Thrum Weaving

[u/disastertowncosplay]

Having a ton of fun weaving with thrums. Thrums (mostly 8/2ish) were donated from some kind folks at Ravelry, and I spent a good month tying them all end to end and winding into balls.

Then I made a warp alternating 4 strands thrum with 4 strands white, set at 20 EPI on my little 4 shaft table loom and started weaving some houndstooth!

The rainbow header was done with some thrums I set aside and tied together in color groups instead of randomly. I think that piece will make up part of a tote bag. Now I'm running out the warp with some stripes, I love the color combinations that randomly pop up and change!

Having a ton of fun with this and want to do more, hoping I can find more folks with unwanted thrums >:)

[u/Stronty-26]

Wonderful pattern. Looks great

[u/SilverSkyGypsy]

I’m not understanding exactly what a “thrum” is…. I have a technique that Gran taught me, involving mittens, socks and gloves and such, just not sure if it is in the same category.

[u/disastertowncosplay → u/SilverSkyGypsy]

Not quite the same though I bet it comes from the same root.  With weaving it's the "waste" that happens when you cut a piece off the loom, you often have a good 10-20" that you can't weave. These are all the offcuts from a bunch of different projects from different folks that kindly sent them to me 

[u/SilverSkyGypsy → u/disastertowncosplay]

I save my 3” pieces from knitting etc. I use those in fun ways as well. This work is beautiful!

[u/birdtune → u/SilverSkyGypsy]

Same here.

[u/3lue3onnet]

Ooo, that rainbow houndstooth is so fun!

I love the random colors and your resourcefulness. Very inspiring post!

[u/weaverlorelei]

That's a lot of knots, what knot did you use? Any problem with chafing in the reed?

[u/disastertowncosplay → u/weaverlorelei]

Just a regular overhand knot. I find more issues at the heddles than the reed, I have to sometimes gently strum the warp when advancing to get the knots through the heddle eye. I've had I think 3 knots break so far? Not bad for about 2 yards of weaving. 

[u/brollerrink → u/disastertowncosplay]

I was coming here to ask this! I recently wove a project with thrums for the weft, but went with fresh yarn for the warp because I was worried about the knots going through the heddles. Good to know it is possible but takes some finesse and repairs.

[u/Odd_Note7005]

Gorgeous. I work in an institution with mentally handicapped people, and before we re-weave them I get them to crochet them together first, has a different effect too :)

[u/Buttercupia]

That’s fantastic. Brave to use it for warp!

We make thrum yarn all the time with leftovers from the studio I frequent, then we use the yarn to weave table goods to sell.

https://reddit.com/link/pehskh8/video/c4cn8jn7k3uh1/player

This one ended up being a table runner and some towels. We use leftover warp from various things so it’s always interesting.

[u/Weaverbird53]

This looks great! Such a cheerful fabric. It'll make a pretty tote.

I love weaving with thrums! Another fun use of 'leftovers' is to wind a random stripe warp from all the partial bobbins/pirns from previous projects.

[u/taucher_]

ohh i do this kind of thing too :3 i don't wanna use my yarn scrap yarn for warp, but i love using it as weft. i've made balls of various color combinations, such as cold colors, warm colors, bisexual, anything red, etc. lots of fun to be had! i ususally use the weaver's knot, it's very small and very robust if done correctly :3

[u/taucher_ → u/taucher_]

my scraps are shorter than yours. i end up with one side all floofy from the knots and ends. fun!

[u/Adventurous-Pen-5625]

This is fantastic! Such a cheery, wonderful look to the fabric. What was the length of your average thrum? I'm a new weaver and I'm trying to decide which leftovers to keep and use for this later!

[u/disastertowncosplay → u/Adventurous-Pen-5625]

I went as short as 5" and as long as about 18" 

[u/Adventurous-Pen-5625 → u/disastertowncosplay]

Wow! That's a lot of knots with 5" segments! I'll keep saving all of them then! What do most weavers do with the bits that are even longer, like a yard or two?

[u/RudeSession3209]

Wonderful!

[u/Appropriate-Weird492]

Oh this project makes me so happy! Thank you for sharing!

[u/Iacinthina]

I love this so much!!

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[u/zingencrazy]

Thanks for the inspiration. Have been noticing lately how much my thrums are piling up!

[u/goldenrod-hallelujah]

Will you trim the warp knot tails or leave them as a design feature? Such a clever and fun idea!

[u/disastertowncosplay → u/goldenrod-hallelujah]

They'll stay in for texture but they tend to get fuzzy and less defined after a wash, so it just sort of looks slubby

[u/disastertowncosplay → u/[deleted]]

Oh dear I think this might be the wrong thread for this reply lol

[u/GoddessTara00 → u/disastertowncosplay]

I'm so sorry. I will delete it o don't know how that happened.

[u/weaving-ModTeam → u/[deleted]]

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