Again, dust and dirt brush off it rather than sinking in, and the coarse surface also prevents pilling.When I was a kid my Oma had a rag rug in front of her kitchen sink and I remember the pleasure of looking down and wondering how all those colors and textures had been put together. The Balfour & Co standard rug yarn is not as tightly spun as the hard twist, but it is still spun firmly and plied up from multiple strands. I would usually weave with 3-4 strands of this yarn for a rug, and 1-2 strands of the standard Balfour & Co rug yarn, which is approximately 13 WPI. The tight twist acts as a natural shield for the dirt and dust, which will brush off the surface of the yarn rather than sink in. When you run it between your fingers it feels dense and hard, and it will hold its shape on the loom. While this yarn is thin, it is very tightly spun. The thinnest yarn I work with for a rug is the Balfour & Co hard-twist yarn, which can be as fine as 24 WPI. It is also in danger of letting dirt and dust rub into the core of the yarn when it is underfoot. A loosely- spun yarn will compress too much on the loom when you beat it down. And the yarns to avoid are yarns that are too fine or too loose.Ī thin, fine yarn will be very slow to weave with, and will put a lot of strain on the warp unless it’s woven with multiple strands at a time. Once you've found the right fibre, you then want to ensure that your yarn has been spun to the correct weight and twist. Our rug yarn is 80% pure wool and 20% nylon, giving it extra durability and longevity. In my own rugs, my ideal combination is a cotton or linen warp and Balfour & Co rug yarn for the weft. Linen in particular is excellent as a rug warp, but prone to shedding when used as a weft. Some of these are very durable, but they are often in danger of pilling when subjected to wear and tear on the floor.įor rug warp, I recommend coarse wools, cotton cord or specialist linen warp. These are usually made from softer wools like merino or alpaca, plant fibres like linen and cotton or synthetic acrylic. I don't recommend softer knitting or weaving yarns as a weft yarn. Cotton rag yarn is also suitable for rug weft. The fibres I recommend most for rug wefts are certain types of wool, and coarse plant fibres like sisal and hemp. They are naturally dense and sturdy, and last for a very long time if properly cared for. While you are deciding on the texture for your rug, it’s also a good idea to consider what fibre the weft and warp of your rug will be made from. So it's best to avoid super-soft yarns.Īt this stage of planning your rug, it's a good idea to order samples of your materials ahead of time, so you can feel the texture for yourself and think about how they will work on the floor. However, while the yarn in the rug’s surface is under less friction, its are still liable to pill and shed. This protects the individual strands, and so is suitable for softer yarns. These rugs have lots of weft yarns packed densely together. This is done either with a tufting gun or with rows of rya knots. Softer rugs, on the other hand, are usually made through tufting. For this reason, you need to avoid softer, looser yarns which are in danger of pilling or wearing away completely. These yarns will also be exposed to friction whenever they are walked on. So the weft yarn itself needs to be quite firm and sturdy. In this type of rug-weaving, the weft yarn is packed down firmly over the warp. Do you want it to be soft and luxurious, or firm under foot?įor a solid, sturdy rug, I usually opt to weave a flat-woven rug. Your first step when making a rug is to decide what texture you want it to have.
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