Time Lapse: Windmill and Taildragger on the Drawloom

Come, look over my shoulder as I weave a windmill and taildragger image on the drawloom. The central design is woven using 103 single-unit draw cords. I have a simple motif for the borders that uses only three pattern shafts. In the video below, watch as the three draw handles for those pattern shafts appear and disappear throughout the weaving.

Drawloom weaving, with time-lapse video.
Draw cords are used to raise single units of threads to create the image, one row at a time.
Windmill and taildragger woven on the drawloom.
Woven from the side.

I recorded my weaving in time-lapse form so you can watch three hours of effort compressed into three-and-a-half minutes. In the video you will see my hand pulling the draw cords, and then touching all the pulled cords from right to left to double check my work. That double checking saved me from dreaded do-overs.

Windmill and Taildragger Silhouette from an old "Flying" magazine.

When our good friends, Jerry and Jan, saw my drawloom they brought this picture to my attention. — Forty years ago Jerry discovered the silhouetted windmill and airplane tucked away on a back page in an old issue of Flying magazine. Because of his affinity for airplanes and windmills he cut out the tiny picture and saved it. Years later, Jan found the picture and had it enlarged and framed. — After learning about my loom’s pictorial capability, Jerry and Jan wondered aloud if this special image could be woven on a drawloom…

Windmill and Taildragger woven on the drawloom. With time-lapse video.

Enjoy the video, and hold on to your hat!

May you ride the wind.

Happy Weaving,
Karen

19 thoughts on “Time Lapse: Windmill and Taildragger on the Drawloom

  1. Very, very beautiful! And yes, the time lapse is great, but leaves out all the time and tedious work of creating such a work of art! Thanks for sharing! Happy Weaving! 🙂

    1. Hi Joyce, I know what you mean. The time lapse doesn’t show all the effort. Hopefully, it gives a snapshot of how much fun it is to weave on a drawloom.

      Thank you,
      Karen

    1. Hi Cindy, The drawloom is a fascinating contraption. In some ways it is very complex, but all the parts are actually pretty simple. It’s a fun learning journey. Thanks for joining in!

      Happy weaving,
      Karen

    1. Hi Cynthia, I admire Navajo-style weaving, and have done a tiny bit of that type of weft-faced weaving. My main focus is on Swedish-style weaving and Swedish techniques. There are so many intriguing forms of weaving!

      Thanks,
      Karen

  2. I am gobsmacked!Airplanes and windmills are also my favorite things, as well as my husband’s. When we bought our home in the panhandle, we specifically looked for land with a windmill. Greg flies remote control planes and I joined the Air Force due to my fascination.

    If you are up to making a second one of these weavings, I would love to purchase it from you.

    As always, I cannot express enough my admiration for your creativity and talent.

    1. Hi Annie, I am thrilled to learn that airplanes and windmills are your favorite things! How fun to see how this woven image suits you and Greg.

      I will send you an email to answer your question about weaving another one.

      Hugs and well wishes, and THANK YOU for your service to our nation in the Air Force!
      Karen

    1. Hi Kim, I like your question! To tell the truth, I wasn’t sure which direction would give best results. I wove this one from the side only because the width of the picture is shorter than the length. I plan to weave another one straight on, so I can see if one way is better than the other. That fits the purpose of this warp – experimental and sampling.

      Thanks,
      Karen

  3. Hi Karen,
    Watching you weave at the draw down loom brought back memories of my Aunt practicing for Sunday service at the church organ. Both artists.

    Thanks for the long forgotten memory in the format of your 20th century subject..

    Nannette

    1. Hi Nannette, I have church organists in my extended family, too. I have often thought of my loom bench as an organ bench, and with the drawloom, even more so, as if I’m pulling stops, playing the keys, and working the pedals with my feet.

      How sweet that my weaving at the drawloom related to you in that way.

      Hold the memories,
      Karen

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