Hammocks have been around for hundreds and hundreds of years. Although they were first created in South America, Central America, and Brazil, hammocks are now manufactured all around the world by some of the most talented hammock makers know. For instance, in El Salvador, San Sebastian manufactures hammocks that are genuinely crafted with personal care and expertise. The difference in these hammocks over other hammocks is that the material, which includes polyester and cotton, are superior and each hammock is carefully made by hand, using sheer manpower and years of skill. While the fabrics of the San Sebastian hammocks are not quite as brilliant as what you find in hammocks crafted by other manufacturers, you can be sure that your hammock is top quality.
To create a hammock at Sebastian, three things take place. First, the craftsman obtains thread cones used to pull thread, which is wound into smaller sized cylinders. Each of these is the warp base, meaning it is how the parallel threads are placed to create the fabric. Second, these cylinders are placed into a special machine that winds the thread. Each of the threads is strategically guided to form perfectly using nails as a guide. The craftsman then uses his hands to coil these threads around a special frame that is square. This takes time and dedicated effort, resulting in just 24 parallel threads that will soon be coiled with threads of different colors. This then creates a coil of threads that will be fed into the loom for creating the hammock. This process is then repeated for every one of the fabric colors used for the hammock design, which is determined by the craftsman.
The final stage involves the warper, involving the appropriate amount of thread to be coiled. This thread is finally taken out from the warper and the hank is formed. Again, the process is repeated for each of the colors being used. The thread on the hanks is coiled into a part of the loom called the axis, which is usually wooden. This is then mounted into the loom, taking extreme care to line the colors in the proper sequence. This coil of thread is quite large and can weigh as much as 220 pounds. In fact, from these coils, approximately 80 to 90 hammocks can be created. Remember that all of this is done by hand, which is why the Sebastian hammocks are so amazingly comfortable and durable.
Since the wooden axis is square, a special gear is fitted with teeth that form what is called the pawl. Although the mechanism can only move in one direction, it helps control the tension placed on the threads coming from the feeding coil to the coil that is responsible for gathering the fabric. At this point, the threads from the coil move over a horizontal rod that also helps control the mechanism with the use of weights. Another rod then splits the threads over and under. As the threads pass through thin cords that run vertical, knots are tied. Some threads woven to make the hammock will go over the knots and some simply go underneath.
To keep the threads nice and tight, guide cords are used. These cords pull the threads upwards toward an upper rod while the rod on the lower portion of the loom is connected to additional cords linked to foot pedals that are used to control the vertical movement. This movement is what separates the thread sets while cross-sections are inserted.
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