We’d like you to design a project for the Summer 2026 issue of Handwoven based on your favorite colors, whatever those are. Yes, this is a very broad prompt!
Do you feel like you don’t know how to even get started? Here’s an idea: Make a list of the colors that keep popping up in your home or your favorite clothes, or on your Pinterest boards or wish lists. When you’re shopping, are you drawn to items of a particular color or color family? Take note, and add those colors to your list!
I have a friend who prefers shades of red (with just a very few greens to mix things up), another who is drawn to blues and purples, and yet another whose tastes range from black to gray to a (very minor) touch of taupe. When you’re making your list, please remember that no one will be checking your work in search of “wrong” colors. You like the colors that you like!
Now, drawing from your personal pool of colors (plus a neutral color—see below), what can you design that would feel just right in your life? We’re looking for everything from scarves, dish towels, and table linens, to clothing, wall-hangings, and pillows. Surprise us with your beautiful ideas, and when you submit them, please tell us what’s behind the colors you chose. (Do they bring up memories of someone precious, or are they associated with a special time or place? Were you inspired by a picture? Or maybe you like them Just Because.)
If you’ve come up with a long and varied list of colors, make it easier on yourself by narrowing that group down to just a handful. We suggest making yarn wraps or adding custom colors to your weaving software to try out your color options.
Green, black, and white are the main colors in Carla Jean Hubbart’s Zebras on the Serengeti scarf, but small touches of sky blue and gold bring the design to life. You can find the pattern online in the Handwoven library. Photo by Matt Graves
And as you design, keep in mind that sticking strictly to the exact colors on your list may result in uninspiring—or even banal—results. The judicious addition of lighter or darker shades of your color or even a completely different color or two can liven up just about any palette. Are you a risk-taker? Consider adding a few ends of a color that you don’t care for—the results may suprise you.
As you design, we’d also like you to offer suggestions for how readers can make the project their own—for instance, ideas for alternate colorways or other uses for your draft (such as turning a dishtowel into a scarf if the hand of the textile is right for that kind of thing). How can weavers end up with a similar result using more or fewer shafts? (Hint—handweaving.net is a great resource for tracking down this kind of alternative.)
Whether you’ve submitted projects to Handwoven before or this is your first time, we strongly encourage you to show us your ideas—you never know until you try!
A few picks of yellow add extra energy to overshot woven in the more traditional colors of red and blue. Photo by Tom Knisely
How to submit a proposal
Please use our Handwoven submission form for proposals.
Submission guidelines can be found here.
Check out the palette for the issue here. Since the projects in this issue will be based on your favorite colors, we’re doing something a little different with this palette—it includes just a few neutral tones. Please use one of those neutrals in your design. The neutral doesn't need to be a major element, though.
We base our project selections for each issue on your photographs and the information about structure, fiber, draft source, and inspiration that you include on the submission form.
Here is some guidance for your photos and other materials:
• If you’ve already woven the piece you‘re proposing, be sure to include clear photos that show the item overall as well as close-up shots of any key details.
• If you’ve woven a version of the piece but expect to reweave it if it’s selected, please send photos of the preliminary version along with a description of what you’ll be doing differently for the proposed project.
• If the piece is in progress, please include photos showing it on the loom.
• If you haven’t put it on the loom yet, please include a draft (hand-drawn or WIF), a sketch showing your concept, and a picture of your proposed yarn.
We will review all proposals and ask for additional photographs or information, if needed, to be sent in by September 22, 2025. If your project wasn’t on the loom before the initial proposal deadline, we very strongly recommend warping and weaving a portion of it before this date, and sending us photos of your work. We‘re unlikely to accept any projects that don‘t include photos showing a sample of the woven textile, whether it is on or off the loom.
Please send project updates, including photos, to the editorial email below and reference your submission.
After our content-selection meeting in late September, we will contact everyone who submitted article and project ideas to inform them of our decisions.
Accepted articles and finished woven projects are due, along with project paperwork, by the final materials date listed below.
Initial proposals for projects and articles due: August 4, 2025
Final submission materials in the form of photographs and article outlines due: September 22, 2025
For accepted project proposals, woven projects and paperwork due: November 3, 2025
For accepted standalone article proposals, final copy (including photos or illustrations) due: December 1, 2025
If you’d like to get a head start on the paperwork, look here to choose the option that fits your project.
Please use the email address below for inquiries that don’t fit into our submission form. If pieces of your proposal cannot be emailed, please contact us and ask for a physical mail address.
Editorial email: [email protected]
I look forward to seeing your proposals!
Happy weaving,
Lynn