Satins and Damasks – and Convergence® 2018!
Marcy Petrini
July, 2017
Before we go back to thinking about satins and damasks, I would like to report some exciting news: I have been accepted to present at Convergence® 2018 in Reno, Nevada. Here are the classes:
|
Class Title |
Hours |
Class Type |
|
A Pictionary of Weaving Structures |
3 |
3-Hour Seminar |
|
A Weaving Year of Wonder (4 Shafts) |
6 |
1-Day Workshop |
|
There is Nothing Plain about Plain Weave |
3 |
3-Hour Seminar |
|
Your Fabric is Not Always a Painting |
1.5 |
90-Minute Seminar |
I hope my classes will be well attended and I hope to see you next July 6 – 18, 2018 in Reno.
In the June blog, we saw a scarf that has blocks of sateen and satins on both sides of the fabric. When blocks of satin are combined, the resulting fabric is called a damask; each block can be woven either warp or weft dominant. Another example is below.
Similarly, on 8-shafts, we can weave two blocks of false satin, or a false damask.
There is one issue we need to consider when combining blocks in either satins or false-satins: floats where the blocks join.
Let’s think of how these flats are formed. In the 5-shaft satin drawdown in the June blog, we used the step to arrive at the threading; then we tied the loom in a straight draw, one shaft at a time, for the weft-dominant, or sateen side:
And then we treadled in order. As we saw, the resulting floats are 4-thread long.
It makes sense that to obtain the warp-dominant, or satin side, we could tie all of the shafts minus one, the “minus one” in the same order as for the sateen side; that is, for the sateen side, our first treadle is 1; for the satin side the first treadle is tied to everything but 1. Below is what we used for the draft in the June blog:
In combining the blocks and weaving them either warp or weft dominant, we can use that approach; each block is at least 5 shafts; the same step can be used for each block. Below is the drawdown, showing block A in pink, with three repeat of the step-2 satin. Block B is in green, same step, also with three repeats, using shafts 6 through 10.
Then we use the tie-up for the satin and sateen as we discussed above, but for each block, so that when one block weaves satin, the other weaves sateen and vice versa.
And finally we treadle each block, repeating the sequence as many times as we wish.
Click here for the full-sized draft (a PDF will open in a new window).
If we look closely at adjacent blocks, both horizontally and vertically, we see that our “rule” of a 4-thread float is broken: there are several places where the warp or weft floats are 5-thread long. While this may not be an issue in terms of float length – a 5-thread float may be fine for the intended use of the fabric – it is a disruption of the satin structure.
What we can do to return the 5-shaft satin blocks to 4-thread floats it to rearrange the tie-up. What I like to do is keep the sateen tie-up as a straight draw, but change the satin tie-up so that the “minus one” shaft is shifted by one treadle, as shown in the tie-up below:
When we apply this tie-up to the threading and treadling of the previous example, all the floats are never longer than 4 threads as can be seen in the following drawdown. This is why published drafts of satins and damasks may have an offset tie-up, sometimes shown in the treadling or in the lift plan.
The drawdown below also shows that we can weave both blocks as sateen and both blocks as satin, but we can quickly run out of treadles.
Click here for the full-sized draft (a PDF will open in a new window).
Similarly, we can derive the tie-up for false damask, using blocks of 3/1 broken twill. Below is the drawdown with two blocks and all the treadling possibilities.
Click here for the full-sized draft (a PDF will open in a new window).
As I mentioned before, these fabrics are denser: for any given yarn, the warp must be set more closely to obtain an appropriate warp-dominant side; and the beat must be higher to obtain an appropriate weft-dominant side. If your fabric is too heavy, try using yarns of smaller grist. The long floats provide lots of drape which can be accentuated by using slick yarns like the traditional silk, but also the newer fibers like Tencel® and bamboo. The shawl shown above was woven using 10/2 Tencel® from Convergence® 2014 and it has a nice drape, despite the fact that the yarn is not particularly thin.
Happy exploring satins and damasks!
Please email comments and questions to
Satins and Sateens (Part 2)
Marcy Petrini
June, 2017
Last month we talked about how to obtain steps to derive the threading for a satin; while we call satin the warp-dominant side of the cloth, and sateen the weft-dominant side on the other face of the fabric, the term satin is generally used to describe this structure.
