I’ve been working in a local school. Younger children have been learning about three-strand or four-strand braiding. For those in grade 4 and 5 I brought along rigid heddles and had them weave strips or “sashes”.
Here are some patterns you can make with a rigid heddle loom.
Of course, if you have all threads of the same color, you get a solid colored cloth.
A single thread of a contrasting color makes a broken line.
Single contrasting thread leaves a dotted line
Yes, I used mostly blue and a single white in the warp, and then I used white for the weft.
If you now try two white threads in that background of blue, you get a solid line.
Two threads make a solid line
Now I tried again, this time using three white threads.
Three white threads on a background of blue
Three white threads on a blue background gives me a line that is fat-skinny-fat-skinny.
How about four threads?
Four white threads on a blue background
Four threads makes a solid line.
How about five contrasting threads?
Five contrasting threads
OK, this really is two-one-two, that is two white, one yellow, and two white on a blue backgound, as 2+1+2=5.
Some other patterns involve combinations.
combination of dotted lines and solid
Threading one color in the holes and another in the slots gives this horizontal line effect.
And here’s yet another pattern.
checkered pattern
Pairs of colors, one in the slits and the other color in the holes create horizontal lines. Reversing the order of colors every four threads gives a checkered pattern.
Here are some of the strips made by fifth graders.
Strips made on rigid heddles
Tags: rigid heddle patterns, simple weaving patterns, two harness patterns
