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The School of Weaving (formerly called JST Online Guild) launched in January 2017 as a response to weavers wanting to come to Salt Spring Island to study in our studio. Our wait lists were getting longer and longer each year, so Jane decided to try a different approach. This was to take the beginners workshop she offered, flesh it out with more wonderful content and offer it by way of streaming on the great interweb. The immediate response spurred her on. She decided to take every one of her workshops, expand them in greater detail and now we have over 280+ videos available online.  

The first year goes over all the fundamentals of weaving. Warping, various methods of dressing the loom, great weaving technique, project planning, understanding sett, information about different types of looms and yarns, weaving with difficult yarns like mohair, fulling and finishing.  

Season 2 lays the foundations of colour and design. The format is simple and easy, encouraging original design and making it accessible and fun. Concepts regarding colour theory, graphic, division of space and the architecture of design are laid down in a way that allows weavers to bring their ideas to reality.

Season 3 takes an in-depth look at Plain Weave. We get really familiar with our reed exploring denting, cramming and denting, weft faced, warp faced, double weave, collapse weave and supplementary warp. All of these ideas are laid down on top of what we learned in Season 2.

Season 4 is absolutely twilling 🙂 We explore threadings, tie-ups, treadlings, colour and weave, big threadings, little threadings and end up harnessing the power of 4 shaft looms in regards to the twill weave structure.

Season 5 we tackle Laces with Canvas Weave, Huck, Huck with Colour and Weave effects, Bronson Spot, Atwater Bronson Lace, Blended Lace and how we can get Lace and Twills all in one piece. But we first start the year with Turned Twill, one of Jane’s favourite weave structures.

Season 6 we explore Units, Blocks and Profiles with Monk’s Belt, Overshot, Name Drafting Overshot, Crackle Weave, M’s & O’s and Summer and Winter. We’ll add new designs ideas to these weave structures for modern new look. Very exciting and for our 8 shaft weavers, we’ll continue on from Season 5’s Turned Twill and study Blocks & Tie-up Quadrants plus Block Analysis for +4 shafts.

With Season 7, we continue with several of the Season 6 weave structures and add so much more to them. Halvdräll and Turned Taquete are being added with additional emphasis on Colour and Weave on Monk’s Belt, Turned Twill, Overshot, Summer and Winter, M’s & O’s and Crackle on Opposites.

Season 8 is in the works and being filmed!

Further seasons are on the drawing board and we will continue to bring all of Jane’s workshops to the screen.  

Below you will find a more detailed description of what is in every episode. All this for US$99.99 a year.  Your subscription gives you access to everything we have done so far as well as a new video every 5 weeks, along with PDFs for every episode.  

The School of Weaving also has its own forum. This allows members to share ideas, and their projects and to ask questions, all monitored by the wonderful staff at JST. Weavers around the world are creating their own supportive community centered on the lessons in the School of Weaving.

An Overlay of Colour and Weave and Texture on Units and Block Structures – Season 7

