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Knotted Weaving with Jo McDonald

This 2-day weaving workshop concentrates on exploring the ‘Knotted technique’ within a tapestry structure. Weavers will work on the ‘wrong-side’ of the tapestry i.e. with the back facing you.

Knotted Weaving with Jo McDonald

About Knotted Weaving with Jo McDonald

After warping-up, the loom is turned around, as is the design, and we’ll build up a series of half-hitch knots/ double soumaks in rows and blocks. The knots are like a series of ‘building blocks’, like pixel squares, similar to Minecraft and QR codes, or cross stitch patterns.Knots can be tied from both the front and the back, creating a variety of surface texture. We will draw / trace out a cartoon on paper, which is transferred onto acetate. The acetate is then turned over, in order to reverse the design.

This technique lends itself to building up shapes, without having to consider the usual ‘over/under’ sequence across passes and weft relays. We encourage you to bring your own source material for inspiration, bring along a selection of images that interest you, paying attention to pattern, colour, texture, etc. This technique can be widely used for a wide range tapestry designs, and is ideal for exploring geometric shapes, linear designs and lettering.
There will be a range of materials on offer, such as cottons, wools, linens and unusual yarns for experimental weft blending. If you’d like to use a particular material you have you are welcome to bring it along.

OUTCOMES:
Measure out and warp up a simple frame loom
Work with multiple weft bundles
Explore surface pattern and texture through using the knotting technique, from the both the front and back of the tapestry
Translate designs and images into tapestry, by selecting key areas from source material

This skill building workshop is suitable for crafters of all abilities – from complete beginners to those looking to add new skills to their repertoire or refine their existing weaving knowledge. We will begin with basic techniques and move on to more advanced methods as we all get up to speed. We strive to create a friendly and relaxed learning environment, where every learner can work at their own pace.

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Renfrewshire Council

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