-
Do your selvedges have a good side and bad side?
This is a really common issue for rigid heddlers, our selvedges generally look great on the left, and bad on the right. We all have a “hack” for it, from using fishing line, doubling selvedges, making sure the selvedge threads are either in holes or slots, adding weights to the threads…etc. The list goes on! My current theory is that we have more shuttle control with our dominant hand than the non-dominant so for most, the right hand of the weaving gets wonkier than the left. Rigid heddle weavers usually use stick shuttles which require a lot of focus for selvedge management, so I can see it being more prominent with that loom type.
But, I have always been curious if this is a general weaver’s issue.
So here is an informal pole:
Have you noticed your selvedges have a tricky side?
Is this side opposite your dominant hand? (If you are right-handed does the issue come up with the left, or left-handed does it happen to your right?)
-
8 Replies
-
Yes, I have had this problem for my many years of weaving. It has obviously been a dominant vs non-dominant issue. However in one of the recent classes, Janet suggested beating on on open shed, and now my edges are pretty good. I have only woven on table and floor looms with shafts.
-
This does happen often weaving on a floor loom as well.
One “hack” that many people use is to move their bodies away from the bad side. Literally shifting the position of their bottom on the bench/seat an inch or two.
My personal theory for why this works is that you subconsciously throw the shuttle just a touch harder, because your body reconises that it is off centre.
If this IS the case, then it might not apply if you are using a stick shuttle.
-
Yes, my right side is dicier than the left. Depending on the yarn, my selvedges may be more even with closed vs open shed so I don’t accidentally pull the pick too tight.
-
I have problems with the left selvage (breaking the selvage). However, it’s gotten better with time and I think they both look pretty good now.
-
Yay!
-
-
You move away from your sketchy selvage, @Kathy ? I move towards it!
I wonder what the RH analog of moving towards or away would be? Would sitting off center make a difference?
-
I move the rigid heddle around on my lap until it gets better, but in general, the more centered the weaving is, the more luck I have, a few times I have found that just nudging it over an inch will help.
-
-
I also have had this issue and yes, it is my dominant side that seems to be a bit worse. I made some improvements on my rigid heddle weaving by always having an odd number of warp threads so that I can have both sides be in slots rather than holes. This has helped quite a bit. I use a lot of knitting yarn on my rigid heddle, which seems to have a bit more forgiveness after wet finishing also. I’ve included a picture of my current project and one that I just took off the loom.
Log in to reply.