simple

A simple is a lever mechanism in a drawloom that lifts the heddles, the looped wires or cords that separate and control warp threads. The simple connects the draw cord pulled by the pattern drawer to the heddle frame above the loom bed, converting a downward pull on the cord into an upward lift of the heddles. Without the simple, the pattern drawer would need to raise each heddle individually by hand, making complex patterns impossible to weave at speed.

The simple typically consists of a wooden arm or bar, pivoted at one end on a fixed support, with the draw cord attached at one end and the heddle frame suspension cords at the other. The pivot point, called the fulcrum or balance point, determines the mechanical advantage and the amount of lift. In most drawlooms, multiple simples are arranged in rows corresponding to each set of heddles, allowing independent control of different warp thread groups. The name likely derives from the single, straightforward action of the lever itself.

Simples wear at their pivot points after months of repetitive lifting, causing the heddles to raise unevenly or stick partway. The wooden surface becomes compressed or grooved where it rotates on its pin or bearing. Worn simples can be shimmed with thin leather or wood strips to restore proper alignment, or the pivot pin itself must be replaced. Slack draw cords that have stretched also prevent full heddle lift, requiring retying or shortening of the cord at its attachment point.

A simple works only in a drawloom fitted with a draw boy or later a draw girl or draw mechanism. In contrast, damask looms and some later Jacquard looms use card-controlled or punch-tape systems instead of hand-drawn cords and simples. The simple remains common in hand-operated pattern weaving for damask, brocade, and tapestry work where traditional techniques are still preferred or where small production runs do not justify mechanical or electronic looms.