How Bedspreads are Made: Designing & Weaving (Step 2)

"How Bedspreads are Made" is a three part series that walks through the steps Maine Heritage Weavers takes to weave a Bates bedspread or blanket. It begins with raw materials and walks step by step through to finishing the product before it is shipped to a customer.

Designing the Patterns

Jacquard looms are used to weave Bates Bedspreads. Jacquard looms use a pattern mechanism to permit the production of large, intricate designs. The weave pattern is achieved by a series of punched cards. The process is similar to the way a player piano works. Thousands of “punch cards” are required to weave one bedspread woven on a Jacquard loom:

Did you know: “The Jacquard loom was the first machine to use punched cards to control a sequence of operations. The ability to change the pattern of the loom's weave by simply changing cards was an important conceptual precursor to the development of computer programming.” (Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jacquard_loom )

Weaving Blankets

Since blankets are less intricate than bedspreads, Maine Heritage Weavers use a simpler loom to weave them. These looms make it very easy to create the all over woven patterns that you observe in our 100% cotton blankets.

Did you know: It takes 10 minutes to weave a king size George Washington’s Choice Blanket.

Weaving Matelasse Bedspreads

Matelasse bedspreads are soft, double or compound fancy-woven spreads with a quilted appearance usually woven on a Jacquard loom. Bates matelasse designs include Queen Elizabeth, Abigail Adams, Heritage and Cape Cod among others.

Did you know: It takes 40 minutes to weave a king size Abigail Adams.

Weaving Terry Bedspreads

Terry bedspreads have uncut loops on one or both sides and are also made on Jacquard looms. Bates terry designs include Martha Washington's Choice, John Adams, New England Tradition, and the Spirit of America.

Did you know: It takes 30 minutes to weave a king size Martha Washington’s Choice bedspread.