How to Teach Paper Weaving!

I'll never forget my first year teaching. It was: wonderful, traumatizing, exciting, nerve-wracking and, most of all, a HUGE learning curve! I'll never forget seeing "weaving" in my first grade curriculum and breaking into a sweat. I'd gotten a C in fibers in college (which is so funny as fibers are my favorite thing!) BECAUSE OF MY WEAVING! When warping that big ole loom, I missed a couple of warps. Instead of going back and fixing my mistake, I thought, "eh, that professor will never notice." Little did I know that it'd leave a huge run all the way down the length of my weaving that seemed to scream, "THIS SLACKER DESERVES A C!" And a C I got.

I remember introducing weaving to my first graders that year and a boy named Jonathan shouted out, "Weaving's for GIRLS and I ain't doing it!" It was then that I realized I had to make weaving (and teaching in general) fun, silly, wacky and engaging. For all my learners, boys and girls. The thing is, he turned out to be my best weaving and biggest fan of the medium. As most boys do!

Introducing kids to weaving is something that I've been doing now for 18 years...and this lesson hasn't changed all that much. I read the same book, show them how to make a loom on the first day and we weave on the next. I know so many teachers struggle with weaving. The key is, introducing them to weaving with a simple paper weaving. Once they understand the concept, they'll take off like a weavin' rocket ship. 

I thought I'd record my two thirty minute classes. Here's what we did on the very first day: creating our looms!

Here are some must-have visuals that I always use: thrift store weavings and looms; my GIANT paper loom made from laminated paper; my Goat in the Rug book.

I also love having the roving for the kids to see and touch. Normally, I'll pass it around but I had forgotten to check with the nurse for allergies so I held off on this day.

This here is my FAVORITE book on weaving and the kids absolutely love it! After we create our looms, we sign them and await the following day's weaving adventure:

If you'd like more info on paper weaving, you might enjoy this video. It will explain the process more:

Here's how we went about cutting our looms and how I explained it...

I'll keep you posted on just what we are doing with our weavings...I'm really excited and cannot wait to share. I have a TON of weaving projects both on my YouTube channel (just search my Fibers playlist) and right here on my blog. Happy Weaving!

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In the Art Room: A Woven Clutch

Welcome to the season finale of the Weaving Series, y'all! I do hope that you've enjoyed this little trip down weaving lane as much as I have. I know I was always super stressed about teaching kids this craft when I didn't feel so confident myself. I'm hoping that these posts, videos and avalanche of photos have been useful for you. Here's a recap of all the posts from this series:

The Weaving Series: Paper Loom Weaving (perfect for first grade)
The Weaving Series: Straw Weaving (second grade and up)
The Weaving Series: Circle Loom Weaving (second grade and up)
The Weaving Series: CD Loom Weaving (second grade and up)
The Weaving Series: Ojo de Dios (second grade and up) 
The Weaving Series: Tree Weaving (third grade and up)

So, I'd love to hear from you! Have you given any of these projects a go? Did you find the videos useful or are step-by-step photos your preference? If I do another series, what would you be interested in? Thank you so much for the feedback, guys!

Today I'm sharing with you a woven clutch project that is just perfect for those kids in fourth grade and up. It brings together all of those skills learned from previous weaving experiences however it's simple enough for those that have never woven before to do. 

A while back, I shared a series of posts that detail how to weave a basic pouch. You'll definitely want to start here if you've never created a woven pouch before. In this post, I'm going to show you how to get fancy with your pouch (btw, I have a habit of calling these creations a "pouch" for fear that I'll drop the "purse" bomb in front of a class of boys. And you know what that would mean: Game.Over.) So, follow these links to begin your pouch then c'mon back for some fancy stitchin':

Pouch Weaving, One: Getting Started
Pouch Weaving, Two: Weaving the Flap
Pouch Weaving, Three: Removing the Weaving
Pouch Weaving, Four: Weaving the Cord

So in today's post, Ima gonna show you how to do a little tapestry weaving along with creating a buttonhole and a checkerboard pattern.

