Scandinavian Weavers Study Group

Tag: skillbragd

  • Weaving Journeys (Part One)

    Weaving Journeys (Part One)

    Weaving is a universal language with a thousand different dialects. Many of the Scandinavian Weavers group are ardent travelers, roaming far and wide to learn more about global textile traditions. These are some of their stories.

    Nancy Ebner is a true globe-trotter—and wherever she travels, she always takes time to take classes in local weaving traditions. Here, she learns Diné-inspired tapestry on a portable loom in Canyon de Chelly, Arizona.

    Nancy’s finished tapestry. Photo by Nancy Ebner.

    In a previous trip to Santa Fe, New Mexico, Nancy wove on a 2-harness, Rio Grande loom. “Rio Grande looms are also called “Walking Looms” because you stand at the loom, instead of sitting at the loom and step on the treadles to work the harnesses,” Nancy explained in a blog post. “They are counterbalance in nature, so they generate an excellent weaving shed.”

    Nancy turned her Rio Grande weavings into pillows. Photo by Lisa-Anne Bauch.

    These were just a few of the SIXTEEN pieces Nancy wove and/or finished between April and August of this year. (We’re pretty sure this is a group record!) She shared them at a fall Scandinavian Weavers meeting.

    Nancy surrounded by her sixteen weavings! Photo by Lisa Bauch.

    Nancy’s recent travels include a class in rep weave at Vävstuga Weaving School in Massachusetts, where she wove the rug below. (See link below) Which side do you prefer?

    Photo by Lisa Bauch
    Photo by Lisa Bauch

    Nancy also studied Norwegian billedvev (tapestry) with Laura Berlage. Below is her rendition of the traditional Wise Virgin motif.

    Photo by Nancy Ebner

    Nancy cleverly used her samples from a Swedish weaving workshop to make pin cushions. They are displayed here on a weaving she did in Norwegian flesberg technique.

    Photo by Nancy Ebner.

    Finally, a photo from a trip Nancy led to Peru, through The Andean Alliance for Sustainable Development.

    Quechua weavers. Photo by Nancy Ebner.

    “I enjoy the weaving itself,” Nancy says of her travels, “and the connection it creates to people of other countries, backgrounds and cultures.”

    Below, a cultural exchange. Nancy’s tapestry atop a Norwegian skillbragd she wove during a Scandinavian Weavers group warp. (See Skillbragd post.)

    Photo by Lisa-Anne Bauch.

    Meanwhile, Judy Larson attended the Väv2025 weaving conference in Gävle, Sweden. While there, she visited the Dalarnas Museum in Falun and took these photos of a knitting exhibit.

    Photo by Judy Larson.
    Photo by Judy Larson.

    Following the conference, Judy traveled to Vävstugan (The Weaving House ) in Tingsryd, Sweden. Here, weavers of all levels are welcome to work on one of 23 looms in a variety of traditional Swedish techniques. (See link below.)

    Photo by Judy Larson.

    Judy wove this beautiful blue blanket in 8/2 cotton on a drawloom. She wove the piece below BACK SIDE UP, using Opphämpta technique on a drawloom. Congratulations, Judy!

    Photo by Judy Larson.

    Go to Part Two of this post for more weaving journeys!

    Links:

    https://vavstuga.com/

  • Skillbragd (Part Two)

    Skillbragd (Part Two)

    In 2025, the Scandinavian Weavers wove two long group warps in skillbragd technique. Group warps give newer members the opportunity to try techniques with support from more experienced members. It also allows weavers to use a larger floor loom they might not have at home.

    We are grateful that the Weavers Guild of Minnesota has dedicated looms for interest groups. We love weaving at the Guild, as it gives us a chance to share our passion for Scandinavian weaving with visitors, shoppers, students, and fellow Guild members.

    Lisa Torvik weaving skillbragd at the Weavers Guild of Minnesota.

    Lisa Torvik was our mentor in skillbragd, providing guidance in dressing the loom as well as math, problem-solving, and the occasional repair of broken warp threads. (She swears by weaver’s knots!)

    Skillbragd in spring shades. Photo by Lisa Torvik.

    Lisa wove this runner in spring colors, using Rauma Prydvevgarn.

    Photo by Lisa Torvik.

    Many of Lisa’s weavings end up as gifts for family and friends in Norway. The black-and-white runner was destined for watercolor artist Gunvor Hegge. (See “Weaving Journeys” blog post for a photo of the runner in its new home.)

    Weaving and photo by Lisa Torvik.

