Valley Yarns #143 Autumn Placemats

Valley Yarns Autumn Placemats – Woven Homeware

What Is Being Made

The Valley Yarns Autumn Placemats are a set of four woven placemats designed by Anita Thompson, each finished at 19" x 15". These functional table linens draw inspiration from the changing fall colors of New England and a Jacob Angstadt design. The project is ideal for weavers seeking a practical homeware item that combines aesthetic appeal with durability. The cotton construction ensures easy care and longevity through many washings and years of regular use. Weavers also have the flexibility to adapt the design into a table runner by repeating the central area in the treadling, or to create matching plain weave napkins using additional warp.

Weaving Structure and Techniques

Summer & Winter weave structure forms the foundation of this project, a traditional technique that creates visual depth and texture through the interplay of warp and weft. The design features striped patterning in the warp color order, which establishes the foundational color composition before weaving begins. This structured approach allows the weaver to build complexity through both yarn selection and the weaving draft itself.

The project requires a 6-shaft loom with a minimum weaving width of 20", equipped with 2 shuttles and 5 bobbins. The warp is set at 15 epi (ends per inch), threaded 1-dent in a 15-dent reed or 1-2 in a 10-dent reed, creating a finished width in the reed of 18.3". The weft is worked at 30 picks per inch, balancing the density for a stable, finished fabric. The total warp length is 4 yards of 275 ends, including 2 floating selvedges for clean edges.

Yarn and Materials

The warp is constructed from Valley Yarns 8/2 Cotton, a 100% unmercerized cotton available at 3360 yards per pound. The warp color order combines three autumn-inspired shades: Burnt Sienna (676 yards), Tobacco (304 yards), and Mosstone (120 yards). These colors work together to evoke the seasonal palette of fall foliage.

The tabby weft uses the same Valley Yarns 8/2 Cotton in matching colors: Burnt Sienna (503 yards), Tobacco (170 yards), and Mosstone (67 yards). The pattern weft is Maysville 8/4 Carpet Warp, a 100% cotton yarn in Tan (689 yards), which provides textural contrast and structural support to the Summer & Winter pattern.

Additional equipment includes a sewing thread matched to Burnt Sienna for finishing, and optional weighted fishing line for enhanced selvedge quality. The combination of 8/2 and 8/4 cotton yarns ensures the finished placemats are both durable and easy to maintain through repeated laundering.

Winding and Warping Process

The warp is wound following a specific color order that establishes the striped foundation of the design. The heddle counts for each shaft are precisely specified: Shaft 1 (69 heddles), Shaft 2 (68 heddles), Shaft 3 (24 heddles), Shaft 4 (52 heddles), and Shaft 5 (44 heddles), with additional distribution across shafts to achieve the Summer & Winter structure. Weavers may use their preferred method to dress the loom, with the outermost threads designated as floating selvedges. Weighting the floating selvedge threads and using weighted fishing line are optional techniques recommended for smoother, more refined edges on the finished placemats.