I had never seen tablet weaving before. I'm not ashamed to confess that my mouth didn't close until the video finished - it was amazing! All of it -the pattern, the technique, the history... Mindblowing, all of it!
_Bellissimo!, anche per me è una tecnica sconosciuta, sono contenta perchè ho scoperto questo metodo di tessitura - gentile signora, sarebbe bello insegnarla ai giovani perchè oltre ad imparare un'arte meravigliosa, imparerebbero anche la pazienza e la gioia di creare con le proprie mani - Grazie per la condivisione!
I have knit, crocheted, spun fiber and done a little weaving on a tabletop loom. Tablet or card weaving leaves me in awe. The patience, skill and memory required for it amazes me.
Just wanted to share that tablet weaving has been my primary hobby ever since I saw this video 2 years ago. I did eventually make this Hallstatt pattern as well, albeit with different colors and border. Thank you so much for introducing me to this wonderful craft.
Thank you for sharing this intriguing design with us. I am constantly amazed by the artistry that existed in prehistoric times. We really were talented creatures back then.
This was such a refreshing change from cross stitching videos I usually watch, made me remember the friendship bracelets I used to knot weave into pretty patterns.
I started my first tablet weave today, with just whatever leftover yarn I had lying around and tablets made from a cereal box, but I am immensely enjoying it despite the super simple pattern. Just watching a ribbon like this come together is incredible - my brain understands how it works, but I am still in awe watching it happen. Your video editing and voiceover also made for such a nice viewing experience!
You've really inspired me to somehow incorporate the complexity of what beautiful craftwork our 'less technological' lineage got up to in one or two of the stories I'm writing. We constantly underestimate just how sophisticated homo sapiens (and our ancestral cousins before we didn't have any!) has been over time. We really do seem incapable of staying in one place, of living in homes devoid of artistry, and of not seeking out the novelty to be found in trying out new things and practices! I love this-- thank you so much for the thoughtful, meditative practice you show in this video. I'm a knitter and don't want to pick up anything new on the craft front, but I'm grateful to live in a time when I can watch you lovingly dip back into time, all from the cozy seat in my home!
What I love about tablet weaving is that it allows to dabble into (pre) historical weaving without much space or fancy expensive equipment, I made tablets out of uno cards. I heard in a lecture I found on RUclips that in ancient Greece, tablet weaving was the last thing a woman could do to survive and make an earning and from the simplicity of the equipment I can totally see tablet woven bands being everywhere at that time (and it's not rare to see extremely skilled textile artisans being shunned or undervalued by their culture) A common way of sharing knitting stitches and intricate textures (such as lace for example) before printed patterns were a thing was to knit a swatch and keep it in a swatch book, as you do the same craft day in and day out for years or decades you instinctively start to see the way the threads move and so someone could probably read finished pieces like a pattern and could probably play with different sequences to see how it changes and so creating different more complex pieces
Memory is one of those skills that can be trained to be amazing. Take for example mail carriers. A typical mail route in the US is about 750 houses, with about 60-70% of those houses having more than one last name. Nowadays, 150+ packages on a route is common for a day, along with mail. When you're new, it takes months to truly learn a single route, but by the time you've been introduced to your 4th or 5th route, you can memorize all the addresses in order in a single day, along with delivering all the packages by memory alone. Within a year, you know every route in the city by memory, and the routes you do most you know every last name at every house, including maiden names. (Based on my experiences in a suburb of a large city) I can believe these artisans had the patterns engraved in their minds like a second nature, forged from decades of practice. The mind is a muscle!
I think that is absolutely possible! But this always makes me wonder. Were there dedicated weavers or was weaving something you did in between other chores to make life go round? I do not know, but knowledge of rural life many years ago here in Norway would lead me to maybe believe it is the latter. One of many skills you accumulate over the years. I don't know how that would affect your working memory as opposed to doing the same thing or walking the same route every day. Maybe they were just that awesome. It wouldn't surprise me though. :)
@@KristineVike maybe we can look at it like knitting. Before the invention of the knitting machine in the 16th century, the European knitting trade was that- a trade. People went through apprenticeships to learn how to make various knitted goods, and knit clothing/ accessories were very expensive due to labor costs. Knit stockings/ hose didn’t even become something normal people wore until knitting could be automated. If we move even farther back in history to the time when tablet weaving was most common, I have a hard time believing it was simply a leisure activity. It had to have been a skilled trade industry imo, especially with the amount of intricate extant examples we have. I could also see the perception of fiber arts as something people just sat around doing in their free time (what free time?) as a product of the arts and crafts/ aesthetics movement in the 19th century, because that would be the context where people had both free time and devotion to wearable arts.
Dang, now i want to do some tablet weaving again. I used to do it all the time and made woven belts, trims, decorations, bands etc. for me and everyone else from my norse medieval reenactment group. Mostly simple beginner patterns or Kivrim, cause i always did it while talking with visitors and tourists, who were really fascinated a lot (it's not that common in Germany, especially in the south-west, nowadays). I still have some of the more complex patterns printed out or drawn that i haven't done yet. Maybe I'll do one of them over winter period, for the new tunic that i'm sewing for my partner right now. Thank you so much for sharing this, you did so great on that pattern.
