Beautiful durable loom-woven textiles of Micronesia “display an artistry and technical virtuosity unrivaled elsewhere in the Pacific.” ¹ Chief among them is the lavalava, a woven skirt from the Outer Islands of Yap State, situated in the Western Caroline Islands.

Weaving these skirts requires tremendous skill, work and patience. It also requires a special type of backstrap loom.

Habele’s Weaving Connections offers context on the lavalava and the cultural tradition in which it is situated. The project provides details about the parts of the loom used to weave lavalavas. It offers instructions for Remathau in the mainland US to make looms from easily obtainable materials.

Context of weaving – Explore the loom – Build a loom

^₁ Feldman, Jerome and Rubenstein, Donald. “The Art of Micronesia: The University of Hawaii Art Gallery.” University of Hawaii, Honolulu, Hawaii. 1986.