Just to be a brag-a-saurus for a pinch, can I just tell you how much I love the back of this clutch? It took me a while (weaving with fine yarn was prolly not the smartest move) but I love the way it looks...and I'm already dreaming up my next woven clutch! Lemme show you how I created this triangular tapestry.

For this, you'll be using a dovetail tapestry stitch. For me, this entailed weaving with four needles at once (confusing? kinda. But for those middle and high school kids, def doable): two needles of brown yarn for the sides and two needles of pink for the triangles on either side of the clutch.

I found this super groovy 1970's craft book which had these super groove diagrams of all the stitches. This is a close up of what that dovetail woven stitch looks like. 

I wove this guy a couple years ago with some funky yarn. While I think the end result was cool, weaving with that stuff is a headache. For your first go, I'd definitely use regular yarn.

You can see a different take on that dovetail weave here. 

Now, let's talk buttonhole. That was simple. I really like simple. That checkerboard pattern? Gave me 5 new gray hairs and a migraine. Mostly cuz I wasn't doing it right for the longest time. In this clip, I'll show you how it's done (bear with me, it's confusing):

Here's a peak at what the buttonhole weave looks like. You're just creating an opening. Cake.

And here's that confounded checkerboard weave. Oui. It's not hard it's just confusing for the small minded like myself. 

The cord is by far the most fun and simplest thing to create. My kids love creating these! We turn them into bracelets, belts and, of course, the strap for our clutch. I've created these cords with kids as young as second grade. 

To attach the cords, I usually hand sew them to the side of the pouch. On my larger clutch, I first stitched a figure-eight around the base of the cord before hand sewing it to the clutch. I'm so happy with these little guys! And I know you and your students would be as well.

DISCLAIMER, SHAMELESS SELF-PROMO: Y'all. If you've not voted for your fave art ed blog, would you mind taking a moment to do so? There's some fantastic ones and my crazy blog is in the mix (in the "Wild Card" division). If you'd be so kind to cast your vote (you can vote for as many blogs as you like), that'd be just swell. Here's the link. 

And there you have it! The season finale of The Weaving Series! I do hope you enjoyed this woven adventure. 

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In the Art Room: Tree Weaving

Hello there, weavers! I present to y'all today one of my fave weaving projects: Tree Weaving! If this looks familiar to you, that's cuz I shared this process with you a coupla years back and it's one of the most viewed posts on this here blog (which means, like 10 people read that post, yay!). I hope means a good amount of y'all have given it a go! 

My third graders finished these lovelies off in the early fall with summer still on their mind. However, many of them opted to weave with fall colors for the leaves which turned out super cute as well. I originally stumbled upon this idea when trying to dream up a different weaving experience for this age group as I was kinda feelin like our past project of weaving on peg looms had grown kinda stale (read: I was super tired of it. I have a really hard time repeating projects. Are y'all like that? It would make my life so much easier if I did!). So, playing around one day, I created this:
Which then I got me so excited I created another one! 

So just what does one need to create a tree weaving? Lemme see, rustle up the following:

* Chinet Plates. Don't skimp, y'all. They are pricey but they are the best. The thickness of the plates is what makes them a stable weaving surface. 

* Paint. I don't think it matters what kind. The Chinet plate is so thick, you might be able to even use watercolor on it. Hmmm...

* Warping Yarn. I had a variety of browns, tans and grays on hand for the tree trunk.

* Weaving Yarn. Whatever colors your heart desires! Let's get started.

For the complete lesson of how we painted these plates, please follow this link. It's way more in-depth about that portion of this here lesson. Today, I'm just sharing clips of how to do the actual warping and weaving. 

In this clip, I'll walk you through cutting the correct amount of notches in your plate and warping your loom. If you don't like hearing the sound of my voice, go here for the visual step by steppies. 

I'll show you a coupla different methods of weaving. Start at the top or the bottom, it's up to you. Definitely give it a go first before unleashing the kids on those plates. 

