I have another rag rug warp on my Baby loom (Glimåkra 100cm Ideal), playing with the magic of double binding again, this time with four shafts and four treadles. Ten yards / nine meters of warp. I planned an additional twelve inches / 30.5cm between rugs for cutting off and tying back on, so I can cut each rug off as it is finished. Here is the first rug.
A picture works better than memory. By the time I get to the opposite end of this rug, I doubt I will remember the details of this starting hem. Technology makes it simple. This is one reason I keep my iPhone handy when I am at the loom. Click. Now I have a visual record of the hem that will do the remembering for me.
Some things are worth the effort to remember. Remember the good. When times are difficult, waiting to see the Lord’s goodness requires strength and courage of heart. It requires remembering the good from before. Wait for the Lord with faith–the faith that looks like courage. Faith is that picture of good that made an impression on your soul, that’s been tucked away for a while. Maybe it’s time to pull it out and remember.
Bold striped hems and four white stripes across this rug stabilize the unpredictable design. This is the rug that uses up several remnants from my fabric stash. My main agenda was to use up fabric.
I like rugs for the way they give the impression of a pathway. A place to put down your feet and walk. This rug does look like a path to me. Like a tapestry, this rug tells a story. I can see irregular changes of scenery. And the white stripes are like scheduled events that add structure and definition. It is good to have a path for your feet, and for your life.
Life is filled with changing seasons, and with schedules and interruptions. It isn’t always easy to see the right path. The Shepherd leads us on a path lined with goodness and mercy. These qualities are woven in. Like this double binding rug, mercy is always on the other side of goodness. And goodness backs up mercy. When these elements of kind-hearted design can be seen in our lives, though only as remnants and fragments, that is when we know we are on the right path.
If the ends are not secured first, before hemming, the rug will unravel. Therefore, I end the weaving with ten rows of rug warp, and then three inches/eight cm of a scrap fabric header. When I cut the rug from the loom I leave four inches/ten cm of warp for tying knots.
The header is removed little by little as I make my way across the rug, tying pairs of warp ends into square knots, and cinching them up to the edge of the rug. I trim the ends to 1/2 inch/1 cm. Next, I fold and steam press the hem. With a blunt tapestry needle and a length of warp yarn 1 1/2 times the width of the rug, I stitch the hem closed by catching the warp threads. The warp ends are fully secured and closed up in the hem. This rug will endure through years and years of wear and tear.
Guard what you believe. It is what you believe that determines what you think, from which your behavior is formed. When beliefs are convictions, rather than mere philosophical ideas, they are firmly knotted in place, hemmed in by wisdom and truth. Nothing will unravel this cloth.
A good rug lasts many, many years. The finest rugs outlast their owners, being handed down as useable heirlooms, like the two aged rag rugs I have that were woven long ago by my grandmother’s neighbor. I get excited about making colorful rugs that are meant to be walked on for years and years.
I am hemming this rug by hand, using 12/6 cotton seine twine rug warp and a tapestry needle. This makes a tidy hem, with nearly invisible stitching. I secure the ends of the hemming thread by weaving them back and forth into the woven hem with the tapestry needle. (Refer to Related Posts in the sidebar to see other ways I finish rug hems.)
Pursue truth. That means doing what it takes to find answers. It’s as simple as examining what we are walking on. What are we basing our life on? It means seeing the created and looking for the Creator. Taking a closer look at a unique rug that catches our attention, we see evidence of the weaver and the stitching hand. Discovering truth is like finding a handmade rug that is intriguing enough to put on display, yet is placed on the floor to satisfy our needs for daily living. It gives our feet a sure place to walk, and it’s worthy of being handed down for generations.
May you experience a satisfying walk through life in all respects.