Inkle Loom Guide: Widths, Warp Lengths and Prices, 2026
Seven inkle looms compared by band width, warp length and price, with prices and stock as listed on 29 October 2026, plus how inkle weaving works.
An inkle loom is a small peg loom for weaving narrow, warp-faced bands: belts, straps, trims. The seven models compared here cost $81.90 to $145, and the five with a listed width take warps 2 to 5 inches wide. Most buyers should get the Schacht Inkle Loom ($132, 4.5-inch warps, 102 inches long).
Every spec below comes from the maker’s page or a named dealer’s page, with prices and stock as listed on 29 October 2026. That day the Woolery showed stock on hand for the Ashford Inkle, the Inklette, the Beka and the Lojan. Schacht listed its own inkle loom and both Louët sizes as backordered, and the Woolery showed the Louët as sold out.
How does an inkle loom work?
The classic inkle loom is a frame with a row of pegs. You wind the warp around them in a loop, and the pegs do the rest. Every other warp thread runs through a string loop called a heddle, and the threads between them run free. Push the free threads down and a gap opens under the heddled ones. Push them up and it opens above. That’s the entire shed system, and it’s why Schacht’s manual says the loom makes two sheds and you pass the weft through first one, then the other.
The weft rides on a belt shuttle, a flat stick notched at both ends with one tapered edge for beating each row into place. And you’ll hardly see it. Inkle is a warp-faced weave, so the weft shows only at the edges of the band, and a weft the same color as the outer warp threads disappears altogether.
Length is a matter of peg paths. On Schacht’s loom the manual gives three, and each one sets the warp at 5 feet, 6½ feet or 8½ feet by winding back and forth across the pegs. When you run out of room, loosen the tension peg, pull the woven band toward you, and tighten again. Move every thread the same distance, the manual warns, or the warp shifts.
Which inkle looms can you buy, and what do they cost?
All prices are list prices on 29 October 2026, before shipping and tax. Widths are the maximum warp width each seller gives.
| Loom | Max warp width | Max warp length | Size (L x W x H) | Price | Per inch of width | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lojan Inkle Loom | 5.0” | 102” | 24.2 x 7.2 x 10.6” | $145 | $29.00 | Left- or right-hand setup, table clamp and belt shuttle included |
| Schacht Inkle Loom | 4.5” | 102” | not listed | $132 | $29.33 | Hard maple, belt shuttle included, heddles not included |
| Beka Inkle Loom | 4.0” | 108” | 28 x 7.5 x 12.5” | $124.99 | $31.25 | Open-sided table-top design, belt shuttle included |
| Ashford Inkle Loom | 3.0” | 110” | 25.5 x 6.75 x 11.25” | $139 | $46.33 | Silver beech, 10” tension-peg adjustment, belt shuttle included |
| Louët Standard | not listed | 115” | 25 x 11.5 x 5.5” | $126 | n/a | 3 lb, inkle shuttle and no-slip feet included |
| Louët Mini | not listed | 75” | 14.75 x 7.75 x 4” | $104 | n/a | 2 lb, same inclusions as the Standard |
| Ashford Inklette | 2.0” | 70” | 14.75 x 4.5 x 7.25” | $81.90 | $40.95 | Belt shuttle and a learn-to-weave booklet included |
Two cautions on the numbers. Schacht lists the Louët warp lengths as 292 cm and 190 cm (115 and 75 inches), while the Woolery lists 114 and 76, and neither seller gives a Louët width. And “maximum warp” is a ceiling: the band you pull off the loom is shorter than the warp you put on it.
The heddles are the part buyers miss. Schacht’s page says plainly that you need heddles to weave and can make string ones or buy Texsolv. The Woolery lists Texsolv heddles by length for three of the looms: 268 mm for the Ashford Inkle, 220 mm for the Inklette and 160 mm for the Lojan. Schacht’s manual specifies 8⅝-inch ones for its own loom. Match the heddle to the loom before ordering.
How wide a band can an inkle loom weave?
As wide as its warp, give or take. Schacht’s manual puts the numbers on it: a 1-inch band takes about 50 warp threads in the yarns it recommends, and its loom weaves bands up to 4 inches wide even though the warp spec is 4.5. By that arithmetic a 4-inch band is roughly 200 warp ends, and about half of them need a heddle. In the same yarns, the Inklette’s 2-inch limit works out to around 100.
