When you're a beginner, it's helpful to understand the types of woven fabric—some looms specialize in one type, while other looms can handle multiple types of fabric. Many weaving drafts and published patterns in magazines or books identify the type of cloth being made. This article provides a brief overview of some essential concepts, and the video will help you understand how weavers write up weave structures in pattern drafts.
Woven textiles fall into 3 broad categories:
- Warp-faced, where warp completely covers the weft, except at the selvedges of the weaving. Used most commonly in patterned bands. Inkle looms and card weaving cards are specially designed for this type of weaving.
- Weft-faced, where weft completely covers the warp, except at fringed ends of the weaving. Used most commonly for tapestries and rugs. Frame looms and tapestry looms excel at this type of weaving.
- Balanced, where warp and weft are both visible. Easiest to adapt for different color patterns, texture patterns, and weave structures. Rigid heddle looms can make all kinds of color and texture patterns; with pick-up sticks, the weaver can also create simpler weave structures. Shaft looms can make all kinds of color and texture patterns; if a weave structure doesn't require more shafts than the loom holds, a shaft loom can also product any weave structure.
Think of these categories as a continuum rather than rigid distinctions. Woven fabrics might be warp-dominant, instead of completely warp-faced, or weft-dominant. It's also possible to weave a warp-faced or weft-faced textile on a rigid heddle loom, or a balanced fabric on a frame loom.
In all 3 types of textiles, weavers can create infinite patterns with color. Some of these color patterns have names, like "color and weave" or "log cabin." In all types, weavers can also work pick-up patterns to elongate a float.
But the category of balanced textiles is the largest by far, because it includes many variations. Here weavers can also play with the foundations of woven cloth—how warp and weft threads interlace with each other. These variations are collectively known as weave structures.
Weave Structures
Before we enter the world of weave structures, understand that you can decide how much you want or need to learn. Certain types of weaving, and certain types of looms, don't require this knowledge at all, though it's helpful to know the vocabulary. You can approach weaving and weave structures any way you like—that's part of the fun. Rigid heddle guru Liz Gipson wrote an excellent introduction to the history and naming of weave structures, even though she doesn't often use a shaft loom.
- Weavers who make warp-faced or weft-faced textiles (that is, bands woven on an inkle loom or tapestries on a frame or tapestry loom), live in the world of plain weave, or plain weave with pick-up patterns. Zoom Loom squares live here too.
- Rigid heddle weavers can work weave structures on the loom with pick-up sticks. However, more complicated structures require more sticks and more time.
- Shaft loom weavers should at least know some terms, because their looms can be set up for the most elaborate weave structures. Some shaft loom weavers love the color and texture patterning of plain weave, and they're not interested in anything else. Others prefer to specialize in one structure, then they often end up writing a book based on their deep knowledge! Others like to dabble in many structures: if you search this website for Susan Kesler-Simpson, you'll find her books on crackle weave, summer and winter, and other popular weave structures.
The Main Families of Simple Weave Structures
Another caveat before you read on: weavers are like gardeners in their passion for naming and defining. We also like to debate about the names and definitions. Other weavers will probably agree with the overall picture presented here, but they may not agree with every detail.
Weave structures get classified by their floats. In all woven fabrics, the weft crosses over or under the warp. As a weft thread goes over a warp thread, it makes a float on the right side of the fabric; the warp thread makes a float on the wrong side. (Note, these are intentional floats, as opposed to weaving mistakes that you want to fix!)
Plain weave (tabby): each weft float goes over 1 warp thread at a time. You can easily identify plain weave because it looks like a grid. Even if the plain weave has a pattern of (intentional) floats, the base fabric has rows of weft and columns of warp set at 90-degree angles.
A plain weave square woven on a Zoom Loom—the yarn changes color, but the floats are always 1 weft over 1 warp.
Twill: This weave structure has many variations, all involving warp and weft interlacements of 2 or more threads, where the floats "step" to the left or right on each successive pick. Look for diagonal lines in fabric.
A simple twill that changes its slant partway through.
A twill sampler combining simple twill slanting in different directions, plus several variations. Even the diamond motifs are twill—they're formed in diagonal lines.
The other families of simple weaves, satins and block weaves, are easier to understand when you're comfortable reading thread-by-thread weaving drafts and profile drafts. Then you can move on to compound elements or compound weaves, if you wish. Beginners often start with plain weave or twill, fall in love with their versatility, and spend the rest of their weaving careers with these beautiful weave structures.