How to Warp a Loom – and the Great Moth Invasion

You can save a considerable amount of time when warping a loom if you have an old warp on the loom with a similar threading pattern. Just tie on a new warp to the existing threads and wind on.

Here’s How

I had a lengthy blanket warp on my large floor loom. My cat did a bit of damage to the warp by playing with the ends.. too much fun to resist I suppose. So I decided to not complete the rest of the blanket and to replace it with a linen warp in order to make some rya rug backing.

I hadn’t woven on this loom for a few years.. due to cancer.. covid.. and other distractions of life – so the poor loom was a bit dusty and abandoned.

So I decided I would record this warping process to demonstrate my warping method.

Paivatar on Rumble

I have also posted a slightly shortened version onto my Rumble Channel.

The Great Moth Invasion

When you leave wool lying around.. you get moths. It’s just a fact of nature. Moths lay a lot of eggs into all fleece and when the moisture content, the warmth and growing conditions are right.. they hatch.

Well, when I unwound my 3 blanket warp, it was totally infested with moths. I hadn’t seen them on top of the warp, but they had crawled inside the warp that was wound onto the beam, and laid their eggs there. Moth holes had been chewed through many layers.

I had to remove the woven warp and toss it into the bin.
I stopped this stream early and spent the rest of the afternoon washing the floor and loom of any remaining moth eggs. I am sure there are some I missed and I will see the little creatures flying around in the studio over the coming months. I have discovered though, that if I leave the lid off one of my cooling dye vats.. they like to land in the warm water and drown themselves. I sometimes find them floating – quite dead – the next morning.

Tomorrow I will get back to finishing this warp so it will be ready to weave Rya Rug Backings. I will continue to stream this production.

ORIGINAL FILE DATE: APR 11, 2024