Seeing the weft yarns dangling at the end made me realize I have a woven belt with weft yarns knotted all together and about 3 inches left dangling like a tassel, on both ends of the belt. I bought it in the 90's.
Clicked on this video because I recognised this pattern from a dissertation when I was researching for a paper about the the celtic tomb in Hochdorf. Thank you for recreating and uploading this. ♡
A desire for "apocalypse skills" and an enjoyment of creating order from chaos is what has really gotten me into the fiber crafts. Thanks for such a fascinating and informative video!
I am interested in understanding how you set up your warp. You seem able to maintain the tension perfectly, yet you must be able to put it down and return to it whenever the cat needs attention. I love this pattern - your version of it is very beautiful.
I have the warp secured at the end point to something (like a hook or a table leg), and then the other end of the warp is secured to a belt around my waist, so I maintain the tension with my body. When I need to put it down I secure the cards in their position with a large safety pin (you can also use a long needle and some thread) and then just unhook it from my belt. I tried a small loom-like contraption a while back and actually prefer maintaining the tension myself, as I can make minute adjustments as necessary.
That turned out absolutely beautiful. I love it when you weave in historical anthropology in your videos, too. Thank you for sharing your skills with us.
@@KristineVike Passionate people make anything interesting, when you see someone so dedicated to their craft you can only watch in awe as they labour away :)
You have some impressive skills and such a soothing voice, I would watch you weave all day long! I also have an interest in archaeology and from this point of view your work really highlights the skills of those prehistoric weavers. You truly are doing an amazing work I love it, it makes me want to pick up weaving as a hobby
Ive been curious abotu card weaving for a while but the videos i happened to find didnt really show so clearly how it actually works. Your video was so clear about the mechanics and everything clicked into place i feel like i finally understand!
Oh, that makes me so happy to hear! I started with just a cardboard backing from a sketchbook cut into squares, so I can really recommend just having a go! 😊
Good tip for blackstrap weaving to tie the yarn round your hips rather than your waist, to protect your lower back. My lower back is weak so hips it is! Thank you
This is unbelievably wonderful, with every new fact I had to pause the video and try to fathom how on earth such incredible mastery was possible. Thank you so much for all the information you shared, along with the gorgeous pattern and beautiful weaving you did. I thought if you're not already aware, you might be interested to know that singing is a much more effective method of passing information along withour significant error accumulation. The most effective known method is still used by Indigenous groups in Australia, and requires three generations - let's call them grandmother, mother, and daughter. The mother teaches the song and craft to the daughter while the grandmother listens and corrects if necessary. If they are especially lucky, by the time the daughter is teaching her own daughter she may have both her mother and grandmother to listen and support her. The middle generation still has the strength and agility to show and teach, the youngest generation is best able to learn, and the oldest generation has spent their life with the knowledge memorized and can ensure no errors are passed down. The process is truly awe-inspiring.
I was aware that singing and rhythm is much easier to remember and thus pass on to the next generation, but I had not had it described in so much detail considering generations and the very conscious passing of knowledge like that before! That is really cool and makes a whole lot of sense.
What a gorgeous video. I loved how you integrated history, the calm music, the intricate detail… as a totally new weaver, I feel inspired an in awe of all those that went before
This is beautiful. I love how you engage with history. I read the article you linked and I find experimental archaeology like this fascinating, especially how they experimented to figure out how exactly it was done. Your comment about our current lack of understanding regarding pattern recording and transmission intrigues me deeply. I can imagine whole communities sat, singing songs and weaving. How they might incorporate instructions into a poem, or a song, or if they were recorded another way lost to time. Fascinating to think about. Thank you for this video, it was a pleasure to watch. I really appreciate how much credit you give artisans of the past, acknowledging their skill. I can tell you really love history and your craft.
This was really cool, what a beautiful end result you have! And the process itself is really beautiful too, history and all. Also an honourable mention to the model at the end, what a beautiful friend you have!
Mindblowing, indeed! What a discovery! What a random click on the internet can do! Your demonstration is OUTSTANDING from all points of view: from the amazing subject matter proper to the quality of presentation, personal and filmic-technical!! A joy to watch, with the dropping of the jaw - to paraphrase an American idiom
As i was weaving one day, i started to notice that i could tell what color and pattern each turn would give me. I think, perhaps, that the patterns were more of an artist drawing than a mathematical, memorized process. When you learn the scales, chords, and arpeggios of weaving, then perhaps recreating something from sight would be more instinctual than we thought?
This is absolutely beautiful and fascinating!! And finally a new craft that doesn't require a huge investment in equipment and space! Thanks for teaching me about this art form. 🙏 Your work is looks very professional. I'm sure that will take some time and practice lol
I've weaved with tablets using a slightly finer thread before (one plie of a six-plie embroidery thread, i think is what its called?), once with tablets that were made out of playing cards and twice with wooden tablets that for the second time some were still somewhat unfinished with a slightly rougher egde and i had trouble weaving for more than roughly 30 centimetres before the threads ripped (the 30 cm one was with the wooden, smooth-edged tablets, the rougher edges ripped the threads after just ca 15 cm). the weaved band is a perfect width and thickness to use as a book ribbon :) knowing all of that, it makes it even more impressive to me, what has been accomplished 2500 years ago! the tablet edges and surfaces would have had to be really really smooth. the complexity of the pattern is also incredible, so far ive finished only less complex (4 forwards-4 backwards) patterns and had to give up my first and so far only attempt at a slightly more complex ram-horns pattern. your work is absolutely impressive!
