If it is natural to weave, it should also be natural to make one's own loom, and

Make the frame for the loom of a smooth piece of soft pine-board, fifteen inches long by nine inches wide (Fig. 12). Make the heddles of two flat sticks, nine inches long, half an inch wide, and one-eighth of an inch thick (Figs. 13 and 14). From another flat stick of the same thickness, nine inches long by one inch wide, make the shuttle (Fig. 15).

With a pencil and ruler draw two straight lines across the board, the first one inch and a half from the top edge, the other two inches and a half from the bottom edge. This will make the lines just eleven inches apart. On these lines, beginning one inch from the side edge of the board, make a row of dots exactly one-quarter of an inch apart, twenty-nine dots on each line, as in Fig. 12. At each corner of the board, one inch above the upper line and one inch below the lower line, draw a short line, and on each short line, three-quarters of an inch from the side edge, make one dot.

With a small tack-hammer drive a pin in each of the twenty-nine dots on each long line, and in each single dot on the four short lines (Fig. 12). When driving in the pins let them all slant evenly outward, the ones on the top lines slanting toward the upper edge of the board, those on the lower lines slanting toward the bottom edge, as in Fig. 16. Now lay your board aside where nothing will be placed on top of it, and make your heddles.

Along the entire length of one of the sticks rule a line dividing it exactly in the middle (Fig. 17). On this line, beginning three-quarters of an inch from the end of the stick, mark off spaces one-quarter of an inch apart, making thirty-one dots. At the upper edge of the stick mark off the same number of spaces exactly opposite those on the line. Then draw straight lines connecting the upper and lower dots, extending the first and last lines entirely across the stick (Fig. 17.) At a point on the upper edge, exactly in the middle between the first two lines, start a slanting line and bring it down to meet the second line where it touches the long line. Between the second and third lines draw another slanting line to meet the first at the bottom, forming a V. Leave the third line, and make another V at the fourth, and so go the length of the heddle, drawing a V at every other short line. At the top between the V's make smaller V's, as in Fig. 17. With a sharp knife cut out these notches, bringing the large ones quite down to the middle line (Fig. 17). On the end lines just below the middle line bore a hole with a small gimlet or a hat-pin heated red-hot at Letter A in Fig. 17. Indeed the notches, too, may be made with a hat-pin by laying the red-hot end across the edge of the stick at the top of the line, and pressing it down while rubbing it back and forth. If you are unused to handling a knife, burning the notches will be the easier way. You can shape and trim them off afterward with the knife.

Of the third flat stick make

Curve the corners at each end as in Fig. 15. Sharpen one end down to a thin edge and in the other end cut an eye two inches long and one-quarter of an inch wide (Fig. 15). Cut your yard of colored cord in half, pass the end of one piece through one of the holes in the notched heddle, the end of the other piece through the hole in the opposite end of the heddle, and tie each end of the cords to one of the pins at the four corners of the board, drawing the cords taut. This will fasten the heddle in its place across the loom (Fig. 12).

Near the bottom of the board, directly below the last pin at the right on the long line, drive the carpet-tack to serve as a cleat for fastening the end of the warp. All that now remains to be done is

Tie the end of the warp securely to the first pin on the long line at the upper left-hand corner of the loom (Fig. 18). Bring the string down and around the first two pins on the lower line, up again and around the second and third pins on the upper line, and then down and around the third and fourth pins on the lower line. Up again, down again, crossing two pins each time, back and forth until the last pin on the lower line has been reached. Wrap the warp around this pin several times, and then around the tack, tying it here so that it cannot slip. The warp must lie flat on the board where it passes around the pins, and in stringing up it must be drawn rather tight, though not with sufficient force to pull the pins out of place.

Turn the heddle on edge, the notches up, and slip the threads of the warp into the notches, one thread in each notch. This, you will see, divides the warp into upper and lower threads, and forms what is called the shed. While the threads are separated take the other heddle and darn it in and out above the first heddle, taking up the lower threads and bringing the heddle over the upper ones as in Fig. 19.

