Getting Even Tension When Weaving Tapestry [Updated]

If you’ve ever tried to weave tapestry you know that tension is very important. You want your tension to be two things:

1.) Tight

and 

2.) Even

On looms without a tensioning system, getting tight and even tension can be difficult because you need to achieve both even and tight tension as you warp. 

On a Mirrix, getting tight tension is very easy. Once you’ve warped, you can make your tension as tight as you want by simply tightening your wing-nuts after. 

Getting even tension is also pretty simple on a Mirrix because you don’t have to worry about keeping your tension tight as you warp.

Here are three things to remember to help you get even tension:

1.) Don’t try to warp with tight tension. Because you can tighten your tension later, there’s no need to try to warp with tight tension. As you warp, just concentrate on keeping the tension even. You don’t want the warp to be baggy, but you don’t need it tight. 

2.) Don’t drop you warp! The easiest way to keep your tension even is to not drop or let go of your warp thread as you warp. Don’t get up to go to the bathroom or to take the dog out in the middle of warping. 

3.) Adjust your tension after warping if necessary. This doesn’t happen very often, but sometimes you warp your loom and realize your left warps are tighter than your right warps or there are some looser warps in the middle of the piece. If this happens, it might mean you didn’t follow tip number two. But don’t worry, it can be fixed! Once you’ve finished warping, you can adjust the evenness of your tension by pulling on individual warp threads to even out the slack. 

Still dealing with a tapestry loom that makes it difficult to get even tension? Click here to get a free loom recommendation!