I was curious to what the vid was about... and at ca 10.30 it hit me .WOW !! The endles possibilities spun through my head. Wonderful art Kristine ! greets ,Paul.
Amazing! I studied fashion design in college, and took a weaving class where I learned traditional weaving on a floor loom, but I’ve never seen anything like this. I’ve never even heard of it.
Craftsmen of the past(and some current) used bone for burnishing leather(smoothing the edges) and creasing paper for book making. The great thing about bone smoothing tools is that they get smoother(so better) with use. So cards of bone could be great for delicate card weaving.
Beautiful pattern! I think many people tend to think of our ancestors as less mentally agile when the opposite was probably true. They had fewer technologies to rely upon and had to struggle more, produce more, and innovate more often in order to survive and thrive.
Thank you for bringing this amazing art to life again for many to see. I had never heard of this form of weaving before and it's amazing. The history lesson included while we watch in awe was great also.
I have no idea what you are doing or saying but I am intrigued...looks incredibly difficult and talent is needed... love your information while watching you create! Thanks 😊
I love your subject material, production value and insight. Please keep up the good work. I’m excited to catch up on your other videos and see what else you have to come!
Regarding how would an ancient person might have remembered the patterns? I wonder if they just kept a cashe of "samples" that they could translate to patterns. Also (just a thought) could they have used a wooden peg board with holes to insert removable pegs of different woods (to represent different colors and to make patterns - just guessing). I think ancient craftspeople had to have amazing memorization ability too. Thanks for this amazing video, Kristine! I have spent a lifetime doing various crafts, knitting crocheting, sewing, etc. etc., and yet had never heard of this art. I got to buy some Chinese ethnic minority clothing that had these woven "ribbons" on them when I teaching in China in 1986. I always wondered how they had made them, being that they came down from a mountain in Kunming.
I've never even really thought about weaving and just stumbled upon this. Such a beautiful piece and the video/narration was very well done, especially the historical context. Thanks for posting the video!
Really lovely and very well presented. Thank you ❤️ I've done a little tablet weaving but get very frustrated with it. Yes I spin and do some other weaving, but I prefer to leave the tablet weaving to others.
Im glad this video was suggested to me! Weaving is such a fascinating process, I know how to knit, sew and crochet but weaving is on a different level! ❤
How interesting!! I love learning new skills and I've never heard of this before! I'm excited to watch some more videos and maybe try it! Also incredible history! It's interesting how much we will never know that we lost to history.
Reading and writing likely takes up a good part of our capacity. Some scientific analysis indicates that it coopts and repurposes some mechanisms in our brain responsible for quick and accurate memorys. The increased plasticity required for cromprehending and froming images and concepts from not only language, but additinally the somewhat seperate skill in writing and reading taking up capacity from areas originally responsible for quick and accurate memory retention. This is one explanation why our primate realtives feature a vastly superior short term memory.
It's so awesome to see someone really skilled in this, and at the same time mind boggling! Can you recommend a resource for a total beginner in tablet weaving?
There are a lot of really good videos right here on RUclips. But I know for me, I learn the fastest by trying things out. I started out with the cardboard backing of an old sketchbook cut into squares, many use a holepunch and a deck of cards with some scrap yarn. Dive in, have a go. I find it much easier to understand what others are talking about when I’ve had a go at least once. Hope that helps! :)
@@KristineVike Thanks a lot for your reply! I definitely have want to give it a try! I just find it fascinating how you can creat these incredibly intricate designs but with such ancient tools. And I also have to say I really appreciate the pleasant way of your presentation and narration - a work of art in itself if I may say so!
You should visit the salt mine in Hallstatt yourself! There is lots of cool info and you can see the site and understand better the context of life that would have existed there
What a fascinating process! Am I a bad person for my first thought being "how would I automate this process"? It depends on how much modifications I could get away with on the cards if my idea would work.
The Cathars, or as they used to be known as the "Bulgarian sect" are an extremely interesting group of people. They are the reason words as some words in French and English that I can't write on RUclips used as a slur to this day come from the demonstration of that sect. Anyway, they have an incredibly interesting influence over European history. I am very interested in their history. That said, what you do is amazing! Nothing short of amazing. I am subscribing immediately. If you ever see that question, do you know of traditions that kept this kind of weaving until recently? I am very curious to read more about it. I have been interested in studying the weaving and embroidery patterns in Europe and overall Eurasia, and I had seen these ribbons but I didn't know people knew how to reproduce them. Really amazing work! Edit: I feel silly, I just found videos online on belt weaving and they use tablets but bigger. I can't believe I never though how belts were woven even in my native Bulgaria 😂
That is so cool though! This kind of tablet weaving is still alive in parts of Norway too. Some of the traditional dress requires it. Then there are all of us history enthusiasts and reenactors who do it for fun! So cool to hear that it is still alive in Bulgaria too! 😁
@@KristineVike thank you, I am just watching videos on tablet weaving from Scandinavia 😆, what a cool craft this is. But seriously, you recreating that ancient pattern is amazing. I have a question, if you don't mind. Do you thread the tablets as "left" and "right"? Where the thread passes from the left side on one tablet and then on the next tablet it passes to the right?
