Spring 2018 Volume 25–1

Notes ..................................................... 2 To join or renew—Writing for the journal—

Publication details—Member services

Letters & News .................................... 3 An opportunity to share—Wikipedia entry on

tablet weaving—PayPal fee eliminated—Interest

group meetings in July—Save the samples!

Review

Tablets at Work ................................... 5 Claudia Wollny

Review by Lausanne Allen

Gallery ................................................... 6 Bands woven by Claudia Wollny illustrate

Lausanne Allen’s review of Tablets at Work

Tubular selvages, a Finnish

specialty ........................................... 9

Anne-Laure Janssen

Pattern ................................................ 12 “Be My Valentine” by Claudia Wollny

Spring 2018 5 TWIST Journal

Book ReviewTablets at Work Claudia Wollny

Self-published, 2017

Review © 2018 by Lausanne Allen

Claudia Wollny’s much anticipated Tablets At Work began arriving to

our mail boxes with a hearty thud early last December here in the

States, and the buzz of acclaim has yet to subside. Already I hear a

loud sigh of relief from weavers in online forums where this book has

been warmly welcomed and much discussed. As one respected weaver

wrote, “If there were only one book I could have on tablet weaving, it

would be this one.”

Once I was stranded in the desert of the Southwest in my vintage

VW bus, my only resource the famously useful Idiot’s Guide to VW Repair. With that encouragingly useful book, a willingness to look

inside the engine compartment, a rubber band and a twist tie

I proudly drove all the way to California with my handy repair. If I

were similarly stranded on a desert isle with cards and yarn, this is the

book I would want by my side to provide me with endless hours of

discovery and satisfaction.

We all experienced frustration trying to understand directions from

tablet weaving sources that confound us, requiring much trial and

error to grasp. It isn’t surprising, given the veritable jungle of

conflicting ways that different weavers use to present threading

information, numbering systems, and starting positions. It is a “do-it-

my-way” wilderness out there, as more people new to the craft are

discovering. The lack of standardization in available publications

prompted Nancy Smothergill’s “Decoding” article in the TWIST

Summer 2014 issue and John Mullarkey’s earnest pleas to establish

standards. Fortunately for us, Tablets at Work may herald the

beginnings of a common language through which tablet weavers can

communicate the essentials of set up and technique. Claudia’s preference for working with tablet slant rather than

threading direction will come as no surprise to those who have read

her previous books or TWIST articles. Many weavers in online forums

have embraced the ease and logic of this. Since the tablet is the cause

of the twist, and the visual slant of the tablet corresponds to the twist

achieved by a forward turn, card slant is an easily-remembered

choice. The colorful threading graphs throughout the book

consistently display starting position which represents the first four

forward-woven rows, read from the bottom up just as the weaving

progresses. What could be more logical? As one enthused tablet

weaver wrote on Ravelry: “Claudia’s is the method I’ve been following for some time now and will

continue to use. It is the most intuitive and makes the most sense to me.

The book also explains how the various techniques work, so it gives you

a better understanding of what’s happening as you weave. To me that is

key to successful tablet weaving. She also gives instruction on how to

create your own patterns, however there

are enough charted designs to keep one

happy for a long time. I can’t recommend

this book enough. For anyone serious about

tablet weaving and looking to learn all they

can, this is the one book that should be in

your hands—at least in my humble opinion.”

This 704-page comprehensive sourcebook

in German and English is a feast for the eyes

and mind. It methodically delineates more

than twenty techniques, employing 435 full

color illustrations and offers 910 charted

weaving patterns. In addition to twenty

techniques derived from historic tablet

weaving, it offers an introduction to two

weaving techniques which have been

adapted to tablet weaving: pebble weave

pioneered by Marijke van Epen and

“reserved shed weaving”—a type of relief

structure pioneered by Karen van Gelder-

Mauve. Throughout there are 180 lush

photos of Claudia’s distinctive bands, woven

by Claudia and her friend Barbara Scheel.

The English text shows the skilled hand of

its translator, Ute Bargmann.

TWIST Journal 6 Spring 2018

All pages are color-coded by subject for easy

navigation. This sturdy hardbound book lays flat for

reference, with a sewn-in ribbon to mark one’s place—

a nice touch on a volume that will see a lot of use. While

this book is stunning visually, it is Claudia’s intuitive

grasp of the inner workings of tablet weaving and her

highly didactic way of conveying what she knows that

will define this book’s achievement and its larger impact

upon the tablet weaving world. Subtitled The Book of Basic Tablet Weaving

Techniques, this book provides weavers of all levels a

clear and consistent approach, a welcome opportunity to

better understand the logic of how our tablets create

patterns across a wide spectrum of techniques. You soon

realize the visual layout of every page is designed to steer

the eye, helping you to assimilate information quickly.

