Books Available from Fine Fiber Press

ATTENTION: Occasionally we have books with slightly damaged covers which we sell at a discount price through our Etsy site.

So Warped, Warping a Loom for Weaving Tapestry
by Kathe Todd-Hooker and Pat Spark

After many years of teaching tapestry and weaving, the authors realize that it is sometimes the warping process that stops a weaver dead in her/his tracks. Traditional weavers often have horror stories about their warping experiences and while many tapestry weavers do not have a background in traditional weaving, they too often see the process as impossibly difficult. In this book we are covering as many warping methods and hints as our combined 60 years of experience have taught us. We have learned these methods through much trial and error. We are certain there are other ways of doing things, but we have hit upon the methods that work well for us and for our students.

To help understand warping, we present different types of tapestry looms, various tensioning and shedding mechanisms including several types of heddles, and the following warping methods: figure eight, circular, bout, four-selvedge, floor loom, and as an added treat, the method of warping the Russian Old Believer backstrap loom for weaving tapestry belts. There are 110 pages of information for warping your loom so you can weave tapestry. If you aren't warped before you read this book, So Warped will really help you get there.

(110 pages of text, black/white drawings and photos. Spiral bound so that it lies flat for quick reference when you're warping your loom.) $35.00 plus $5.00 s/h inside USA, contact for shipping to other areas. Discount quantity prices are available for vendors. Order from Fine Fiber Press and Studio, 604 1st Avenue East; Albany, Oregon 97321 USA phone 1-541-917-3251 email: finefiberpress@comcast.net www.finefiberpress.com ISBN 9780-9753698-6-9

Been weaving tapestry for awhile? Then you aware that there are sometimes difficulties with weaving the perfect line for the situation. Or are you a beginner who wants to get a good technical foundation? Then knowing how to weave lines easily and correctly is important. How do you keep them from being wavy when you need them perfectly straight? How do you shade with dots or create a floating bar? How do you make vertical straight lines? Or lines that travel in all directions? Are you interested in the linear techniques of kelims such as zilli, soumak, and cicim? What about textured lines such as those made with chaining or brocading? How do you tame a line and make it do what you want? This book is written about line use, line technique, and producing lines in tapestry from the simple to the complex. There are explanations and illustrated techniques for producing lines for all occasions and purposes. If you want to understand line usage in tapestry, this is the book for you.
This book also has a great deal of information of that would be of general use to tapestry weavers. These include: preparing weft bundles so that the group of yarns lie flat and weave in without tension problems, wrapping bobbins efficiently, stabilizing edges, understanding and using hill and valley threads effectively, and using the technical aspects of weaving to help support the aesthetic possibilities of the tapestry design.

(82 pages of text, black/white drawings and photos. Spiral bound so that it lies flat for quick reference when you're at the loom.) Cost: $26.00 plus shipping and handling ($4.00 inside USA, contact for shipping to other areas. ) ISBN 0-9753698-2-2

NOTE: This 2nd Edition has been updated with new information and illustrations.

Like the first edition, this book is filled with information about weaving tapestries "out-of-the-box". There are many ways to weave a non-rectangular tapestry. These include: shaping the loom itself, using weave structures that cause the weaving to become shaped, and using scaffolds and other devices to hold areas of warp that are then manipulated into 3-D shapes when the weaving is finished. Naturally, these types of techniques require some special finishing techniques, and this book covers those as well. In addition, the 2nd edition has a section on shaping by adding surface dimension with techniques like rya, pulled loops, and attaching feathers.

In addition, this book has a lot of information of general use to tapestry weavers. These include: methods of stabilizing edges, choosing the warp and weft for tapestry, overview of tools useful for tapestry weaving, tips for beginning and ending weft threads so that you don't have a lot of extra ends hanging off the back of the loom, tips for easily securing weft ends, how to re-align warp ends, adding supplemental warps and wefts, hints on controlling eccentric weaving, methods of ending and finishing tapestries, and readying them for exhibition. There is a lot of information here that can be applied to all types of tapestry weaving, not just shaped work. The 2nd edition has more hints for displaying shaped tapestries, and new patterns for shaped purses and handles.