Available immediately

Episode 1 Turned Twill with Colour & Weave	It is so much fun to start the year with another overlay idea.  This year is all about adding Colour and Weave sequences to units and blocks. We’ll start with Turned Twill for the 3rd year in a row…adding my favourite Dark/Light sequence from Season 3 E4, which was Dark/Light/Dark/Dark/Light. We’ll add it to units and then to blocks and make that cute little motif bigger and bigger and bigger. This should set your mind on fire.  I also demonstrate how to wind 2 warps…a light one and a dark one and then beam both warps simultaneously. This method comes in really handy when you have a lot of colour changes in a warp.
Episode 2 Fiberworks PCW	With great pleasure, I welcome back Bob Keates, co-creator of Fiberworks PCW. Using a computer drafting programme makes playing with Colour and Weave ideas very easy. It allows us to play and try different C&W sequences without committing to the warp. I’m blown away by the possibilities…things I wouldn’t believe could happen, happen.  Bob gives a brief review of what he did in Season 4 E2 but then adds a lot of information about other features that this amazing programme has, linking/unlinking, block substitution, and adding colour sequences. I learned a lot during the filming 🙂
Episode 3 Monk’s Belt with Colour & Weave	We have so much fun in this episode exploring Colour and Weave sequences, block by block and thread by thread. The project is for placemats or scarves but both are done on the same warp with different wefts. It really explores how we can get heavy and weighty fabric or soft and delicate fabric on the same warp just by questioning our preconceived ideas about how things should be woven 😉. The show and tell is fabulous and so, so, so inspiring.
Episode 4 Halvdräll	This episode introduces Halvdräll, which I tend to think of as Monk’s Belt on steroids. Colour and Weave lends itself beautifully to this structure, as does texture, so we’ll start adding another layer. Simple unit designs or big block designs and again, it is hard to believe that all these looks come from the idea of a unit. Positive/Negative is a strong force in Monk’s Belt/Halvdräll and is also a strong Positive/Negative force in Colour and Weave.
Episode 5 Overshot with Colour & Weave	Overshot is so near and dear to my heart and I wanted to do something very special with this episode. Many of you may know the book “Weaving Designs by Bertha Gray Hayes – Miniature Overshot Patterns”. I have long admired her use of asymmetry in Overshot, and her love of name drafting so I thought I should look to her for a place to start. Leafing through the pages I came across a pattern called Peace -1945. It stopped me in my tracks, not because of the pattern but because of the words. I instantly knew I had my starting place and all I had to do was my colour and weave overlay. I’m so glad I did. The exploration has been amazing.
Episode 6 Crackle on Opposites	Crackle is really crackling in this episode. We will learn how to take a profile shape, overlay the units and then overlay Colour and Weave sequences.  There is a universe of discovery with this structure……twilly, blocky, subtle, and complex. Once you’ve mastered Crackle, you’ll understand it has infinite possibilities. I start the design process with a profile by Harriet Tidball, develop it, tweak it, adding layer after layer to the process leaving you with a design trail to follow so you can do these yourselves.
Episode 7 Summer and Winter with Colour & Weave	Summer and Winter is back in this episode with texture and Colour and Weave overlays. You’ll be amazed at the possibilities. I’m so glad we are taking one more look at these simple yet powerful structures on 4 shafts. They are laying an incredible foundation for when you want to take things beyond 4. These structures grow up so nicely and you will have all kinds of other ideas to bring along with them.
Episode 8 Turned Taquette	We’re welcoming Turned Taquette on 4 shafts to this Episode. Closely related to Summer and Winter, it provides the 4-shaft weaver with a structure that allows you to have some pretty clean and tidy graphic squares and rectangles. It relies on Colour and Weave, Dark/Light or any two-colour sequence to work, so it fits into this season perfectly. In this episode, we will also look back at the other things we did with straight draw threading and create a wonderfully diverse set of fabrics from one warp in Plain Weave, Twill, Basket Weave and Turned Taquette.
Episode 9 M’s & O’s with Huck Theory	Huck and M’s & O’s are heading out on a date in this episode. Last year we took M’s & O’s out of the box and did some pretty amazing things with that traditional structure. M’s & O’s have some similarities to 2 units of Huck. What if we added another end to M’s & O’s and made it closer to Huck, and…. what if we gave Huck two more units like M’s & O’s? We know from our year of Laces that Huck is over the moon when it plays with Colour and Weave sequences. So, this episode is a great love fest of 2 traditional structures and everything we’ve learned about them. It will blow your mind because we kick the lid off that box and send it flying into outer space.
Episode 10 Season 7 Grand Finale	Every year our final episode celebrates everything we’ve learned in the past 12 months, so we hope you enjoy continuing with this tradition of reviewing, revising and revisiting.

