I love to teach beginning weaving. When those wefts cross the warp for the first time, the magic begins with a satisfied look that says it all.

Students receive a beginning weaving monograph (see below); after each session they review the section they used (yes, it’s homework and they do it!). Of course, during class I am there to help and so are the more experienced students.

After that first beginning class, many students opt to continue: a new convert! A new member of our tribe!

The second project is usually a twill. We use the planning sheet in their monograph, and we go over the various steps.

As they work I see them often referring to the monograph, pondering what comes next. As the whole process is repeated, students become confident, but sometimes they still need to search in the monograph for the next step. And occasionally – oops – someone forgets a step. Not fun.

To avoid forgetting steps, I devised this checklist that includes the steps from planning the project to wet finishing (download the checklist PDF here). It’s not to replace the monograph, but as a quick reminder, so no steps are missed.

I color coded the checklist by groups so finding the next step is easier: planning (yellow), warping (blue), weaving (green), and finishing (pink)

We dress the loom from the back to the front, so the checklist takes the students through those steps. There are various ways to perform all the steps for weaving, use what works for you.

Happy weaving – and happy teaching!