In the May blog we also applied the rules to a 5-shaft straight draw, which gave us possible steps of 2 and 3, and we saw why it is not possible to have a true satin on 6-shafts. But, with an 8-shaft loom, it is possible to weave 7-shaft and 8-shaft satins. Here is how:
|
Rules |
Example for 7-shaft satin |
Example for 8-shaft satin |
|
Start with a straight draw for n number of shafts, with n at least 5 |
1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7 |
1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8 |
|
Do not use a step number of n because it wouldn’t allow any threading |
Step cannot be 7 |
Step cannot be 8 |
|
Do not use a step number of 1 or (n - 1) since it wouldn’t change the straight draw |
Step cannot be 1 or 6 |
Step cannot be 1 or 7 |
|
The step number cannot have a common factor (mathematically) with n |
2, 3, 4, and 5 do not have a common factor with 7 |
2, 4, 6 are or have common factors with 8 |
|
The remaining integers can be used as steps |
Step of 2, 3, 4, and 5 are possible steps |
Step of 3 and 5 are possible steps |
Compare the drawdowns below of a 5-shaft satin (blue warp, green weft), also shown in last month blog, with the 8-shaft satin (red warp, gold weft), both with a step of 3; the sateen side is first, followed by the satin side:
Click here for the full-sized draft (a PDF will open in a new window).
Click here for the full-sized draft (a PDF will open in a new window).
The floats on a satin are always one thread less than the number of shafts used; thus, a 5-shaft satin has floats that are 4-thread long while an 8-shaft satin has floats that are 7-thread long. Whether the floats are too long depends on the sett, which in turn is related to the size of the thread, but generally it means that thin threads are best; in order to have the two sides show more of the weft or of the warp, we set the warp more closely than we may for a balanced twill. For example for a silk blend with a plain weave sett of 60 epi, the calculated setts for a balanced will, a 5-shaft satin and an 8-shaft satin are 80, 86 and 96 epi respectively.
It is possible to weave a satin by threading a straight draw and obtaining the treadling by applying the step to the tie-up. Here is a comparison of two 5-shaft satins (sateen side), using a step of 2; the black warp is identical to the one we saw last month, the pink warp is threaded as a straight draw, with the steps shown in the tie up. When a straight draw is treadled as a straight draw, a 1 / 4 straight twill appear; when a satin threading is treadled as a satin, a 1 / 4 straight twill also appears.
Click here for the full-sized draft (a PDF will open in a new window).
You can see that the structures of the two satins are the same. So, apply the step to the threading or to the tie-up / treadling depending on your preference.
In the last blog we also said that a satin is not possible on four shafts. Applying the same step rules to 4 shafts, we see why we need at least 5 shafts to weave a satin:
|
Rules |
No 4-shaft satin |
|
Start with a straight draw for n number of shafts |
1, 2, 3, 4 |
|
Do not use a step number of n because it wouldn’t allow any threading |
Step cannot be 4 |
|
Do not use a step number of 1 or (n - 1) since it wouldn’t change the straight draw |
Step cannot be 1 or 3 |
|
The step number cannot have a common factor (mathematically) with n |
2 is a factor of 4 |
|
The remaining integers can be used as steps |
No possible steps left! |
However, with 4 shafts we can weave a false satin, a 1/3 broken twill. As in the satin, we usually weave the weft-dominant side up; also as in a satin, we can break the twill either in the threading or in the treadling. Compare the drawdown of the 1/3 broken twills with the 5-shaft satins of the previous drawdown. On 4 shafts, more warp shows on the weft-dominant side and more weft shows on the warp-dominant side; but the effect is similar. The 4-shaft 1/3 broken twill has also the advantage of having shorter floats, 3, rather than 4 in the 5-shaft satin.
Click here for the full-sized draft (a PDF will open in a new window).
And here are the fabrics; the weft-dominant and the warp-dominant sides of the 1/3 broken twill:
The top of the scarf below, shown on the left, is weft-dominant, but there are also warp-dominant satin blocks; conversely, the right side, the bottom, is warp-dominant but with weft-dominant sateen blocks. When we combine satin blocks in this way we obtain damask; similarly, combining false satin blocks produces false damask. That will be the topic of my next blog.
