What Spinners Need to Know Before Weaving the Autumn Jewel Scarf (Or Pillow)

When you go to furniture stores, do you look at every single textured pillow and think about how you could make it yourself with handspun? I know I do! When I saw Véronique Perrot’s Autumn Jewel Scarf in the Fall 2024 issue of Handwoven, I knew I had to make it for myself—but as a throw pillow, and of course, with handspun.

Before You Start

Before you get going, here are a couple of things I wish I'd known before I dove in to this project.

Size Your Warp

Consider sizing your warp yarns—especially handspun singles—before putting them on the loom. I didn’t do this, and it made weaving difficult at first. (More on that in a bit!) Sizing works to temporarily stabilize your yarn and shield it from abrasion. There are plenty of sizing recipes, but the idea is that you can use any water-soluble starchy slurry with ingredients you have at home, whether it’s made of flour, cornstarch, milk, gelatin, or flax seeds. After you’re done weaving, the sizing simply washes out with soap and water.