The Art of Weaving

Recent years have seen the re-emergence of many textile crafts, one of those being the textural art of weaving.

The tradition of weaving is an ancient one indeed, tracing back some 12,000 years. Fast forward to the 21st century and this fun ( yes weaving is FUN! ) and somewhat therapeutic art form has become one of the most favoured mediums amongst fibre lovers world wide. 

I recently spent a lovely afternoon with Megan Walsh-Cheek (aka The Meandering Studio) at one of her weaving workshops. Held within the amazing space that is Fabrik, at Lobethal in the beautiful Adelaide Hills,  I was guided through the process of creating my first piece. 

Using a mix of fibres, I was soon on my way to creating a design in a lovely mix of neutrals which always capture my interest when it comes to fibre art.

I was soon to discover that weaving can be a resourceful way of using up small amounts of your left over fibres, or even cherished scraps of fabrics. Your design can be as simple or as complex as you like, as colourful or as neutral as takes your fancy, and sometimes the fibres guide you on your design path.

The end result was a beautifully mounted piece, full of texture and interest, which I will be proud to display in my home!

I spoke to Megan a little further about how she started on her weaving journey, and how her business has evolved over the years:

Megan began weaving in 2013 as a creative outlet amidst the round the clock demands of motherhood with a 2 year old and a newborn. Squeezing in a row or two of weaving in the stolen moments in-between was a way on hanging on to the little pieces of herself, and a way of being in the moment.

Megan encourages beginner weavers to start with the tools they have available. She herself began weaving with some pins hammered into an old picture frame and her childrens ripped up old clothes! 

"Using ripped up bedsheets, op shopped yarn, shop string, or repurposed clothing and a picture frame loom feels like much less of a risk" Megan says."It gives a freedom to just have a go rather than the pressure of getting it 'right'"