Combination lift heddles, per 100

Bundling heddles / Cutting heddles

(These 2 mini-movies are silent.)

Bundling heddles

It is usually a good idea to remove all extra heddles from your shafts before weaving begins. In this demonstration you can see me reach my index finger through the upper loop of the extra heddles. I pull the purple string through the heddles, wrap it around and pull it through again. Then I cross the string over the eyes of the heddles at an angle and thread it through the bottom loop of the heddles. I wrap it around and pull it through again, same as above. Lastly, I tie the two ends of the string into a bow.

Remove the bottom safety pin and remove the heddles from the bottom shaft bar. Replace the safety pin. Then remove the upper safety pan and slide the heddles off completely. Replace the upper safety pin.

Cutting heddles apart

Texsolv heddles are manufactured in one long string, and when you buy them new they are bundled as shown here with twist ties holding the bundle together. I find it easiest to cut them apart while they are still bundled together. Here you can see me stuffing a scissors blade through the loops and cutting. I repeat this process until it seems like I have cut all or most of the loops. Then I turn the bundle around so I can cut the other end. You will most likely miss a loop or two, but these will be easy to cut once you are threading the heddles on your loom. Unlike freshly cut Texsolv cord, freshly cut heddles do not need to have their ends melted in a flame.