overshot weaving technique brands

In the video, I mention learning how to weave Krokbragd. If you are interested in learning about this weaving technique, I encourage you to check out our course at the School of SweetGeorgia, Weaving Krokbragd, taught by Debby Greenlaw.

The overshot weaving project shown is woven on a 16″ Ashford Table Loom 8 shaft, The yarns used are Ashford 100% mercerised cotton in 10/2 and 5/2. (We don’t have this yarn currently listed on our site, but we’re able to order it in for you. Send us an email at: info@sweetgeorgiayarns.com!) The pattern is Overshot Sampler from the book Next Steps in Weaving by Pattie Graver

Classes are emailed to you as a downloadable pdf ebook. Just save the pdf to your computer, device or cloud storage - you have access to it forever! You can work at your own pace. Inside the ebook are links to videos. Use whatever materials you have on hand to practice the techniques.

Patterns, videos, written instructions, photos, and pdf designs are copyright. If you purchased a class and created the project, you are more than welcome to sell the piece if you wish. You made it, so be proud! However, please do not purchase my classes and share/sell the techniques or patterns via YouTube, Instagram Stories/Posts, Workshops, etc. I only ask that while you are showing off your amazing new skills, you send anyone who is interested in learning my way, instead. Thanks!

This book takes the weaver out of the traditional method of weaving overshot patterns by using different treadling techniques. This will include weaving overshot patterns as summer/winter, Italian manner, starburst, crackle, and petit point just to name a few. The basic image is maintained in each example but the design takes on a whole new look.

Step out of the weaving comfort zone and experiment with something new! Weave structures often have specific threading and treadling patterns that are unique to that particular weave structure and not shared with others. This book takes you out of the traditional method of weaving overshot patterns by using different treadling techniques. This will include weaving overshot patterns as Summer/Winter, Italian manner, starburst, crackle, and petit point just to name a few. The basic image is maintained in each example but the design takes on a whole new look! Each chapter walks you through the setup for each method and includes projects with complete drafts and instructions so it’s easy to start weaving and watch the magic happen! Try the patterns for scarves, table runners, shawls, pillows and even some upholstered pieces. Once you"ve tried a few projects, you"ll be able to apply what you"ve learned to any piece you desire!

Learn how to weave the overshot technique. Overshot is a supplementary weft weaving technique that allows you to create patterns on the surface of your tapestry that are much more detailed than you would be able to create with regular tabby weaving. In this video class I"ll show you step-by-step how you can master this weaving technique with detailed instructions and patterns. #diyweaving #weavingart #yarncrafts #helloyhydrangea

Over three years ago, when my David Louet floor loom was still somewhat new to me, I wrotethis post on overshot. If you read it, you will discover that my initial relationship with overshot was not a very positive one.

Back then, I was a little harder on myself as a learning weaver. By now, I’ve realised that weaving, just like life, is a journey that has a beginning but no end. Back then, I thought that my ultimate goal was to be a “master weaver”.

The happy ending to the initial overshot sob story is that I can weave overshot now. Quite well, in fact! And I also teach it. And I happen to love it, very, very much. Don’t you love a happy ending?

I don’t think there was any particular moment where I thought to myself “I can weave overshot now!” I didn’t even weave any overshot for quite some time after that initial attempt. But slowly it tempted me back, and we started over. It was just a matter of sticking with it, employing some specific techniques and practice, practice, practice until it feels like an old friend.

My love of overshot has only increased with my more recent discovery of American Coverlets. I loved the look of the coverlets and the history behind them before I realised that so many of them were woven in the wonderfully humble 4 shaft overshot.

I’ve put a lot of research time into coverlets this year and have made it a big weaving goal of mine to weave my first coverlet, which is quite an undertaking, but I relish the thought.

Now that I have quite a lot of experience weaving overshot, I want to share my best overshot tips with you in hope that you too will fall in love with this wonderful weave structure.

