Editors Note

Developing a Loom to Teach Scandinavian Weaving

As Heidi Goldberg, Associate Professor of Art at Concordia College, Moorhead, Minnesota, developed her “Nordic Arts” class, she asked me to teach Scandinavian weaving to her students. There was a major challenge–we needed looms.

I had experimented with a cardboard tube loom first introduced to me by Latvian-American weaver Anna Smits, who taught weaving at the University of Minnesota over 37 years and was a founding member of the Weavers Guild of Minnesota. She had invited the Scandinavian Weavers Group of the Weavers Guild to her home to learn band weaving on this simple backstrap loom. It is based on the principle of winding a warp around a tube first clockwise then counterclockwise to produce a natural shed.

I adapted the loom for Heidi’s class by adding spacers to keep the warp spread at 8 ends per inch. Using the spacers, along with bubbling the weft to prevent draw-in, keeps the warps spread. The opposite shed is formed by using string heddles on a heddle stick. Tension is created by tying a slip knot in the warp and looping it over a C-clamp.

Simple materials and low-cost yarns kept the cost at about $5 for each loom. I used ¾-inch PVC pipe purchased at a hardware store, mini-blinds from a thrift store for spacers, pick-up sticks and shuttles. I punched holes for the spacers with a regular paper punch. Thrums or cotton rug yarn served for warp. Many types of yarns were donated to Heidi’s class for weft.

The pvc loom is set up and ready for a student.

Instructions for assembling the loom and weaving a sample accompany this article. PVC Pipe Loom: An Affordable Loom for Teachers and Students is published in two sections: “Part One: Loom Construction and Starting to Weave” and “Part Two: An Introduction to Scandinavian Weft-Faced Weaving.”

In five hours of class time, students progressed from plain weave to stripes, kjerringtenner (pick-and-pick), krabbasnar (brocaded tabby), krokbragd (boundweave), and flossa (rye with shorter pile).

Students received already-warped looms; the weave structures were graphed. Here I learned a valuable lesson: the clearer my graphs, the faster my students learned. Students were misinterpreting my handwritten graphs, so I took the time to computerize them.

Once students grasped plain weave and the importance of bubbling the weft to keep the warp spread, the graphs served them well. I demonstrated each weave before students advanced to that structure and remained available to trouble-shoot as they were weaving.

I noticed one student with severe draw-in on his loom. As a result, he had fallen behind on weaving each structure. We fixed it by bubbling the weft a little more and flicking our fingers horizontally across the warp to spread it. As the old saying goes, “If at first you don’t succeed, try, try again.” He tried. His mother, who had taken Heidi’s class the previous year and had since purchased a loom, reported to Heidi that her son had taken his finished piece home and had hung it on the wall for all to see.

It was a teacher’s dream to teach Heidi’s capable students. We had introduced them to both cultural activities and to Scandinavian handcrafts. It seems quite a few people have an inherent desire to work with their hands. Weaving may fulfill those desires, and its many techniques engage the mind, as well.

Gallery of student work in various stages of completion:

See also the article in the February, 2014 issue of the Norwegian Textile Letter, “Transforming Through Tradition: Teach Nordic Arts at Concordia College, Moorhead.”

Sharon Marquardt holds a Master’s degree in theater arts with an emphasis in costuming. Instead of constructing costumes and placing them in storage after a show’s run, Sharon decided to weave heritage textiles. She learned Scandinavian weaving techniques at Vesterheim Norwegian-American Museum in Decorah, Iowa, where she also took private weaving lessons from Syvilla Tweed Bolson. Her interest has taken her to her grandmother ‘s home in northern Norway where she still has relatives in Tromso. Sharon has a broad range of teaching experience. She has been employed as an English and gifted/talented teacher in two public schools. She has taught rigid-heddle weaving through weaving stores, university extension classes, and conferences. She has also taught warp-weighted loom weaving. She adapted the Norwegian West Coast weaving techniques, which she taught at Vesterheim Norwegian-American Museum, for the PVC loom used in Professor Heidi Goldberg’s Nordic Arts class at Concordia College, Moorhead, Minnesota.

shmarquardt (at) gmail.com

The Zen of Rya

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In August 2014, teacher Jan Mostrom offered a long-awaited class in rya weaving at the Weavers Guild of Minnesota. The Weavers Guild presented the class in partnership with the American Swedish Institute, in conjunction with their exhibition The Living Tradition of Ryijy – Finnish Rugs and Their Makers. (For a description of the exhibit, see http://norwegiantextileletter.com/article/finnish-ryijy-rugs-at-the-american-swedish-institute/)

Jan is an accomplished teacher and weaver in the Nordic tradition, and her class was eagerly anticipated, proving so popular that a second session was added immediately. All in all, eleven students participated. None had prior experience in weaving rya, and several of the students were first-time weavers.

