This summer my travels around the Baltic have been richly informative about the patterned bands produced in different countries. During the two workshops at Summer School, I will be sharing some of my findings, and showing the reproductions that I have woven and the bands that I purchased.
In the 1880’s society was changing over the whole of Europe. Some of the changes had a profound influence on peasant culture. Railways increased contact between rural and urban areas, countries freed their peasant populations from serfdom and there was an increased opportunity for some people to emigrate. Chemical dyes and their products, such as printed cottons and dyed thread, became available to village markets. It was at this time that interested groups and individuals became aware of the effects of such radical developments. Ethnological museums opened to try to preserve the best of peasant culture, art and craft, before it disappeared. Unfortunately, despite these efforts, the patterns on woven bands have not been studied in depth nor have the patterns from different countries been compared.
In contrast to this was the focus on examining the images used in peasant embroidery. In Russia, researchers noticed that in the 1880’s a new cross stitch rose design appeared almost simultaneously on embroideries made at a considerable distance apart. As printed embroidery patterns were not used, they wondered how this unique motif appeared so suddenly in so many different places. It was traced to a picture of a rose on the wrapper of a bar of soap, newly produced by a factory, which was sold in village markets. This illustrates that peasant culture has always absorbed fresh ideas and influences. It is highly likely that embroidery would also influence the patterns on bands.
Band patterns were not written down until the 20th century, so weavers would refer to a repertoire of designs woven by their relatives, friends and neighbours. However, it is mistake to imagine that weavers merely copied and reproduced. Any weaver who is skilled at their craft likes to embellish, alter and extend what they can do. Also, patterned woven bands were only part of their ‘best’ dress outfit. In many countries around the Baltic, patterns on the belt were also embroidered onto the sleeves, cuffs and collars of the blouse. In some cases, the pattern would also appear on the woven material for the skirt. Dalarnas Museum in Falun in central Sweden has two such complete outfits. It is highly unusual for complete sets of garments from the 19th century to be preserved. In the Russian Ethnographic Museum in St Petersburg, I saw a lovely Russian costume with a dramatic belt with a bell flower pattern. This was also woven into the material for the voluminous skirt and embroidered around the cuffs of the crisp white blouse.
Weaving designs
I am often asked how did these weavers learn to weave complex designs?
It takes time and lots of practice.
Learning to weave was always started in childhood. A child would learn to weave a very simple pattern. At first, a child could copy from another patterned band with help and supervision from an older weaver. The process of learning is to embed the design into the mind and hand and eye so that it becomes automatic. A child will learn to ‘see’ the next pick of the pattern as they become familiar with the pattern structure. Once a simple pattern had been mastered, the design could be expanded.
Here is an example of how a simple pattern can be extended.
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| The 5 pattern thread is a simple design of circles and crosses ‘OXO’ |
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| Here the circle pattern has been repeated to form a figure 8. |
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| Here is a 7 pattern thread 'OXO' design. |
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| Here is a 13 pattern thread design. |
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| An asymmetrical pattern can be made into a mirror image. |
Here is part of a very complex 19 pattern thread Latvian belt that I have just woven.
I have trimmed the image so that you can see the two patterns, which are both a negative and mirror image of each other. This band pattern was a remarkable demonstration of weaving skills. There were over 2,500 picks with no simple pattern repeats. I followed a chart, but the original weaver who created this masterpiece would have developed the design as she wove from her own visualisation of the emerging pattern. It is a unique piece. Nowadays, patterns are written down so that beginners can follow the steps for learning in a more straightforward manner. Using the double slotted heddle makes patterns with more pattern threads easier to weave, even for beginners.
Susan J Foulkes
http://durhamweaver64.blogspot.co.uk/