Units, Blocks and Profiles – Season 6

Available immediately

Episode 1 Introduction to Units, Blocks & Profiles	All weave structures come with their own set of rules and characteristics. As weavers/designers, it is our job to understand those rules and identify their characteristics while we learn to bring our ideas into our own unique cloth. In Season 6 you’ll be designing your own projects from profiles as we explore these 3 little words, Units, Blocks & Profiles.
Episode 2 8 Shaft Twill Blocks & Tie-up Quadrants	For this episode, we continue on where we left off last season with Turned Twill.  We will explore new ways to manipulate the tie-up box as we study our tie-ups in quadrants. We’ll frame Lace with Twill, Basket Weave & Plain Weave as we explore so many more graphic ideas & colour palettes.
Episode 3 Monk’s Belt	The first weave structure we explore in Units, Blocks & Profiles this season is Monk’s Belt which uses 2 opposite twill units. We’ll learn how to lengthen the pattern floats and how your warp’s EPI controls the number of times a unit can be repeated. We’ll explore division of space in the weft by playing with block combinations, weaving Monk’s Belt with and without tabby and exploring the addition of inlay in our cloth.
Episode 4 Overshot	There is so much to explore with Overshot that we’re giving this structure 2 episodes. In this first episode we learn how the structure is derived from the 4 basic twill units and we’ll see how twills influence Overshot shapes. We’ll learn to treadle Tromp as Writ, Rose Fashion and on opposites. We’ll use contemporary graphics to bring the old and new together while adding Plain Weave elements to our overall designs.
Episode 5 Name Drafting Overshot	Our second Overshot episode is Name Drafting. We’ll learn how we can assign the letters of the alphabet to the harnesses on our looms and spell words that have special meaning to us. It is a conceptual approach to Overshot design that allows the weaver to personalize their work. It is also a fascinating way to learn about overshot, its rules, its shaping and to just let go and see what serendipity can bring to our looms.
Episode 6 Crackle Weave	Crackle weave is another powerful, fascinating twill derivative structure that provides a huge range of pattern possibilities for the 4-harness loom. We’ll learn all its characteristics, and go over different ways of treadling it. With 4 units on 4 harnesses, we can use twill profiles to provide the shapes. We can also get designs that are very blocky, without a strong diagonal, because of the way the blocks work together. Crackle can be woven with or without alternating tabbies between.
Episode 7 M’s & O’s	This episode looks at another fun and easy 2 block structure. It really uses all the harnesses in a unique way. You’ll see that we have blocks of plain weave alternating with blocks made up of 4 thread float elements.  We’ll also explore vertical plain weave as a 3rd design element in the threading and as an offset use of graphic in the blocks. We’ll review how this profile could be woven in any of the other 2 block structure we have studied.
Episode 8 Summer and Winter	This is the first tied weave structure we’ve studied. It’s a 2-tie structure…and all will be revealed about its name. It’s a supplementary weft structure as it’s woven with alternating tabbies between the pattern picks. There are so many ways to play with S&W in the treadling and we can weave our 2 units independently or together which gives us another way to frame within our graphic.
Episode 9 Block Analysis for +4 Shafts	Finally we learn the 3-step process that will allow us to analyze anything we can sketch on graph paper…the trick is making sure we can weave it on the looms we have available to us. We will be working with 6 units on 8 harnesses giving us so many pattern possibilities, especially when you bring all our graphic ideas to the table. We’ll interpret these profiles in 8 shaft Bronson Lace, creating our own threadings, tie-ups and treadlings. So much fun!
Episode 10 Units, Blocks & Profiles Grand Finale	As with every past season we will look back at what we have accomplished in 2022. You’ll be amazed at the body of work we’ve created and we’ll see how all the puzzle pieces fit together.

