Stick weaving at the Library's Summer Program

Today the summer program opened with a bang: the stick weaving workshop I devised for the kids' program.  On the theme of It's All Greek to Me, the whole summer is about things Greek. 

So I decided I would offer a weaving workshop using the Greek flag colors of royal blue and white, so our program participants could make a weaving, about the size of a bookmark.  I ordered the kind of yarn you use to knit sports sweaters in team colors. 

Here's the toolkit: book on Weaving without a Loom, bag I wove without a loom, including strap created on weaving sticks, sample rainbow bookmark created on straws, weaving sticks next to straws, skewers to help the yarn through the straws to get started, masking tape to hold them together for small hands. The book is just general interest so kids can see there are other possibilities beyond what we did today, in case they may be interested.

Volunteers learning the technique before the kids arrive

 

Now the students are plunging in fearlessly

 

An early finisher showing off his project and looking modest.

After an afternoon of learning the method, they know how to make a belt, or various other items more ambitious than we could fit into our short afternoon.  I opened it to 20 kids age seven and up, and they did a great job.  To my surprise many of them did complete the whole weaving, and I could show them how to finish it off.

I did the drinking straw method, simple enough for kids to get, but it still makes a very nice weaving, and much cheaper than using  lovely expensive handcrafted weaving sticks.  I showed them my  weaving sticks, and a bag whose handle I created on them, and explained that  with their straws they could make something just as good. And they did.  I had made a sample weaving for them, on the straws, to prove it.

Three teen volunteers showed up early to learn the technique so they could help teach it, and it really went very well.  We'd put kits together ahead of time, so when they left, the kids took home their lunchbags with their completed project, spare yarn, and their straws so they can make their straw loom any time they want to.

I say we assembled kits, but what I did was create the model kit, and Donna and a crew of hardy volunteers measured yarn and packed the bags with the right stuff, which helped a whole lot.

This was good. Now I'm having a nice glass of sangria and waiting for a visit from Handsome Son this evening.