The circles number the row/column pegs and indicate the loop colorway on that peg.
The numbered circles across the top and bottom show the colors to use for the vertical loops when warping the loom to start, while the numbered circles along the sides show which colors to use for the horizontal loops when you weave in the weft.
A thin double line is superimposed on the weaving area to highlight the center point of the pattern. On some charts, the center peg on each side is also marked with a star.
The typical way to use the pattern is to put all your column loops (“warp”) on your loom as indicated by the peg colors across the top, then follow the chart row by row to weave in your row loops (“weft”).
What do the — and | symbols mean?
Each square in the row/column grid shows the color that you will see on this face of the fabric and also whether the row loop “–” or column loop “|” lies on top, i.e., whether your row passes over [–] or under [|] the column at this spot.
In traditional potholder weaving terms:
- The horizontal — dash means “over”: at this point the horizontal weft loop should pass over (in front of) the vertical warp.
- The vertical | pipe means “under”: at this point the horizontal weft loop should pass under (behind) the vertical warp.
The direction of the line matches the direction of the loop that’s on top (in front) at that crossing.
Some charts use “O” and “U” symbols to mean the same thing, but we felt that the graphical form was more universal.