r/weaving • u/crystalgem411 • Aug 15 '26
Discussion Which subscription service would you get?
This upcoming year, I’m considering subscribing to a weaving resource but I can only really afford one. Long thread media, Jane Stafford, and the YarnWorkerU have all managed to catch my attention, but I know there are more out there and I am very open to suggestions.
If you could only choose one as a new ish weaver, which would you choose?
If you have subscribed to multiple of these, I would love to know what you thought of them as well.
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u/mao369 Aug 15 '26
I did not *like* Stafford's service, but a) I learned from it and b) it's been going long enough now that I'm even considering going back for a year. It is a personality clash issue, not that I think what she offers is overpriced or poorly made. I don't know anything about the others. After you have a year with one of these services, whichever one you decide on, then I'd suggest a subscription to handweaving.net, assuming you're weaving with 4 or more shafts (not strictly rigid heddle, in other words. ) Good luck!
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u/randomize42 Aug 15 '26
She definitely has a strong personality.
I was on the opposite side of it… I have trouble paying attention to videos and she kept me engaged enough. I also needed her telling me to play around and make mistakes. I love them.
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u/indiecatz Aug 15 '26
If you have a rigid heddle loom you might benefit more from the Little Looms from Long thread media (their subscriptions are all separate, you have to sub to the individual magazine). Once subbed you will have access to all previous issues of that magazine. Little Looms focuses on small looms like rigid heddle, tablets, inkle, backstrap, etc.
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u/dgr121 Aug 15 '26 edited Aug 16 '26
You might be able to get the little looms magazine from libby if your library has periodicals. You only get the current issue but you can see if you like it first
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u/indiecatz Aug 16 '26
We don’t have Libby in Australia and my local library doesn’t have any of the Long Thread media magazines, so I have to sub them myself. I could borrow them from my guild but that’s 3hr round trip and they don’t have digital library.
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u/NotSoRigidWeaver Aug 16 '26
Little Looms is definitely best for rigid heddle. I can't comment on the videos etc as I just subscribe to the magazine (digital only as that's a lot cheaper outside of US).
Long Thread does have a tier for the online content that give you access to all of it across their ~5 magazines, I think it's about as much as all access to 2 if them. There's a number of different options depending on whether you want digital magazine, print magazine, or the online content like videos as well.
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u/indiecatz Aug 16 '26
I’ve never clicked on All Access to check how much it cost as I’m a digital subscriber too being in Australia. But that’s interesting to know as I sub to Handwoven and Little Loom, might worth going all in 👍
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u/NotSoRigidWeaver Aug 15 '26
Which kind of loom do you have or are you thinking of getting?
Yarnworker is focused on rigid heddle weaving and Jane Stafford is focused on shaft looms.
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u/crystalgem411 Aug 15 '26
I have a rigid heddle loom, which is a very good point.
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u/troublesomefaux Aug 15 '26
Definitely not Jane Stafford then.
But she’s my favorite.
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u/crystalgem411 Aug 15 '26
I realized very quickly that I want to do more more easily than my RH loom can handle, so when I finally have the space and funds for a shaft loom that will be my next steps.
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u/TrustOld690 Aug 24 '26
Longthread media has rigid heddle classes that you can watch online. I haven’t done and of those, but I find their other classes to be excellent and very reasonable cost.
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u/drdrewsright Aug 15 '26
Do you have a local weaving guild? I pay yearly dues and small rental costs to try out their equipment and they have regular meetings and training. One option to consider if it is available to you! I pay like $150/year and $25 for monthly loom rental.
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u/crystalgem411 Aug 15 '26
The closest one is 2 hours by car away, and while they have online offerings, it doesn’t make much sense to utilize that with how infrequently I am in the area it’s located otherwise that would have been my first choice.
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u/mao369 Aug 15 '26
Have you checked to see if they do hybrid meetings? A lot of the guilds that are still around today stayed in business during the pandemic because they switched to zoom meetings. Some of them have continued to use zoom with at least their monthly meetings and, sometimes, some of their study groups. (Though more and more of them seem to be dropping that, particularly from the study groups.) That's a way to stay connected with people and, often, keep you in their minds when a free loom, for example, comes to the guild.
