Designing and Drafting for Handweavers: Basic Principles of Cloth Construction

This is an essential reference book for every weaver.

'This book is not concerned with the general mechanics of the loom - it presupposes a knowledge of dressing and gating a loom. It is for those weavers who know how to manage the action of their looms and who wish to make those looms do their bidding in producing the fabrics which their imaginations

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envision.' - lifted directly from the Introduction, because I could not have put it better myself.
Because this is a technical book, I felt a review was less valuable than a detailed list of what was held within the pages. That is what I would have wanted to know. With this in mind I have listed all the chapters of the book, along with my own descriptions for those unfamiliar with some of the weaving terms.

Cloth Diagrams (i.e. Short blueprint of the finished cloth)
Cloth Analysis (i.e. Cloth diagram together with its written directions 'draft')
Tabby and its Variations (a.k.a. Taffeta, plain weave)
Twills and their variations (diagonal lines)
Theory of Blocks
M's and O's (a form of twill with many more variations)
Spot Bronson (a.k.a. Diaper. For looms with more than four harnesses)
Lace Bronson (a.k.a. Lace Weave, Open Weave, Swedish Lace, Curtain Weave, Mosquito Net)
Summer-and-Winter Weave (Weave from the time of the American Revolution, done on four-harness)
Crackle Weave (American name for the Swedish Jämtlandsväv)
Colonial Overshot (Scandinavian weave well suited to Counterbalanced looms)
Two Themes with Variations

I feel this is a very good book to have if you are a weaver. If I had to only keep 5 books on the subject, this would be in my top five.

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