Tablet Weaving

This laborious process is shown in depth with 'tasks' performed for the public by Wulfrun, our resident Weaver. This display is focused on education.

[Skip Image]

Tablet or Card weaving is one of the oldest known weaving techniques, traceable back to at least the early Iron Age.

The woven braid produced was used to decorate clothing as a trim or used as straps on bags and also as belts. (see picture 1. Images at the end of the document.)

The tablets or cards used are small flat squares, usually of wood (see picture 2) but bone and metal tablets have also been found. The tablets have a hole in each corner through which a thread, wool, linen or silk, known as the warp is threaded.

The tablets are held in the hand similar to a pack of cards (see picture 3), laying parallel to the warp threads, and are then turned backward or forward by half or quarter turns (see picture 4). This action twists the four threads into a single strand, which is then held in place by the weft thread, which has been passed between the warp as it turns (see picture 5). By varying what colour of the warp yarn is used and the directions in which the tablets are turned, intricate warp patterns can be created these patterns are called threaded in patterns (see picture 8).

The weaving can be done on either a frame (see picture 9) or can be fastened to a belt and a post.

A technique called ?��Ǩ��brocading?��Ǩ�Ѣ could further be used to enhance tablet weaving. This was achieved by using a second weft thread, which runs over some or all of the warp threads, creating a pattern on the surface of the thread. Brocaded tablet-weaves were usually of silk, using gold or silver thread for the brocaded pattern. This type of tablet weave was a very expensive and so was considered a high status item, and as such would be used to decorate expensive garments.

A further method of tablet weaving used was the double face technique with this method the cards are threaded with only two colours (see picture 10) and is used to produce lettering and patterns which are the same on each side but with the colours reversed.

Images (click for larger image):