Laurelhurst Fiber Art Studio & Urban Farm
Tablet Weaving * Ply-Splitting * Mindfulness * Permaculture
Welcome to Laurelhurst Fiber Art Studio & Urban Farm, located in beautiful Portland, Oregon.
I teach and write about tablet weaving and ply-splitting, and also practice mindfulness and permaculture. I enjoy sharing everything I know about these subjects. If you live in Portland, or plan to visit, please feel free to contact me to make an appointment to see my studio, purchase books and supplies, or arrange for instruction.
I offer instruction in my studio by appointment to individuals and small groups. Dates and times can be arranged to fit your schedule. The workshop descriptions will give you a general idea of what I teach, and instruction can be tailored to meet your specific interests. I also occasionally teach workshops and lecture in other locations -- see my teaching schedule.
I also offer Mail Order books and DVDs, cords, kits for braids, ornaments, and baskets , yarn kits, tools, and small gift items made by my student, Andrew Louie.
You may purchase books and supplies in my studio; please contact me to make an appointment. Also see my Links page for more information.
To see photos of my work, (tablet-woven calligraphy, baskets, rugs, garden art, ornaments, scarves, jewelry, and hats), visit my Tablet Weaving Gallery and Ply-Splitting Gallery. In these galleries, you will also find photos of ply-splitting and tablet weaving by other artists, as well as traditional pieces from Asia (tent bands, manuscript binding ribbons, and camel girths). As I continue to learn more, I will add photos and descriptions to the galleries, so please check back to see what's new.
I welcome commissions for inscription bands and ply-split baskets.
Tablet weaving and ply-splitting are both slow and meditative. Practicing them is good for the mind and the spirit, and helps build valuable personal qualities, such as patience, concentration, and attention to detail. I find joy in structure and color, tribal designs, and new possibilities, and in using simple tools and my own hands to turn thread into small, beautiful textiles.
Examples shown on my web site are my work, except where noted.
Tablet weaving (card weaving) is an ancient technique used to create strong, narrow decorative bands and seamless tubes. It is at least 2,500 years old, and has been practiced in widely-scattered parts of Europe, the Middle East, Asia, and North Africa. Traditional uses include starting bands on warp-weighted looms, document seals, clothing trim, reins and harnesses, tent bands, and love tokens. Tablets can be flipped, rotated, transposed, and handled in other ways to weave many structures and patterns; they can also be spaced out in a reed to weave soft, open fabrics.
The basic techniques are easy to learn, and children as young as 6 can weave beautiful warp-twined friendship bracelets and choker necklaces using just 8 tablets.
For those who wish to pursue more complex techniques, tablet weaving can provide endless mental and technical challenges. I have woven many bands with traditional intricate motifs from Asia, Africa, and South America. People often ask me what I do with my bands. I hang them in my studio and enjoy looking at them! I have made a wide variety of other items, including jewelry, bookmarks, mug rugs, scarves, and wall hangings. I particularly enjoy graphing alphabets and weaving inscription bands, small peace banners and altar pieces. You will find many photos and descriptions in my Tablet Weaving Gallery and also under Workshops.
Ply-split braiding is a tradition from the Thar desert of NW India, where men spin goat hair, ply it into thick cords, and make sturdy girths, carrying straps, bags, and neck decorations for their camels. The fabric is made by pulling cords through the plies of other cords. The technique is fairly new to textile enthusiasts. Peter Collingwood's book, The Techniques of Ply-Split Braiding, published in 1998, is the first comprehensive reference on the subject.
The photo on the left was taken by Peter Collingwood in 1996, and shows Aatam Ram making a girth that Peter later bought from him.
Ply-splitting is a generic term that includes ply-split braiding and the much more common ply-split darning. The difference: in ply-split braiding, there is one set of elements (cords), and each cord moves at an angle to the selvedge; in ply-split darning, there are two sets of elements, with cords at right angles (comparable to warp and weft in weaving).
Ply-splitting can be flat, but it can also zig-zag and spiral, and in fact can take just about any three-dimensional shape. A vast number of geometric and pictorial designs are also possible. This is exciting and mostly unexplored territory. I am designing, making, and writing instructions for ornaments, necklaces, bags, baskets (such as the Lotus Basket above), hats, mats, and rugs.
Cordmaking is an important skill for anyone who wants to pursue ply-splitting. I have been experimenting with a wide variety of fibers, including wool, linen, cotton, metallics, raffia, paper, stainless steel, and fishing line. Within the limits of a particular fiber, cords can be firm or soft, depending on the intended use.
Ply-splitting is completely portable, and I usually have a project with me. You will find many photos and descriptions in my Ply-Splitting Gallery and also under Workshops.
This page updated October 6, 2007.