Selvedges

Selvedges  (click on word for all 21 posts written under that label)   

Someone asked about my selvedges in the previous post - it appeared that the selvedge thread was not 'attached' to the cloth well (I paraphrase).

It's true.

I don't always have a selvedge that has a 'firmly attached' selvedge thread.  In the above photo, I do - it's a 2:2 twill, and no, it doesn't have a plain weave selvedge, but a two thread 'float' - because it's a twill and the weave structure has 2 thread floats in it.

I could have left a comment without much of an explanation, but...I'm me, and not much given to short answers.

I have had a lot to say about selvedges over the years.  If I've done it properly, the title of this post is a link to the 21 posts I've written for this blog all by itself (up until this one).  Usually I tend to just address one aspect of a complex topic per blog post, then label them with the subject as in 'selvedges'

I've also discussed selvedges in The Intentional Weaver, and again in Stories from the Matrix, both available from blurb.com

Selvedges are also discussed in my online classes.  And I've certainly said lots on online groups over the years, and had plenty of people tell me I should not talk about what I do because I am doing it 'wrong'.

Plain weave selvedges.  No.  I don't do that.  If a plain weave selvedge is used on a weave structure with fewer interlacements, the selvedges will take up at a different rate.  This can (and in many cases will) cause tension issues at the selvedge.  The selvedge has to be compatible with the weave structure being used.  Or accommodations need to be arranged.

Floating selvedge to create a plain weave thread at the outer edge.  For a number of reasons, no, I don't use them.  *IF* I were to encounter a situation that seemed like it required one, I do know how to do them, and would.  But I've been weaving for 50 years and so far...no.

The point where I change the length of the selvedge thread varies, usually on the fineness of the thread.  The maximum 'float' length I will use is generally in the 5-7 range, have rarely but sometimes have done 9.  It depends on what I'm making, too.  For a tea towel, my 'standards' are less stringent than for, say, a table runner.

Do I have ruler straight selvedges?  Sometimes.

Decided to 'prove' it one day by laying a ruler alongside the selvedge.  The shine off the metal ruler makes it look a bit like the selvedge isn't straight but it is a trick of the light.  

When I'm weaving the large fancy twills, the selvedge may shift, depending on which direction the twill line is running.  

Where the twill line points back into the cloth /\ the cloth can retreat; when the twill points away from the centre of the cloth \/, it can to tend to expand outwards.  It's subtle.

Another thing that happens is that when weaving a 'fancy twill' where the twill structure is not 2:2 but other variations, the cloth with more weft showing than warp will tend to have a selvedge that curls up and in; when more warp than weft is showing, it will tend to curl down and in.

Hard to see this effect in the photo, but it happens.

If you want more detail, check out the other 21 articles I've posted here.  You don't have to agree with me.  You must do what you feel is 'best'.  Having as many different tools/techniques in your toolbox as you can will allow you to pick and choose what is the best way to approach an issue if you aren't happy.