Mastering Weave Structures: Transforming Ideas into Great Cloth [Hardcover]

Sharon Alderman (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: April 1, 2004

This exploration into the structure of various weaves provides an understanding of how each weave works, guiding weavers to design and weave their own beautiful fabrics. The underlying principles that govern a particular kind of structure are explained, as are modifying the basic draft and choosing fibers and yarns. Comprehensive and detailed, the book covers plain weave, twills, satin, waffle weaves, distortions of the grid, three-element weaves, loom-controlled double weave, Bedford cords and piques, loom-controlled pile weaves, and crepe weaves.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"It will appeal to weavers wanting to increase their knowledge of textiles, structures, and cloth function." -- Shuttle, Spindle & Dyepot

"The sheer brilliance of the photographs is enough to keep you wandering through the pages, cover to cover... a treasure!" -- Treadles, the newsletter of the Handweavers & Spinners Guild of Victoria Inc.

About the Author

Sharon Alderman lectures, acts as a juror, and leads workshops for guilds, art centers, colleges, and at national conferences in the United States, Canada, and the United Kingdom. Her writing and work have appeared in Shuttle, Spindle & Dyepot, Textile Artist's Newsletter, Weavers, and Handwoven magazine. She is the author of Handwoven, Tailormade and A Handweaver’s Notebook. She lives in Salt Lake City, Utah.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 264 pages
• Publisher: Interweave Press (April 1, 2004)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1931499322
• ISBN-13: 978-1931499323
• Product Dimensions: 10.1 x 9.4 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.9 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (16 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,248,361 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Discover books, learn about writers, read author blogs, and more.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

52 of 52 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A great technical resource for your weaving library, June 27, 2004

By A Customer

This review is from: Mastering Weave Structures: Transforming Ideas into Great Cloth (Hardcover)

I have been weaving for about 2 years and found this book to be very helpful. It answers many technical questions I've had about various weave structures. The author discusses the structure, provides simple examples that then become building blocks for more complicated examples. She then provides beautiful examples of her work along with the structure explanations. The explanations are advanced in a logical order easy to follow and she often provides information on why certain fibers are good choices for a particular structure and what happens when less desirable fibers are chosen. This book is well thought out and very logically presented. In my view, this is a great book that will provide useful information to even the most advanced weaver.

16 of 16 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent book, essential for really understanding weaves, August 16, 2007

By 

Oxoned (Midwest United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Mastering Weave Structures: Transforming Ideas into Great Cloth (Hardcover)

I was very impressed by this book. I just picked it up a few days ago, and already have a much better understanding of what in a weave structure makes stable cloth, what to expect from different weaves in terms of draping and breathe-ability, working with Z and S-spun yarns, and even a bit about what to expect from different fibers (although this is not the focus of the book.) The construction of this book is also excellent--it's a heavy, hardbound book with coated paper and clear, well-shot photography. I'm excited to have this in my weaving library and highly recommend it.

14 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great for your reference library, April 4, 2007

By 

C. Reed "Spinning Teacher" (Richland, WA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Mastering Weave Structures: Transforming Ideas into Great Cloth (Hardcover)

Alderman is one of those rare combinations of artist AND teacher. The photographs grab you first. The charts are clear. The explanations are detailed enough for beginners. The various weave structures are charted for 2-, 3-, 4- 6-, 8-, and more-harnesses, as each structure may allow. Those new to weaving might find the directions less intimidating if they read the first two chapters before skimming the later chapters; the explanations will make more sense. This is a good boost to your creativity as well as a source to better understand weave structures.