This is

Tie the long end of the wool to the first pin at the lower left-hand corner of the loom, on the long line, making a tight knot and pushing it down close to the board (Fig. 21).

With the notched heddle on edge push the shuttle through the shed—that is, between the upper and lower threads of the warp. Draw it out on the other side, then turn the heddle down, notched edge toward you, and stand the plain heddle on edge. This will lift the lower threads of the warp above the others and make them the upper ones. Push the shuttle back through the shed, lay the plain heddle flat, and stand up the notched heddle. Weaving from the left, the notched heddle always stands, while the plain one lies flat. Weaving from the right, the plain heddle stands, and the notched one is turned down.

Do not draw the woof tight across the warp. When you have passed the shuttle through, leave the thread like Fig. 21, and then push it down firmly with your finger-tips until it lies close to the pins.

Weave back and forth until all the wool in the shuttle is used. If the end of the woof extends beyond the last thread of the warp on either side, turn it back and weave it under and over several threads, and start a new piece with the end just lapping the old. The ends of the woof must never be allowed to extend beyond the warp at the sides. It is not necessary to tie the new piece of woof; the tight packing will hold it in place.

In this case the new woof must be of the red wool. Weave it across twice, or once over and back, making a very narrow red stripe, then cut it off and thread the shuttle with white. Weave the white twice across, then change to black and weave a stripe one-quarter of an inch wide. Above the black weave another narrow white stripe and another narrow red one. Put a long thread of white wool in the shuttle, and weave a white stripe one inch wide. You will have to thread the shuttle twice for this, as too long a thread will make so large a bunch that it will be difficult to pass it through the shed. After the white stripe weave another black, white, and red stripe like the first, then another inch-wide white stripe. Once more weave a black, a white, and a red stripe. Begin with the narrow black, follow with the narrow white, and then weave a wider red stripe, taking the thread four times across. After the red the narrow white, and then the narrow black stripe.

This last stripe is the lower border of

Thread the shuttle with a long piece of red wool and weave it once across from the left, turn back and weave through five threads of the warp, draw the shuttle out and weave back again to the edge; again weave through the five threads, then back as shown at B in Fig. 22. Turn here and do not take up the last thread of the warp; pass the shuttle under three threads, turn on the next thread, and bring it back under four threads (C, Fig. 22), once more under the three threads, turning on the next as before, but passing back under two threads only. Turn on the next thread (D), and pass under three. Back under two threads (E), turn as before on the next thread under two, turn, back under two (F), turn, under one, turn on the next, under two (G), turn, under one, turn on the next, back under two, and unthread the shuttle, leaving the woof hanging.

Begin with a new piece of red wool, follow the same direction, and weave another red point on the next five threads, then a third one which will take in the last warp-thread on the left. You will notice in the diagram that the woof always turns twice on the same thread of warp.

When the three red points are finished fill in the spaces between with black (Fig. 23), then continue to weave the black up into points as you did the red, making two whole and two half black diamonds. Leave the woof quite loose when you make a turn in weaving, and the space left between the red and black will fill up in packing.

Take up the end of the red wool left at the top of the first red point, and weave in the space between the half and first black diamond, then break off. Take the next red end and fill in between the two whole diamonds, then the next, and fill in between the whole and the last half diamond. This will give you a pattern of black diamonds on a red ground. Weave the last of the red woof once across, then break off and weave a black, white, and red stripe like the one forming the lower border of the pattern. Finish the blanket with the wide white stripes and narrow colored ones like those first woven.

To take the work from the loom, cut the threads between the pins at the top of the loom, and with quick but gentle jerks pull it off the lower row of pins. Tie together the first and third loose ends of the warp close to the edge of the blanket, then the second and fourth threads, and so on across, then cut the ends off rather close to the knots.

The little Navajo blanket woven in this way will closely resemble the real Indian blanket in texture, pattern, and colors.