Time for a Star Spangle Mug Rug!
Make your 4th of July sparkle with this easy variation on Houndstooth Weave!
Supplies needed:
Rigid Heddle Loom at least 8” wide.
Two shuttles.
Cotton Dish Cloth Yarn in blue, red and white – approx. 85 yards each (white and red) and about 40 yards of blue.
The weave on this is essentially a plain weave. The pattern is developed through the yarn color vs a structural design. This makes for a very quick project that still offers a lot of potential for variation, by simply changing the color of the yarn.
Warp the loom as follows:
Blue – two ends (one loop through the heddle when using the direct warp method).
Next, alternate 2 ends (one loop) each of red and white eleven times for a total of 22 loops.
Warp another 2 ends (one loop) of white.
End with 2 ends (one loop) of blue.
You should now have a total of 50 ends.
To weave:
Wrap 2 shuttles of yarn; one white and one blue.
Begin on the right . Make 2 passes of blue, leaving a long tail for hem stitching.
~ If you are unfamiliar with how to do a hem stitch, please see our blog post
https://kromskina.com/hem-stitch-for-weaving/. For this project however, you will stitch around 2 strands of yarn rather than the 3 as shown on the blog.
Next, starting from the left, weave 2 passes of white. Weave in the end as you work.
Because there are only 2 rows between color changes, it is best not to cut the yarn each time.
Rather, carry the weft up the edges.
Let’s take a look at how to carry the weft so that you will have nice neat edges and not big lumpy bumps.
It will depend on whether the selvage edge runs through a hole or a slot. On this example, the right side selvage (edge) is in a hole and the left side ends in a slot. Keep in mind that yours may be on the opposite sides.
In the photos below, notice how the working color (in this case the brown) goes under the second, resting color, before it travels back into the shed. This locks the edge loop down for a nice neat edge.
If it were to go over before wrapping the aqua, as in the last photo, it would create a lumpy, less attractive edge.
On the other side of the loom, the opposite is true. The working yarn (aqua) must go over the the resting yarn before wrapping and then travel back into the shed. It should look like the 3rd photo, not like the last one.
Continue to weave by making 2 passes of each, alternating the shuttles of blue and white. Stop after you have done 11 repeats (44 rows).
Weave 2 more rows of blue.
Cut the yarn, leaving enough to stitch the hem with blue.
Place 2 pieces of folded paper into the warp by raising the heddle and placing the 1st one into the shed.
Lower the heddle and place the second one into that shed. The paper is now “woven” in place. These will mark the fringe and will stay in place for the duration of the weaving.
Repeat the above for a total of 4 Mug Rugs.
Remove the finished mug rugs from the loom and cut the yarn between the folded paper (a rotary cutter works well for this) to create a nice even fringe. Trim the 1st and last rug to match.
Machine wash and dry. If they appear to have wrinkled excessively, wet them down and allow them to dry on a flat surface.
If necessary, trim the fringe once again.
This is a fun one to play around with.
Simple weft color changes can give the weaving a whole new look.
Changing out the warp colors adds yet another field of play!