I hope I understand your question. It entirely depends on the pattern? In this pattern, all cards are threaded from the top left and comes out bottom right from the weaver’s point of view. Different direction of thread is created by going clockwise or counterclockwise. Simpler diamond patterns may be created by threading for instance left, left, left, and then right, right, right. This balances the warp (the first example would twist into a coil if you turned the cards all the same direction, all the time). Another example still would be to thread the cards, as you mention, alternating left and right over the whole deck of cards. This would create a balanced herringbone look that doesn’t twist (unless you make them go different directions). I’ve seen this for heavily brocaded 13-16th century stuff where the brocade is the main player. So… all of the above is possible and used when we want? You can also flip the cards mid-weaving if the twist buildup is too great and the pattern is one that can handle it. It is part if the versatility that I think makes it so fun. I hope that answers your question? 😅 my biggest tip is always to just try it out for yourself. That’s how I learn the best!
@@KristineVike yes, that was exactly my question. I am sorry for the illiterate way I'm probably asking it 😁 Very, very interesting. Thank you very much for the details. I saw this technique of alternating threading on a belt and I will go back to check the pattern again, now that you explained. I still can't believe that I never though about how the traditional belts and some decorations on the traditional clothes were made, assuming it's some kind of embroidery. 🤦♀️ There's something fascinating in all types of weaving but this just struck me yesterday. I just love how simple it is and yet what the human mind has managed to achieve.
I had never seen tablet weaving before. I'm not ashamed to confess that my mouth didn't close until the video finished - it was amazing! All of it -the pattern, the technique, the history... Mindblowing, all of it!
Thank you! I am glad you enjoyed it and I got to share this craft with you.
_Bellissimo!, anche per me è una tecnica sconosciuta, sono contenta perchè ho scoperto questo metodo di tessitura - gentile signora, sarebbe bello insegnarla ai giovani perchè oltre ad imparare un'arte meravigliosa, imparerebbero anche la pazienza e la gioia di creare con le proprie mani - Grazie per la condivisione!
😃😄🤣🤣😁😄
Oh my gosh same here !!!
I have knit, crocheted, spun fiber and done a little weaving on a tabletop loom. Tablet or card weaving leaves me in awe. The patience, skill and memory required for it amazes me.
They were so good! To think people in the past did this without detailed patterns blows my mind. I could not do without my lifeline.
Just wanted to share that tablet weaving has been my primary hobby ever since I saw this video 2 years ago. I did eventually make this Hallstatt pattern as well, albeit with different colors and border. Thank you so much for introducing me to this wonderful craft.
Yay for more enthusiasts to this wonderful craft!
Thank you for sharing this intriguing design with us. I am constantly amazed by the artistry that existed in prehistoric times. We really were talented creatures back then.
I think we are still quite talented creatures now as well. Different focus, yes. But still very creative. 😊
I’m sure in all fundamental ways “prehistoric” people were far more advanced than we imagine. And very much just like us.
This was such a refreshing change from cross stitching videos I usually watch, made me remember the friendship bracelets I used to knot weave into pretty patterns.
I am so happy you enjoyed it! It is always fun to be exposed to adjacent crafts. 😊
I started my first tablet weave today, with just whatever leftover yarn I had lying around and tablets made from a cereal box, but I am immensely enjoying it despite the super simple pattern.
Just watching a ribbon like this come together is incredible - my brain understands how it works, but I am still in awe watching it happen. Your video editing and voiceover also made for such a nice viewing experience!
You've really inspired me to somehow incorporate the complexity of what beautiful craftwork our 'less technological' lineage got up to in one or two of the stories I'm writing. We constantly underestimate just how sophisticated homo sapiens (and our ancestral cousins before we didn't have any!) has been over time. We really do seem incapable of staying in one place, of living in homes devoid of artistry, and of not seeking out the novelty to be found in trying out new things and practices! I love this-- thank you so much for the thoughtful, meditative practice you show in this video. I'm a knitter and don't want to pick up anything new on the craft front, but I'm grateful to live in a time when I can watch you lovingly dip back into time, all from the cozy seat in my home!