To weave overshot you need a warp yarn, a tabby yarn and a pattern weft yarn. Using the same yarn for warp and tabby works perfectly. For the pattern weft, I like to use a yarn that is twice the size of the tabby/warp yarn. I have experimented with using doubled strands of tabby/warp yarn in a contrasting colour, but it just doesn’t look as good. A thicker pattern yarn is the way to go.

What will the size of your item be? A miniature overshot pattern may get lost in a blanket, but may be perfect for a scarf. As a general rule, a good way to estimate the size of one repeat of your pattern just by looking at the draft is to see how many repeats are in one threading repeat. Also consider the thickness of your yarns and the sett you intend to weave.

Just to give you an idea, my current project is woven at 20 ends per inch with 8/2 cotton for warp and tabby and fingering weight wool for the pattern weft. The weaving draft has 50 threads in one threading repeat. My design repeats on the loom are around 2.5″ wide and just under 5″ long, which is a great size for the 30″ x 99″ throw I’m weaving.

This is a non negotiable for overshot if you want neat edges and less headaches! You get used to using floating selvedges very quickly, so don’t stress if you have no experience with them.

There are 6 treadles needed for overshot, even though you weave on 4 shafts. The two extra treadles are for the tabby weave. I always set up my pattern treadles in the centre of the loom – two on the left and two on the right. Then I set up a “left” tabby and a “right” tabby treadle. To do this on my 8 shaft loom I leave a gap between the pattern treadles and the tabby treadles so that my feet can “see” and differentiate between a pattern and tabby treadle.

I like to advance little and often. You will find your own preference or “sweet spot” for weaving, but I find that with overshot I advance a lot more frequently at a much smaller amount than I do usually.

An example of this is that I wove an overshot sampler right before Is started my main project (the throw). It was a narrow warp (around 8″) and a different overshot threading and treadling than I’m using for the project.

I personally do not use a temple. Some weavers will say they won’t weave without one. I’ve tried using a temple on many of my projects, particularly if I’m getting broken edge warp threads (signs of tension problems and too much draw in). But I will avoid using one wherever I can get away with it, and I don’t use one for weaving overshot.

I find that if I’m careful with weft tension and warping evenly, I do not get excessive draw in. It is something I’m constantly aware of while weaving and remind myself of tip 4 so that my weft picks are not pulling in at the edges.

Supplementary-weft weaving has been around for a very long time. There’s evidence of it in some of the earliest weavings from India and Egypt including in the tomb of Tutankhamun. The idea of creating a decorative fabric by weaving a simple tabby cloth simultaneously with a contrasting, superimposed pattern has shown up in cultures worldwide; Latin American brocades, Branoe or branded folk weaving from Russia, Smalandsvav in Sweden and Skillbragd in Norway inlay/overshot techniques, Sanga and Songket from Southeast Asia, Saga Nashiki from Japan, traditional Slavic weaves often used for belts, and American overshot coverlets from the 18th century all create a similar fabric structure using variations of decorative supplementary weft over a plain, tabby background. Many of these techniques even have motifs in common, despite being separated by great distance and time, most likely due to human migration. As is the tradition with many crafts, each province, prefecture, county and clan typically used a specific weaving designs to distinguish the area where it was made.

There are techniques that use a more freeform approach, like the figurative works from Peru, Mexico, and Guatemala, as well as many from India called weft-float patterns. These fabrics usually include individual figures or animals and are woven with a discontinuous supplementary weft. A distinction can be made for color changes across a row, between continuous supplementary wefts, where the pattern weft continues from selvedge to selvedge, and discontinuous supplementary wefts, where the pattern weft only travels across a portion of the row. Most discontinuous styles use different colors traveling partially across the same rows similar to tapestry weaving, to create different figures.

