Garden Path Towels

No matter the time of year, these towels will brighten your kitchen with colors and patterns of a garden. Designer Malynda Allen suggests experimenting with the cells and outlines in the honeycomb version (Towel 5), to make wonderful blankets, washcloths, or bath towels.

About this Project

As Malynda was browsing through Marguerite Porter Davison’s A Hand-weaver’s Pattern Book, the Swedish Point monk’s belt design and all of its many treadling variations caught her eye. She entered the monk’s belt threading into her weaving software and began to play. In the end, she came up with five towels woven on a single warp with a monk’s belt threading: two with plain-weave bodies and monk’s belt variations for borders, one traditional monk’s belt towel, a textured towel, and a honeycomb treadling for a thirsty towel with lots of textured hills and valleys.

Contents

• Garden Path Towels Project Instructions PDF
• Towel WIFs (5)

Details

Structure
Monk’s belt, plain weave, and honeycomb.

Equipment
4-shaft loom, 21" weaving width; 9- or 12-dent reed; 2–3 shuttles; 3 bobbins.

Yarns
Warp: 8/2 cotton (3,360 yd/lb; Georgia Yarn Company), Natural, 2,024 yd.
Weft: 8/2 cotton, Natural, 594 yd. 8/2 cotton (3,360 yd/ lb; Valley Yarns), #6394 Royal Lilac, 625 yd; #2574 Heather, 510 yd. 8/2 cotton (3,360 yd/lb; Yarn Barn of Kansas), #04 Plum Green, 292 yd. 6/2 cotton (2,520 yd/lb; Yarn Barn of Kansas), Sage, 298 yd; Royal, 110 yd. 6/2 cotton (2,520 yd/lb; Georgia Yarn Company), Natural, 91 yd. 10/2 cotton (4,200 yd/lb; Georgia Yarn Company), Carolina Blue, 48 yd.

Dimensions
Width in the reed: 20⁵⁄₉" in a 9-dent reed or 20⁶⁄₁₂" in a 12-dent reed.
Woven length: (measured under tension on the loom) 155" or about 31" per towel.
Finished size: (after wet-finishing and hemming) five towels, about 16½" × 25" each.

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Visit our help article for more information on WIFs, including what they are and how to use them.