Laces – Season 5

Available immediately

Episode 1 Turned Twill	Before we dive into Lace we will do one more episode on Twills….Turned Twill which is one of my favourite weave structures!
Episode 2 Canvas Weave	We’ll learn how Canvas weave grows out of Basket Weave That it has radiating double lines in the warp and weft coming out of lace We’ll also learn how to use a tie-down thread to repeat units and that we can weave Canvas in weft floats and warp floats
Episode 3 Huck	Huck grows beautifully from Canvas There are 3 main ways to tie it up and weave it: weft floats, warp floats & lace We will learn to use those 3 elements to create all kinds of other patterns and we’ll learn how to read the cloth 🙂
Episode 4 Huck Colour & Weave	Everything we learned in Season 2 – Colour & Weave can be overlaid on top of most weave structure but in this case, Huck! We will use all 3 tie-ups to get different effects: weft spots, warp spots & lace We’ll learn to treadle uneven D/L sequences on even threading sequences and make magic
Episode 5 Swedish Lace	Swedish Lace grows out of Huck We’ll overlay everything we played with from our Huck gamp and Huck Colour & Weave gamp
Episode 6 Bronson Spot	Bronson Spot, a new family of lace and way of drafting it It is the only lace on 4 shafts where we can have 3 units 3 units allow us to use 3 shaft twill shapes as profiles
Episode 7 Atwater Bronson Lace	Bronson Lace builds from Bronson spot It is a 6 thread unit and we can have 2 blocks on 4 shafts and 6 blocks on 8 We will beginning playing with block profiling in this episode
Episode 8 Blended Lace	Because we have studied all 5 of the Lace weaves in great detail we will now see how all of them can be used in one piece We will look at drafts from old sources and really understand how the amazing patterns are derived
Episode 9 Huck & Twills	We will learn that we can weave Huck and Twills in the same piece This requires a solid understanding of tie-up, which we now have
Episode 10 Lace Grand Finale	Our grand finale….we’ll review everything we’ve learned throughout the season and make sure we have all our notes in order

Twills on 4 – Season 4

Available immediately

Episode 1 Introduction to Twill & Simple Two Stripe Sample	Introduction to Drafting bringing Colour and Design to 4 harness Twills We start the year off with learning basics of drafting, learning on graph paper and exploring the relationship between tie-up, threading & treadling Our first of eight samples this year brings all the ideas from Season 2’s Colour & Design forward onto a straight draw twill
Episode 2 Introduction to Fiberworks PCW	We learn how to draft using Fiberworks PCW, my favourite weaving software program The entire episode is presented by Bob Keates, creator of Fiberworks who introduces us to both PC and Mac versions
Episode 3 Small Threadings Twill Gamp	The Small Threadings Gamp has 6 different threadings and we weave them treadled as they were threaded on all our tie-ips We throw a bit of basket weave and twill and you’ll be over the moon!
Episode 4 Point Twill Gamp	We look at point twills in great detail We make patterns bigger and bigger and bigger I present all kinds of ideas around treadling sequences that help us come up with new variations on old themes
Episode 5 Large Threading Twill Gamp	There are just so many things to do with threadings, we can undulate, network them, extend them to make them larger, we divide space with them In every episode there are amazing examples to show how you can take this information out of the gamp and into your own original designs
Episode 6 Colour and Weave meets Twill (Gamp)	What would a year of weaving be without more Colour & Weave techniques It doesn’t just belong to Plain Weave…we overlay it on twills with the addition of Basket Weave and it is just unbelievable!
Episode 7 Twill & Basket Weave go on a Date 🙂	Basket weave is the perfect pairing for 4 shaft twills woven on a 2/2 tie-up We give it equal billing in our threading along with any twill threading which provides us with a way to structurally divide space and to frame twills We all know how important framing is when it comes to design
Episode 8 Shadow Weave	We study shadow weave and learn to take any twill threading and shawdow it It is a very simple system and understanding the theory behind it makes it so easy to weave
Episode 9 Weft Faced Twills	Finally, we pick up our Weft Faced ideas where we left off last year in Pushing the Boundaries of Plain Weave We learn to understand how to draft treadling on opposites which allows us to play with so many new design ideas Any 4 shaft twill threading can be turned into a Weft Faced piece of cloth We just have to know how to build the threadling
Episode 10 Twills on 4 Grand Finale	In this grande finale, we look at all that we’ve learned this season and how Twills on 4 builds on everything I have presented in the previous 3 years of the Online Guild

