Pay the bills. Start a load of laundry. Feed the cats. Buy some stamps. Get an oil change. Start another load of laundry. Run the vacuum (cat hair!). Dash to the grocery store.
I don’t know about you, but my endless to-do list leaves little time for weaving—or even for working out, say, the color problems in my next draft. As I fall into bed, it’s all too easy to keep promising myself that I’ll do some creative work tomorrow.
One of my favorite summer vacation destinations is a family cottage in the north woods of Wisconsin. Travel there starts with a flight—nonstop if I’m lucky. Then we take a drive past many miles of farmland that gradually give way to many miles of trees. When we finally arrive, I take a deep breath and feel my brain unclench. I’m literally and mentally in a different place.
Your vacations may take you whitewater rafting, on flea-market crawls, or even to the spare room with a bucket of fresh paint. When it comes to finding fertile ground for creative work, what seems to matter most is stepping away from our typical routines. I may find the answers to my draft’s color problems in the fluffy bits of lichen I spy on a fallen branch.
Noticing little things—and imagining their possibilities—both seem simple when I’m on vacation and away from my endless lists. I wish the same for you as you vacation this summer, wherever that may be.
Inside the Summer 2025 issue
From left, Regina McInnes’s Ripple Towel and Tote; Andrea Williams’s Beach House Bread Cloths; Katzy Luhring and Cynthia Newman’s Blue Horizons Tunic; and Dorothy Tuthill’s Adventure Utility Squares.
The eleven appealing projects in this issue will beautify and enrich your summer, wherever you find yourself. For trips to the beach or pool, you’ll find two bags with matching towels and a pair of cover-ups. For camping inside or out, we suggest making potholders, utility cloths, towels, a bread cloth, and napkins. For comfortable travel, consider weaving a cozy scarf—or a drapey shawl.
Wondering about the structures they use? You’ll find shadow weave, turned taqueté, color-and-weave, overshot, and multiple takes on twill—woven in cotton, linen, hemp, Tencel, recycled yarn, old t-shirts, and just a touch of wool.
That’s not all! You’ll learn more about weaving history, design, and techniques in the articles and features in this issue:
• Tom Knisely writes about an ancient rug woven with—wait for it—cat hair. He visited it, and so can you!
• Anita Osterhaug reviews a book about designing and weaving krokbragd, as viewed through the eyes of an artist.
• In Vintage Weavers you’ll find techniques for weaving with touchy shoulders.
• Learn how—and why—to turn a summer and winter draft (and then weave a tunic project that does just that).
• Yarn Lab takes a closer look at LoftyCotton Boucle.
From left: Floral Bouquet Towels by Malynda Allen, Venu Scarf by Shilpa Nagarkar, and Memories of Venice Pillow by Lilija Lapsa.
Online, you‘ll find three bonus subscriber projects as part of this issue: towels to coordinate with your new napkins, a stunning and silky scarf, and a pillow that was inspired by a trip to Venice, Italy.
Set yourself up for summer with the project ideas you’ll find in the Summer 2025 issue of Handwoven, available here.
One final note
Do you have weaving questions or comments? Please email me at [email protected].
And I‘m curious about what’s on your loom right now! Please send me pictures, or show us on Instagram or Facebook by using #handwovenmagazine.
Happy weaving!
Lynn
Lynn Rognsvoog is the editor of Handwoven.