How to Weave a Huck Draft

Huck is woven on four shafts or harnesses.

Huck, sometimes called Hucaback, is a very old threading draft that was popular for table linens and napkins in pre-industrial times. Huck drafts consist of two blocks, or threading sequences, usually of five threads each. The blocks always have an odd number of ends---three to nine---and each block begins and ends on the same shaft. The weft picks follow the same rules: an odd number of picks for each block, beginning and ending on the same shaft.

Things You'll Need

• Four harness loom
• Warping board
• Yarn
• Shuttle

Instructions

1. Wind a warp on your warping board and bring it to the loom. Pre-sley the reed by drawing four ends through every fourth dent in your reed. Put the reed in the loom beater and wind the warp onto the back beam. Cut the warp threads in front of the reed. Remove the beater and reed from the loom.

2. Thread the loom to a huck draft. A traditional huck draft would be threaded 4, 3, 4, 3, 4 for one block, and 2, 1, 2, 1, 2 for the other block. This means that you would thread one heddle on harness 4 with one warp end, then thread a heddle on harness 3, then 4 again, then 3, and then 4 for the first block. The second block would be threaded the same way. Continue threading in this way across the warp.

3. Put the reed back in the beater and put it on the loom. Sley the warp ends in the reed at the final sett for your piece: for example, if your sett is 15 ends per inch and you have a 15 dent reed, put one warp end in each dent in the reed. Tie the warp ends to the front apron rod and tighten the warp.

4. Tie up the treadles so that you can lower harnesses 2 and 3 together; then 4 alone; then 1 and 4 together, and then 2 alone. The treadling order is as follows for traditional huck: 2 and 3, 4, 2 and 3, 4, 2 and 3. This constitutes one block. The other block is treadled as follows: 1 and 4, 2, 1 and 4, 2, 1 and 4, 2, 1 and 4. Alternate treadling and weaving these two blocks with the weft yarn.

5. Weave until you can't advance the warp any further. Cut the warp yarn behind the heddles. Pull the cloth off the front cloth beam and cut it loose from the apron rod. Wash and dry the cloth before cutting and hemming it.

Tips & Warnings

• You can thread huck blocks in different ways, as long as there is an odd number of threads, beginning and ending on the same shaft. Experiment with different threadings and treadlings. Heavier weft can alternate with regular weft to create a "cord" effect.

References

• "A Handweaver's Pattern Book"; Davison; 1990