That’s why width is the number worth paying for: it caps everything you can make. The Woolery’s copy for both Ashford looms, the Inkle and the 2-inch Inklette, lists belts, bracelets, ties and straps, and says they make trims, tassels, bands, chokers and dog leads. For how loom width decides what you can make in cloth, the weaving width guide covers the other side of the craft.
What is the best inkle loom?
The Schacht Inkle Loom is the default. At $132 it sits between the Beka and the Lojan on price, takes warps 4.5 inches wide and 102 inches long, comes with a belt shuttle, and has one open side that makes warping easier, according to Schacht. The manual that ships with it covers assembly, warping and weaving in eight pages, and Schacht publishes free inkle projects. If you’re buying a first inkle loom and don’t have a reason to pick something else, this is it.
Widest band: Lojan Inkle Loom ($145). The only model here listing a 5-inch warp, and the lowest price per inch of width in the table at $29.00. It’s configurable for right- or left-hand use, it has an adjustable tension peg, and a table clamp comes in the box. It costs $13 more than the Schacht for half an inch more width.
Lowest full-size price: Beka Inkle Loom ($124.99). A 4-inch warp, 108 inches long, and a design the Woolery traces to the mid-1970s. It’s $7 under the Schacht, the cheapest model with a stated width of 4 inches or more, and it has the longest warp of that group. It’s also the longest frame with a listed size, at 28 inches.
Longest warp: Louët Standard ($126). Schacht lists 115 inches, the most in the table, for $126. Neither Schacht nor the Woolery gives a width, so you’re buying on length and price alone. Ask the seller if band width matters to you.
Most portable: Ashford Inklette ($81.90). At 14.75 inches long it ties the Louët Mini for the smallest frame in the table, and the Woolery describes it as compact for portability and easy storage. The warp tops out at 2 inches wide and 70 inches long. It also ships with a learn-to-weave booklet.
Hard to justify on width: Ashford Inkle Loom ($139). The silver beech and the 10-inch adjustment on its tension peg are good features, and the 110-inch warp is long. But 3 inches of width at $139 is $46.33 per inch, against $29 for the Lojan and the Schacht. Buy it if you already own Ashford looms and want the same feel.
How is an inkle loom different from other looms?
Inkle looms come in more than one shape. Schacht sells weaving cards as an add-on to its inkle loom, and the Woolery lists a card weaving board beside the Lojan, so card weaving sits next door. The loom below, filed on Wikimedia Commons under both Inkle looms and Table looms, stands upright and carries its warp around rollers and dowel pegs instead of lying flat.
A rigid heddle loom makes cloth, and an inkle makes bands. If you want a scarf, buy the rigid heddle loom and read the frame loom versus rigid heddle comparison first. If you’re making wall hangings, the tapestry loom guide is the right door. For the parts every loom shares, see the loom anatomy guide. Small looms come in more shapes than any buyer’s guide can cover. This one, from an 1871 to 1872 album, sits at an angle.
What else do you need to start inkle weaving?
Heddles, yarn and a pattern. Most of the looms above include a shuttle, and the Lojan adds a table clamp. Schacht’s manual calls for smooth, strong, relatively inelastic yarn: perle cotton in 3/2 or 5/2, embroidery floss, cotton rug warp, linen or firmly twisted wool. For the long version of that decision, the yarn for weaving guide covers fibers and sizes, and warping explained covers the general idea behind winding a warp.
Pattern drafts are where inkle gets addictive. Schacht’s manual prints four beyond its sample, and the smallest, Chains, takes 12 heddles and 23 warp ends in blue, white and yellow. Dixon’s pattern directory runs to 400 warp-faced weaves, according to its title, and Schacht’s manual lists it among its resources.
How much room does a loom like this need? Not much. The longest frame with a listed size, the Beka’s, measures 28 by 7.5 inches on the table. For where bigger looms go, see how much space for a loom.
Is inkle weaving hard for beginners?
Schacht calls its loom fun, fast and suitable for makers of all ages. The first warp is the slow one. You wind every thread by hand, you tie a heddle on every second one, and you get the tension right by loosening and tightening a single peg.
The manual’s warnings are specific. Use smooth, strong, relatively inelastic yarn. Move every thread the same distance when you advance the warp. Turn the weft from one row to the next without leaving loops at the edges. And weave a header first, three rows of scrap yarn or craft sticks, so you can practice both sheds before the real band begins.
Schacht’s manual closes with seven references, running from Mary Meigs Atwater’s Byways in Handweaving in 1954 to a 2019 online guide to plain weave.