One night, while browsing weaving videos on Youtube, as I often do, I stumbled on the little known technique called Branoe weaving from Russia. I love the rigid heddle for it’s ease and portability and especially for the small commitment with speedy dressing that gets me weaving in a very short time. I quickly realized while watching all of Kelly Casanova’s fascinating videos on Branoe weaving that something about it was very familiar. I also love to do Fair Isle, stranded and mosaic knitting. Each is done by following a simple gridded chart and working one stitch at a time across a row to create a beautifully patterned fabric. I tried the Branoe technique from the video and ventured off into a rabbit hole that I still haven’t emerged from that resulted in a book called “Crazyshot!- Creative Overshot Weaving for the Rigid Heddle Loom," - a deep dive into combining traditional charts from various fiber arts and the Branoe/overshot styles of weaving.

Simply put the cloth is woven by alternating picks of tabby weave that match the warp in weight and color with a heavier yarn that follows a chart for a patterned relief that sits on the surface of the fabric. One of the coolest things about this method is that the fabric is entirely reversible since the pattern sits over both the front and the back. While it’s definitely a labor of love to sit and pick every other row individually, I find it very meditative and rewarding. Most forms of overshot weaving on the rigid heddle loom, where the fabric and decoration are woven together with different thicknesses of thread or yarn, usually entail a laborious preset of multiple warps and or heddle rods with string heddles mimicking a four shaft loom. Because rigid heddle looms typically only accommodate one or two heddles, additional pick-up sticks or heddle rods with string heddles are often employed. There are even some methods where three heddles are employed and used in various combinations to duplicate all four shafts. In this case the overall design is predetermined and warping through each heddle follows a very specific route based on the pattern chosen. One mistake in warping can cost you the entire outcome of the fabric.

What makes Branoe and the simple supplementary-weft techniques so exciting and accessible to anyone who can weave a plain cloth is that it uses only one heddle and one pick-up stick to create complex-looking patterns with endless variations. A multitude of patterns can be created including some which would be impossible to weave on a multi shaft loom. It’s also very easy to correct mistakes by watching each row as you weave, much like knitting, and unweaving incorrect rows before you progress.

Because fabrics made with a supplementary-weft techniques tend to be thicker and firmer than plain weaves, most are used for decorative home goods and accessories. These fabrics may not be suitable for clothing, where drape is a concern, but can be used as beautiful borders. I’m currently experimenting with weaving different weights of thread and yarn to see if I can produce a more wearable fabric. The adventure continues! More info about Crazyshot with lots of photos can be seen at: myrawood.com/crazyshot

Have you ever been intimidated by the overshot weaving technique? This book will relieve your hesitations and misconceptions of a technique that looks more complicated than it actually is.

Author Kesler-Simpsonoffers an extensive discussion of the threading, treading and tie-ups for overshot, along with different ways to create borders and manage selvedges.

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Crazyshot - creative overshot weaving - introduces anyone who uses a rigid heddle loom to a whole world of creative weaving. Using just one heddle and one pick-up stick, you"ll explore color, design, and texture, taking your weaving to the next level. Complete step-by-step instructions are included for weaving all 14 designs in this book. Also provided are how-tos for the single heddle overshot technique, reading charts for the rigid heddle loom, and finishing techniques, along with lots of tips and tricks for successful and satisfying results. Complex patterning is easier than it looks with this simple charted technique. All you need are basic rigid heddle warping and weaving skills to start your next weaving adventure!

With one heddle and one stick, Myra Wood explores the art of working with ground and pattern wefts in this creative approach to rigid-heddle weaving. Known for her for colorwork across many mediums, Myra beautifully illustrates that complex does not have to be complicated. --Liz Gipson, Author of A Weaver"s Guide to Yarn and other books for rigid-heddle weaving and the host of the Yarnworker School