How lovely! It is always nice to be reminded of how we have always been creative. 😊
What I love about tablet weaving is that it allows to dabble into (pre) historical weaving without much space or fancy expensive equipment, I made tablets out of uno cards. I heard in a lecture I found on RUclips that in ancient Greece, tablet weaving was the last thing a woman could do to survive and make an earning and from the simplicity of the equipment I can totally see tablet woven bands being everywhere at that time (and it's not rare to see extremely skilled textile artisans being shunned or undervalued by their culture)
A common way of sharing knitting stitches and intricate textures (such as lace for example) before printed patterns were a thing was to knit a swatch and keep it in a swatch book, as you do the same craft day in and day out for years or decades you instinctively start to see the way the threads move and so someone could probably read finished pieces like a pattern and could probably play with different sequences to see how it changes and so creating different more complex pieces
Memory is one of those skills that can be trained to be amazing. Take for example mail carriers. A typical mail route in the US is about 750 houses, with about 60-70% of those houses having more than one last name. Nowadays, 150+ packages on a route is common for a day, along with mail. When you're new, it takes months to truly learn a single route, but by the time you've been introduced to your 4th or 5th route, you can memorize all the addresses in order in a single day, along with delivering all the packages by memory alone. Within a year, you know every route in the city by memory, and the routes you do most you know every last name at every house, including maiden names. (Based on my experiences in a suburb of a large city)
I can believe these artisans had the patterns engraved in their minds like a second nature, forged from decades of practice. The mind is a muscle!
I think that is absolutely possible! But this always makes me wonder. Were there dedicated weavers or was weaving something you did in between other chores to make life go round? I do not know, but knowledge of rural life many years ago here in Norway would lead me to maybe believe it is the latter. One of many skills you accumulate over the years. I don't know how that would affect your working memory as opposed to doing the same thing or walking the same route every day. Maybe they were just that awesome. It wouldn't surprise me though. :)
@@KristineVike maybe we can look at it like knitting. Before the invention of the knitting machine in the 16th century, the European knitting trade was that- a trade. People went through apprenticeships to learn how to make various knitted goods, and knit clothing/ accessories were very expensive due to labor costs. Knit stockings/ hose didn’t even become something normal people wore until knitting could be automated.
If we move even farther back in history to the time when tablet weaving was most common, I have a hard time believing it was simply a leisure activity. It had to have been a skilled trade industry imo, especially with the amount of intricate extant examples we have.
I could also see the perception of fiber arts as something people just sat around doing in their free time (what free time?) as a product of the arts and crafts/ aesthetics movement in the 19th century, because that would be the context where people had both free time and devotion to wearable arts.
Dang, now i want to do some tablet weaving again. I used to do it all the time and made woven belts, trims, decorations, bands etc. for me and everyone else from my norse medieval reenactment group. Mostly simple beginner patterns or Kivrim, cause i always did it while talking with visitors and tourists, who were really fascinated a lot (it's not that common in Germany, especially in the south-west, nowadays). I still have some of the more complex patterns printed out or drawn that i haven't done yet. Maybe I'll do one of them over winter period, for the new tunic that i'm sewing for my partner right now. Thank you so much for sharing this, you did so great on that pattern.
Ooh, yeah. I definitely would not do this in front of visitors as demos at markets or the like. But it is fun to have some winter projects too! 😊
"weaving from scratch? that is magic" it is truly. such beautiful work.
Seeing the weft yarns dangling at the end made me realize I have a woven belt with weft yarns knotted all together and about 3 inches left dangling like a tassel, on both ends of the belt. I bought it in the 90's.
How fun! Handmade adds something extra, I think.
This is absolutely beautiful. It feels like magic.
I am happy you enjoyed it! 😊
Clicked on this video because I recognised this pattern from a dissertation when I was researching for a paper about the the celtic tomb in Hochdorf. Thank you for recreating and uploading this. ♡
A desire for "apocalypse skills" and an enjoyment of creating order from chaos is what has really gotten me into the fiber crafts. Thanks for such a fascinating and informative video!
I am interested in understanding how you set up your warp. You seem able to maintain the tension perfectly, yet you must be able to put it down and return to it whenever the cat needs attention. I love this pattern - your version of it is very beautiful.
I have the warp secured at the end point to something (like a hook or a table leg), and then the other end of the warp is secured to a belt around my waist, so I maintain the tension with my body. When I need to put it down I secure the cards in their position with a large safety pin (you can also use a long needle and some thread) and then just unhook it from my belt. I tried a small loom-like contraption a while back and actually prefer maintaining the tension myself, as I can make minute adjustments as necessary.
@@KristineVike thank you. I must try it.
That turned out absolutely beautiful. I love it when you weave in historical anthropology in your videos, too. Thank you for sharing your skills with us.
Thank you. I am a bit floored by the reception to be honest. I thought weaving would be too repetitive to be engaging!
@@KristineVike Passionate people make anything interesting, when you see someone so dedicated to their craft you can only watch in awe as they labour away :)
You have some impressive skills and such a soothing voice, I would watch you weave all day long! I also have an interest in archaeology and from this point of view your work really highlights the skills of those prehistoric weavers. You truly are doing an amazing work I love it, it makes me want to pick up weaving as a hobby
Absolutely gorgeous design
Ive been curious abotu card weaving for a while but the videos i happened to find didnt really show so clearly how it actually works. Your video was so clear about the mechanics and everything clicked into place i feel like i finally understand!
Oh, that makes me so happy to hear! I started with just a cardboard backing from a sketchbook cut into squares, so I can really recommend just having a go! 😊
Good tip for blackstrap weaving to tie the yarn round your hips rather than your waist, to protect your lower back. My lower back is weak so hips it is! Thank you
I've never understood how they got complex patterns in weaving. This is awesome!
