Ask Madelyn: Floating Selvedges and S-Hooks

Hi Madelyn,

I have recently watched your *Weaving Well *DVD and picked up many ideas that will be helpful in my weaving. I have now begun to use S-hooks to weight my floating selvedges. I do have a question about what to do when you are coming to the end of your warp. As your tie-on knots are moving over the back apron rod, what do you do with the S-hooks? Thanks for your help.

Thank you, Beth

Hi Beth!

I'm assuming you have this question because your floating selvedge is wound on the beam with the rest of the warp. Therefore, when the apron rod comes over the back beam, the S-hook on the floating selvedge would slide toward the shafts if left in place. If your warp is relatively long in the first place (5 yards or so), the floating selvedge is usually longer than the rest of the warp at the end because it didn't take up for the distance of the weaving the way the other threads did. In that case, I just make sure the S-hook hangs beyond the apron rod and back beam in the remaining slack left in the thread (do you see what I mean?)

If the thread isn't long enough for that, I either re-tie it to the apron rod tightly (since I'm almost finished weaving It should remain firm enough for what remains without weighting it) or loop another thread around it, tie the ends of the loop in an overhand knot, and hang a couple of S-hooks from the loop so they dangle beyond the back beam. If the floating selvedge has not been wound on the beam with the rest of the warp and becomes too short at the end, I just add to its length with some scrap yarn in an overhand knot.

—Madelyn

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If you have a weaving question please email Madelyn! View related & recent "Ask Madelyn" posts! Posted March 1, 2012. Updated October 9, 2017.

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