Elegant patterns on a Rigid Heddle Loom are easier than you can imagine! Crazyshot - creative overshot weaving - introduces anyone who uses a rigid heddle loom to a whole world of creative weaving. Using just one heddle and one pick-up stick, you"ll explore color, design, and texture, taking your weaving to the next level. Complete step-by-step instructions are included for weaving all 14 designs in this book. Also provided are how-tos for the single heddle overshot technique, reading charts for the rigid heddle loom, and finishing techniques, along with lots of tips and tricks for successful and satisfying results. Complex patterning is easier than it looks with this simple charted technique. All you need are basic rigid heddle warping and weaving skills to start your next weaving adventure! With one heddle and one stick, Myra Wood explores the art of working with ground and pattern wefts in this creative approach to rigid-heddle weaving. Known for her for colorwork across many mediums, Myra beautifully illustrates that complex does not have to be complicated. --Liz Gipson, Author of A Weaver"s Guide to Yarn and other books for rigid-heddle weaving and the host of the Yarnworker School

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The School of Weaving (formerly called JST Online Guild) launched in January 2017 as a response to weavers wanting to come to Salt Spring Island to study in our studio. Our wait lists were getting longer and longer each year, so Jane decided to try a different approach. This was to take the beginners workshop she offered, flesh it out with more wonderful content and offer it by way of streaming on the great inter web. The immediate response spurred her on. She decided to take every one of her workshops, expand them in greater detail and now we have over 280+ videos available online.

The first year goes over all the fundamentals of weaving. Warping, various methods of dressing the loom, great weaving technique, project planning, understanding sett, information about different types of looms and yarns, weaving with difficult yarns like mohair, fulling and finishing.

Season 6 we explore Units, Blocks and Profiles with Monk’s Belt, Overshot, Name Drafting Overshot, Crackle Weave, M’s & O’s and Summer and Winter. We’ll add new designs ideas to these weave structures for modern new look. Very exciting and for our 8 shaft weavers, we’ll continue on from Season 5’s Turned Twill and study Blocks & Tie-up Quadrants plus Block Analysis for +4 shafts.

The School of Weaving also has its own forum. This allows members to share ideas, their projects and to ask questions, all monitored by the wonderful staff at JST. Weavers around the world are creating their own supportive community centered on the lessons in the School of Weaving.

Season 7 builds on all previous years with special emphasis on the Colour and Weave gamp we did in Season 2 Episode 4. We take those colour and weave sequences and overlay them onto units and blocks for Overshot, Crackle, Halvdrall, Turned Taquette, Summer & Winter, M’s & O’s and Monk’s Belt. We also start the season with one more 8-shaft Turned Twill with colour & weave.

Overshot with Colour & WeaveOvershot is so near and dear to my heart and I wanted to do something very special with this episode. Many of you may know the book “Weaving Designs by Bertha Gray Hayes – Miniature Overshot Patterns”. I have long admired her use of asymmetry in Overshot, and her love of name drafting so I thought I should look to her for a place to start. Leafing through the pages I came across a pattern called Peace -1945. It stopped me in my tracks, not because of the pattern but because of the words. I instantly knew I had my starting place and all I had to do was my colour and weave overlay. I’m so glad I did. The exploration has been amazing.

Monk’s BeltThe first weave structure we explore in Units, Blocks & Profiles this season is Monk’s Belt which uses 2 opposite twill units. We’ll learn how to lengthen the pattern floats and how your warp’s EPI controls the number of times a unit can be repeated. We’ll explore division of space in the weft by playing with block combinations, weaving Monk’s Belt with and without tabby and exploring the addition of inlay in our cloth.

OvershotThere is so much to explore with Overshot that we’re giving this structure 2 episodes. In this first episode we learn how the structure is derived from the 4 basic twill units and we’ll see how twills influence Overshot shapes. We’ll learn to treadle Tromp as Writ, Rose Fashion and on opposites. We’ll use contemporary graphics to bring the old and new together while adding Plain Weave elements to our overall designs.

Name Drafting OvershotOur second Overshot episode is Name Drafting. We’ll learn how we can assign the letters of the alphabet to the harnesses on our looms and spell words that have special meaning to us. It is a conceptual approach to Overshot design that allows the weaver to personalize their work. It is also a fascinating way to learn about overshot, its rules, its shaping and to just let go and see what serendipity can bring to our looms.

Season 1 goes over all the fundamentals of weaving. Warping, dressing the loom, weaving technique, project planning, understanding sett as well as different types of looms and yarns along with how to weave with difficult yarns like mohair.