This is unbelievably wonderful, with every new fact I had to pause the video and try to fathom how on earth such incredible mastery was possible. Thank you so much for all the information you shared, along with the gorgeous pattern and beautiful weaving you did.
I thought if you're not already aware, you might be interested to know that singing is a much more effective method of passing information along withour significant error accumulation. The most effective known method is still used by Indigenous groups in Australia, and requires three generations - let's call them grandmother, mother, and daughter. The mother teaches the song and craft to the daughter while the grandmother listens and corrects if necessary. If they are especially lucky, by the time the daughter is teaching her own daughter she may have both her mother and grandmother to listen and support her. The middle generation still has the strength and agility to show and teach, the youngest generation is best able to learn, and the oldest generation has spent their life with the knowledge memorized and can ensure no errors are passed down. The process is truly awe-inspiring.
I was aware that singing and rhythm is much easier to remember and thus pass on to the next generation, but I had not had it described in so much detail considering generations and the very conscious passing of knowledge like that before! That is really cool and makes a whole lot of sense.
As a cross stitcher this was a really cool watch. People sure are something. Well done and thanks!
I agree! People sure do make some amazing things. :)
Your tools, your pattern notebook and most importantly your tablet weaving is beautiful!
Thank you! I know good tools are not entirely necessary, but they do make the experience such a joy. 🥰
Absolutely magnificent. And your cat is too cute. I fear tablet weaving is going to be a future hobby. Subscribed.
‘T is a craft well worth learning! 😁
I've worked fabric in almost everything, but this leaves me in awe. I could probably do a very simple band, but not this.
What a gorgeous video. I loved how you integrated history, the calm music, the intricate detail… as a totally new weaver, I feel inspired an in awe of all those that went before
Thank you! I hope you enjoy are enjoying this intriguing process!
Your wooden cards are beautiful!
I love this video so much, sometimes I just come and see to watch.
This is beautiful. I love how you engage with history. I read the article you linked and I find experimental archaeology like this fascinating, especially how they experimented to figure out how exactly it was done.
Your comment about our current lack of understanding regarding pattern recording and transmission intrigues me deeply. I can imagine whole communities sat, singing songs and weaving. How they might incorporate instructions into a poem, or a song, or if they were recorded another way lost to time. Fascinating to think about.
Thank you for this video, it was a pleasure to watch. I really appreciate how much credit you give artisans of the past, acknowledging their skill. I can tell you really love history and your craft.
Goodness gracious beautiful shenanigans. Such skill. Bravo.
Thank you very much!
This was fun to watch, and your band is so beautiful! 💜
Thank you! I keep trying to think of ways to make these repetitive type projects engaging to watch too! 🥰
Ancient people were not dumb. Beautiful work!!!!
What a pretty ribbon! Tablet weaving seems like such fun too!
It is fun! Do recommend for sturdy belts and straps. 😊
This was really cool, what a beautiful end result you have! And the process itself is really beautiful too, history and all. Also an honourable mention to the model at the end, what a beautiful friend you have!
I agree, she is the most beautiful and excellent supurrvisor. And she knows it too! 🥰
Wow that's super interesting. I've never seen anything like that. Thank you
Oh my goodness, so complex! The colors play so well together, though, and your work turned out beautifully!
Mindblowing, indeed! What a discovery! What a random click on the internet can do! Your demonstration is OUTSTANDING from all points of view: from the amazing subject matter proper to the quality of presentation, personal and filmic-technical!! A joy to watch, with the dropping of the jaw - to paraphrase an American idiom
Amazing, how a master can make such a beautiful art work just with some simple pieces of wood. Beautiful video as well.
As i was weaving one day, i started to notice that i could tell what color and pattern each turn would give me. I think, perhaps, that the patterns were more of an artist drawing than a mathematical, memorized process. When you learn the scales, chords, and arpeggios of weaving, then perhaps recreating something from sight would be more instinctual than we thought?
I've been thinking the same thing - it must've been an incredible skill, and one that took a LOT of repetition and pantient teaching to understand.
I admire the computational complexity of this craft and pattern. I also admire the record keeping ability.
This is absolutely beautiful and fascinating!! And finally a new craft that doesn't require a huge investment in equipment and space! Thanks for teaching me about this art form. 🙏 Your work is looks very professional. I'm sure that will take some time and practice lol
I wouldn’t recommend this for a first-time project, no. 😅 but with some practice I’m sure you’ll get there in no time!
Absolutely mesmerizing! I'm in awe both of you and the people a long time ago who came up with this
I've weaved with tablets using a slightly finer thread before (one plie of a six-plie embroidery thread, i think is what its called?), once with tablets that were made out of playing cards and twice with wooden tablets that for the second time some were still somewhat unfinished with a slightly rougher egde and i had trouble weaving for more than roughly 30 centimetres before the threads ripped (the 30 cm one was with the wooden, smooth-edged tablets, the rougher edges ripped the threads after just ca 15 cm). the weaved band is a perfect width and thickness to use as a book ribbon :) knowing all of that, it makes it even more impressive to me, what has been accomplished 2500 years ago! the tablet edges and surfaces would have had to be really really smooth. the complexity of the pattern is also incredible, so far ive finished only less complex (4 forwards-4 backwards) patterns and had to give up my first and so far only attempt at a slightly more complex ram-horns pattern. your work is absolutely impressive!
