Hand Manipulated Weaving for Amazing Results!

Hi Weavers!

One of the things I really enjoy about weaving is discovering just how much you can do with your hands.

We tend to think of weaving as being all about the loom, the shafts, heddles, treadles, sheds and all the rest. But there are some lovely techniques where your fingers and thread manipulation become an important part of creating the pattern.

These are called finger controlled or hand manipulated techniques, and they’re some of my favourite ways to transform your woven piece.

You can create all sorts of interesting effects by simply picking up, separating or manipulating individual threads as you weave.

Most of the time, the only extra tool you may need is a pick up stick.

I’ve written a guide to finger controlled techniques that introduces some of my personal favourites, including Brooks Bouquet, Leno and Danish Medallions.

Finger Controlled Techniques Guide...

And if you love the look of hand manipulated weaving, you may be interested in next month's Garden Path Scarf Weave Along.

SPEAKING OF THE WEAVE ALONG...

I've had a lot of enquiries since announcing the weave along last week. Well, this week I have an exciting reveal:

Lojan is sponsoring this weave along and together we will be giving away a Lojan Flex 30cm Rigid Heddle Loom to one luck participant!!!

The opening date for enrolments is September 1st 2026 (may be August 31st in your part of the world).

We will be using my Garden Path Scarf Rigid Heddle Pattern. Suitable for beginners, as the weave along videos are detailed.

Follow this link to register your interest and find out more details about the weave along (please do read the FAQ's I've included here before messaging me with any questions) ⤵️

Garden Path Scarf Weave Along 2026

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Over on Substack 💕

Last week I wrote about Chronic Illness and Creativity and the complicated relationship between making things and having a body that doesn't always cooperate. It's a personal one, and it's free for everyone to read.

This week's article: When YouTube Closed the Door – The Lesson that Saved My Business Before I Knew I Had One

A few years ago, something happened with YouTube that could easily have derailed my business. Instead, it taught me one of the most important lessons I've learned about building a creative business - and one I wish I'd understood much earlier.

And if you'd like to come a little further into my creative world, paid Substack subscribers get access to the growing vault of everything I've created there - including all 20 video episodes, the full article archive, free weaving patterns and ebooks.

💕 Come join me over on Substack: Kindred Creatives

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NEVER SAY NEVER

As a multi crafter who can't seem to keep her hands off anything remotely creative, there have typically been a few crafts that I declared I would "never be interested in trying".

Bead weaving was one of them.

And yet, this week, I ordered and received the Comfort Beading Loom, put it together and, well, I guess now you can call me a bead weaver too! 😆

My new Youtube video shows the assembly for this cutesy loom from Beadsmith:

Comfort Loom Assembly Video...