Put the Treadle to the Metal: 4 Shaft 14 Treadle Draft
Sometimes we do something not because it is a good idea, but rather because we can do it.
On a four (4) shaft loom there are a total of sixteen (16) treadle combinations. Two of these, all up and all down are not at all practical. This leaves us with fourteen (14) combinations. What follows is a draft threaded for a simple lozenge, but which uses all 14 of the treadle combinations. I think this design would work best on a table loom. Another option would be one where you’ve set a treadle for each shaft and then pressing down on multiple treadles (up to 3). Of course, you could also weave it on a loom with fourteen treadles.
4 shafts and 14 treadles!
One aspect of this that I find very interesting is that as the warp threads are raised and lowered it creates “ridges” in the pattern. You can see this in the draft where a band of the warp (blue) is raised over the weft. In this section it is warp faced. In the “yellow” section, the warp is lowered and as a result the weft is more prevalent. This can be seen in the sampler — it actually forms ridges as it changes between the facings.
Note how the pattern forms ridges based on whether the warp is raised or lowered.
I don’t know how practical this design would be — it is an interesting experiment and I could see it used for a scarf or table runner. However, I think it’s a good way to learn about how the raising and lowering of the warp changes the facing of the cloth.
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