Pushing the boundaries of plain weave – Season 3

Available immediately

Episode 1 Denting	Using our reed to create Lacey fabric Adapting our technique with our beater to weave these types of fabrics quickly and easily
Episode 2 Cramming & Denting	Using multiple setts in one piece of cloth Adapting our sleying & beating to create absolutely beautiful fabric all done in linen
Episode 3 Plain Weave Log Cabin Blocks	Log Cabin can be viewed as a block weave and we can insert blocks of log cabin into existing graphics that you already have We learn how to create asymmetrical & symmetrical log cabin How to frame log cabin with other colours
Episode 4 Weft-Faced	Using colour & weave effects from log cabin and pouring them into weft faced plain weave Branching into twill & other tie-ups We master the ideas around weaving on opposites
Episode 5 Warp-Faced	Getting your sett right for Warp Faced Basic design principles in plain weave How colour sequences work in Warp Faced plain weave
Episode 6 Simple Collapse Weave	Ways to collapse a fabric Creating puckery & 3 dimensional fabrics Weaving with fine silk & merino in both warp & weft to create amazing scarves
Episode 7 Double Width, Double Layers	This episode is a double weave primer We look at weaving double width Weaving 2 separate layers at the same time Weaving a tube Switching layers by manipulating our tie-up Changing sides of our double width to get an entirely new graphic
Episode 8 Plain Weave with Supplementary Warp	This is the first of 2 episodes about using supplementary warps We learn how to figure out the sett, how to thread & how to control 2 layers in a super duper easy way We look at all possible tie-ups on 4 harnesses to manage those supp warps No extra equipment is needed for this!
Episode 9 Plain Weave with Supplementary Warp & Weft	Our second episode on supplementary warp Weaving supplementary warp threads made of merino sitting on a ground of fine bambu We learn about the unbelievable graphic possibilities with just 4 harnesses And then at the end we can collapse the fabric or not, so much fun!
Episode 10 Grand Finale	We look at everything we have learned throughout the year So much about bringing the lessons from Colour & Design into a whole new world It all just keeps building and building and building

Colour & Design – Season 2

Available immediately

Episode 1 Colour & Design	One and only Guild meeting of the year Intro Another chat about sett Resleying without re-beaming
Episode 2 More on division of space	More on division of space Your sample – asymmetry
Episode 3 Colour… colour… more colour	Colour… colour… more colour Organize your stash Sketching
Episode 4 The Colour & Weave sample release party	Using Colour & Weave in a million different ways In case you’re wondering what Colour & Weave is, it’s alternating sequences of dark and light.
Episode 5 More on Fibonacci	More on Fibonacci Sample – Parrott Clasped weft Inlay
Episode 6 Designing plaids	Designing plaids Sample plaid and how to make it not look like a plaid 🙂
Episode 7 All about stripes	All about stripes Changing things up again Playing with a different weft Sample stripes
Episode 8 Colour on natural ground	Muted colour gamp on natural ground So much to learn from gamps Playing with colour
Episode 9 And now for something completely different	And now for something completely different Let’s make a garlic basket & festive star to give away in a few months
Episode 10 2nd colour	2nd colour gamp Primaries & secondaries of black
Episode 11 Grand finale	Grand finale Putting it all together

