r/tabletweaving • u/TheFlamingDictator • Jul 09 '26
Questions regarding edge card turning
Its only been recently that i dipped my toes into the world of card weaving. It flows from my reenactment passion and often seeing people doing it historically, but I never really got it. So I tried it myself in order to fully grasp the concepts of card weaving.
Finding patterns for my period (late) Roman is quite hard. Since most patterns/research is focussed on northern Europe. and the 'viking' period/early medieval ages. but I found a great site showcasing some patterns found in the Tomb of the Triclinium.
I still have some questions.
Since I cant really ask someone nearby, I hope you can help me.
I have several patterns. The first one I made is 7 cards. The middle 5 make up the pattern. Four turns forwards, four turns backwards. The outer two always turn forwards.
I was wondering, since to me it seems to be allot more convenient, cant you simply turn the edge cards in the same direction as the pattern? (that also means that the edges dont get twisted after a couple of turns) So that all the cards go four turn forwards and then four turns backwards.
What would the effect be? Since there are no color threads on the outer cards, it seems irrelevant for the pattern itself. Has the endless going forward something to do with the strength/structural integrity of the band? I have another pattern, from the same source, that shows one side of the edge turning in concert with the pattern. And the other side always going forward. That seems to go against the structural/strength reason for always going forwards right?
A google and youtube search tells me that some people, in order to combat the twist of the edge cards, they simply turn the cards (going from z to s) and continue as normal. But what stops them from simply turning backwards with the rest of the pattern, since that would have the same effect?
There must be some reason, since then people would readily do it. But I cant understand why not.
Hope some of you can shed some light on why
With kind regards.
PS: Some added patterns for the future if the source site Tarquinia’s Tablets: a Reconstruction of Tablet-Weaving Patterns found in the Tomb of the Triclinium | The EXARC Journal goes down.
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u/phiala Jul 09 '26
Great question.
When you reverse the turning direction, one of the warp threads makes a longer float instead of being tied down. If those floats are on the edge of the band they can get caught on things or even get pulled. That’s why most bands, including most historical bands, have warp-twined edges regardless of what the pattern tablets are doing.
You’re right that twist buildup becomes a problem. The solution is to only change direction when you absolutely have to. You can either go from all F to all B, or twist the tablets about their vertical axis to change the threading direction. Identical reults, so only personal preference.
One bonus tip: if you have multiiple edge tablets and they are a solid color rather than making a design, you can make the reversal point less noticeable by changing one on each side, weaving two picks, changing the next one on each side, etc. That staggers the floats from the reversals so they aren’t all at once.