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This bag strap is a study in contradictions: luminous yet sturdy, delicate yet robust, pretty yet practical. The vivid glow of subtle gradations along the warp threads of royal blue, cyan, spring green, and light lilac, radiating from behind the surface design, belies its rough and tough structure — a strong, tightly compacted warp-faced double weave. Capable of being admired for both beauty and brawn, it lives in the space where art and function meet.
Techniques:
Handwoven in warp-faced double weave with tubular selvedges. The entire pattern was woven using the pick-up method, picking and dropping individual warp ends chosen from two primary sheds that were opened using one set of string heddles.
Dimensions:
45 x 2 1/8 in. (height/length is actually variable from 27 1/2 to 47 in.)
Materials:
warp and weft: size 10 cotton crochet thread; cotton sewing thread; metal hardware
Loom:
I began weaving this piece on a Schacht inkle loom; however, when it quickly became too wide and unwieldly for such a small loom, I cut it off and then rewarped and finished it on my wider, homemade (self-built) inkle loom.
Sabena Kull
Sabena Kull is a handweaver, textile artist, and art historian based in Colorado.
