RECYCLING at it's best!
I love making these Birch Tree rugs (the name I use because they remind me of the bark on the trees of our native birch in Wisconsin) made from recycled sock loopers from factory surplus that would otherwise be clogging up the landfills.
I get wonderful loopers from Barb Barnett in Plainfield, Iowa
http://www.butler-bremer.com/web/bbarn/index.html
I make many of these rugs in various lengths and color combinations. I chain them a bit differently than most folks do, see the photo attached. it makes a softer rug and not so *nubby* with lumps when chained the conventional way that many weavers use.
Using natural colored rug warp hides the warp against the natural color of the loopers. Using other colored warp threads looks somewhat messy, and detracts from the harmony of the rug. These rugs are great for bathrooms or kitchen sink areas, as they are very absorbant and rugged for everyday use. Think how long sport socks last!
I find that using long stick shuttles is the best way to manage weaving with such large bulky chains of loopers. A tad bit longer than the width of the loom, i can cram quite a few rows worth of chained weft onto one stick shuttle.
Lovely rug, and I like your idea of chaining the loopers together. My boyfriend keeps forgetting and tosses his holey socks in the trash. I pull them out and cut off the tops for loopers. It's going to take a lot of socks but, like you said, at least they won't end up in the landfill.
Thanks for sharing this.
Thanks for sharing how you chain your loopers. I'll have to try that next time.
Thanlks for the compliment! Before I started buying loopers from Barb, I cut my own too. Barb has the best deal on the neutral creamy colored ones. I have even dye them in mesh lingerie bags!
Hilary at Crazy as a Loon has some wonderful bright colored loopers too!