    Another runner in delicate spring shades.

    Weaving and photo by Lisa Torvik.

    Finally, a weaving for Christmas!

    Minnesota enjoyed an unusually mild autumn this year. Lori Labs was inspired by the oak trees at her home in weaving her table runner.

    Photo by Lori Labs.

    Lori’s weaving in shades of orange and turquoise captured the brilliant glow of golden leaves against the autumn sky.

    Weaving and photo by Lori Labs.

    For her runner, Mary Skoy reached into her yarn stash for some luscious pattern weft.

    Weaving and photo by Mary Skoy.

    “The red [yarn] is a cotton chenille,” Mary explains. “The yellowing label inside the giant cone says “Phoenix Dye Works Cleveland, Ohio.” Google says the company was liquidated in the 90s. The gold thread was on a much smaller cone with no label, but about the same yardage. I used the McMorran Yarn Balance to estimate the yardage on these two kind of mystery yarns.”

    Weaving and photo by Mary Skoy.

    Mary added a special touch to her weaving. The golden pattern square is known in Sweden as a prästruta, or “priest’s square.” Traditionally, this section of a Smålandsväv table covering was reserved for a visiting priest’s catechism or prayerbook.

    Like Mary, Marianne Tamminen dug into her stash for her project, including 6/1 wool and unbleached linen.

    Her first runner was carefully woven to match her dishes, but her second piece is is pure play. “It is so much fun to play with colors and pattern!” she writes.  

    Nancy Ebner also chose delicate grey pattern weft for runner, with a dash of her signature pink.

    Weaving by Nancy Ebner. Photo by Lisa Torvik.

    Nancy cleverly used her skillbragd sampler in vibrant green, black, and purple for a pillow. For more of Nancy’s skillbragd weavings, see the blog post “Weaving Journeys (Part One).”

    Weaving by Nancy Ebner. Photo by Lisa Torvik.

    Peg Hansen also loves weaving in pink! Like many others, she used Rauma Prydvevgarn for her pattern weft.

    Peg comments: “As many have said before, [skillbragd] is a slow go but gratifying to accomplish. I look forward to finishing it and getting it on my dining room table! Thank you to everyone who has made this opportunity possible. It is so fun demystifying Skillbragd. I hope I can be brave enough to warp it someday on my own loom.”

    Photo by Lisa Torvik.

    Shari Nelson wove her runner to complement beloved family tableware.

    “I planned the colors around my Grandmother’s Fransicanware Desert Rose dishes that I inherited,” she explains. (See link below for more on this popular china pattern.)

    “The cream, yellow and Dusty Rose wefts were Rauma Finull and the burgundy and greens were Prydvevgarn,” Shari writes. “I chose not to do the loop edges as I will be using this as a table runner.”

    Robbie LaFleur chose to take a sculptural approach to skillbragd.

    Photo by Robbie LaFleur.

    “I have woven runners in skillbragd before,” Robbie writes, “so [this time] I experimented with the technique.”

    “Å skille means to part or separate,” Robbie explains, “so that’s what I did. It was fun!”

    Whatever the style, the possibilities of this technique appear to be endless.

    Stay tuned for our next group warp in Norwegian Flesberg technique, also known as treskaft in Swedish.

    Bonus content: Enjoy a deep dive into the history of Desert Rose dishes, courtesy of The Brooklyn Teacup!

    https://thebrooklynteacup.com/blogs/blog/franciscan-desert-rose-china

  • Celebrating TWO Group Skillbragd Warps

    A new pop-up exhibit of several skillbragd pieces woven by members of our Scandinavian Weavers Study Group is up at the Weavers Guild of Minnesota. Since May we’ve put on two warps and given many members the opportunity to try this traditional Scandinavian weave structure. Some pieces on view are hemmed and finished, and many in their “off-the-loom” state.  If you can visit sometime through the end of November, you’ll see the wide variety of materials, colors, stripes, and patterns created by treadling, chosen by the weavers. Most people used wool for their pattern weft, but there are examples of linen and perle cotton on display, too.

    The signage is minimal for the exhibit; three signs read, “Hello, Norwegians! Here are some skillbragd pieces woven on the Guild’s Glimakra loom by members of the Scandinavian Weavers Study Group.” “Wait! Are you a Swede?  Here are some opphämpta pieces, or perhaps you recognize them as Smålandsvëv?” “Everyone else! Don’t worry about it; it’s a Scandinavian overshot weave.”

    Lisa Torvik is writing an article with lots more information about our project–in the meantime, visit the exhibit or enjoy these photos.

