Think about the scrap threads and thrums of the weaver’s loft, but do not limit yourself here.
Mattress ticking from a mattress factory. Dressmaker’s scraps, even some from a stage costumer’s sewing table. How about fisherman’s net-making, seine twine? It’s in here, too.
Ropes. Fur. Cotton or wool batting. Plastic bags from the supermarket. Old clothes. Blankets. Any and every kind of yardage. Coat factory scraps, etc, etc, etc.
Variations? Consider stretch materials; cutting cloth on the bias instead of parallel to the selvedge; the texture differences between a folded strip, a strip laid in flat, and a strip randomly laid in. The list is limited only by your imagination; there are plenty of examples in the book..
In order to finish a project requiring many more yards of cloth than we had, we frequented Goodwill, Value Village, Salvation Army stores to find the right material type and colors for most of a year.
Spools and skeins come with length and weight marked on them. With rags, an entirely new method of length determination was developed.
Forty years ago, we wove a rag Rug for the den, but that's as far as it went until The Rag Study Group, of the Eugene, Oregon, Weaver's Guild brought new life into weaving with rags. Just wait until you see what came from Pandora's Rag Box!
The weaver decides on the width of the rag strips, so the length of a rag strip changes the width that a given strip can weave. When do you have enough rags for a project?
These are new variables that rag weaving requires. They are in the book.
Okay weavers, looking for new heights to climb?
Try Rag, oops- Recycled weaving. “Recycled” is good.
Think of 40 years of scraps from the Thrum bag making the most incredible chenille blanket imaginable! Previous to Rag Weaving, we used the bags of thrums as padding for sculpture. We Reclaimed them all for the weaving project. There’s that magic word again, Reclaim, or Recycle, if you wish.
The book is full of full-page, color photos of the weaving examples, along with photograpgs of the objects created with the weaving. The Adobe, PDF format is perfect for this book with its ability to enlarge a page. You can't miss a single detail. There is only a CD edition because of cost; imagine the cost of a book with 140 color photos, must of them full pages. It is another complete, how-to book for "People Who Want To Help Themselves" from the pens (keyboards) of Fern and Ralph Ritchie.
There is a NEW WEAVING BOOK, Recycle and Reclaim Fabrics and Textiles By Weaving Them -- Again by Fern J. Ritchie, that details the works iin this topic by a Master Weaver.
Excerpts From The Book
CD Edition only. ISBN: 0-939656-86-8 , $16.95. Click on ISBN to order this CD.
Quick BuyComplete the order
Excerpt Page Below
Table of Contents
Preface
Foreword
Ralph’s Comments
Part 1 Getting Started
1. INTRODUCTION
The Eugene Weavers Guild Rag Study Group. Member Contributions. Weaving Data Sheets.
2. GETTING STARTED
Material Sources. Warp Can Be Purchased From: Miscellaneous Items. Tools Needed for Starting. Appropriateness of Materials. Notes on Materials. Preparing Warp and Weft Material
3. PREPARATION AND TECHNIQUES
The Nature of Threads. Notes on Heating Yarn. Notes on: Drying Skeins. Dye Fastness of Rug Warp and Synthetics. Testing Materials. Enough for a Project. Washing and Drying Fabrics.
The Effects of Dyes.
4. WARP AND WARPING
Calculating the Warp Take-up. Reed and Heddle Hook-up. Draw-in. Worsted Synthetics. Determine Number of Color Threads. The Warping Process. Warp Thread Twisting. Counting the Warp Threads on the Warping Frame. Tying the Cross. Chaining. Setting Up the Loom Proofing. Patterns. Colors. Example: One thread-. Two threads. Tying On Another Warp. Changing Warp Width. A New Warp Tie On. Lease Sticks. Dealing With a Warp That Is Too Short. Multiple Color Warps: Coat Example. Warp: The Loom. Leftover Warps. Tying or Replacing Warp Threads. Dealing with Slack Warp Threads. Handling Sticky Warps.
Part 2 Yardage
5. FIRST PROJECTS
What To Do? Placemats. Upholstery. Warps. Techniques. Cutting. Plates. Data Forms.
Twelve Examples With Data Sheets.
6. WEAVING WITH RAGS-RUGS
Making Sure There Is Enough Weft Material. Figuring the Needed Material. Cutting the Strips. Strip Width. Laying In Weft and Finishes. Preparing Ahead for Fringe as the Finishing. Rag Weft Insertion. Starting to Weave. Weft Build Up. Joining Plain Weave Cloth Strips. Other Options for Joining. Stretching Knits. Cutting the Strips. Skips and Mending. Weft Skip Repair. Adjusting Tension. Color Mixing . Color Repetition and Color Choice. Measuring the Rug or Place Mat Length. Twenty Eight Examples With Data Sheets.
7. WEAVING YARDAGE, INCLUDING UPHOLSTERY
Working with Knits. Stretching Knits. Cutting Knits. When The Woven Cloth Needs More Flexibility. Laying In Weft. Overlapping Knit Strips. Flat Strips or Folded? Edges or Selvages.
Blending Colors.. Marking the Yardage. Cutting the Cloth Off the Loom. Yardage for Upholstery. Note on Color Abbreviations in the Text. Eleven Examples With Data Sheets.
8. WEAVING AND MAKING CLOTHING
Pattern Layout. Cloth Thickness. Armholes. Tabby Threads for Pliability. Marking the Pattern
Drawn Down Strips. Determining the Cloth’s Right Side. Tying Down Overlaps. Closures.
Linings. Eleven Examples With Data Sheets.
Part 3 Special
9.LEFTOVER YARN AND THREAD ARTICLES.
Thirty Three Examples With Data Sheets
10. TWICE WOVEN TECHNIQUES
Making Chenille. The Warp and Warping. First Weaving. Color Selection. Cutting the Strips
The Second Weaving. Fifteen Examples With Data Sheets.
11. BAGS BELTS, HANDLES AND FINISHING
Style. Method. Finishing. Three Examples. CARD WEAVING. Warping and Threading. Pattern for head of boy. Eleven Examples With Data Sheets
STICK WEAVING. The Warp. Two Examples.
BRAIDING. Twelve Strand Braid. Four Strand Flat Braid. Twelve Strand Flat Braid. Four Strand Lanyard. Two Strand Braid. Four Strand Round Braid. Four Strand Square Braid Six Strand Round Braid. Eight Strand Indian Braid. Twenty Four Strand Indian Braid. 12 Strand (Lanyard type) Braid. 10 Strand (Lanyard type Braid). 8 Strand Sennit Braid. 9 Strand Sennit Braid. 11 Strand Sennit Braid. 14 Strand Sennit Braid. 11 Strand Sennit Braid.
Part 4 Tools
12. TOOLS AND EQUIPMENT
Looms. Weaving Equipment Rag-Specific Tools. Skein Winder. Other Tools. Ball Box. Weaving Bench. Rag Cutting Bandsaw.
Part 5 Conclusion
CONCLUSION
Spinning. New Materials. Wood. Reeds and Grass. Glass and Metals.
BIBLIOGRAPHY
Excerpt Page From Upholstry Chapter - Actual, 7 feet wide.
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December 13, 2008