How to Stop Your Weaving From Narrowing at the Edges

One issue we all grapple with is the constant narrowing at the edges of a weaving. You start a project that is perfectly wide at the bottom, only to notice, sometimes not until the very end, that the sides have crept inward.

In this blog post, I'll walk you through why it happens and how you can stop your waving from narrowing when weaving on a frame loom.

Why does weaving narrow at the edges?

This issue oftentimes has to do with weft tension. If the weft is pulled too tightly, the weave will naturally shrink in. If it's too loose, it may even widen.

It can also happen when you're not giving the weft enought room to settle across the full width. Because the weft moves over-under-over-under, it needs a little extra lenght to travel across. If that slack isn't there, the warp threads will ge pulled inward. This is something you're especially likely to notice early on, while you're still practicing the basics, like plain weave in our 3 easy weaving techniques for beginners.

A simple techniques to stop weaving from narrowing

On every row of weaving, instead of pulling the yarn straight across, create a gentle arc across the warp. Then break that arc into several smaller ones before you comb the row down. This technique distributes the yarn evenly from left to right and reduces the risk of narrowing edges.

In this video I show you how it's done:

https://youtube.com/shorts/rTvAp5fHsms?feature=share

Make a large bow, then divide it into many small bows.

A final piece of advise: measure often

Keep a tape measure nearby and check your width every few centimeters. This is especially easy to practice on a small project like a mug rug, where a draw-in shows up fast.

Draw-ins tedn to sneek up on you, and you often won't notice until the damage already is done.

Final thoughts

Draw-ins are normal. With practise and small adjustments your edges will become cleaner, straighter, and more consistent.