Inkle Looms & Card Weaving

Card weaving (also known as tablet weaving) is a way to create patterned woven bands that are thick, sturdy and beautiful. Though cards are often regarded as a simple tool, the weavings they can produce are infinite in design and complexity. The portability of these cards gives you the possibility of carrying a four harness loom in your pocket.

You can use the cards on their own with a simple tensioning device, such as tying the yarn to a door knob and tensioning around your waist. Or use the cards on a loom. An Inkle Loom is an ideal companion, but you can also use them on a Cricket, Flip, table, or floor loom.

Schacht has developed a card that, at 3-1/2″ inches square, is comfortable in the hand without being bulky. Colored bands and stripes are printed along each edge to help you keep track of the card’s position. Made of sturdy yet flexible 24-point card stock, these cards will serve you well over many, many warps.

The cards come in packages of 25—more than enough for a range of projects. All you need to add is yarn and a belt shuttle. You can start weaving complex bands at less than the cost of two coffees!

Tired of making your own inkle loom heddles? Take some of the work out of warping with a pack of 100 Texsolv Heddles (Green 8 5/8") for use with the Schacht Inkle loom. 

The heddles come strung together in a continuous strand bundle that are tied off with green twist ties. In order to use the heddles for inkle weaving, they must be separated by cutting them apart at the top and bottom in the middle of the 1.25" loop. 

Once separated, the heddles are used the same way as homemade double heddles. Simply fold the heddle in half, place it over the warp strings and loop both ends on the warp peg. These are regular Texsolv heddles that have an inserted eye in the middle of them. Ignore the inserted eye for inkle weaving. The inserted eye will NOT have any warp threads threaded through it. 

For more information on how to warp your Schacht Inkle Loom, please refer to weaving instructions included in the Assembly Manual. The manual may be downloaded freely at https://schachtspindle.com/products/inkle-loom. 

The Inkle Loom is a loom every weaver should have. It is great for weaving belts and bands.

Inkle looms are great for start-up weaving programs because they require little additional equipment, are easy to use and understand, and are easily stored.

Our Inkle loom is built with years of heavy use in mind. It has one open side for ease of warping. The tension bar has an easy grip knob for adjusting the warp tension during weaving. Warps can be up to 4.5″ wide and 8.5′ long. The Inkle Loom is made of hard maple and left unfinished.

Make your next project bright, fun, and fabulous with 100% mercerized cotton weaving yarns from Ashford. The subtle sheen will add a little something extra!

Available in 18 beautiful modern colors. This cotton is ideal for weaving home textiles, towels, tablecloths, napkins, placemats, curtains, baby blankets, scarves, and yardage for cut and sew fashion designs. Use it with your floor loom, table loom, or rigid heddle looms.

100% mercerized cotton
200g cone
ne 5/2, 848m / 927yds
Wraps per inch: 30
Weaving Sett: 15-20
Care: Warm iron, dry cleanable, do not bleach

BRIGHT, FUN and FABULOUS!! 100% Unmercerised cotton weaving yarns. Available in 18 beautiful modern colors. This cotton is ideal for weaving home textiles on your floor loom, table loom, or rigid heddle looms.

100% unmercerised cotton
200gm cone
ne 5/2, 848m/927yds
Wraps per inch: 30
Weaving Sett: 15-20
Care: Warm iron, dry cleanable, do not bleach

Yoga yarn is 35% lighter in weight than the 100% cotton in an equivalent weight.

So, knit and weave your fabrics, jackets, pull-overs, scarves, shawls and homewares which will have the bulk and density you want but at the same time staying light!

Our Yoga yarn has a nylon filament core completely covered by a cotton outer wrap! Get the best of both worlds: the strength & elasticity of nylon and the natural comfort & beauty of cotton!

It is a 2 ply (two threads plied together) yarn - each ply is cotton spun over the nylon filament - the nylon filament is not visible and it will dye like 100% cotton.

It is such a pleasure to weave with this yarn. Due to the slight elasticity of the yarn there will be no more “saggy shed” when weaving on a rigid heddle loom!

This is Ne 8/2, but looks and weaves like Ne 5/2. You can use it in warp and weft and in any combination with other yarns.

