Handweaver and 'cellist, married to Prince Charming, mother of three superheros and three superhero-in-loves, and Lola to nine little princes and princesses. Life is a handwoven treasure, filled with hidden melodies.
Remember that cute little Glimåkra Ideal loom? The one we re-sized so I could use it as a workshop loom? You can read about it here. Well, it is time to take the show on the road, so to speak. Time to go meet Jason Collingwood in his basic rug weaving workshop.
Two new rugs, ready to be hemmed.
I wove like crazy to finish off another rag rug warp, yielding two more rag rugs. That gave me one more opportunity to practice taking everything apart (with a warp on the loom) and putting it back together again, before dressing the loom with the workshop warp. Done! And not a moment too soon. Whew!
Side pieces flat on the bottom; with beams, loom parts, and tools organized into bags. Ready to go!
You were created to live an exceptional life! Since there is only one you, this is your chance to shine.
16/1 linen in saturated colors. The blue is for the warp, and the green and magenta are for the weft. Glass beads will be woven in with the weft. (At least, that’s the plan.)
These qualities are the glass beads that make your life sparkle:
Humility
Gentleness
Patience
Unselfish Love
And if woven into the cloth, instead of just loosely attached here and there, these light-reflecting beads will endure the test of time. Such sparkles, uncommon for many, will set you apart as one created for exceptional living.
May your sparkles increase and delight the ones you love.
Windows fascinate me. I even have a Pinterest board, Houses and Windows, because I enjoy images of windows. The windows in this cloth capture me! The fun part was seeing it happen. When I cut the cloth from the loom, I could immediately see the windows begin to form as the threads started relaxing. After letting the cloth rest a few days, the windows appeared even more. But the WOW happened when I gently kneaded the fabric in warm water, and hung it to dry. Seeing these handwoven lace windows made me silly with childish excitement!
Handwoven Swedish lace, also known as mosquito lace or kneaded block lace. The spaces have opened up dramatically in the “windows” after having been gently washed and dried. Ready now for pressing.
(Compare these open windows with this before picture, while the fabric was still on the loom.)
What if we are little houses, and our soul has windows? Shall I keep the curtains closed, so no one can see in? But then, I can’t see out, either.
When I think of our grand weaver, and how he is so close by, I imagine him looking out those windows with me. He is not distant, but near. He stays involved, pointing out things he sees. Making the common and ordinary into articles of wonder and beauty. Stiff pieces of thread with a vague shape become wide open windows where the refreshing breeze blows through.
We (truthfully, my husband) turned a 100 centimeter (39+”) Glimåkra Ideal loom into a 70 centimeter (27+”) loom by creating all new horizontal pieces. I can select either size loom–it is convertible! I plan to use the 70 centimeter loom for workshops, since I am able to break it down with a warp on it and and set it back up. Singlehandedly.Not kidding! Steve spent hours of measuring, cutting, creating, and fitting. All in a hot Houston garage. A lot of love went into this cute little loom.Here’s our story in pictures.
After months of searching for a second-hand 70cm Glimåkra Ideal, we found this 100cm one, right here in Houston, that was looking for a new home. So we took her in. Now, we just needed to figure out how to take her down in size. (Click picture to enlarge)Steve started with the most challenging part, the octagonal cloth and warp beams. One end is precisely shaped to fit into a round hole on the side of the loom; the other end also has the round shape, but then is squared to fit exactly into the turn handle, with a rectangular hole for the wedge that holds it in. Whew, he did it!After making all the beams, Steve said this horizontal countermarch mechanism was a piece of cake.New pieces for the 70cm loom being added: treadle beam at the back, foot beam at the front, and upper and lower lamms in the middle. No need to replace the treadles, seen on the floor in front of the old 100cm treadle beam.Last step before putting a warp on the cute little loom. With classical music in his ears, Steve is making 70cm slats to use for warping. The hat is to keep sawdust out of his hair. The fan is to keep him alive.Ready to weave! Besides being cute, this loom could well be the world’s first convertible loom. Two looms in one! Have you ever seen a loom that could convert to two different sizes? (Click picture to enlarge)For the first warp, I used a simple plain weave draft from “Simple Weaves” (Nya Vävar) by Björk and Ignell, p.22, just long enough for two small rag rugs. This first rug, Lime Green and Blue Stripe, is happy proof that everything works!One rug done, one to go. First rug is cut off, and warp ends are tied in overhand knots in front of the reed. Now I bundle up the reed and shafts with the warp beam, and completely disassemble the loom. Can I get it all back together in working order? By myself? (Click picture to enlarge)Loom is reassembled (took me 28 minutes, 30 seconds) and Red Flame rag rug is in the making. The cherrywood ski shuttle is another one of Steve’s lovely creations.Two simple rag rugs, a test for this old-new loom. This cutest loom ever passed the test with flying colors, and oh so much love!
May you enjoy a quiet day of love – some old, some new.
This Swedish lace warp is finally cut off! The big loom now stands empty. I don’t like to let a loom stay naked for very long, so I will wind the next warp soon. That desire to keep the loom dressed will give me momentum through the finishing details and sewing of the dreamed-about curtains. Like this loom, we humans face times of feeling empty in daily life, and don’t like to stay in that unpleasant state very long.
Cutting off the warp always feels like a celebration! Now I have a piece of fabric in hand to sew into curtains. Ta da!
When we experience that feeling of emptiness, we try to find a way to overcome our bare state. We get super busy, stuff our life with things or food, or isolate ourselves to our own detriment.
The good news is that we do not have to stay alone and empty. Amazingly, our creator desires to live with us, not just above us. And that is when our soul is filled–when we make room for our creator. And being filled, we say, Bring on the next warp!
