Undulating Twills

All the twills we’ve talked about in What is Twill? and Classic Twills have 45 degree diagonals. Their diagonals may reverse, they may even break, but as long as the warp and weft are woven at the same sett, they always run straight, at a 45 degree angle to both warp and weft

Undulating twills break away from the standard 45 degree diagonal by s-t-r-e-t-c-h-i-n-g (and occasionally compressing) the angle of a threading or treadling by varying amounts in different places. Their diagonal shifts from steep to shallow and back again, in swooping curves that undulate across the cloth. For extra drama, they can be combined with straight twills to heighten contrast.

In this course, you’ll learn how to create dramatic curves on any number of shafts, rules of thumb for avoiding overly long floats, and what kinds of tie-ups and treadlings work best with undulating threadings.

Specifically, you’ll learn and use the Draft Editor to practice

• Quick and easy methods to create curves of different lengths on any number of shafts.
• How to compact a curve from many shafts down to fewer – from 16 to 4, for instance.
• How to design a complete threading, including avoiding difficult floats near the edges.
• How to control the extra long floats you get when repeating ends on the same shaft.
• The importance of the tie-up in undulating twills.

By the end of the course, you’ll have used the Draft Editor created an original undulating twill draft you can take straight to the loom.

You’ll also use the Draft Editor to design your own curves and then an entire threading, plus treadling and tie-up. When you’re done, you’ll have a complete draft ready to take to the loom.