Through many distinct choices of typeface and text color

and the consistent manner and placement of illustration,

the layout makes what you need easy to find. The inside

front cover features a large Summary Table of Techniques

displaying characteristics of all the techniques in a useful

abbreviated form. The interior back cover offers Graphs

of Tablet Slant, Starting Position and Twist with a version

in black and white for you to reproduce and color in to

view the effect. An appendix at the end of the book

provides blank pattern sheets for every technique, an

explanation of symbols used,

a glossary, bibliography,

websites and more.

The Introduction and

Basics chapters give an

overview and all the

fundamental information

necessary for using the

thirteen technique chapters

that follow. Each technique

chapter features a Quick

Start Intro which highlights

the peculiarities and

characteristics of that

technique. A Quick Recap

lists this information in an

abbreviated form. Prep Work

offers specific hints for warp

making in that technique.

The Weaving section details

how to read the weaving

patterns offered. For those

who want to jump in and start weaving, the patterns may

be woven without understanding the technique, as all

necessary information is in the appropriate instructions.

Turning Rules offer insight into how the patterns are

formed. Familiarity with these rules will help you

navigate new terrain in Designing Your Own Patterns.

In addition, you will find Surveys embedded like islands

in the chapters. These explore different aspects of the

technique in depth, highlighting differences and

similarities. Once you gain familiarity with the

organization of this book, it is a joy to use.

What you won’t find here is an index of historic place

names or chapters with lengthy descriptive titles as you

do in Peter Collingwood’s much respected reference

work, The Techniques of Tablet Weaving. Instead

Tablets At Work uses pragmatic shorthand designations

that convey the essential characteristics of a technique’s

set-up. For example under Floatwork Technique you will

find 4–Z,4–SZ, 3–Z and 3–SZ instead of Snartemo,

St. Severin, Øvre Berge and Chelles. A quick glance at

the Summary Table reveals how they are related by

arrangement of color placement. Did I hear an “aha!”

in the room? With a single well-aimed stroke, a path

is cleared and there is a little more light in that

proverbial jungle Claudia refers to in her introduction.

Brocade. Photo and weaving © Claudia Wollny.

Spring 2018 7 TWIST Journal

These two comprehensive books

make excellent companion

volumes, in my humble opinion, in

spite of their remarkably different

approach and style. With Peter’s

compelling treasury of historic

photos (alas, all in black and

white), his abundance of precisely

hand-drawn pen and ink

illustrations, and those somewhat

mind-bending chapter titles, his

book erects a labyrinth of

complexity for some and opens

doors of fascination for others.

Collingwood offers an abundance

of information but, with only black

and white illustrations, it takes

more effort to tease it out and make

use of it. Could we be the first generation to be helplessly

seduced by the clarity and saturation of colorfully

digitized graphics and photography? I don’t think we

will be the last. Claudia’s book feels far more inviting

and accessible with its color-enhanced layout and the

vibrant photography of those lovely bands. Factor in the

bold strides toward standardization which provide a

clear entrée to each of the techniques offered and it is

hard to imagine any better, more comprehensive

presentation than this. A big difference between these two resources lies in

the many pages in Tablets At Work devoted to patterns

as a means of learning. Have the times changed?

Collingwood’s approach lay in referencing historic

examples while offering sufficient information to engage

with the technique. With Claudia’s book, although there

are no historic examples, you get it both ways: a

collection of inspiring patterns in each technique to help

you gain mastery, and the working logic, turning rules

and helpful tips for drafting patterns to blaze your own

path within the medium. Some will come for the

inspiration provided by the patterns, some for the

working knowledge, and many will be grateful for both.

The appendix offers abundant references for further

research on historical bands if that is one’s interest.

Back in 1982, Collingwood could not have imagined

the color saturated, web-bound digital world we inhabit

today, or the blossoming effect it would have on how we

learn and communicate. Nor, in 1994, could the handful

of Dutch tablet weavers who formed a study group that

became TWIST have predicted the rise of a vibrant

community of web-savvy tablet weavers who share our

work in online forums amid genuine interest

and mutual support. As we share our passion

for tablet weaving by simply offering photos of

our efforts, weaver by weaver, band by band,

the craft grows. How fortunate we are now to

have Tablets At Work as a comprehensive and

well-organized reference manual for our

creative explorations! As Claudia says

lightheartedly in her preface, “Who would have thought that four harmless holes would produce such a hoopla and so much diversity?

Photos and weaving © Claudia Wollny

Above: Double face 2-SZ.

Left: Cablework