For an excerpted sample of this book about weaving on a box loom click here.

(88 pages of text, color photos, black/white drawings and photos. Spiral bound so that it lies flat for quick reference when you're at the loom.) Cost: $33.00 plus shipping and handling ($5.00 inside USA, contact for shipping to other areas. ) ISBN 978-0-9753698-8-3

This book is a beginning course for the person interested in learning how to do woven tapestry. It will give you the foundation you need to understand tapestry weaving and be able to express yourself in this wonderful medium. There are plans for a simple, but competent loom, information on the equipment and materials you'll need for weaving, and instructions on doing the basic techniques that you need to know to complete your own tapestry. There is also information on finishing and mounting your tapestry for exhibition. Even if you have been weaving for awhile, Kathe has covered information on all aspects of tapestry weaving that will be a help to you.

(There are 108 pages of written information, diagrams, and photographs with a spiral binding so that you can lay the book flat beside your loom as a reference while you're weaving.) Cost: $29.00 plus shipping and handling. ($5.00 inside USA contact for shipping to other areas. )

30 pages, 15 large and 15 small sett grid; place for notes on the back side. Great for diagramming weft faced plain weave patterns, figuring out hachures and hatches, etc. Teachers, these are a good tool for teaching pick and pick and other weft faced patterning. Cost: US funds $8.00 (Shipping and Handling:$3.67 inside USA and Canada, $8.50 outside North America) Wholesale: Purchase more than 19, unit price is $5.00.

We sometimes have rare tapestry and other books. Please contact us for information. These books cannot be discounted.

Fiber Press is proud to carry this fine biography of Muriel Nezhnie Helfman, noted tapestry weaver. Written by Linda Rees, this book has been well received by tapestry weavers, textile historians, and others interested in 20th C. art.
In this book, Ms. Rees chronicles the legacy of personal and cultural expression revealed in the tapestries of Muriel Nezhnie Helfman. Nezhnie's prolific contributions to public art venues, her development as an international artist, and her challenges as a woman, mother and wife are sensitively examined by the author and illustrated with photographs of her work. The book culminates in the development of her most widely recognized work, the seven tapestries comprising "Images of the Holocaust," and provides a thoughtful analysis of her contributions to tapestry art.

(180 pgs of text, paperback, 32 color images, 70 B/W images.) Cost: $29.95, plus shipping and handling ($3.67 inside USA and Canada. $8.50 outside North America.) ISBN: 0-975575-0-6 (Sorry, there is no discount on this book.)

FFP Books
1 book               no discount
2-4 books         10% discount
5-9 books         20% discount
10-19 books     30% discount
20-49 books     40% discount
50-99 books     50% discount
100+ books       60% discount

Books Distributed by FFP (These books must be bundled with at least 5 of the books published by Fine Fiber Press to get this discount.)
9 or less books    no discount
10-19 books     20% discount
20 + books       30% discount
(Note, the Betty Davenport book is distributed but not published by Fine Fiber Press.)

Other Books Sold by FFP
1-4 books         no discount
5-9 books         10% discount
10+                    20% discount
These books are not included in the wholesale combinations of books published and distributed by FFP.

Fine Fiber Press & Studio
Pat Spark and Kathe Todd-Hooker
604 1st Ave. E.
Albany, Oregon 97321-2744 USA
Phone 1-541-917-3251 NOTE: We are on the West Coast. DO NOT CALL BEFORE 9:00 PACIFIC STANDARD TIME!!! Our business phone is also Kathe's home phone, and her husband really hates being woken up early!!!!!
E-mail: Fine Fiber Information (For questions or information from Fine Fiber Press)
Fine Fiber Orders (To order from Fine Fiber Press)

STUDIO HOURS:
1st full weekend of each month, open as part of Oregon Crafted, Saturday and Sunday 12:00-6:00
By appointment, call 1-541-917-3251

Prices as of July, 2012
Page updated: 07/03/2012
Prices subject to change without notice.