Fine arts and Crafts

My goals

By the end of this Unit, I will be able to:

⦿ Identify materials and tools used for weaving.

⦿ Describe the techniques of weaving with raffia.

⦿ Identify the decoration techniques for weaving.

⦿ Share ideas with others about own work.

Introduction

Weaving is practiced by many different cultures in the world. It

refers to the process of interlacing strands of a given material.

The practice usually involves the use of natural materials such

as palm leaves, sisal, raffia, different plant stems and plant

fibers. For example look at raffia in Figure 5.1. Raffia is a type

of a natural yarn. Have you ever seen and touched it before?

Figure 5.1: Raffia

In Rwanda, there are many local products woven from Raffia.

Raffia can be dipped in dyes to change its colour according to

the products to be made, for example look at Figure 5.2.

Activity 1

1. List objects from your local area which are made from

raffia.

2. Which other materials are used together with raffia to

make these objects?

3. Visit your local area and get raffia (coloured and

uncoloured).

There are many products made by weaving raffia. For example

look at the different products in Figure 5.3.

Figure 5.3: Products made from raffia

Activity 2

1. Observe the objects in Figure 5.3 and discuss their

purpose.

2. Discuss how these products were made. What style was

used?

Weaving techniques

The appearance and texture of a woven work depends on the

weaving techniques used. There are many types of weaving

techniques that can be used to make raffia products. These

include; plain weave, twill weave, satin weave and Ghiord’s

knot.

(a) The plain weave:

This is the simplest

weaving technique. The

weft weave goes under

one warp at a time.

The process is repeated

as one weaves. For

example, look at Figure

5.4. This type of weave

is also known as a 1/1

weaving style.

(b) Twill weave:

For this style, a weft

goes over several warps

before going down and

then under two warps. The

most common twill weave

is shown in Figure 5.5.

This is a 2/2 twill weave.

Figure 5.5: Twill weave (2/2 pattern)

Twill weaves often look

heavier and stronger and

therefore are used to make

long lasting works.

(c) Satin weave:

This is a more delicate and

fancy weaving technique. For

this style the weft goes over

four or more warp before going

down. Then it goes under only

one warp as shown in Figure

5.6.

Figure 5.6: A 4/1 satin weave

(d) Ghiordes Knot:

This is a type of knot

where a yarn is passed

over two warp yarns and

is then pulled through

between these two

warps. Then the knot

is cut to form a pile as

shown in Figure 5.7.

This type of knot is often

used to finish edges of

certain woven work such

as carpets.

Twinning weave

This is the type of weave where two left strands are twisted

or interlaced as they are made to pass over the left as shown

in Figure 5.8. Twinning is often used in making baskets and

mats

Activity 3

1. Study the weaving techniques above and try them on

your own using raffia.

2. Display weaves to your friends and discuss it with them.

Design Patterns for weaving

The weaving techniques discussed can be used to make such

products as carpets, table and door mats. The patterns of

the woven work largely depends on your creativity. In some

patterns you may include words yet in others you simply deal

with different colours of raffia. Observe Figures 5.8 and 5.9,

and work out activity 3.

Activity 4

Observe Figures 5.8 and 5.9 and do the following;

1. What weaving technique was used in the two works?

2. Identify similar work from your surroundings.

Coming up with such quality work may be difficult for you this time.

However, simpler activities would make you improve on your skill with

continuous practice. In the next activity, you need raffia in different

colours (where possible) and a pair of scissors or a cutter.

You can weave a square or rectangular table mat by following the

steps below. You could join two or three pieces of raffia for one strand

depending on the strength required.

Step 1

Get pieces of raffia and trim them to about 30cm. Look at

Figure 5.11.

Step 2

Using either a plain weave

or a twill weave, make your

table mat. Begin with two

strands at right angles and

then keep adding on the two

adjacent sides. Leave raffia

of about 5cm on either side

of your table mat as shown

in Figure 5.12. Follow an

even number for both the

warp and weft in order to

ease the finishing.

Figure 5.12: Trimmed pieces of raffia

Step 3

After weaving the required

size of the table mat, seal

off the edges by tying the

first strand with the third

in the row. Look at Figure

5.13. Remember, your

table mat must be kept

tight.

Figure 5.13: Sealing the edges

Step 4

Using either a cutter or a pair

of scissors, cut off the excess

raffia on all sides. This is what

we call “finishing” the article.

Look at the finished table mat

in Figure 5.14.

Figure 5.14: A finished table mat.

Activity 5

1. Use raffia to weave a table mat by following the steps

above.

2. Finish the table mat by cutting off excess raffia.

3. Display your work and discuss it in terms of the weaving

pattern used and the neatness of the woven work.

Assessment

1. Collect raffia and dye it in two different colours.

2. Weave a small piece (15cm by 15cm) using a satin weave.

the warp should be in a different colour from the weft?

3. Finish your art piece by cutting off all unnecessary pieces of

raffia.

4. What is the difference between twill weave and plain

weave.

Glossary

Finishing: trimming off unnecessary yarn from a woven

piece.

Ghiorde’s knot: a Turkish knot where a piece of yarn is tied and

twisted along two warps to form a pile. It is

usually used in making carpets.

Pile: upright loops of strands in a weave.

Plain weave: a type of weave where the weft goes over and

under one warp during the weaving process.

Satin weave: a weaving technique where a weft goes over four

wefts and one weft under.

Strand: fibers or yarn combined to form one piece for

weaving.

Twill weave: a weaving technique where the weft goes

over and under two warps during the weaving

process.

Warp: vertical strands in the weaving process.

Weave: interlacing threads/yarn to form an article.

Weaver: a person who weaves.

Weft: horizontal strands which go over and under

warp in the weaving process.

Strand: a single thin length of something such as fibre

especially twisted together with others.