Please email comments and questions to
Satins and Sateens (Part I)
Marcy Petrini
May, 2017
In the current issue of Shuttle Spindle & Dyepot (Issue 190 Summer 2017), Penny Morgan in her President’s letter showed a beautiful fabric and briefly mentioned satin and sateen.
The question came up: how do you weave a satin? And how do you weave a sateen?
A satin is an unbalanced weave: one side is weft-dominant, sometimes referred to as the “sateen” side (left fabric below), the other side is warp-dominant, referred to as the “satin” side (right side below). Of course, once off the loom, this distinction doesn’t matter; by looking at the fabric below, there is no way of telling which side was up on the loom. But generally, for ease of treadling, we often lift the fewer shafts possible, thus weaving the sateen side up.
From the fabric, we can see that the floats are not organized; they are interrupted or stitched down intermittently by a single warp thread; we start with a straight draw and stitch it by a step. There are a rules on how to obtain possible steps.
We need at least 5 shafts to weave a satin, for reasons that become clear when we look at the rules for the steps. And not all straight draws above 5 can be woven as satins; 6, for example, can’t. Here is why:
|
Rules |
Example for 5-shaft satin |
No 6-shaft satin |
|
Start with a straight draw for n number of shafts, with n at least 5 |
1, 2, 3, 4, 5 |
1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6 |
|
Do not use a step number of n because it wouldn’t allow any threading |
Step cannot be 5 |
Step cannot be 6 |
|
Do not use a step number of 1 or (n - 1) since it wouldn’t change the straight draw |
Step cannot be 1 or 4 |
Step cannot be 1 or 5 |
|
The step number cannot have a common factor (mathematically) with n |
2 and 3 do not have a common factor with 5 |
2, 3 and 4 are factors of 6 |
|
The remaining integers can be used as steps |
Step of 2 or 3 are possible |
There are no step left! |
Here is how we apply the steps, using as an example the 5-shaft satin and the two possible steps:
|
Step of 2 |
Step of 3 |
|
1 |
1 |
|
1 + 2 = 3 |
1 + 3 = 4 |
|
3 + 2 = 5 |
4 + 3 = 7 – 5 = 2 |
|
5 + 2 = 7 – 5 = 2 |
2 + 3 = 5 |
|
2 + 2 = 4 |
5 + 3 = 8 – 5 = 3 |
|
4 + 2 = 6 – 5 = 1, the starting point |
3 + 3 = 6 – 5 = 1, the starting point |
|
Threading: 1, 3, 5, 2, 4, repeat |
Threading: 1, 4, 2, 5, 3, repeat |
It doesn’t matter which step we use, the fabrics are very similar, as shown in the following drawdown, black warp is a step of 2, blue warp a step of 3; the first half of the treadling produces the sateen side, the second half the satin side.
Click here for the full-sized draft draft for this 5 shaft satin (a PDF will open in a new window).
Are steps for 7 and 8 shaft satins possible? Yes! Do you see why? And do you see why we cannot have a 4-shaft satin? It is also possible to thread a straight draw and apply the step to the treadling. How does that fabric differ?
Next blog will address the answers to these questions and more.
Please email comments and questions to
The Finished Plaited Twill Shawl
Marcy Petrini
April, 2017
In the September 2016 blog I posted the draft of a 40-shaft plaited twill which I had hoped to weave. Eventually I did. I finished it a few weeks back and now Terry has taken some pictures. I really like the shawl.
For warp I used sea silk, 70% silk, 30% seacell (437 yards = 3.5 oz.), color Sangria, space-dyed reds, with stripes of the color Violetta, solid red. I set it a bit openly, 12 epi so that the larger weft, 2/5 Gemstone silk (260 yards = 3.5 oz.) in color Rose Gold allows the pattern to show well.
Here is a photo of the shawl. You can see that the plaiting, sometimes called braiding, is asymmetrical and I like that.
a close up:
Then I wondered whether I really needed such a difference in the grist of the warp and weft for the pattern to show. So, I decided to weave it with a smaller weft.
I didn’t have enough of the sea silk for another shawl, but I had enough of the Violetta for a scarf. This time I set it at 18 epi and used 8/2 silk in gold from my stash (416 yards = 3.5 oz.). That warp is still on the loom, and the pattern does show… stay tuned, a comparison is coming up.