That is so freaking awesome! I'm glad to see talented a person recreating patterns almost lost to time.
Thank you! It doesn't hurt that it is fun either. ;)
I was curious to what the vid was about... and at ca 10.30 it hit me .WOW !! The endles possibilities spun through my head. Wonderful art Kristine ! greets ,Paul.
I like this pattern, I recently learned how to ,weave garment seams for norse / Scandinavian clothing it's been a great adventure
How exciting! Weaving really is an adventure.
This is completely amazing! I had no idea this type of weaving exists. What you created is so beautiful! Thank you for sharing :)
Very beautiful video. This technic is amazing.
Amazing! I studied fashion design in college, and took a weaving class where I learned traditional weaving on a floor loom, but I’ve never seen anything like this. I’ve never even heard of it.
Craftsmen of the past(and some current) used bone for burnishing leather(smoothing the edges) and creasing paper for book making. The great thing about bone smoothing tools is that they get smoother(so better) with use. So cards of bone could be great for delicate card weaving.
That is crazy how easy you make that look😮
Beautiful pattern! I think many people tend to think of our ancestors as less mentally agile when the opposite was probably true. They had fewer technologies to rely upon and had to struggle more, produce more, and innovate more often in order to survive and thrive.
The background story made this video interesting.
So happy this turned up on my feed! Super interesting video, and love your cat. Wish you all the best,
-Cecilie
Beautiful work. I am in awe of your skills!
Thank you for bringing this amazing art to life again for many to see. I had never heard of this form of weaving before and it's amazing. The history lesson included while we watch in awe was great also.
I'm not smart enough to understand the spellcraft displayed here. Simply incredible.
Oh wow this is so cool. I saw those types of slavic looking ribbons on etsy and was wondering how on earth they are made by hand. It looks complicated
It’s quite fun once you get into it, to see the pattern grow in front of you! 😊
I had never seen this done with wooden tablets- I learned on ones made of icecream container lids with hole punched holes.
Well this was a fascinating video. Never heard of this type of weaving. So cool. Thanks for sharing.
I am glad you enjoyed and discovered something new!
What a beautiful video with interesting history and handcraft!
Amazing work and dedication. I am personally humbled by your skills. What a marvel.
That’s beautiful! What a great pattern! The colours work well together
Thank you! It turned out better than I anticipated. 🥰
I’m a newbee, just bought my first loom
I have no idea what you are doing or saying but I am intrigued...looks incredibly difficult and talent is needed... love your information while watching you create! Thanks 😊
You are too kind! It is quite a fun craft. 😊
I absolutely enjoyed listening to your explanations and considerations. Amazing work of course. Thank you so much
Thank you, I am so happy so many people are enjoying it and learning about the craft.
I love your subject material, production value and insight. Please keep up the good work. I’m excited to catch up on your other videos and see what else you have to come!
Fantastic information !!!
And I love the final conclusion...🙂
I love tablet weaving! What a gorgeous pattern!!
Wow! That is so cool! Thank you, for sharing!
Thank you. Interesting video explaining how it was done in past.
I've never heard of this before. I love it. Thanks for the intro.
Fascinating - but no idea how this found its way into my recommendations LOL.
It shall forever remain a mystery. 🧐
this was absolutely fascinating and really informative, thank you!
Glad you enjoyed!
Regarding how would an ancient person might have remembered the patterns? I wonder if they just kept a cashe of "samples" that they could translate to patterns. Also (just a thought) could they have used a wooden peg board with holes to insert removable pegs of different woods (to represent different colors and to make patterns - just guessing). I think ancient craftspeople had to have amazing memorization ability too. Thanks for this amazing video, Kristine! I have spent a lifetime doing various crafts, knitting crocheting, sewing, etc. etc., and yet had never heard of this art. I got to buy some Chinese ethnic minority clothing that had these woven "ribbons" on them when I teaching in China in 1986. I always wondered how they had made them, being that they came down from a mountain in Kunming.
I've never even really thought about weaving and just stumbled upon this. Such a beautiful piece and the video/narration was very well done, especially the historical context. Thanks for posting the video!
Really lovely and very well presented. Thank you ❤️
I've done a little tablet weaving but get very frustrated with it. Yes I spin and do some other weaving, but I prefer to leave the tablet weaving to others.
I cannot fathom how you were able to create that pattern without everything becoming a tangled mess
Tension, my good friend! :D
Oh, and not allowing the cats in the room while I was not working probably had a lot to do with it too.
This is absolutely beautiful!!! You are a true artist ❤️
Wow! This is just amazing!!! You’re very talented 💚🧶💚
Incredible. Thank you so much for sharing this! 🙌🏻
This video was just recommended to me. You are amazing for sharing this with the world. Thank you so much!
This looks amazing, it makes me want to try the craft
Do it! One can never amass too many crafts. :3
Im glad this video was suggested to me! Weaving is such a fascinating process, I know how to knit, sew and crochet but weaving is on a different level! ❤
It really is very fascinating how yarn and thread can become cloth!
