the front of the fridge for your loved ones? If not, it’s not too early to start putting the bug in their ear about what tools you’re most longing for! Here’s a […]
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Earlier this year, We e-mailed the team at Brooklyn Tweed to see if they wanted to participate in one of our collaborations for 2016. I was thrilled when I heard that Jared Flood, Founder and Creative Director of Brooklyn Tweed, wanted to see what we could do. Not only were they game for a collaboration, they […]
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We are just about 2.5 weeks away from the 4th annual Spinzilla competition. For those of you who aren’t familiar, Spinzilla is a global spinning competition that raises money for NAMP (Needle Arts Mentoring Program) to get various fiber arts kits into the hands of children. We are happy to say we have another full […]
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You’re at the fiber show, and you see a braid of fiber that has to come home with you. You get it home and look at it and realize you don’t know what to do with this beautifully dyed variegated fiber. You turn to recent videos by Jillian Moreno, 12 Ways to Spin Handpainted Top, […]
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Debbie Heilig – The Cricket Loom – A “Gateway” Loom After more than twenty-five years of being in business, ten years of attending college as an adult, and raising a daughter, I found myself seeking a creative outlet for the next stage in my life. Now, four years later, weaving not only calms me after […]
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The challenge that I set up for myself was to convert a knit kimono sweater pattern to a woven one. Since knit fabrics and woven fabrics do not share the same drape and elasticity, this proved challenging. In part 1, I covered some information about sett and sampling, the specifications for weaving the body of […]
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We know that many of you have been waiting for this day to come, and we are nearly there! The new Flatiron Spinning Wheels are starting to ship this week, and we couldn’t be more excited! Not only is the wheel itself unique in its construction and appearance, we have done something new with our […]
Read MoreJulia Sull – The Beginning is a Thrilling Place to Be! I’m a beginner weaver, drawn to the loom by a love of textiles and an eagerness to always keep learning. After years of working full-time in my local yarn shop, knitting continuously and obsessively, I’ve come to feel fluent with yarn and needles in […]
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We’ve all been there; standing at a fiber show and staring at a wall of hand-dyed skeins of luxury yarn. They call to you, but your pocketbook screams in terror hoping that you don’t pull down enough for a sweater, and sighs a relief when you only pull down two skeins. A stunning speckled […]
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As we head to Convergence 2016 in Milwaukee, we have been getting our show looms warped up and woven! We’ll be bringing some gorgeous fabrics with an Americana theme featured on our Baby Wolf, Wolf Pup, and Standard Floor Loom. Look for our posts to come for our other Convergence fabric designs, along with the drafts […]
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