Weave a baby blanket - PEP BB textiles.straw.weave.smallblanket

This is a badge bit (BB) that is part of the PEP curriculum.  Completing this BB is part of getting the straw badge in textiles.

In this project, you will weave a baby blanket! Plain weave, twill, double weave, single colour or lots of colour changes -- it's up to you. It needs to be at least 30 inches square, and made of 100% natural fibres. Consider how the blanket will be used when selecting yarn to weave with--underlays require a robust, insulative material (thicker wools); swaddling cloths must be strong, but not irritating to the skin (cottons, soft hemps & linens); and a top blanket for warmth could do well in a wool or wool-silk blend. Lap blankets of similar dimensions can also work here.



For a 30" wide blanket, you'll probably want to be using a 36" or larger floor loom or upright warp-weighted loom, but it is possible to make one on a smaller loom using a technique called 'Double-Width Weaving' (an overview by All-Fibre Arts). When weaving larger pieces that need to be a certain size, it is critical to take into account ends per inch, takeup & shrinkage, and loom waste before starting your weave! There are a number of weaving calculators available to help you decide how much yarn you'll require for your project; here's a good one from Weavolution.

Ask The Woolery: Calculating yardage for a weaving project


Now that you know how much yarn you'll need, it's time to think about warping your loom. Depending on the reed you have on your loom, you may need more than one thread per dent for this project! Here's a quick tutorial on doing a threads per dent calculation by Weaving with Janet Dawson.

Once you have everything calculated and measured out, it's time to warp your loom in preparation for weaving. There are many correct ways to do this, but back-to-front is beginner friendly, and doesn't require a second person at any stage during the process, so is a good place to get started if you've never done it before.

WEBS: How to Warp a Loom From Back to Front


Harry Rogers: Trying Different Basic Weaving Patterns On A Four Shaft Loom


Badge bit requirements:
 - blanket must be at least 30 inches long and wide
 - blanket must be made from natural fibers, such as wool, alpaca, silk, cotton, linen, etc

To document your completion of the BB, provide proof of the following as pics or video (less than two minutes):
-  the yarn you used to weave with
-  your blanket in progress
-  your blanket next to a ruler