Finishing With Hemstitch

Day 284: I have come to the end of the second summer-and-winter towel. Now it's time to hemstitch. The advantage to finishing with hemstitch while the work is still on the loom is that when the entire warp has been used up, the pieces can simply be cut free from each other, the fringe trimmed evenly, and then you're ready to throw them straight into the wash. While twisted fringes do have their place, I much prefer a hemstitched finish. Hemstitching prevents unravelling by binding the last rows weaving to themselves. The needle is brought up between warp threads (in this case, four threads to the left of the starting point), then wrapped back around the same threads, bringing the point out a few rows into the cloth directly below (in this case, two threads into the cloth). This creates a bundle of threads at the terminus of the woven cloth. This process is continued across the warp until all threads have been secured. The loose end can then be needle-woven into the cloth, and voila! The "hem" is finished. Now the warp can be advanced. After weaving an inch or so on the next towel, it can be hemstitched in the same manner. Space should be left between the pieces (towels) to allow for fringe. Alternately, the hemstitched edge can be folded under and hemmed again in the traditional manner if a fringe isn't desired.