The Easy Weaving on Little Looms Summer 2023 issue has landed and in it is an article I wrote about my favorite summer weaving activity, sketch tapestry. The article title is Sketch tapestries: weave your world.
Sketch tapestry is what I call my practice of weaving something simple and fairly quick from an environmental inspiration. I also call it my tapestry diary and I’ve been doing it since 2016. I find this practice a lot like sketching or drawing. Especially if I practice it while traveling or backpacking, it reminds me to take the time to look at what is around me as I explore. If my intention is to weave something about my day, I’m much more likely to actually stop for an extra moment and explore whatever caught my eye and spend some time really looking.
The example in the article is from a hike along a Colorado lake last summer. I loved the color of the water as seen from the trail above the shoreline as it moved from yellow-green to deep blue and I wove that along with some trees in a 2 x 3 inch tapestry. I also used this example in my online course Summer of Tapestry and those of you who joined me for that class saw the Twin Lakes tapestry there with step by step descriptions.
Rebecca Mezoff weaving in the Mummy Range of Colorado on her Hokett loom.
Of course magazine articles are written a very long time before they show up in print and I had forgotten what images I sent Longthread media for this article. I was surprised to open the article and see such a large picture of me doing one of my favorite things—hiking high in the mountains with a little loom. The loom in the photo is one of Jim Hokett’s tiny looms and it seemed fitting to see it there just days after I learned he had passed away.
I started my tapestry diary at a time when I was feeling like tapestry weaving in general was quite heavy. There were lots of rules and the art world can be cruel and full of pressure. I wanted to return to the reasons I started weaving tapestry in the first place when I was taking classes just for fun. Back then I had no thought of showing or selling or what awards might show up on my CV which might allow me to get a commission or a coveted residency or a sale. I wanted to find the joy of weaving again and this sketch tapestry practice worked for me and has continued to work ever since.
A similar photo to the one below of my tool kit appears in the article as well. The tools I’m using there are a Handywoman Shop loom, a shed stick by Stephen Willette, tapestry bobbin by Milissa Ellison Dewey, and a tiny beater by Threads Thru Time. You can find links to those shops and more resources for tapestry tools that I like on my website HERE. (Those are not affiliate links. I only list products that I use and like and I am not compensated for doing so.)
Sketch tapestry kit: weft, warp, yarn needle, tapestry beater, tapestry bobbin, shed stick, sketching tools.
If you’re interested in this practice, grab a copy of the Summer 2023 Little Looms magazine. Dig out your loom, take some time to go exploring somewhere, and pay attention to what catches your eye or seems especially interesting. Take a little time to explore whatever it is including drawing or taking photos of it. Then make a small weaving without focusing too much on detail. You want to capture something of what you enjoyed about your inspiration. The focus is not to replicate it in any way. Relive your experience through the weaving whether you weave while you’re in the field or back at home.
Little Looms article from Summer of 2023 and some sketch tapestry weaving tools.
If you’re interested in taking a class about sketch tapestry, I have two options for you. The first is a retreat I hold in the mountains of Colorado each summer. This year’s retreat is full, but you can plan on next year and read more about it HERE.
The other option this year is my Summer of Tapestry online course. Registration opens April 25th with the course starting in late May. Find out more about that and start planning for some summer weaving HERE. If you’re ready to start now, you can take last year’s Summer of Tapestry class today! It is a lot of fun no matter what time of year you do it.
Do you do any kind of woven diary or other fiber practice with these sorts of ideas? Tell us about it in the comments!