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    Here are closer photos, taken in sections.

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  • Skillbragd Inspiration

    Just as the students in Jan Mostrom’s Swedish Art Weaves class could view lovely pieces in that technique as part of the exhibit, “A Passionate Pursuit: Scandinavian Weavings from the Collection of Carol Johnson,” the members of our Scandinavian Weavers Study Group can view skillbragd weavings to inspire and inform us as we participate in our group project.  Here are the skillbragd/opphampta pieces on display right now.

     

    For more wonderful weaving photos and information about the current exhibit of Scandinavian weavings and the tapestry collection of Carol Johnson, too, see the new issue of the Norwegian Textile Letter, which includes these articles:

    A Passionate Pursuit: Scandinavian Weavings from the Collection of Carol Johnson

    Dipping Into Carol Johnson’s Tapestry Collection

    The Swedish Art Weave Tradition Continues in Minnesota

     

     

  • More Skillbragd, and Loop Discussion

    More Skillbragd, and Loop Discussion

    Jayne Flanagan wrote in response to a previous post, “So the selvedge loops are not a technique exclusive to Telemarksteppe? What will happen to all the loops on this piece?”

    Definitely loops are common on skillbragd weavings, too. It is my understanding that sometimes the loops are left uncut (my favorite look), and sometimes they are cut. Look at this piece with cut loops that is available on eBay right now.  The starting bid is $25,000–buy it now for $50,000!  (Thanks, Carol Johnson, for sending this link.  She commented, “I won’t be buying this one.”)

    ebay

    Weaving continues on our group project. This weekend Brenda Gauvin-Chadwick wove a lovely piece in a soft gold.

    BrendaG-C1BrendaG-C2

  • Skillbragd Weaving Continues…

    The members of the Scandinavian Weavers Study Group are continuing their skillbragd samples, but many have been wound around before photos could be taken.  The cutting-off ceremony for this warp will be significant.

    Karen Weiberg snapped a photo during her turn at the loom. Good work!

    IMG_5747

    Here is the draft and treadling, thanks to Lisa Torvik. Here it is in a nice pdf document.

    Revised Skillbragd Treadling #1

     

  • What’s the Front? What’s the Back?

    Next up?  Judy Larson chose green for her piece. More success!  This warp is working.

    green

     

    Skillbragd weavings can look equally beguiling from either side.  On our Scandinavian Weavers Study Group project, the deep red and green of skillbragd floats on the two pieces are wonderful, and I would definitely use the side I saw while weaving as the “front.”

    I took a new look at a small piece I own that was woven by Lila Nelson.  Interesting!  She used the side that shows the most of the ground tabby as the right side, and that is very clear by looking at how she hemmed it. The other interesting thing is that she made fringe on either edge as wove the piece, hemmed it, and then added fringe to the other two sides. That looks nice.

    Good ideas for future pieces!

    IMG_5603IMG_5602

     

  • Skillbragd #2

    Skillbragd #2

    I finished the last post on our group skillbragd project on the Glimakra loom at the Weavers Guild with “many tricky warping steps remain.” Man, was that accurate. Before all was said and done, we tested the tabby shafts on counterbalance, then countermarch.  The pattern wefts hung from elastic to start, and then were switched to countermarch, and then back to the elastics (with final, wise advice from Shawn Cassiman). Lamm and treadle adjustments were made for hours. Lisa Torvik and Phyllis Waggoner were the real loom-wrangling brains; I struggled to keep up. BUT. Finally. By suppertime yesterday we managed to get a good shed for the background linen tabby and hopefully serviceable sheds for the pattern shafts. Today was the big test, and I offered to weave the first sample.  Slowly I wound my weft, arranged my shuttles, and pulled out the pin holding the shafts in place, and began to weave.  I’m not sure I was even breathing as I wove the first pattern shots.  It worked!

    IMG_5593

    Of course I made a pattern mistake after the first four squares, but not to worry, I did the same thing at the other end–design element. Once I got started the weaving went relatively quickly and was very fun to watch unfold.  On this 18″ wide warp I wove 11″ of pattern and hems in four hours–and that was with several talking breaks. Since this was mostly a test to see if the loom and warp were in working order, I just wove the pattern in one color.  There are so many ways to weave wonderful skillbragd pieces by elongating portions of the pattern, for example, or adding stripes. But just the plain piece was beautiful.

    IMG_5598

    It will be fun to see the variations that will be woven by our group members in the next six weeks.