Jake's Art - Homeschool Weaving Lesson - Make your own Loom - DIY Arts and Crafts

How to make a loom for weaving scrap fiber: A Homeschool Art Lesson

Jake's Journey in Art goes under the sea in this DIY weaving Homeschool Art Lesson we learned to Renew. Enjoy!


How to weave for elementary make your own loom
Our loom has both warp and weft framework to better illustrate 
the concept to young children.

To weave a textile, threads (or scrap fabric) are woven on a frame called a loom. The first vertical threads on the loom are called warp threads. Threads that are woven horizontally in and out of the warp threads are called weft threads.



Cut notches in the cardboard frame to keep yarn in place.

Recycle a piece of cardboard from a cereal box or a foam tray to make your loom. You might also like Native American Paper Bag Dress

Cut small notches into the top and bottom of your cardboard(ours are about 1/2", but 1" works well). Make them about 1/2" inch apart. Alex Toys has a great PDF on weaving here.




Spongebob Fabric for Toddler bed tent.

Warp your loom with yarn or string by taking the thread and taping one end to the back middle of your board.  Now, starting with your first notch on the left, begin wrapping through each top and bottom notch without skipping a notch until you get to the right side of the board.  Only the warp frame is required.

Now your are ready to weave your weft. Cut or tear scraps of fabric into strips. Your strips of fabric should be about 1" thick and at least 12"  long. You will need about 20 strips. 




The cat enjoyed the tearing of fabric strips so much 
he needed a nap after playing with them.

For extra ease for smaller children, we added a weft frame as well. Now the scraps of fabric can be pulled through the little squares for guidance. Pull your scrap fabric under the first warp, over the next, and so on. The yarn guide will help younger children see any mistakes made.

When you have completed your weaving tie off all scraps in groups of two at the edges of your cardboard loom, then you can cut your your thread/yarn framework.




How to make a loom - Elementary Weaving Lesson Scrap Fibers Make your own
Spongebob has his eye on you.

This is an easy way to get littles started in weaving. It is also helpful to cut a piece of cardboard about 1" by 3" with a notch in the end. Attach your scrap fabric by inserting it in the notch and use as a tool to weave the fabric through the loom, this is called a shuttle.




Alex Toys Native American Bead Loom Kit for weaving bracelets.

Once you advance your skills, you can weave many beautiful projects. Alex Toys has a Native American Loom for weaving bracelets.  It is a professional quality loom that makes incredibly authentic bracelets.  We are working on our patterns and will share them soon.



Kid's room cartoon character theme (that way we don't have to worry about matching or new fads).Check out the automobile sun visor we used as a headboard. 
It is simply nailed to the wall.

Jake loved the idea of using his toddler tent cover as scrap fabric for this project. We renewed an item that was dear to his heart. It had been ripped from rowdy play and was no good as a tent, but we saved it anyway in hopes to repair it or transform it into a pillow or some other creative endeavor. The SpongeBob fabric was the perfect accent for his room. 



Yep, we need a hanging stick, but the kids love it.  
Use favorite t-shirts, pillow cases, or doll clothes for your scrap fiber.

To display your beautiful work of art weave a "weft" stick horizontally through the top row and hang on a wall.  Jake loved his creation and couldn't wait for the stick. He wanted to see how it looked right away, so we hung it by a nail. A little droopy, yes, but he loves it.

Did he love the process?  Not so much.  Much patience is a necessary requirement of weaving. So, Mommy made the loom, got it started and Jake weaved the inner pieces to gain an understanding of the process.  Mommy tied and cut it off making sure Jake watched and understood. This is somewhat time consuming, but the end results are worth it.


Mayhem saw the weaving on his wall and wanted it for her room. Score! This project journey ended on a very happy note.   



Recommended Reading:


Learning How to Weave*

Party Time: SpongeBob SquarePants*






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Lora is a homeschooling mom, writer, creator of Kids Creative Chaos, and Director of the Play Connection.