Rayon Chenille Mill End Yarns
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Rayon Chenille Mill End Yarns
100% rayon chenille is a soft natural fiber made from wood pulp. Beautiful for both weaving and knitting. One of my customers took the time to let me know that she tested the rayon chenille she purchased from me. Her tests found the yarn to be both color fast and durable like the expensive brands of rayon chenille.
Approximate yards per pound for many colors is about 1450. Please note yards per pound is listed on the color card
A suggested sett for weaving with rayon chenille that is 1450 ypp is 16-20 ends per inch. The fabric will feel stiff when taken off the loom. After it is washed and dry, it will be amazingly soft.
Prices for Rayon Chenille
Rayon Chenille can be purchased by the cone or in 8 oz skeins. Cone sizes vary so exact pounds may not be available. Price on the cone is $12.00 per pound and the 8 oz skeins are $10.00 each.Available Colors of Rayon Chenille
Some of the rayon chenille in the shopI have 56 colors of rayon chenille in stock. Some colors are limited in supply. The amount of yarn on each cone varies so instead of listing yarn here for you to just click and buy, please contact me. I can put together an order and quote the correct shipping charges. Call anytime 208-340-9775 or send me an email. I would love to hear from you!
I just acquired (March 2013) many new tones of reds, blues, orange, pink, gold, yellow, green, lavendar and several earth tones. They are not on the pictures of the color cards, but there are photos of some of the cones showing the new colors toward the bottom of this page.
If you like to hand dye yarn, Rayon Chenille takes the dye very well. I have done “hand-painted” warps for several projects and have been pleased with the outcome. Pictured to the left is an example of the latest one using my White Rayon Chenille. I have a large inventory of white if you would like try a dying project.
Some of the rayon chenille yarns used have created a “collapse effect”, or shrank in unexpected ways. I suggest you try a sample before planning a large project. Having it locked in tight in the web (a tight sett of the fabric) can reduce or control this effect and the “worming” that can occur in handwoven chenille fabrics.
All Rayon Chenilles are $12.00 per pound, except variegated which are $15.00 per pound
Note: Color card says 1250 ypp for Black but some cone labels say 1450 ypp and my test with McMorran yarn balance says 1350 or 1675 ypp for different brands and different dye lots.
Weaving with Rayon Chenille Yarn
Weaving with rayon chenille yarn is a totally different animal than weaving with cotton or wool. The most important thing when using this beautiful, soft, shiny yarn is to prevent worming. There are a few tricks to use to do this and it is worth it for the end result of this really soft, plush fabric. I’m happy to help you with any questions you may have about weaving with this lovely yarn. I usually set the rayon chenille I sell at 16 to 20 ends per inch. They are 1200 to 1700 yards per pound, but what is really important is the size of the core; that is what determines or why you need to set them so tightly. They can be woven looser, but chances are that you will get worming and that can be frustrating after putting in all the work of warping and weaving! This fabric will feel stiff when fresh off the loom, but will be great after washing. With rayon chenille yarn I always use tensioning sticks (also known as lease sticks) to wind the warp onto the loom. I rarely do this with other yarns (you could reference a book called WARPING All By Yourself by Cay Garrett.)
The first three to five and the last 3 to 5 shots on any rayon chenille woven item should be sewing thread in a color that will disappear in your fabric for commercial grade fabric. A good example of this is auto upholstery. They weave every other shot with thread or thread in every other shot with the chenille throughout the piece. The thread locks the fuzz and core into the fabric so that it cannot worm. Usually I do 3 shots of sewing thread, then 3 shots of thread with the rayon chenille color to match the warp.
I also knot the fringes against the woven end (so before the weaving begins and after the end of the weaving) then ply the fringes very tightly for more insurance against worming after the fabric is off the loom but before washing. Also, double floating selvedges on each side with extra weight on them on every warp. Sometimes the floats have broken but not when doubled. Beat the fabric firmly! The pros recommend only plain weave but I have done twill. Sample for the best results. When doing twill I would set the yarns even tighter. There are mixed opinions about knitting with rayon chenille but I have not tried it. Hand woven magazine recommends soaking in the washer for 5 minutes, spin out the water, remove carefully without stretching, put in the dryer with low heat, and remove when dry. Sue Butler's book Understanding Rayon Chenille (much of the information here is discussed in this book) has choices on how to wet finish your rayon chenille items. Usually, I hand wash, dry in the dryer partially, then hang to finish drying. Many times, it looks very
crimpy or wavy when damp. Let it dry completely before judgement! My preferred method for warping is back to front. Generally, there are uneven ends at the front after winding on, so usually I cut off 4 to 6 inches to even it up in the front before tying on and take this into consideration when figuring waste. You could have 2% to 10% shrinkage depending on the chenille used and the denser the pile the less chance of worming. Shrinkage, worming, and pile loss will happen with the first washing/drying but should be minimal thereafter. Again, I must say rayon chenille makes beautiful, luxurious, drapey fabric! I believe it is worth the extra effort.