About a year ago I developed an interest in weaving. More specifically, weaving medieval European style tapestries. That’s a long-term goal, of course. I have a lot to learn about weaving in general and tapestry in particular before I’m ready to tackle anything quite that involved. But weaving even the simplest of tapestries requires a picture of the thing I’m trying to render in cloth. In the tapestry world, that picture is called a cartoon. It’s a full-sized drawing that the tapestry artist continually refers to while weaving.

Which leaves me with a small problem: I do not draw well. I’ve taken a few beginning drawing classes and from time to time I’ll sit down with a recommended book and the intention of improving my drawing. But I never stick with it. Apparently I’m interested in drawing but not interested enough to put in the practice. I can live with that. Or at least I could. Until now.

A medieval tapestry is a fairly detailed picture. If I want to create a cartoon, I’ll need much better drawing skills than I currently possess. Or I’ll have to hire an artist who will create the cartoon for me, taking into account the special requirements for a tapestry cartoon. Perhaps the biggest being understanding the medium. In particular, that tapestry is basically a pixel grid with approximately 24 pixels per inch. The artist doesn’t have to create the cartoon on grid paper or anything, but they have to understand that fine detail can’t be rendered. It’s also important to understand that the weaver is working with a small color palette. Creating a tapestry cartoon is a specialized skill.

I don’t particularly like either of those options. One takes too long and the other costs money. I wonder if I could work with an AI picture generating tool to create the cartoon. I don’t know how good the current tools are, but I’ll be experimenting with them soon to find out.