Please email comments and questions to
Record Keeping
Marcy Petrini
January, 2017
Happy New Year! It always seems that it takes a bit of time to get back on track after the holidays, especially since I don’t think of the season being over until after Roc Day. In my native Italy, as a child, Epiphany concluded the holidays, so I am grateful that in the Gulf Coast states we celebrate Roc Day, which technically is January 7, the day after Epiphany, when allegedly women returned to their fiber crafts. After Roc Day, I can get back to “normal.”
We usually celebrate Roc Day the first Saturday of January after the New Year weekend, but this year we were lucky that the first Saturday was indeed on January 7th. What we weren’t so lucky about was the weather – snow, yes, snow, in Mississippi and heavy rain, some places freezing, in Mississippi and Louisiana, prevented some from attending the fun. But the Spinners and Weavers of Imperial Calcasieu Guild of Lake Charles, LA, organized a wonderful day at Dry Creek Baptist Camp, Dry Creek, LA, in a remote and peaceful setting.
Now I am back to the big project that I started a year and an half ago: cataloging all of my work, pieces and samples. It seems wasteful of time, but I find it very helpful for my teaching, writing, and for recalling yarns, setts, beats and any problems I may have encountered in the past.
I use this spreadsheet or a modification of it, depending on what I am weaving, for every piece that I make:
The spreadsheet for planning a weaving project (click on this link to download the Excel spreadsheet)
n.b. This file will launch a new window or tab, prompting action on your part.
In Microsoft's Edge, a box will open.
In Mozilla's Firefox, a new window will open.
In Google's Chrome, a tab will appear at the bottom of the browser.
When teaching, we often don’t have access to a computer, so we use a printed form and then we do the calculations by hand:
The form for manually planning a weaving project (a PDF will open in a new window).
In addition to the information in the spreadsheet, I add a drawdown if the structure warrants it. At the end, I add a snapshot of the piece. I print everything and I attach yarns. The reason for printing is that photographing the yarns is not enough, I really need to see them and feel them. Also, should something happen to the computer, at least I would have a printed copy, even though files are backed up electronically daily.
Once all that is done, I add the piece to a database that includes an access number, title, how it was woven, warp and weft yarns and their colors, piece location and any notes that I may want to remember. The few pieces that I have given away don’t appear there, I have a separate listing. This seems laborious, but it’s not, it takes just a few minutes.
The spreadsheet makes it easy to search; for example, if I want to know in which pieces I used 20/2 silk and how I set it for a variety of structures.
The access number was a brain child of my husband, who was frustrated when he had to wait around to photograph pieces, as I fumbled searching for them and then realizing that what I had given him wasn’t what I thought it was. After forty years of weaving, well, there are a lot of pieces named “red silk shawl”.
This is the access number of a scarf I finished this fall:
WV 20160405 20161010 Deflected Doubleweave Scarf
The WV indicates weaving, since I also catalog spinning and knitting; 20160405 is the starting date – year, month, day – meaning when I started planning it, not weaving it. The 20161010 is the ending date, which is the day when the wet finishing was done, snapshots were taken, the spreadsheet was printed, and the piece was entered in the database. The last part of the access is obviously the name.
Here is the front and back of the fabric – these are not my snapshots, they are Terry’s photography.
I have used some form of record keeping, since I started weaving, a suggestion made by my first weaving instructor. So, once I started the database, it was easy enough to go backwards to enter all of the pieces I still have. Or so I thought.
Sometimes in the early 2000 I started using electronic planning sheets, but not rigorously until 2004. Thus it was easy to build the database going backwards, until about 2004. Further back I had to rely on planning sheets filled by hand – which would have been fine, except I realized what an incredible poor record keeper I had been! I am back to the 1990s, and I have yet to find a single complete planning sheet. Dates are missing, yarns are attached but not labelled, and notes are legible but incomprehensible. There are some pieces that I really want to find because they are illustrative and educational, and this has been a very frustrating, long and maddening chore.
My suggestion is: use a planning sheet of some kind, either the one attached or one of your own making; keep careful notes because years down the road, you won’t remember that yarn, you won’t know the sett, and you will have forgotten what your impression of the work was at the time. Did you like it? What would you do differently if you were to repeat it? There is nothing like personal experience and a good way to recall it.
Please email comments and questions to