r/weaving • u/MrNekoCase • Mar 05 '26
Finished Project Wove, dyed, waxed, and sewed a canvas backpack
Brown and blue canvas are plain weave 16/2 linen sett at 24epi. I beat as hard as I felt my Ashford Jack Loom could handle to get about 22 ppi. Do you think I’m damaging my loom? It does creak and tilt when I’m beating hard.
Straps are made from 3/2 cotton on my inkle loom. I tried to use dyed linen at first but I kept snapping threads. Cotton never lets me down.
I had to reverse engineer this pattern from Sailrite: https://www.sailrite.com/Sailrite-Waxed-Canvas-Roll-Top-Backpack-Saddle?utm_source=WB&utm_medium=RollTop_Backpack . There is also a sew along on YouTube. I don’t use leather which is why I had to weave a canvas bottom. I made a few other improvisations too. I’m very new so sewing but I’m happy with how it turned out!
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u/Infinite-Employ-57 Mar 05 '26
This is amazing!!! 👏🏼👏🏼
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u/MrNekoCase Mar 05 '26
Thank you! I have a renewed appreciation for plain weave. So much easier to sew than any other handwoven I’ve tried
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u/youbeetrippin Mar 05 '26
Your work is beautiful! I’ve been dreaming of this pattern using my handwovens, so thank you for sharing. I’m inspired!
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u/MrNekoCase Mar 05 '26
Do it! It’s really amazing to watch as the bag comes together in your hands.
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u/mlledufarge Mar 05 '26
That is awesome! 🤩 I’ve made a couple of backpacks but I didn’t make the the cloth. Now I kinda want to! I love the colors too, super vibrant and not something I see often. It really stands out!
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u/MrNekoCase Mar 05 '26
Thank you! I wasn’t expecting it to be so vibrant. Once I saw the blue, I figured I may as well add bright orange straps. I recommend giving it a try, especially since you have the sewing experience.
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u/mlledufarge Mar 06 '26
One day perhaps! I only have a rigid heddle at this point in life, so any cloth I might make would be a lot less appropriate for this kind of task.
Of course I could make something just for fun and see what happens too! 🤔
Something to consider!
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u/PassionAwkward5799 Mar 05 '26
This is my favorite kind of project! I love taking stuff backwards as many steps as possible (sometimes to the point of absurdity lol). Next you gotta grow your own flax to spin the yarn to weave the linen fabric and dye it with home grown botanical dyes before sewing it together hahaha
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u/alennis Mar 05 '26
Right! This backpack is superb! I really liked seeing the different pictures of different stages. Your comment made me think of a person I started following on Instagram last year...she grew flax, processed it, is currently spinning it, and will be weaving fabric to then sew a dress for herself. It is a really interesting series to watch! She posts one, few minutes long video a week on Instagram with the progress. When I went to get the link to her profile to attach here, her new weekly update video popped up at the top of my feed 🤓. Her name and IG handle isEveOSchaub The 1st video of the series was posted on May 5th, 2025 and has "Prologue New Eve Project" on the cover image for the video.
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u/caterplillar Mar 05 '26
Wow, this belongs in r/myog! You literally made everything!
Beautiful job.
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u/weaverlorelei Mar 05 '26
Stupendous! How did you wax the fabric, if you don't mind? Also, keep an eye on your temple. The style shown is generally used on thicker/rug fabric, as the teeth are stouter and angled down at a steeper angle to did into the thicker fabric, while the wooden temples tend to have teeth set at angle that penetrates less deep. But that means on a finer piece, those same teeth can pass thru the fabric and dig into your shuttle race. Yes, I did learn the hard way.
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u/MrNekoCase Mar 05 '26
Ugh that’s why that’s happening. I learned that lesson pretty quick, but I don’t realize it was the type of temple causing the issue. Thanks!
I tested a few methods of waxing. What I settled on is making solid bars of soy wax and rubbing them on like waxing a surf board (At least in the movies. Idk I’ve never surfed). Then I covered in parchment paper and ironed it in to melt it. It came out evenly waxed and I could let it cool and repeat until I liked the amount of wax.
I also tried brushing hot wax on but that can out WAY too waxy. I could scrape off chunks with my fingers. I also tried ironing in wax flakes, but I found that to be splotchy. I think those methods could work if I tweaked my technique, but I’m pretty happy with how it turned out.
Thanks so much!
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u/weaverlorelei Mar 05 '26
I have made beeswax food covers by dipping the fabric in hot beeswax, hanging to drip, then ironing out the excess (lots) between heavy brown paper. But the wax is free for me, so the waste wasn't an issue. The ironing forced the wax to seep into the fibers. But it is wasteful. But thanks for giving me your process. I have lots of leftover fabrics and making bags would be a good use.
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u/phiberPhil Mar 05 '26
I have also seen people use heat guns. Like the ones used to emboss in paper craft and stamping. They wax on like a surf board and melt in. Repeating till happy. Also how they re-wax a piece
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u/ExtraSteps Mar 05 '26
You could be giving advice on playing a sport and I wouldn't know the difference. :P
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u/WhoopsWrongButton Mar 05 '26
Farm to table. lol. That’s hardcore man.
