Rebecca Creating a design is not easy for a beginner / intermediate weaver like myself. DPW s10e3 opened my eyes to the ‘power of the tie-up’. I’ve revisited the lesson on block analysis s6e9 to better grasp the design steps. I struggle to put it all together with putting a shape on paper, then choosing a weave structure then a tie-up. So much still to learn. Thank you for a great lesson and for your insights.
We all have to start somewhere, and a two block design is an excellent place to start. I started designing when I got my first floor loom, working in 8 shaft twills. It just takes practice, trial and error, and a bit of internal stubbornness.
With Diversified Plain Weave, try designing the threading first. Don't worry about the tie-down, just focus on the pattern units. You can put multiple units together to form larger blocks, and you have two blocks to work with. Once you have your block design, there aren't too many pattern tie-ups to worry about, they are all presented for you on page 6 of season 9 episode 3, the 4-shaft theory pdf. Put your treadling in the same as your threading blocks, and use the pattern portion of the tie-up to colour in the blocks that are activated. What you have created is a profile draft. To make it weavable, apply the two tie-down threads on shafts 1 and 2 between every pattern thread and the treadles 1 & 2 between each pattern treadle.
I think that 4-shaft DPW is an excellent structure to experiment with, as you don't have to worry about creating long floats. With only two pattern blocks, you aren't overwhelmed by choice. And the design possibilities can be big and bold and flashy, or more subtle and traditional, as you choose.
And once you've played with 4-shaft DPW, upping the design possibilities to 6 pattern blocks / 8-shaft DPW is amazing! I hope you play with designing. I'm usually here if you have any questions.