Valley Yarns #264 Tauliya Towels

Valley Yarns Tauliya Towels Weaving Pattern

Project Overview

The Tauliya Towels are a set of two kitchen towels designed by Shilpa Nagarkar, inspired by the organized color gradations found in fabric store displays. This downloadable weaving pattern creates finished towels measuring 14.25" x 25" each, using a sophisticated color-blocking technique that celebrates shade variations in a coordinated palette.

Weave Structure and Techniques

These towels are constructed using plain weave with weft floats, a classic weaving structure that provides both durability and visual interest. The pattern employs a striped design technique achieved through strategic color placement in both the warp and weft. The weaving process uses a pick-up stick method to manipulate threads and create the structured color blocks, with weavers alternating between an up and down repeat pattern across the colored sections while keeping Natural yarn sections consistently raised.

Equipment Requirements

• Rigid heddle loom, minimum 20" width
• Five shuttles (one for each weft color)
• Pick-up stick, minimum 20" length
• 10-dent reed for proper thread spacing

Yarn Specifications

The Tauliya Towels pattern calls for Maurice Brassard 8/2 Cottolin yarn, a blend of 60% organic cotton and 40% linen. This fiber combination offers excellent absorbency for kitchen towels while providing the durability and structure that linen contributes. The yarn yields 3,360 yards per pound, with each tube containing 1,680 yards.

Warp yarn requirements by color:

• Peacock C4616: 158 yards
• Turquoise C1510: 158 yards
• Seaton C5110: 158 yards
• Nil Green C1934: 158 yards
• Natural C0100: 135 yards

Weft yarn requirements by color:

• Peacock C4616: 135 yards
• Turquoise C1510: 135 yards
• Seaton C5110: 135 yards
• Nil Green C1934: 135 yards
• Natural C0100: 167 yards

Loom Setup and Specifications

The pattern uses a warp length of 81 inches with 170 doubled ends, meaning each warp thread is doubled to eliminate the need for separate threading. The sett (thread density) is 20 ends per inch, achieved by placing 2 ends per dent in a 10-dent reed. The weaving width in the reed measures 17 inches, which accounts for the finished towel width of 14.25 inches after finishing and shrinkage.

Warp Color Order

The warp is organized in a repeating pattern that alternates Natural yarn sections with color blocks. The sequence follows: Natural (6 ends), Peacock (35 ends), Natural (6 ends), Turquoise (35 ends), Natural (6 ends), Seaton (35 ends), Natural (6 ends), Nil Green (35 ends), and Natural (6 ends). This structure creates the foundation for the striped visual effect while the Natural sections serve as visual separators between the jewel-toned color blocks.

Weaving Process

Weavers begin by winding the warp using the direct warping method, centering the threads to achieve the desired 17-inch weaving width. Once the warp is dressed on the loom and secured to the front apron rod, a few picks of scrap yarn are used to spread and separate the warp threads evenly. During the actual weaving, the heddle is positioned in the down position while the weaver uses a pick-up stick to lift all threads in each Natural section. For the colored sections, the weaver executes a 1 up, 1 down repeat pattern, alternating which threads are raised and lowered with each pass of the shuttle. Each of the five shuttles is wound with a different weft color, allowing the weaver to maintain consistent color placement throughout the project.

Finished Product

This pattern produces two finished kitchen towels, each measuring 14.25" x 25". The combination of organic cotton and linen yarns creates tow