82% cotton, 18% nylon core
200gm cone
1260m/1386yds
Wraps per inch: 28
Weaving Sett: 15-20
Care: machine wash warm, tumble dry at low setting, do not bleach, warm iron

Bright, fun, and fabulous color choices are right here for your next project! 100% Unmercerised cotton weaving yarns. Available in 18 beautiful modern colors. This cotton is ideal for weaving home textiles on your floor loom, table loom, or rigid heddle looms.

100% unmercerised cotton
200gm cone
ne 10/2, 1696m/1854yds
Wraps per inch: 40
Weaving Sett: 20-28
Care: Warm iron, dry cleanable, do not bleach

Make your next project bright, fun, and fabulous with 100% mercerized cotton weaving yarns from Ashford. The subtle sheen will add a little something extra!

Available in 18 beautiful modern colors. This cotton is ideal for weaving home textiles, towels, tablecloths, napkins, placemats, curtains, baby blankets, scarves, and yardage for cut and sew fashion designs. Use it with your floor loom, table loom, or rigid heddle looms.

100% mercerized cotton
200g cone
ne 10/2, 1696m / 1854yds
Wraps per inch: 40
Weaving Sett: 20-28
Care: Warm iron, dry cleanable, do not bleach

A lovely blend of 70% Cotton 30% Linen. More absorbent than 100% cotton and easier to weave than 100% linen. The combined softness of cotton and crispness of linen result in a woven fabric that is very versatile - suitable for tea towels, tablecloths, garments, homewares and more. This durable yarn can be substituted in any project requiring 8/2 cotton. Available in 18 beautiful colours.

Ne 8/2, 1345m/1470yds, 200gms.

Care instructions: Machine wash, tumble dry, hot iron.

From expert weaver Anne Dixon is The Weaver’s Inkle Pattern Directory–the ultimate resource for inkle weavers. Inkle weaving is a simple technique that offers ample opportunity for experimentation by beginners and experienced weavers. This book provides 400 patterns for loom enthusiasts and is the most comprehensive tool available to weavers.

You’ll discover:

• An overview of inkle weaving’s history and traditions.
• Instructions for loom set-up and simple techniques.
• An astonishing 400 woven patterns–some making their first debut.
• Illustrated samples and charts.
• Drafts provided throughout the entire guide.
An incomparable guide, Anne Dixon offers all of the tips, tricks, and techniques to these traditional and modern patterns and introduces a bounty of new, innovative designs as well. Inkles can be used for a variety of projects ranging from belts and braces to trims and neckpieces. They can be stitched together to make bags, mobile-phone purses, cushion-covers, table-mats, and much more.

Also included is a foreword by Madelyn van der Hoogt, the editor of Handwoven magazine and the author of The Complete Book of Drafting and The Weaver’s Companion (Interweave). She opened the Weaver’s School in 1984 and teaches weaving workshops throughout the United States and Canada.

Hardcover, 173 pages. 

Belt shuttle for Inkle Loom manufactured from beautiful beech timber

18cm / 7" in length

With nothing more than colored yarn and simple cardboard squares, crafters can produce exquisitely patterned woven bands with this guide, which includes patterns for sturdy belts and camera straps, delicate silk trims and ties, creative wall art, and even hefty rugs and mats.

Paperback: 141 pages

Get the right tools for every weaving job!

Belt shuttles are similar to stick shuttles but have one beveled edge to beat the weft into place. Use a belt shuttle for inkle and card weaving.

Narrow bands of woven tape were important to Americans in the eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries, before the days of elastic and zippers. This book documents the fascinating American history of handwoven tape and offers patterns and instructions to enable today’s weavers to make it. Many Early American households had a tape loom for making the tape needed by the family, and this book offers a discussion of the people who wove tape, the patterns woven, and the types of looms used, along with over 280 color images. The book also gives step-by-step instructions for setting up a tape loom with warp threads, and explains how to weave your own tape. You can weave tape for similar practical uses as our forebears, or to create one-of-a-kind gifts and decorations like key chains, holiday garlands, or lanyards.

Hardcover | 207 pages