Weaving’s fullest expression
Our goal is to have each blanket present the fullest expression of the art of weaving. We use a softly spun, worsted, baby alpaca yarn. This yarn fulls during the finishing process to give the fabric its structural integrity, but maintains its visual integrity in the process so that each yarn in the finished fabric is still visible and individually recognizable.*
This means that the different weave structures we use are still visible and apparent, and that the beauty of the weave structure becomes one more element of the fabric in addition to the color patterns. The weave structures actually create their own patterns within the colors to add an additional visual layer of interest and depth to the fabric as well as a unique hand, drape and texture.
All of our blankets are hand-woven on a 98-inch wide, air-assisted, shuttle loom. The silk bindings for each blanket are also woven by hand in our studio. The silk binding fabric is also finished and sewn on the blanket here at our studio in the foot hills of the Coast Range in western Oregon.
Weaving is a joy and a pleasure for us. We hope that a little of that joy and pleasure is transferred to each of our customers when they first wrap themselves in the Handwoven Luxury of a Bōdmer Blanket.
*Often factory blankets are woven with woolen spun yarn. Each yarn fulls or felts together with every other so thoroughly that the resulting fabric is a simple two dimensional field.