Valley Yarns #160 Welcome to the Table Mat

Valley Yarns Welcome to the Table Mat

Project Overview

The Welcome to the Table Mat is a woven homeware project designed by Paula Veleta that creates four finished placemats measuring 12.5" x 18" each. This downloadable PDF pattern from Valley Yarns demonstrates advanced rigid heddle weaving techniques suitable for weavers with intermediate to advanced skills.

What Is Being Made

This pattern produces a set of four coordinated table placemats ideal for everyday dining or special occasions. The finished placemats feature a sophisticated color palette combining charcoal, natural, and fawn tones, creating a modern aesthetic suitable for contemporary table settings.

Weave Structure and Techniques

The Welcome to the Table Mat employs a plain weave base enhanced with two specialized weaving techniques:

• Clasped weft: A technique where two different colored weft yarns meet and separate within a single weft pick, with the join hidden beneath a raised warp end. This creates color transitions and visual interest while maintaining a balanced weave structure.
• Leno lace: An openwork technique that adds delicate, lacy sections to the design, created using a pick-up stick to manipulate warp ends and create twisted effects.

The designer notes that clasped weft is used similarly to weft-faced fabric techniques, though the weaver maintains as close to a balanced weave as possible for structural integrity.

Stitches and Technical Specifications

The pattern uses the following technical parameters:

• Sett: 10 ends per inch (epi) in the warp and 8 picks per inch (ppi) in the weft
• Width in reed: 13.7 inches
• Total warp ends: 137 ends
• Warp length: 108 inches
• Weave method: Direct warping on a rigid heddle loom

Materials and Yarns

Warp yarn: Valley Yarns Goshen in colorway #8039 Fawn (48% Peruvian Cotton, 46% Modal, 6% Silk; 92 yards per skein). The pattern requires 411 yards total, equivalent to 5 skeins.

Weft yarns: The pattern uses multiple Valley Yarns products for color variation:

• Valley Yarns Granville in #02 Charcoal (90% Pima Cotton, 10% Merino Wool; 167 yards per skein) – 217 yards required (2 skeins)
• Valley Yarns Granville in #01 Natural (90% Pima Cotton, 10% Merino Wool; 167 yards per skein) – 217 yards required (2 skeins)
• Valley Yarns Goshen in #8039 Fawn – 45 yards (use remainder from warp yarn)

The combination of cotton-dominant yarns with modal and merino wool creates durable, absorbent placemats with subtle texture and warmth.

Equipment Required

This project requires specific rigid heddle loom equipment:

• Rigid heddle loom at least 15 inches wide
• 10 dent reed
• 2 shuttles for managing multiple weft colors
• Pick-up stick at least 16 inches long for leno lace manipulation
• Fork for pressing leno lace into place
• 1 inch spacer (can be created from a manila file folder)

Stripe Pattern and Design

The striped design is achieved through the strategic use of clasped weft, alternating between the charcoal and natural Granville yarns with accent picks of Fawn Goshen. The leno lace sections add openwork detail that breaks up the solid color areas and creates visual rhythm across the finished placemat surface.