It looks so gorgeous.
Thank you! ^^
Wow. I didn't know this type of technique is exist. Ancient peoples was really smart.
How interesting!! I love learning new skills and I've never heard of this before! I'm excited to watch some more videos and maybe try it! Also incredible history! It's interesting how much we will never know that we lost to history.
I absolutely agree! History is fascinating, and learning new skills never gets old.
Beautiful video and super interesting info! 👍
Reading and writing likely takes up a good part of our capacity. Some scientific analysis indicates that it coopts and repurposes some mechanisms in our brain responsible for quick and accurate memorys. The increased plasticity required for cromprehending and froming images and concepts from not only language, but additinally the somewhat seperate skill in writing and reading taking up capacity from areas originally responsible for quick and accurate memory retention. This is one explanation why our primate realtives feature a vastly superior short term memory.
I had no idea about card weaving! Mind blowing!
It's so awesome to see someone really skilled in this, and at the same time mind boggling! Can you recommend a resource for a total beginner in tablet weaving?
There are a lot of really good videos right here on RUclips. But I know for me, I learn the fastest by trying things out. I started out with the cardboard backing of an old sketchbook cut into squares, many use a holepunch and a deck of cards with some scrap yarn. Dive in, have a go. I find it much easier to understand what others are talking about when I’ve had a go at least once. Hope that helps! :)
@@KristineVike Thanks a lot for your reply! I definitely have want to give it a try! I just find it fascinating how you can creat these incredibly intricate designs but with such ancient tools. And I also have to say I really appreciate the pleasant way of your presentation and narration - a work of art in itself if I may say so!
Beautiful! you are always a joy to watch and listen to. Hugs
Thank you so much! I am always a bit anxious that repetitive projects like this will be boring. But I want to do them too!
@@KristineVike it's meditative
You should visit the salt mine in Hallstatt yourself! There is lots of cool info and you can see the site and understand better the context of life that would have existed there
This is really neat
This is absolutely beautiful! Well done on the recreation 💛
Thank you so much, glad you like it. ^^
Still done like this on the aran islands off the coast of ireland
What a fascinating process!
Am I a bad person for my first thought being "how would I automate this process"?
It depends on how much modifications I could get away with on the cards if my idea would work.
The Cathars, or as they used to be known as the "Bulgarian sect" are an extremely interesting group of people. They are the reason words as some words in French and English that I can't write on RUclips used as a slur to this day come from the demonstration of that sect. Anyway, they have an incredibly interesting influence over European history. I am very interested in their history.
That said, what you do is amazing! Nothing short of amazing. I am subscribing immediately. If you ever see that question, do you know of traditions that kept this kind of weaving until recently? I am very curious to read more about it. I have been interested in studying the weaving and embroidery patterns in Europe and overall Eurasia, and I had seen these ribbons but I didn't know people knew how to reproduce them. Really amazing work!
Edit: I feel silly, I just found videos online on belt weaving and they use tablets but bigger. I can't believe I never though how belts were woven even in my native Bulgaria 😂
That is so cool though! This kind of tablet weaving is still alive in parts of Norway too. Some of the traditional dress requires it. Then there are all of us history enthusiasts and reenactors who do it for fun! So cool to hear that it is still alive in Bulgaria too! 😁
@@KristineVike thank you, I am just watching videos on tablet weaving from Scandinavia 😆, what a cool craft this is. But seriously, you recreating that ancient pattern is amazing.
I have a question, if you don't mind. Do you thread the tablets as "left" and "right"? Where the thread passes from the left side on one tablet and then on the next tablet it passes to the right?
I hope I understand your question. It entirely depends on the pattern? In this pattern, all cards are threaded from the top left and comes out bottom right from the weaver’s point of view. Different direction of thread is created by going clockwise or counterclockwise.
Simpler diamond patterns may be created by threading for instance left, left, left, and then right, right, right. This balances the warp (the first example would twist into a coil if you turned the cards all the same direction, all the time).
Another example still would be to thread the cards, as you mention, alternating left and right over the whole deck of cards. This would create a balanced herringbone look that doesn’t twist (unless you make them go different directions). I’ve seen this for heavily brocaded 13-16th century stuff where the brocade is the main player.
So… all of the above is possible and used when we want? You can also flip the cards mid-weaving if the twist buildup is too great and the pattern is one that can handle it. It is part if the versatility that I think makes it so fun.
I hope that answers your question? 😅 my biggest tip is always to just try it out for yourself. That’s how I learn the best!
@@KristineVike yes, that was exactly my question. I am sorry for the illiterate way I'm probably asking it 😁
Very, very interesting. Thank you very much for the details. I saw this technique of alternating threading on a belt and I will go back to check the pattern again, now that you explained.
I still can't believe that I never though about how the traditional belts and some decorations on the traditional clothes were made, assuming it's some kind of embroidery. 🤦♀️
There's something fascinating in all types of weaving but this just struck me yesterday. I just love how simple it is and yet what the human mind has managed to achieve.
Awesome and lovely project!
Thank you! It was such fun to weave again! 🥰