STEM Activity: Loom Lab

The history of textiles is a story woven with invention. Before clothing was mass produced and sold in stores, fabric was made by handweaving, often on a loom. The loom was among one of the earliest devices designed to advance the production of textiles. From the creation of vibrant tapestries to sustainable scarves, traditional looms are still widely used by artisans.

Now it is your turn! Build a DIY cardboard loom to explore weaving natural materials and upcycled fabrics to create new textiles. You may even go on to invent a new type of fabric!

Materials Needed

• Large sheet of cardboard, about the size of a sheet of paper
• Narrow piece of cardboard
• Natural items, like thin vines and tall grasses
• Recycled items, like shopping bags
• Ribbon
• Scissors
• Strips of old clothing
• Tape
• Yarn

Step-by-Step Instructions

1. Start to create your loom by cutting a piece of cardboard into a square or rectangle. The size of the loom will determine the size of your cloth. 
    
2. Cut slits evenly across the top and bottom edges of your cardboard. The more slits on your loom, the tighter the woven fabric will be. 
    
3. Starting at the top left corner of your loom, insert a piece of yarn into the first slit, then secure the yarn to the back of the loom with tape. 
    
4. Gently pull down to tighten the yarn and insert it into the corresponding slit at the bottom of the loom to create one vertical weave. 
    
5. Wrap the yarn behind the loom and insert it into the second slit on the bottom before gently pulling the yarn upward and inserting it into the second slit at the top of the loom. 
    
6. Continue wrapping, inserting and pulling the yarn through the slits to create a vertical weave across the loom. After the last slit, secure the other end of the yarn to the back of the loom with more tape. This set of vertical yarns is called the warp. 
    
7. Tape a long piece of fabric, like a ribbon, to a narrow piece of cardboard to create your weaving tool, known as a shuttle. 
    
8. Weave the shuttle horizontally under and over the warp. Pull the shuttle through to intertwine the ribbon and the warp. 
    
9. Push the woven ribbon toward the top of the loom so it rests near the row of slits. Secure the loose end of the ribbon to the back of the loom with tape. 
    
10. Turn your shuttle around and weave the ribbon through the warp the other way. If your first horizontal weave ends over the warp, you’ll need to pass your shuttle under the warp when you change directions, and vice versa. Then, push the woven ribbon toward the top of the loom so it rests near your first horizontal weave. 
     
11. Continue weaving your shuttle over and under the warp, pushing the ribbon up after each horizontal pass, until you reach the bottom of the loom. 
     
12. Try weaving plant-based materials like cotton yarn, synthetic materials like polyester ribbon and recycled materials like strips of old clothing with the shuttle. You can even weave items found in nature, like flexible vines, long pieces of grass or reeds from a nearby pond. For a more advanced challenge, try upcycling plastic shopping bags by cutting them into strips and weaving the strips through the warp. 
     
13. When you're finished weaving, be sure to knot the ends of the warp before removing your woven fabric from the loom!

What Are We Discovering?

Weaving textiles is a wonderful way to explore STEAM and incorporate your creativity! By interlacing yarn, ribbon, and natural and upcycled materials, you created a totally unique, new textile. Many inventors have transformed various textiles using chemistry and mechanical engineering. Did your woven creation spark any new ideas?

Several National Inventors Hall of Fame^® Inductees revolutionized the textile industry. In 1809, Inductee Mary Dixon Kies invented an innovative process for weaving straw with silk, and in 1854, Inductee George Crompton simplified and improved an earlier loom design, making fabric weaving available to more people. In fact, Crompton's loom design enabled the production of fabric patterns never seen before. From engineering to science, the evolution of textile production has been rooted in innovation.

One of the top clothing innovations of the 20th century was invented at DuPont during the 1950s by Inductee Joseph C. Shivers Jr. While working as a researcher developing polymers, Shivers created LYCRA^® fiber, the stretchy synthetic fiber also known as spandex. Just like the inventors who transformed simple fibers into groundbreaking fabrics, your woven creation shows how creativity can turn everyday materials into something entirely new!

Explore More Creative Pathways To STEM

What’s next on your creative journey? Keep exploring our blog to find new hands-on STEM activities to fuel your imagination.