Jam Mostrom’s sample rya, front (detail)

Jan Mostrom’s sample rya, back (detail)

To make the class welcoming and fun for students at all levels, Jan chose a simple project to get us started. Her inspiration was a traditional style from the Närke region of Sweden that alternates rows of plain weave with rows of rya knots. This type is also known as a sparse rya, because the background fabric shows through the pile. This weft-faced fabric often bears distinctive checks or vertical stripes, providing a more symmetrical counterpoint to the softer knotted sections. Jan brought in several of her own pieces in this style for inspiration.

Student projects were small woven pieces 16” wide, suitable for a wall hanging or cushion cover. (Length varied based on design.) The warp was sturdy Finnish seine twine and the weft was Rauma brand yarn spun from spelsau, a native Norwegian sheep. Rauma is tightly spun and has a beautiful sheen, making it both durable and attractive. Weavers supplemented the Rauma with a variety of other yarns from their personal collections. Overall, students found the rya knots easy to tie, making for a relaxing weaving experience, while the thick pile felt scrumptious to the touch.

Within the basic framework of size and materials, weavers were free to play with color and design. It was truly inspiring to see the wide variety of finished products. Each rya was completely unique, reflecting its maker’s personality and preferences, proof that this seemingly simple style of weaving holds endless possibilities.

Susan Andrews: Graphic rya with red

Rya inspired by a fish graphic

Several students created clear geometric shapes with clean lines in contrasting colors, taking advantage of the rya’s graphic possibilities. Kelly Nordstrom’s project was inspired by the bold black-and-red design of a fish on a Finnish napkin. Susan Andrews and Edi Thorstensson also chose to work with red, paired with gray and white respectively, creating bright, dramatic contrast.

Edie Thorstensson

Marie . explored a stash of knitting yarns for an autumn palette.

Cynthia Werner’s piece includes the natural shades of sheep

Others created a more abstract effect by blending colors seemingly at random. Marilyn Moore was inspired by the abundant lilies in her garden, while Marie Larson dug into her stash of knitting yarns to create a riot of colors and textures in her favorite autumnal palette. Cynthia Werner is an experienced yarn spinner who loves to work with Shetland wool. Her design—featuring shades of white, gray, and black—echoes the natural tones of a dappled Shetland fleece.

Marilyn Moore: The colors of lilies

Geri Retzlaff explored shapes in soft tones

Wanda inspired by palette..celtic blue

Jan brought a stack of books to inspire us, allowing students to draw on the rich history of rya to spark their own projects. Wanda Truman was struck by the flower design on a traditional wedding rya woven in red, but chose to weave in her favorite Celtic blue to reflect her own heritage. Geri Retzlaff and Carol Harrington were inspired by the abstract designs of twentieth century ryas and also took on the challenge of creating rounded shapes. Geri wove in soft pastels, while Carol contrasted purple and orange for a contemporary look.

Many students, like Carol Harrington, drafted cartoons before weaving

Other students explored rya’s three-dimensional possibilities. Allison Nassif chose to work almost entirely in white, using a heavy yarn similar to that found in mops for her rya knots. The knotted design of thick chevrons alternated with plain weave, creating heavy piles that viewers longed to sink their fingers into.

Besides working in wool, most weavers in the class added silk or linen to the knots to create varied texture and visual interest. My own project was inspired by Edvard Munch’s 1895 painting Moonlight. I was fascinated by the way Munch captured the glint of moonlight on water and tried to replicate the effect by adding linen, which catches the light, to the wool knots. I also used a pale yellow yarn, thicker than the Rauma, in the moonlit sections, hoping to draw the viewer’s eye.

Lisa Bauch was inspired by Edvard Munch’s painting, “Moonlight”

Jan’s class took place over four days, and visitors stopped to view our progress, many of whom had been to see the exhibit at the American Swedish Institute. Two of our guests were women from Finland, who were pleased to see their beloved national weaving style being taught in the United States.

For their part, Jan’s students are eager to continue their explorations. “Rya weaving was surprisingly easy to learn,” says Geri Retzlaff. “The weaving and knot tying are relaxing and I found myself pondering other designs while weaving my class project.” Students agreed that the simple repetitive movements of tying the knots can produce a zen-like calm—but also leaves the attention free for lively conversations in class, if preferred.

Inspired by the success of the beginning class, Jan is planning to teach a more advanced rya class in 2015. “I found it very exciting to teach this class,” she explains. “The creativity in the students’ rya pieces was inspirational. It made me excited to start a new rya piece myself. It is gratifying to an instructor when the students are excited and enthusiastic about what they are learning and have such successful results.”

In addition to classes, the Weavers Guild is forming a year-long interest group, open to anyone interested in beginning or continuing their study in this style. Members are invited to create work for an exhibit in the fall of 2015.

Thanks to Jan Mostrom and her students, the American Swedish Institute, and the Weavers Guild of Minnesota for helping to ensure that this living tradition lives on!