Tools Day: Weaving Rag Rugs

Karen

Handwoven rag rugs hold a fascinating appeal for many people. Does it have to do with the secure feeling of being home? After all, rag rugs are to be walked on at home, are they not? You don’t expect them at work, in the marketplace, or in palaces. A walked-on rag rug says, “Home, sweet home.”

Besides a sturdy floor loom (mine is a Glimakra countermarch loom), only a few good tools are needed to weave a rag rug. There are many different ways to prepare and weave fabric strips to make rugs, but I would like to show you how I do it with the tools that serve me well.

For cutting fabric strips:

  • Olfa Cutting Mat (24 x 36 inch) – Large enough to cut long strips.
  • Olfa Lip Edge Ruler (24 inch) – Essential for consistency and ease of measuring. The lip of the ruler catches the edge of the mat and keeps the ruler from shifting as you cut.
  • Olfa Deluxe Rotary Cutter (60 mm) – The 60 mm blade easily cuts through several layers of fabric (much better than a 45 mm blade). My other brand rotary cutter did not hold up to extensive use.
  • Ansell HyFlex Kevlar Cut Resistant Glove – My woodcarving husband suggested this for me. The cutter blade is dangerously sharp, so the protective glove is a wise idea.
Tools for cutting fabric into strips for rag rugs.
Pre-washed cotton fabric, cut into 3/4-inch (2 cm) strips, to use as weft in rag rugs.

For weaving rag rugs:

  • Temple – This tool stretches the weaving to the width that is consistent with the width of the warp as it comes through the reed. I wouldn’t attempt to weave a rug without this tool.
Temple in use while weaving rag rug.
Sharp teeth at ends of the temple grip the selvedges to keep the weaving at a constant width.
  • Turquoise Cart from Ikea – Not particularly essential (a chair with a box would do), but entirely useful. Why not have a pleasant and organized way to keep the fabric strips, shuttles, and supplies close at hand?
Ikea cart beside the loom while weaving rag rugs.
A place for everything, and everything in its place. This turquoise cart from Ikea is perfect for keeping all the fabric strips in order as I weave.
  • Ski Shuttles – My favorite ski shuttle, of course, is the beautiful cherrywood shuttle that Steve made for me–a delight to see and to touch. This type of shuttle is perfect for the way I weave rag rugs. A five-yard strip of fabric, cut with tapered ends, is easily wound on the shuttle. When the shuttle is empty, I wind on another fabric strip. I overlap the tapered fabric ends in the shed. There is no ripping, sewing, folding, or pressing. Simple, seamless, secure.
Weaving rag rugs with handmade cherry ski shuttle.
Handmade cherrywood ski shuttle glides through the shed with ease.

May you rest in the comfort of your home, sweet home.

Happily Weaving,
Karen

You Can Start Over

Karen

New beginnings. Same warp, but a new rosepath rag rug. This one may be better than the last. We won’t know until the rugs are all unrolled from the cloth beam at the end. I varied the colors, the treadling, and the hems for the rugs on this warp. I wanted to start over with each new rug. A fresh start means a chance to make fewer mistakes, and it’s an opportunity to do something different.

Rosepath rag rug on the loom. Karen Isenhower
Fourth rosepath rug on this warp. The stripes are created by alternating two weft colors in plain weave. The rosepath strip is created by alternating two weft colors in a rosepath treadling pattern.

Are you getting a fresh start for this new year? A new start gives us the courage to break out of a rut, or to walk away from bad habits. Who doesn’t have unstoppable optimism with new resolutions? As we are pressed by time and real life, though, our hope and enthusiasm wear away much too soon. A successful new beginning requires a new outlook; otherwise, the discouragement is even greater when we find ourselves on the old familiar path that was leading nowhere.

Our grand weaver’s perspective transcends human time. He sees the end as clearly as the beginning. Thankfully, the new beginning that he offers brings us a hope-filled outlook that makes corrective change possible. He opens our eyes to see the threads he is faithfully weaving that bring our new beginnings into his story.