Jane Stafford School of Weaving is similar to any Weaving Guild. You pay your yearly membership ‘dues’ and this gives you access to a library of videos and PDF workbooks created by Jane Stafford. When you pay your subscription you get all the videos that are presently online and you also get a new lesson release every 5 weeks for the remainder of your subscription.

Year 1 are the Weaving Foundation Videos: Making a Good Warp, Dressing a Loom, learning about yarns and sett, etc. Year 2 is our comprehensive Colour & Design Workshop where you learn basic design and colour theory, Year 3 is the full workshop Pushing the Boundaries of Plain Weave and Year 4 is Twills on 4 Shafts, Year 5 all about Laces and Year 6 we study Units, Blocks & Profiles. Season 7 builds on all previous years with special emphasis on the Colour and Weave gamp we did in Season 2 Episode 4. Up to 3 hours of new videos released every five weeks.

Our videos are downloadable for a short period of time using our branded app only. You can also stream them over and over on your browser for as long as you are a member of the School of Weaving.

Year 1 lessons are all foundational videos on how to make a good warp, dress a loom, how to calculate EPI, sett charts, project planning, how to weave a Mohair Blankie, finishing techniques and information on looms & yarns. We finish the year with the Mohair Blankie project that you can weave and you’ll be able to download the pattern.

We have the School of Weaving Forum is where you will find answers to questions related to the episodes and you’ll also be able to post as a member of the School of Weaving. We also have an extensive Knowledge Base on our website that is available for viewing.

So delighted to find Jane’s online Guild. I have learned more in the past few months than in several years of weaving off and on. The lessons on sett are truly invaluable. Her no fuss attitude and her insatiable curiousity is a winning combination for me. I find jewels scattered in each lesson. Thank you Jane.

Fantastic! Jane is so much fun to listen to and she is very informative. A year"s membership is a fraction of what I have paid for in-person weaving classes and I"ve learned so much more - in just the first few lessons. I like that I can go at my own pace.

Worth every penny! Jane is a wonderful teacher and takes you through a progression of projects that will help you grow in confidence and technique. Best money I have spent on weaving lessons.

This post is the third in a series introducing you to common weaving structures. We’ve already looked at plain weave and twill, and this time we’re going to dive into the magic of overshot weaves—a structure that’s very fun to make and creates exciting graphic patterns.

Overshot is a term commonly used to refer to a twill-based type of weaving structure. Perhaps more correctly termed "floatwork" (more on that later), these textiles have a distinctive construction made up of both a plain weave and pattern layer. Requiring two shuttles and at least four shafts, overshot textiles are built using two passes: one weaves a tabby layer and the other weaves a pattern layer, which overshoots or floats, above.

Readers in the United States and Canada may be familiar with overshot textiles through woven coverlets made by early Scottish and English settlers. Using this relatively simple technique, a local professional weaver with a four-shaft loom could easily make a near-infinite variety of equally beautiful and complex patterns. If you’d like to learn more about overshot coverlets and some of the traditions that settlers brought with them, please see my reading list at the bottom of this article!

As it is twill-based, overshot will be very familiar to 4 shaft weavers. It’s made up of a sequence of 2-thread repeats: 1-2, 2-3, 3-4, and 1-4. These sequences can be repeated any number of times to elongate and create lines, curves, and shapes. These 2-thread repeats are often referred to as blocks or threading repeats, IE: 1-2 = block 1/A, 2-3 = block 2/B.

There are three ways weft appears on the face of an overshot cloth: as a solid, half-tone, or blank. In the draft image I’ve shared here, you can see an example of each—the solid is in circled in blue, the half-tone in red, and the blank yellow. Pressing down the first treadle (shafts 1 and 2), for example, creates solid tones everywhere there are threads on shafts 1 and 2, half-tones where there is a 1 or 2 paired with 3 or 4, and nothing on the opposite block, shafts 3 and 4. Of course, there’s not really nothing—the thread is simply traveling on the back of the cloth, creating a reverse of what’s on the face.

