Glossaries

plain weave. As an adjective, 'tabby' is most often used for the weft that weaves plain weave while another weft weaves a supplementary pattern float. It is also used in the phrase tabby order to describe something done in alternation, first one and then the other. For example, the supplementary pattern weft in summer and winter is said to be tied in tabby order.

see weft-faced compound tabby and summer and winter polychrome (without tabby).

supplementary-weft unit weaves with three tie-down ends. As in two-tie weaves, the tie-down ends alternate with other ends. The other ends (the 'pattern' ends) determine whether the float appears on the top surface or the back of the cloth. All of the ends in the unit weave the ground cloth (which can be plain weave, twill, or satin). Three-tie unit weaves differ in: a) the ratio of tie-down ends to pattern ends, b) the number of ends in the unit, c) the number of pattern shafts required for each block, d) the position of the tie-down ends in the unit, and e) the order in which the tie-down ends tie the supplementary weft float.

(to tie) when a tie-down end is lifted and the pattern weft passes under it but over the other ends of the unit, it is 'tied' by the tie-down end to the top surface of the cloth. When the pattern weft passes over a tie-down end and under the other ends in the unit, it is tied by the tie-down end to the back of the cloth. In a single pattern pick, one tie-down warp end ties the weft to the top surface of the cloth in the pattern areas and a different tie-down warp end ties the weft to the back of the cloth in the background areas.

a warp end with the specific task of tying a pattern weft float to a ground cloth. (Binder and binding warp have sometimes been used as synomyms for 'tie-down,' but they are also used for the secondary warp of lampas.) 'Tie-down' can also indicate a weft that ties a supplementary warp float. In tied unit weaves, specific ends in the threading units are designated as the tie-down ends (1 and 2 in the summer and winter unit, for example).

a supplementary-weft unit weave with two tie-down ends and a plain weave ground cloth. Each threading unit contains two half-units (even-tied overshot with an even number of ends in the half-unit and uneven-tied overshot with an uneven number of ends). In the pattern area the supplementary weft floats over one half-unit and weaves tabby (halftone) in the other. In the background area the supplementary weft floats under a half-unit and weaves tabby (halftone) in the other. Each half-unit of treadling reverses the halftone/float position of the preceding half-unit. The ratio of tie-down ends to pattern ends is 1:1; there are at least six ends in a unit; one of the tie-down ends alternates in the first half-unit and the second tie-down end alternates in the second half-unit; one tie-down end is lifted for one half-unit of treadling, the other for the next half-unit of treadling. One structural unit usually contains two blocks A: 3-1-3-1-3; B: 4-2-4-2-4; blocks are usually threaded in point or straight order.

supplementary-weft unit weaves in which each unit contains specific warp ends that act as tie-down ends to tie supplementary pattern weft floats to a ground cloth (usually plain weave). The structural unit is complete when all of the tie-down ends in the sequence have been threaded. Each unit alternates tie-down ends with pattern ends; the number and ratio vary. The number of tie-down ends and the order in which they tie the supplementary weft floats also vary.

see counterchanged.

warp satin and weft satin form pattern and background on the same surface of the cloth. Turned satin is damask.

warp twill and weft twill form pattern and background on the same surface of the cloth. Three-end turned twill (2/1 and 1/2) is sometimes called 'dimity,' and four-end turned twill (3/1 and 1/3) is sometimes called 'twill diaper.'

each warp passes over or under more than one weft and each weft over or under more than one warp in the interlacement sequence. The minimum number of threads required for a twill interlacement is therefore three warp ends and three wefts (the weft passes over one warp and under two or over two warps and under one). Each successive pick begins the same interlacement on an adjacent warp end, either to the left or to the right, creating a diagonal line.

turned or counterchanged twill. Twill diaper designs are usually small all-over squares or simple block patterns.

unit weaves with two tie-down ends that 'tie' a supplementary pattern weft float to a ground cloth (plain weave, twill, or satin). The other ends in the unit are often called pattern ends since they determine whether the float appears on the face or the back of the cloth. All of the ends in the unit weave the ground cloth. (The structural unit  must contain the complete threading sequence of the tie-down ends. The block, determined by the threading of the pattern shafts, can be smaller than the unit; see Bergman.) Two-tie unit weaves differ in: a) the ratio of tie-down ends to pattern ends, b) the number of threads in the unit, c) the number of pattern shafts required for each block, d) the location of the tie-down ends in the unit, e) and the order in which the tie-down ends are lifted to tie the supplementary weft float.

a weave in which two warp ends in a threading group are designated as tie-down ends (i.e., the 1 and 2 in summer and winter). Most two-tie weaves are also unit weaves; summer and winter is a 'two-tie unit weave.'