My early finishers worked on their artists statements which they glued to the back of their plates. They had a choice, they could either write about the product, the process or something they learned. In a paragraph form, of course (cuz, you know, if you don't remind them of that, you'll get the word "cool" or "grate" or "ausome" on the back of the plate. Not that my students would ever do that, cough, ahem).

What I'm finding in these self-reflection/artist statement writings is that the kids often talk about how they could do better. I like that. Not that I would ever say that to a kid but I like that they are motivated to try harder. 

Need more weaving goodness? Here you go, kids!

The Weaving Series: Paper Loom Weaving (perfect for first grade)
The Weaving Series: Straw Weaving (second grade and up)
The Weaving Series: Circle Loom Weaving (second grade and up)
The Weaving Series: CD Loom Weaving (second grade and up)
The Weaving Series: Ojo de Dios (second grade and up) 

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What the Art Teacher Wore #129, More Weaving and Artsy Book Club!

 Welcome Back, Monday: Oh, don't let the smile fool you. It was so hard returning to school this week! Two weeks of staying up late, catching up on shows, hiking, eating a nightly popcorn snack and sleeping in 'til 10am was just so hard to give up. Thankfully, Monday we didn't have kids which was a nice ease back into art teacherin' land. Keith Haring jacket: DIY here; dotted scarf: Old Navy, maybe?; Betsy Johnson Dress: found at Buffalo Exchange; dotted tights: dunno, Target?; leg warmers and crinoline: Amazon; Frye boots: lucky $39 score at Journey's years ago. I know, sometimes, I hit the lotto. 

Well, howdy, kids! I hope everyone's return to the real world has been a good one. Mine had it's ups and downs to be honest. I'd have this great burst of energy in the morning but by midday, I was just spent. This coming week, my plan is to go to bed a lil earlier and start poppin the vitamin B like it's popcorn. What do y'all do when you hit that sluggish slump?

In other news, have I completely wore you out with all of my weaving posts? I sure do hope not as I've got more coming your way! Stay tuned this week for a simple weaving project for those early finishers and a project for your middle and high school kids. In the meantime, I thought I'd share my weaving prezi with y'all! I created one that showcases weaving from around the world. My students have really enjoyed it, I hope you and yours do as well. 

Just click on this link and it'll take you right to the presentation! I'm working on another presentation of contemporary weavers to share with my students next week. I'll be certain to post it here so you can borrow it as well. 

Now, let's talk Artsy Book Club! In case you didn't know, we'll be reading The Art Spirit by Robert Henri and I'd love for you to join the fun. Here's all I ask:

*  Get your kitten mittens on this book! I found mine used very cheap on Amazon. 

*  Read the first 51 pages! This book doesn't have chapters like your average book. Instead, it's full of commentary from Henri given during talks, articles and fragments of letters. I noticed that page 51 seemed like a good place to press the pause button.

*  Let's chat! I'll be sharing my thoughts (my apologies in advance) as well as posing questions here. Please do chime in, I'd love to hear from you! 

So, are you in? I'd love to hear who is reading this classic with us. It seems like the perfect art teacher read, dontcha think?

 A better glance at that Keith Haring jacket. You know, no one ever touts the benefits of pleather but I'm hear to tell you, a pleather jacket will keep you pretty warm, kids. It ain't gonna breathe at all so you will sweat your socks off but, by golly, you'll be warm!