Foundation – Season 1

Available immediately

Episode 1 The importance of making a good warp	On a warping board On a table top warping mill On a big floor model Tying the cross Counting your ends and keeping track Chaining
Episode 2 Warping a loom back to front	Placement of the raddle Spreading your warp Beaming it Threading it Sleying it And tying it on
Episode 3 Proper posture at the loom	Winding a good bobbin Shuttle handling Throw Beat Change Beater Back Mending a Broken Warp Thread Selvedges Hemstitching A Brand Spanking New Weaver
Episode 4 It’s time we had a little chat about Sett	Wrapping a ruler for PW Wrapping a ruler for Twill Introduction to Master Sett Chart with samples We now have a canvas
Episode 5 Project Planning 101….putting it all together	on your canvas How Long How Wide How Much What do all those numbers mean, Sheesh!
Episode 6 Division of Space	Fibonacci the man of my dreams Broad Strokes and the Big Picture Fine Tuning the Details
Episode 7 All About yarn	Cotton Linen Wool Silk Man Made Fibres from Cellulose
Episode 8 All about looms	An overview of the 3 main types of looms Counter-Balance the most widely used loom in the world. Counter-Marche Looms Jack Looms
Episode 9 Making a Mohair Blankie….Yes!	Making the fuzziest warp ever Tying one on at the front Winding it on…easy, peasy Weaving Mohair
Episode 10 Finishing up our first year with FINISHING!	Washing Ironing Fulling that Mohair Blankie from Episode 9

FAQ

What is the School of Weaving?
Jane Stafford School of Weaving is similar to any Weaving Guild. You pay your yearly membership ‘dues’ and this gives you access to a library of videos and PDF workbooks created by Jane Stafford. When you pay your subscription you get all the videos that are presently online and you also get a new lesson release every 5 weeks for the remainder of your subscription.

Year 1 are the Weaving Foundation Videos: Making a Good Warp, Dressing a Loom, learning about yarns and sett, etc. Year 2 is our comprehensive Colour & Design Workshop where you learn basic design and colour theory, Year 3 is the full workshop Pushing the Boundaries of Plain Weave and Year 4 is Twills on 4 Shafts, Year 5 all about Laces and Year 6 we study Units, Blocks & Profiles. Season 7 builds on all previous years with special emphasis on the Colour and Weave gamp we did in Season 2 Episode 4. Up to 3 hours of new videos released every five weeks.

The School of Weaving also has a Forum where we do our Show & Tells and have discussions on the weaving-related topics covered in the episodes.

Are the videos available for download?
Our videos are downloadable for a short period of time using our branded app only. You can also stream them over and over on your browser for as long as you are a member of the School of Weaving.

Are there workbooks available?
Yes, we have supporting PDFs that you can download for most lessons.

Can I view previously aired episodes?
Absolutely! With your subscription, you have access to all lessons & PDF workbooks that have been released.

Is there a weaving project for each episode?
Year 1 lessons are all foundational videos on how to make a good warp, dress a loom, how to calculate EPI, sett charts, project planning, how to weave a Mohair Blankie, finishing techniques and information on looms & yarns. We finish the year with the Mohair Blankie project that you can weave and you’ll be able to download the pattern.

Season 2 has 7 workshop samples that you can follow along , Season 3 has 9 samples, Season 4 has 8, Season 5 has 9 projects, Season 6 has 7 and Season 7 has 8 projects. Each sample or project comes with a downloadable PDF pattern.

Is there a material list?
Yes! When you sign up for the School of Weaving, we send you a list of the yarns you’ll be needing for all the lessons.

Do I need to purchase yarn?
Year 1 lessons are all foundation videos so you don’t need to purchase any yarn for these lessons.

Years 2, 3, 4 , 5, 6 & 7 all have samples. We have kits available for you to purchase in our Online Shop, but if you have the yarn in your stash we encourage you to use it. You get the draft with the video so you can even make substitutions.

All additional yarns used in the extra samples shown on the videos are available to purchase at JST Online Shop.

Do you provide additional weaving support?
We have the School of Weaving Forum is where you will find answers to questions related to the episodes and you’ll also be able to post as a member of the School of Weaving. We also have an extensive Knowledge Base on our website that is available for viewing.

I’m a bit hard at hearing, do you have Closed Captions?
YES! we do!

“All you can eat” for US$99.99 a year… I wanted this to be affordable for everyone and I think it is. Please spread the word and help us grow.

Jane Stafford