The rugs are done! Yay! I finished weaving the last one today. I cut them off the loom and raced to the sewing machine. I needed to secure the warp between each rug before cutting them apart. I used a zig-zag stitch to secure the threads, making the stitch width a bit smaller than the default size. This holds the stitches securely. I could have done it twice, but all the threads seemed to be safely stitched down, so I didn't bother.
I don't like fringes on rugs. They wear out quickly, dogs and cats like to do unnatural things to them, like chew or play with them, and they rarely look neat and tidy in my opinion. Fringes are fast to tie, so that is a bonus. However, I weave in 3-4 inches of tabby at the end of each rug and fold a hem on either end. I fold the raw edge in, then fold again. I use my sewing machine to stitch them down, rather than sewing my hand. It's not only easier and faster, but I think it's more secure. I want my rugs to be machine washable, pet safe and tidy looking. Hems give me that.
All the rugs are 26 in wide. The first one in the photo is 53 in. long, the second one is 51 in. long, and the third just squeaked in with an acceptable 41in long. I used ever last scrap of fabric for that last rug.
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| The red tent made this pumpkin coloured yarn look really bright |
Other than that, I've been doing a lot of spinning. I've spun up some merino, a lot of BFL, 4 skeins of that rug yarn, and this orange superwash merino that I spun as a demo. I was doing a spinning demo at a local fair and it was a lovely, albeit incredibly and unexpectedly warm day. The fair is small, and definitely geared to families. They had a huge homecraft display, including photos, school entries, agricultural items as well as preserves, baking, quilts and other crafts. I even got to see a pig do the dog agility course, not very well, but it was hot and you could sort of see why he tried to go around the jumps rather than over them! The craft display tent was full of extremely talented people. The embroidery guild had some amazing pieces, including a little 3inch tall goldwork squirrel, which was perfectly executed. I got to sit beside the rug hooking guild, who had the nicest people there. It was a lot of fun.
The rugs look great! But I have a question. How do you keep your rugs from sliding when they are stepped on?
ReplyDeleteYou can get non-slip underlay which is easily cut to size, which will hold rug or mat quite securely. I did a quick search and it's available in a number of places. Also, there is a shelf liner which is made from a rubbery material, not solid though, it's full of little holes, which can also work.
ReplyDeleteI find that the t-shirt or jersey yarn rugs slip much less. Also, my mats are woven quite firmly, which also helps them not slip as easily. However, my cats like to roll around on them, and roll up in them it seems, so that is a bit of an issue. My kids all have my rugs and don't seem to have much of an issue though, so obviously it's very dependent on location and use. In an area where I was having issues, I'd invest in some of the non-slip underlay. It's fairly inexpensive and safety is really important.