Cover Image: The Weaving Explorer

The Weaving Explorer

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Member Reviews

This book is amazing for beginners and those wanting to explore weaving. It doesn’t need fancy equipment and the pictures are great. It includes lots of advice and clear detailed instructions of useful things to make and ideas of yarns to use. I will definitely be having a go at some of the projects and recommend to anyone wanting a new craft hobby.

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If you're a bit bored with the traditional weaving loom, this is an interesting book to get your creative juices flowing!

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Interesting and heavily illustrated book for those who want to dive deep into the art of weaving. There are step by step pictorial and worded instructions but I need to try them out to test how adequate they are. Many arts and crafts are better taught in person or with videos so I always recommend an accompanying video though I’m aware that would make the books prohibitively expensive.

I liked the varieties of projects and the use of varying materials. Good for inspiring the weaver. The instructions on how to make your own loom is useful too.

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This is a one of a kind weaving book, with so many unique projects to get those creative juices flowing! It has a little bit of everything and the explanations are thorough.

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A nice collection of weaving patterns and innovative ways to display this talent. Recommended for anyone interested in textile arts.

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THE WEAVING EXPLORER: INGENIOUS TECHNIQUES, ACCESSIBLE TOOLS & CREATIVE PROJECTS WITH YARN, PAPER, WIRE AND MORE by Deborah Jarchow and Gwen W. Steege has many beautiful photographs and directions to various weaving projects using a simple home made loom or no loom at all. Some are simple ones that I did as a young student in school, and others are enticing me to make for my home and as gifts for family and friends. Beautiful woven thread bracelets, unique bags, colourful woven belts, scarves, pillows and rugs and notecards are a few of my favourite creations.

"The first definition of weave in dictionary.com is to interlace (threads, yarns, strips, fibrous material, etc.) so as to form a fabric or material." Over, under is the basic technique.
This is the perfect book for crafters and artists and anyone that likes to do creative projects with yarn, paper, hemp, ribbon, wire and more. I highly recommend this book and give it 5 beautifully woven stars ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️


Thanks to NetGalley and Storey Publishing for providing me with an ARC of this book in exchange for an unbiased review.

Posted on
Goodreads Dec. 31, 2019
NetGalley February 10, 2020

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I LOVED this book’s projects so I could learn hands on some different weaving styles. My absolute favorite was the delicate Dorset buttons. I cannot wait to make my own for my next knitted sweater.

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Very beautiful and instructive book. I loved to weave as a child, and haven't done it for years so I really wanted to check out this book. Clear, helpful instructions, great projects for different levels of difficulty. Beautiful photography.

This inspired me to give it a try again - very well done! (I failed and it looked like an used rag, but not because of the book! XD)

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Beginners and experienced weavers alike will find lots to keep them busy in this book! There's a wide array of projects, materials, and techniques to choose from, and not one expensive loom needed, as the authors even include how to make various looms for the projects. There are lots of photos and illustrations with each project, plus tips from the authors to help you out. Highly recommended!

#TheWeavingExplorer #NetGalley

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The Weaving Explorer is the perfect book for the person who wants to try weaving and loves tutorials with great pictures that show step by step instructions. The range of projects makes it ideal for the beginner and the advanced weaver to create something magical.

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This book brought me inspiration.

The beautiful photography is a springboard from one piece to your own. Anyone can engage in weaving and be happy with their achievement.

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I have had the opportunity to review The Weaving Explorer by Deborah Jarchow and Gwen W. Steege thanks to NetGalley.
#TheWeavingExplorer #NetGalley

This wonderful and beautiful book gives instructions, tips, and projects for the beginner weaver to a more experienced weaver.
The instructions are very clear and the pictures help enhance the learning experience.
The book is a must for anyone wanting to learn more about weaving!

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What fabulous book for weavers and in fact anyone interested in discovering weaving.

Details of exactly what weaving is, the important tension of the warp to allow the weft to travel through interlocking threads under and over.

What it’s possible to weave with. Warp has to strong enough for to remain under ten and not be damaged by the heddles changing when forming a shed.

How weaving can be incredibly complicated or very basic.. Instruction is given for learning new techniques, many requiring no weaving experience.

As a weaver I feel that the good photography and clear text will help new weavers get to grips with the term.

Lot’s of simple, small projects using basic tools, even sticks make this an accessible craft. So much information is here I encourage you if you have any interest in crafting, yarn, making etc. Then buy the book and learn more. It’s very well planned book, I loved it.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for allowing me to read it in exchange for an honest review.

I have already planned to purchase it for my own weaving adventure.

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Beautiful photos and carefully curated descriptions. Jarchow is very knowledgable and remains the reason I both know how to weave and enjoy it.

