Supplementary Warp - threading and sleying

Threading and Sleying

I have been tag threading - do 12 ends then get up and do 5 minutes housework before returning to thread another 12 ends and then back to the domestic stuff and so on.

From what I have read there are two ways of threading the two warps;

1. Thread the ground warp first leaving empty heddles for the pattern warp, then thread the pattern warp 
2. Do both warps at once

The first method seemed to me to be fraught with danger so I just started with the first thread and went from right to left across the complete threading. It was all very straight forward; I was however very careful and constantly checked my work.

View of both warps on their lease sticks

Penciled on shaft numbers

In action; the keys to happiness are height and light

Sleying

The all important Threading/Sleying plan
  

ENTERING THE WARP IN HARNESS AND REED

Hand Loom Weaving Plain & Ornamental (1910) - Luther Hooper


Nowadays we refer to this process as threading the heddles and sleying the reed but on a traditional loom"entering" is exactly what happens; you have to get inside it. I love the warning.

 These pictures here from Luther Hooper show and Old English Loom and the same loom prepared for entering.





Now here is the similar thing on my loom. I took off the breast beam, the knee beam and the cloth beam. The stool was too high but I found that a plank stretched between the two sides of the loom frame was at just the right height.

So as to get the lease sticks at the right height I clamped and clipped them to the back beam.

From experience I know that in order to be able to thread the heddles happily you must be able to sit and work with a straight back and see the lease sticks and the heddle eyes without any contortions. On some of my looms I have not been able to achieve this, but the setup here was perfect. Threading was a doddle!

I borrowed some boxes of pasta to hold the reed at the correct height for sleying. I started off with it too low but my back protested so I raised the reed and and everything was fine.

Threading is finished

Hurrah! Now for the sleying.