 Orange You Glad It's Tuesday?: Whilst teaching kindergarten on this particular day, I felt a little tickle on my leg. I looked down to see a sweet girl just barely touching my leg. "It's so orange!", she said when I looked at her. "Too much carrot juice," says me. "OH! I hate carrot juice!" was her reply. "Good thing." I'm so gonna get fired one o' these days. sweater: Urban Outfitters, old; skirt: vintage, thrifted; tights: Target; shoes: Dolls by Nina

 Not Appropriate, Mrs. Stephens! Wednesday: I was informed by a fourth grader on this day that my attire was, "not appropriate, Mrs. Stephens! It's too cold out for tights!" I believe she was right, I nearly froze walking out to my car! blouse and sweater: vintage, thrifted; skirt: super old, JCrew

 Two Hour Delay Thursday: Temps dipped so I enjoyed myself a couple extra hours of sleep. Which was great because I'd enjoyed myself a couple extra hours of stay-up time the night before. I watched the movie Gone Girl while attempting to knit. Have y'all seen that movie? I'd not even read the book so I walked in cold. It was so good! I think I only got about five rows knitted and dropped about 10 stitches in the process! dress: ModCloth, last year; brown fishnets: TJMaxx; yellow tights: Target

Welcome, Visitors! Friday: So I vaguely recall my principal mentioning that the superintendent, a handful of board members, my administrators and a state representative where gonna be in the school on Friday and would pop in the art room. And by "vaguely recall" I mean I totally forgot! I had my lovely first grade friends in the room who had just finished learning about Picasso's Blue and Rose periods and there thusly painting with cool and warm colors. The kids did great but I gotta tell you, I was a nervous wreck teaching in front of all those folk! Whilst wearing this craziness, of course. blouse and shoes: thrifted; sweater: old, For-never21; skirt: DIY, details here; tights: Target; belt: Amazon

Until Tuesday, y'all!

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In the Art Room: CD and Embroidery Hoop Loom Weaving

I hope this blog post finds you either A. Experiencing a Snow Day; B. Enjoying an electric blanket/hot chocolate combo or C. Somewhere other than the subzero temperature land the rest of us seem to be enduring. As for me, I'm enjoying myself a two-hour school delay with a cat on my lap and a cuppa hot tea. And weaving. Because that's what days like this are perfect for!

In case you didn't know, I've declared January the Wonderful World of Weaving month (or something like that). Here's what I've shared so far:

The Weaving Series: Paper Loom Weaving (perfect for first grade)
The Weaving Series: Straw Weaving (second grade and up)
The Weaving Series: Circle Loom Weaving (second grade and up)

In my last post, I shared with you Circle Loom Weaving which, if you go about it like I do by having the kids spend a couple of classes painting their plate, can be a long project. If you don't have that much time to invest in a project, then this CD weaving is just the thing for you and your kids. It's fast and fun and teaches the same weaving skills learned in circle loom weaving!

Now, I gotta tell you, everything I learned about CD loom weaving came from my friend Julie O'Brien who has the super fab art teacherin' blog Art Matters. In this particular post, she does a great job walking you through the steps of CD weaving. I'll be sharing with you a coupla short clips today but go to her post for detailed photos and printable step-by-steppies. 

Supplies:

CDs: Send out a school-wide email and you'll end up with more than you could ever image.

Yarn: A lil for warping and a lil more for weaving.

That's it! Let's get started:

In this short clip, I'l show you how to warp you loom. I always avoided CD weaving because I thought the warp strings would move around on the circle of the CD. Surprisingly, it doesn't! Well, not much anyway. And if it does, you can easily just slide it back into place. 

And there you go! Please feel free to ask any questions in the comments. I'd also love to hear some alternatives to teaching CD weaving you might have. Or what you've done with the finished result!

Another alternative to circle loom weaving would be weaving on an embroidery hoop! I shared this technique this summer if it looks kinda familiar to y'all. 

I think this project would be great for an art club since it would require each kid to have an embroidery hoop. Again, ask around. I bet you'll have embroidery hoops comin' out yer ears. 

I made a bunch of these guys this summer and currently have them hanging like a mobile in my art room. I'd love the kids to weave a collection of them and hang them in front of my school's large bank of windows. Wouldn't a bunch of these kind of weavings in a variety of sizes look great? Here's the method I use to create these weavings:

Very similar to circle and CD loom weaving, right?

And there you have it! Stay warm, kids. Looks like my two hour delay is just about up, time to get ready for the day. Enjoy yours!

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