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The Weaving Explorer is an interesting book that mixes storytelling, beautiful images and ideas with practical step by step guides to creating your own pieces. I never knew there were so many ways of weaving. I love crafting, and I love fiber and have been known to spend my time spinning, knitting or crocheting. I was gifted a circle loom and for quite some time it has sat gathering dust at the bottom of my craft cart. Enter this book. I finally understand how to use my loom. This book gets really creative with what you can use as a loom (a tree branch for example, and an embroidery hoop!) and I really appreciate how creative you can be when weaving.
There are a lot of varied projects that use all kinds of materials, so if you're stuck at home on a rainy or snowy night, use this book as a craft night guru. Perhaps it's because of my inexperience with weaving, but even with pictures, I found some of the concepts difficult to understand and replicate, so I did have to go to youtube to see a moving demonstration.

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The Weaving Explorer by Deborah Jarchow; Gwen W. Steege
Ingenious Techniques, Accessible Tools & Creative Projects with Yarn, Paper, Wire & More

With beautiful photography and some directions to achieve some of the projects this book has ideas for anyone who might like to try their hand at weaving. Some of the projects took me back to art classes in elementary school and others to recent projects including making coasters from old magazines. That said...there are some gorgeous intricate woven items I might be tempted to try making if my vision were better. The ideas were abundant and ranged from Dorset Buttons and God’s Eyes to creating weavings using branches from outside or hoops or paper or ribbons or...well all sorts of things.

The first weaving that I remember was probably creating potholders on little looms. I realized that under-over varying the colors and number of threads and placement could make a huge different in the outcome. Later there were nails on boards with thread involved and even later I remember watching young girls weaving carpets in Egypt and Jordan.

Weaving is an interesting hobby but also necessary to daily life. All fabrics are woven and thankafully there are now machines that doe that for us but...for the person that wants a hands-on experience they might find some inspiration in this book.

Thank you to NetGalley and Storey Publishing for the ARC – This is my honest review.

5 Stars

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I continue to explore different crafts and that search led me to “The Weaving Explorer.” Before reading the book, I knew absolutely nothing about weaving, and was hoping to learn some basic skills. The first few pages were encouraging and I felt I had chosen a book that would fulfill my expectations.

The initial project, “God’s Eye,” had instructions that were easily understandable, and authors Deborah Jarchow and Gwen W. Steege included plenty of color photographs. The dorset buttons really grabbed my attention, although I saw that my understanding had begun to slip a bit. Subsequent projects convinced me that this book was not the best for total beginners.

On the positive side, I read through the entire book and managed to pick up some knowledge, which at the very least should help me to pick out a companion book that is geared toward prospective weavers who have zero experience. I say companion book because “The Weaving Explorer” has a ton of positives that should ensure a prominent place on anyone’s crafting bookshelf.

There are well over 30 projects in this book, and each is accompanied by instructions and pictures. Not all of them are made with yarn, and the book includes items that can be made with paper or wire. It was a nice feature to spotlight numerous artists who have pushed the weaving boundaries and created new ideas. Best of all (for us beginners), there is an appendix which shows how to build items like a frame loom (thus eliminating the need to buy these items). Measuring and calculating requirements for projects and demonstrations of different weaving knots were especially helpful. A glossary of weaving terms and a list of common needles and threads round out this section.

All things considered, this is an impressive book and while it was not the beginner’s book I had originally hoped for, it is definitely a keeper. Five stars.

My thanks to NetGalley and Storey Publishing for an advance electronic copy of this book.

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Creative Weaving is a tutorial and resource guide for fibre-artists, weavers, and crafters for non-traditional weaving techniques and projects. Due out 26th Nov 2019 from Storey, it's 272 pages and will be available in hardcover and ebook formats.

This is a beautifully presented book, well written and photographed. The tutorials themselves are appealing and run the gamut from very simple (God's eyes) to more complex (triaxial weaving). None of the projects are beyond the scope of a keen beginner. The projects use a variety of materials and can easily be adapted to incorporate an almost infinite variety of found materials.

I enjoyed the numerous artist spotlights scattered throughout the book. The artists are a varied and eclectic bunch, from the whimsical to the formal. It was interesting to be able to read a little about their backgrounds and inspirations. The 'design notebook' sidebars with notes from the designers' processes in creating the projects was also very useful.

The book includes (by my count) 36 distinct project tutorials as well as a number of artist profiles. Additionally the book has a resource section which includes making tools such as a pin frame loom, warping, estimating materials yardage, knots for weavers, a glossary of terms, and an index. (Review note: The index wasn't included in the early review copy I received, so I can't give review info on that part of the book; Storey is generally pretty thorough in their references and indices, so no worries on that score).

This would be a nice gift for a beginning to intermediate weaver, support text for a maker's collective library, public library, school, and the like. I liked this one a lot and will be incorporating several of the project techniques included here in my own future projects.

Five stars. Definitely a worthwhile addition to the fibrecrafter's repertoire.

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Wonderful photos and interesting instructions for some unique weaving projects. I look forward to experimenting with some of these ideas

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I was really excited to look at this book. I love to weave and this book gave me new ideas for projects and was very detailed with pictures and easy to understand steps for each project. Can't wait to get started on something new!

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