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u/Stacy-Statch Aug 15 '26
I’ve gotten a lot out of Kelly Casanova’s courses and she has enough online for free that you can see if you like the way she teaches before signing up. https://kellycasanovaweavinglessons.com/
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u/NordiFan Aug 17 '26
Sorry to add another choice to confuse things more but I recommend Kelly Casanova. She has lots of free content and you could view those to see if her style suits you
https://kellycasanovaweavinglessons.com/
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u/crystalgem411 Aug 18 '26
Oh no, don’t apologize! Part of why I posted was because I was looking for more. The internet landscape has changed a lot since I started fiber artsing. Most of the sites I originally would have turned to are gone so I was hoping for more suggestions
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u/knittingandnetflix Aug 16 '26
Check if you can get long thread media through your library. I know i can read their magazines on libby
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u/EmploymentOk1421 Aug 16 '26
One factor to consider is how comfortable/ experienced you are as RH weaver. If you are comfortable warping your loom following a pattern , and have successfully completed a few projects independently, you will get a lot from a subscription to LittleLooms.com (long thread). It will introduce you to new fibers that are currently available and new techniques like pick up sticks and multiple reeds (admittedly not yet my thing).
I will say that I have printed a few project patterns from past years magazines for future use. I liked them so well that I made the effort to purchase many old issues for my reference library, and upgraded my subscription to the printed version as well as online this year. Each issue offers information on a yarn related technique that helps build up your understanding of yarn and design history.
I have taken one yarnworker class thus far. It was definitely a stretch for my skill level but I was looking for a guided challenge, and introduced me to a new fiber (both of which I want from a paid class).
I watch many of Kelly Casanova’s free videos. Long Thread Media has a few free and paid tutorials from Sara Goldenberg White which are very informative. And the yarnworker videos are often pay what you can.
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u/WorksInPro Aug 17 '26
Thank you for the rec! not the OP but I'm going to subscribe to Little Looms, can't wait to get my first physical magazine in a decade.
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u/EmploymentOk1421 Aug 17 '26
I wasn’t paying attention when magazines went from $3.95 to $10.99! I treat the Little Looms mags like books. I store them in a magazine holder in my (yarn filled) bookcase, and no longer set my cold drinks on them.
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u/scream-puff Aug 16 '26
Not on your list here but I really enjoyed a year of School of Sweet Georgia. They have quite a handful of courses for RH, as well as spinning, knitting etc. most of not all courses have pdf for reference afterwards which added a lot of value to me. I also did the Long Thread All Access and found it very helpful and rewarding. They have quite a nice library of video content as well as all the magazine subscriptions. Once you get access you have access to the entire back catalog too, lots to get inspired by and lost in.
What might make the most amount of sense is to do a free trial on each or just start with a month of each, browse their libraries, watch and engage with some content and see what you find works best for you!
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u/akansan Aug 22 '26
Late to this, but the YarnworkerU weave-alongs have free guest access (you might have to pay for the pattern, depending on what is chosen) so you can see if that works for you or not. The next one hasn't been chosen, I don't think.
She does a LOT with pushing the RH beyond what most would think it could do. The subscription would give you access to the WALs as well.
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u/TrustOld690 Aug 24 '26
I have both and I actually use longthread media a lot more because I can ask a specific question and get good answers. I find the class videos are excellent for learning how to do the basics correctly. I think the videos of the weaver‘s hands are more informative on Longthread media.
The Jane Stafford classes are like drinking from a fire hose. There is too much information for a new weaver and I find it takes a lot of watching time to get the basics down. If you want to have a large project for every learning module, Jane Stafford does give you lots of projects to work on. She also sells the yarn for all of the projects, although you can use other yarn. Longthread media also has projects.
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u/MayBeeCrazy Aug 17 '26
Liz Gipson, from Yarnworker, has a handful of videos on LongThreads’ All Access Pass. I’ve found their content to be worthwhile!
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u/Native-Okie Aug 16 '26
Long thread media magazines are on my library Libby app for free. Worth seeing if your library provides those for free as well.