(Thank you for coming into my *virtual* weaving studio for a friendly chat. Warped for Good still feels like a new endeavor to me after these nine months of getting started. I deeply appreciate all the encouragement you have given me!)

Here are the three posts that were the most popular in 2013: Quiet Friday: Rag Rugs, Conversation with Becky Ashenden, and Quiet Friday (Rosepath Band)

May your best accomplishments outlast you!

Happy Weaving,
Karen

It’s About Time

Karen

Did you ever have a project that seemed like it would go on forever? Maybe a very long warp, or a slow and delicate weave? I have! (THIS one took forever to weave.) One way or another, though, they all come to an end. Rag rugs are fun to weave because it doesn’t take long to see the finish line, another accomplishment. Time marks the beginning and end of all our activities. Maybe this year seemed longer than it should, with too many troubles. Trouble makes time feel slow. Maybe you didn’t get enough done. Busyness makes time seem fast. As this year ends, time keeps ticking and we will usher in a new year, ready or not.

What would a world be like without time?

For everything there is a season, and a time for every matter under heaven:
a time to be born, and a time to die;
a time to plant, and a time to pluck up what is planted;
a time to kill, and a time to heal;
a time to break down, and a time to build up;
a time to weep, and a time to laugh;
a time to mourn, and a time to dance;
a time to cast away stones, and a time to gather stones together;
a time to embrace, and a time to refrain from embracing;
a time to seek, and a time to lose;
a time to keep, and a time to cast away;
a time to tear, and a time to sew;
a time to keep silence, and a time to speak;
a time to love, and a time to hate;
a time for war, and a time for peace.

– Solomon (known as the wisest man in his day)

Rag Rug on the loom. Striped hem is followed by scrap strips to secure the wefts.
Several rows of scrap fabric, woven after the striped end hem, will hold the rug wefts in place after the rug is cut from the loom.

We understand that during this life we are subject to the limits of time. Is that all there is? One season after another? Is there a place where time has no say? “Under heaven,” as Solomon described, time is all we know. Yet don’t you sense, like I do, that there is more? That must be because our creator has designed us with eternity in our hearts. The wonderful mystery is that we touch eternity when we become his, while we are still in this time-bound universe!

May you enjoy a fruitful new year, finding time for the most important things.

Good New Year to you,
Karen

Quiet Friday: Christmas Textiles

Karen

Grateful for a few quiet days before the new year begins, I reflect on the trials and treasures from 2013 and wonder what 2014 will bring. I encourage you to take time to ponder. If you weave some quiet into your schedule you will hear things you’ve never heard before. You will see things you have never noticed. You will love more because you won’t always be at your frazzled end. Even when the world around you is full of noise, you can be quiet on the inside.

Weaving and pondering go well together. All the more reason to weave.

Handwoven mohair throw for softness under the Christmas tree.
Mohair throw, woven in hound’s tooth twill, creates a soft setting under the Christmas tree.
Handwoven cotton towel from The Philippines.
Traditional Filipino cotton towel used as decorative cloth on a side table.
Handwoven design, unique to the Philippines, holds vintage Santa display.
Well-worn and well-used stacking Santas adorn the colorful cloth. The unique Filipino handwoven design of this cloth brings special Christmas cheer to the front room in our home.
Rosepath rag rug and gingerbread boy and girls.
With another Christmas rolled up, gingerbread boy and girls rest on the rosepath rag rug.

May your new year bring dreams come true.

Quietly,
Karen

Christmas Eve Is Here

Karen

This is the season to give thought to the wonder of life, to be grateful for unconditional love, and to recount the story of Christmas. Four years ago Steve began carving wooden figures for a Nativity scene. Every year, each of the five women in his life (daughter and daughters-in-law, his mother, and me) receive a new figure. The new Nativity figure this year is a king bearing gifts for the infant king.

Hand-carved Nativity from Spanish Cedar, backdrop of handwoven goose-eye throw.
Nativity carved from Spanish cedar, by Steve Isenhower. Seen on backdrop of handwoven alpaca throw, in goose-eye twill.

May your days be filled with peace.

Good Christmas Eve to you,
Karen