Handwoven Picnic Blanket
Handwoven Picnic Blanket
The Handwoven Picnic Blanket by Chelsay Russell of Little Weavebird is woven with our 8/2 Un-Mercerized Cotton Weaving Yarn in a vibrant, geometric pattern. Its softness and durability (bonus: it's machine washable!) caters to picnics and beach days.
Need some help getting started? Check out Resources for Beginner and Intermediate Weavers.
Materials
Warp: 2 cones of 8/2 Un-Mercerized Cotton Weaving Yarn in white or natural
Weft: 4 cones of 8/2 Un-Mercerized Cotton Weaving Yarn (+remaining warp yarn) in a variety of colors
Kits: Each kit includes the required yarn to weave a picnic blanket that measures approximately ~ 37" W x 40" L
Project Notes
- Tools Required: 4 shaft loom with 40" weaving width, 12 dent reed, boat shuttle & bobbins
- EPI: 12 (2 ends per heddle, 2 ends per dent)
- Width at Reed: 40"
- Warp Ends: 480 doubled ends (960 individual threads, thread 2 ends per heddle and 2 ends per dent)
- Warp Length: 2.5 yards
- Draft: Draft #28007 courtesy of Handweaving.net (Originally from Large book of Textile Designs by Franz Donat)
- Finished Dimensions: ~ 37" W x 40" L
- Finishing Details: 2.5" fringe tassels on each side
- Care Instructions: Machine wash cold, tumble dry low
Draft provided by Handweaving.net -- a weaving archive containing thousands of historic and modern weaving drafts as well as digitized versions of old textiles documents produced by Ralph Griswold.
Weaving & Finishing
- Color A = Forest Green
- Color B = White
- Color C = Ballet Pink
- Color D = Sage
- Color E = Yellow Green
Begin: Wind a warp with Color B using two tubes at once. Wind for a total of 480 warp ends counting two strands as one. (Counted individually there will be 960 strands total). Thread the loom with 2 ends per heddle and 2 ends per dent.
Weft Color Order: With the weft yarn doubled, weave the following sequence (repeating about 4 times) until the blanket measures about 45" L in loom to account for shrinkage. Chelsay recommends beating the weft lightly to best bring out the pattern.
- Color A - 21 picks
- Color B - 3 picks
- Color C - 9 picks
- Color D - 12 picks
- Color A - 3 picks
- Color B - 3 picks
- Color E - 3 picks
- Color B - 3 picks
- Color A - 3 picks
- Color D - 12 picks
- Color C - 9 picks
- Color B = 3 picks
- Color A - 21 picks
- Color B - 3 picks
- Color E - 3 picks
- Color B - 3 picks
- Repeat pattern from the beginning
Finishing: Once you have finished weaving, remove the blanket from the loom and secure edges with overhand knots to create the tassel fringe. Trim fringe to 2.5" on each side. Machine wash cold and tumble dry low.
About
Little Weavebird utilizes traditional weaving techniques to produce ethically made woven goods with a modern edge.
I started weaving in the Fall of 2015 on a small lap loom that I bought myself. I was inspired by the small wall hangings that I had seen on Pinterest. After about one year of weaving, I bought my floor loom and never looked back. Weaving quickly became my passion and I love the endless creative possibilities. I majored in Fashion Design and Product Development, so being able to create my own textiles brings me so much joy. Website | Instagram