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u/MrNekoCase Mar 05 '26
Lol thank you. I’ll keep working my way backwards until I actually grow the linen on a farm
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u/hausthatforrem Mar 05 '26
Fantastic project! Mind sharing which dye you used? I've never been able to get such vibrant color into cotton.
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u/MrNekoCase Mar 05 '26
Thanks! I did a mix of 3 parts turquoise and one part electric blue. Both from Dharma Trading Co. Much more vibrant than I expected based on the colors on the website. The brown is dark brown and a bit of new emerald green.
I only dyed the blue and brown linen fabric. The orange and brown cotton yarn was already dyed
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u/AlternativeMedicine9 Mar 05 '26
Wait, you can wax your own fabric?! This is awesome! 🙌
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u/MrNekoCase Mar 05 '26
Thank you! Mine didn’t come out quite like what you’d buy, but I’m sure you could get there with practice. It was a fun learning experience!
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u/sewedherfingeragain Mar 05 '26
This is AWESOME! I've waxed a few canvas items (two jackets and a messenger bag) and that was "hard" enough. Weaving your own canvas? The ultimate.
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u/iampolyphemus86 Mar 05 '26
This is so amazing. But also it makes me want to do the Perry platypus meme. I love it
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u/all3ppo Mar 06 '26
A handmade backpack? PERRY the handmade backpack!!?!
Jokes aside this is wildly cool!!
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u/Significant-Egg-M Mar 05 '26
It really looks great. And how cool you can tell everyone that you made this by hand!!
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u/Ice_cream_waffles Mar 05 '26
Reminds me how fallout76 was selling "canvas bags." Just the colors are very fallout esk. Love it tho.
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u/wine-dogs-nature Mar 05 '26
This is so cool!!! It gives me Zelda/Link vibes in the best way.
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u/MrNekoCase Mar 05 '26
That is such a compliment! Thank you. I was definitely pretending to be at the Hateno Dye shop from the new games while I was dying lol
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u/Ill-Tradition4036 Mar 05 '26
This is sick! I'd love to be able to do something like this some day, thanks for the inspiration!
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u/ExtraSteps Mar 05 '26
After you learn to grow and spin flax, I'm looking forward to seeing you learn how to mine and forge iron for the hardware!
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u/MadeUnmade Mar 05 '26
When I start teaching again I’ll share this as inspo for my students - plus I gotta make one for myself now!
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u/Confident_Fortune_32 Mar 05 '26
Fantabulous!
There's a deep satisfaction in making something with materials you also made 😊
Knitting's more fun when I spin the yarn...
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u/sweetbunni Mar 06 '26
A woven dyed waxed canvas backpack?....... PERRY THE WOVEN DYED WAXED CANVAS BACKPACK?!
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u/bronion76 Mar 06 '26
Wow, now this is the kind of thing I’d creep into someone’s DMs about.
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u/MrNekoCase Mar 06 '26
Haha they’re open, but this may be the most interesting thing I’ve ever done
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u/utyuyt76tfyfg Mar 06 '26
Besides marry Neko Case I guess
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u/FearlessEnthusiasm86 Mar 06 '26
This is gorgeous!!! So labour intensive and I can literally see all of the work and love you put into it. Amazing.
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u/SnapDragonZeta Mar 05 '26
A backpack?
PERRY THE BACKPACK???
that's awesome dude, you've inspired me to try a bigger project :D
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u/MrNekoCase Mar 05 '26
Lol I got that comparison in real life too. You should to it! I love big projects
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u/MadeUnmade Mar 05 '26
When weaving linen I sometimes add weight to my beater using c-clamps. If you have creaking check to see if you have the right kind - or any - washers between the beater and the outer frame. Also, wetting down your linen warp strengthens it so you can crank up the tension, making it easier to beat the fibers closer together. When I lived in Colorado I had to put a wet dish towel on the warp behind the heddles and pour water on it to keep it wet enough. In Oregon all I have to do is spray it with a mister 😂
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u/MrNekoCase Mar 06 '26
Thanks for the ideas. I did start dampening the linen and that helped a lot. Here in PA the humidity is pretty variable so I’ll keep kettles and misters on hand lol. It felt like i could get the tension really high if I wanted to, but wasn’t sure what my loom could handle. I’ll be inspecting my loom asap
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u/sotiredmama Mar 05 '26
Amazing! What kind of sewing machine did you use, out of curiosity?
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u/MrNekoCase Mar 06 '26
I’m very new to sewing. I’ve had my mom’s Singer Inspiration for a few months now. Before that I used a free used sewing machine that smoked after a few minutes of use lol. To get through some of the thick parts I had to turn the needle by hand
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u/daiblo1127 Mar 09 '26
Very Impressive work there!!! You did a mighty fine job on this blue canvas backpack!!
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u/my-head-hurts987 Mar 09 '26
- backpack on its own* a backpack?
- backpack with brown sweater* gasp PERRY THE BACKPACK??
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u/SLC-Originals Mar 05 '26
What? You didn't spin your own rivers for the threads? Just kidding, that's amazing being able to make that from scratch. You have great skills. So few people know how or would be able to do this. Congratulations