We recently took the first six rugs off the loom just to see how the finished products were going to look before we continued on. Here is a picture of the first rugs, cut free on the weaving end, loosened and rolled up on the bench right before we cut them from the loom.
Once the rugs were cut off, we had to re-tie all the warp threads to the apron of the loom so we can weave again! This week Rhiannon has spent countless hours cutting old clothing and sewing up strips of material that we've had donated. She has gotten several rugs' worth of fabric ready for the second round of weaving!
Here are the first six finished rugs draped over an old couch in the basement. (Excuse all the junk in the background--we have our weaving set up in the basement!). From left to right--a rug of colorful fleece strips (we like to name our rugs and this one will be something like "Northern Lights," or "Neon Northwoods,"), a sock rug, mostly white, multi-colored rug of woven cotton scraps. Next is a rug made of mostly black and blue socks. The fifth rug is another of the woven cottons. The rug laying in front with yellow in it is another sock rug.
Sock rugs are the easiest to prepare. Socks are cut in round loops and then "looped" together, no sewing required. Nylons can also be done this way. However, I'm partial to the old fashioned woven cotton scrap rugs, just like grandma used to make. But I figure in this modern day of not darning socks, the sock rugs are a great alternative to just throwing away a pair of socks which have developed holes in them!
We are pretty excited about the finished products, but need to work on a few details to improve quality. Hopefully we'll be making more soon and can share more photos. This is the exciting part of the whole process--getting to see the finished product!
Blessings, LORI
