The magic of weaving

Jack Smellie continues to explore the journey from raw fibre to rustic rug

- Jack Smellie

In LBS (Life Before Smallholding), we were keen walkers, climbers and mountaineers. Many a day in the hills would see us engaging with the sheep, goats, llamas etc which we met on our travels. In Monglia we sat on the shores of Lake Khuvsgul Nuur (incidentally holding 70% of the country’s fresh water), when we felt the presence of other ‘beings’ from behind. We turned to see the magnificent sight of a herd of yak approaching to enjoy their midday drink. Yak hair can be as soft as cashmere, it needs a fair bit of twist to get it to hold, but David collected enough to make himself a yak bracelet which he proudly wore for years (and which he still has). Closer to home, we’d collect wool from fences and hedgerows and tease and spin it around twigs as we walked in the Peaks, Lakes and mountain ranges of the UK.

Many years later, we now find ourselves sitting in front of our Louet Spring and Glimakra Ideal floor looms, planning the next rug designs with another set of amazing fleeces.

To say that both David and I adore weaving is not an exaggeration. Every part of the process is a joy: from counting out the warp threads to sleighing the reed (love being able to say that…), to gently pushing the shuttle backwards and forwards, seeing the patterns and textures grow and take shape.

Before weaving comes spinning, and it’s at this point I should confess that neither of us are ‘technical’ spinners. We may understand the principles of woollen and worsted, longdraw and short-draw, staple length, z-twist and more.. but when we spin, we just spin. Without sounding too ‘ethereal’ about it, we get a feel for the fibre, we start pedalling (or turn on the e-spinner) and off we go. The resulting yarn is uneven, fluffy, thick and ‘rustic’.

DIFFERENCES IN ALPACA AND SHEEP