Because overshot sequences are always made up of alternating shafts, plain weave can be woven by tying two treadles to lift or lower shafts 1-3 and 2-4. When I weave two-shuttle weaves like overshot, I generally put my tabby treadles to the right and treadle my pattern picks with my left foot and my tabby with my right. In the draft image I’ve shared above, I’ve omitted the tabby picks to make the overarching pattern clearer and easier to read. Below is a draft image that includes the tabby picks to show the structure of the fabric.

Traditional overshot coverlets used cotton or linen for warp and plain weave wefts, and wool pattern wefts—but there’s no rule saying you have to stick to that! In the two overshot patterns I’ve written for Gist, I used both Mallo and Beam as my pattern wefts.

In the Tidal Towels, a very simple overshot threading creates an undulating wave motif across the project. It’s easy and repetitive to thread, and since the overshot section is relatively short, it’s an easy way to get a feel for the technique.

The Bloom Table Squares are designed to introduce you to a slightly more complex threading—but in a short, easy-to-read motif. When I was a new weaver, one of the most challenging things was reading and keeping track of overshot threading and treadling—but I’ve tried to make it easy to practice through this narrow and quick project.

Overshot works best with a pattern weft that 2-4 times larger than your plain weave ground, but I haven’t always followed that rule, and I encourage you to sample and test your own wefts to see how they look! In the samples I wove for this article, I used 8/2 Un-Mercerized Cotton weaving yarn in Beige for my plain weave, and Duet in Rust, Mallo in Brick, and Beam in Blush for my pattern wefts.

The Bloom Table Squares are an excellent example of what weavers usually mean when they talk about traditional overshot or colonial overshot, but I prefer to use the term "floatwork" when talking about overshot. I learned this from the fantastic weaver and textile historian Deborah Livingston-Lowe of Upper Canada Weaving. Having researched the technique thoroughly for her MA thesis, Deborah found that the term "overshot" originated sometime in the 1930s and that historical records variably called these weaves "single coverlets’ or ‘shotover designs.’ Deborah settled on the term "floatwork" to speak about these textiles since it provides a more accurate description of what’s happening in the cloth, and it’s one that I’ve since adopted.

This book contains the collected drafts and work of Frances L. Goodrich, whose interest in coverlets was sparked when a neighbor gifted her one in the 1890s. Full of charming hand-painted drafts, this book offers a glimpse into North Carolina’s weaving traditions.

Amanda Ratajis an artist and weaver living and working in Hamilton, Ontario. She studied at the Ontario College of Art and Design University and has developed her contemporary craft practice through research-based projects, artist residencies, professional exhibitions, and lectures. Subscribe to herstudio newsletteror follow her onInstagramto learn about new weaving patterns, exhibitions, projects, and more.

Book DescriptionPaperback. Condition: new. Paperback. 38 Projects to Practice Your SkillsOvershot is perhaps the most iconic weaving technique--think antique coverlets and fancy table runners--yet many weavers are intimidated by its complex-looking structure. But it doesn"t have to be difficult! In this book, Susan Kesler-Simpson makes overshot approachable by breaking it down piece by piece so that the weaver understands how it works, and then she puts it all back together so that weavers will have the confidence to make their own overshot patterns or to try any of the 38 overshot projects she has designed for the book. "Susan"s explanations are to the point and easy to understand. When you read through the chapters, it"s as if Susan is sitting there with you, telling you in a friendly voice how to weave overshot step by step." - excerpt from the Foreword by Tom Knisely Overshot is perhaps the most iconic weaving technique yet many weavers are intimidated by it. But it doesn"t have to be difficult! Susan Kesler-Simpson makes overshot approachable by breaking it down and then putting it all back together so that weavers will have the confidence to try any of the 38 overshot projects in the book. Shipping may be from multiple locations in the US or from the UK, depending on stock availability. Seller Inventory # 9780811716789