Dear Weavolutionaries,

I read a post somewhere by a man who wove dog collars using colored nylon fishing line.  I have made dog collars from 5/2 cotton and discovered that they fade quickly and don't tolerate abrasion when the dog scratches his neck w a hind foot.  I'd like to try using the fishing line, Does anyone have experience with it? It seems that the fishing line that comes in colors is a fine thread, I'm wondering if I could use several plys in one heddle, or if i would ahve tension problems.  Any advice is welcome. Thanks!

Gail

Comments

Sat, 01/31/2015 - 11:03

ReedGuy

Can you get polyester, something in the 10/2 cotton size, not serger size? I think fishing line degrades (biodegradable). Something like Dacron is probably pricey for a dog collar though. It is used as line backing on reels, and is something meant to last and not rot or mold from getting wet. It is a common sailcloth yarn. But I was wondering if there was something similar. I know nylon will rot. I use nylon ropes for tenting and by summers end they are disintregrated and worthless.

Sun, 02/01/2015 - 00:22

Sara von Tresckow

I use the braided cord fish line for making inkle heddles that don't catch on the warp yarn.

It is pretty slippery, but would probably work up into a dog collar.

Sun, 02/01/2015 - 00:26

Missus T.

Can you handle plying serger-weight polyester?  Small packages, ready availability, and color choice make it sound tempting.  Might be crazy, though!

Sun, 02/01/2015 - 01:08

ReedGuy

I use Dacron fishing line which is braided to, for repair heddles as well. I have a spool from Orvis.

Sun, 02/01/2015 - 23:25

Bonnie Inouye (not verified)

I just happened to see an article in an old Handwoven magazine. Bobbie Irwin, who has woven lots of transparencies, wrote that she wanted to make some that actually were transparent. So she warped with transparent fishing line and use cotton yarn for her inlay designs. The effect is very nice. She said that it felt very different to warp with the nylon fishing line. A photo shows a series of small hangings together, displayed with a few inches of space between them. Bobbie wove a different white snowflake in each piece, spaced so they overlap some when viewed together from the front.

Bonnie Inouye

Mon, 02/02/2015 - 11:52

Michael White

About using Nylon or poly fishing line. I have seen a lot of damaged beams at both of the universities were I maintain the looms. The students doing  "art" projects use wire, poly line and other yarns that cut into the beams. So if you are planning on using a yarn that is strong enough to cut into the beam you need to protect it with somekind of cap. Michael

Mon, 02/02/2015 - 14:10

sally orgren

Anastasia mentioned that she dyed the monofilament using colorfast commercial dyes for her project with MIT (she showed photos of the process during her lecture at Convergence 2014 Providence), but she commented that even while protected in storage, the colors are now fading. You might pop her an email and inquire if she has discovered any new sources. Giovanni Imperia is another person I would ask for fine, imported, unusual threads in smaller amounts.

No worries, Michael! MsThimble and I took the wire weaving class together at Convergence 2012 Long Beach, and we protected our beams although the instructor was rather casual about the practice. Unfortunately, one of the participants who had a brand new Ashford table loom marred her beam with grooves from the wire.

Stupid question, but several of my performance garments (for hiking/backpacking) seem to last a long time, and these products are textile-like. Where do those threads/fibers come from? Are they more polyester-based (vs nylon)? Backpacker magazine just listed 10 (U.S.) companies that produce performance gear domestically. Could one track down those sources and see if they have any "mill ends" to experiment with?