Loom Kits

• Loom kits usually include the loom, a shed stick, a shuttle, a tapestry needle, instructions and enough yarn to complete a project. If you are shopping for a kit, make sure that the frame is sturdy.
  
  

Warping the Loom

• The first step is to warp the loom. Warp is the term for the vertical threads. If the loom kit includes cotton string, use that for the warp. The basic technique is to tie the string to the bottom of the loom, and wrap from bottom to top around the pegs in a figure eight, ending at the top right. Tie it to the top of the loom to secure it.
  
  

Weaving

• Before you start weaving, wrap the yarn around a shuttle, the H-shaped tool. The shuttle makes it easier to pass the yarn from side to side. If your kit does not include a shuttle, just loosely wind the yarn into balls. This yarn is called weft, which is the term for all horizontal threads.
  
  The shed stick is a long, thin piece of wood with rounded edges, and is a few inches wide. To start weave the shed stick over and under all the warp threads. Then, rotate the shed stick 90 degrees. You have created an opening by raising and lowering the warp. This is called a shed. Now pass the shuttle through the shed, from left to right, leaving several inches of yarn on the side.
  
  Rotate the shed stick 90 degrees and remove it from the warp. Now weave the stick again, this time going over the warp threads that are on top of the weft, and under warp threads that are under the weft. Make sure that you don't skip any threads. Rotate the stick 90 degrees and pass the shuttle through from right to left. Rotate the shed stick 90 degrees and use it to tamp the new yarn against the first row.
  
  

Finishing

• Keep weaving until you reach the top. Your last row should end with the yarn on the right side of the loom. Cut the yarn leaving about four inches. Untie the warp from the bottom of the loom, and knot it with the yarn you left from the first row. Then, lift the weaving off the lower pegs. Do the same thing on the top, knotting the last weft yarn with the last bit of warp yarn, and remove the loops from the pegs.