Impending Loom

The post title isn't totally accurate - I just really wanted a pun that would elucidate the perils of my taking up weaving alongside my other hobbies in regards to my having any time at all to actually clean or cook or wash myself. The loom isn't actually impending, don't worry. It's here.

After having admired handwoven fabric my whole life (there's this certain scratchy pillow on my parents' couch that I just love) and having considered taking up weaving for some time, I read a fantastic review of the Ashford Knitters Loom early in March. It was in the most recent KnittySpin, and it set a fire under me. I wanted a loom. I NEEDED a loom. I HAD TO HAVE THIS VERY LOOM AND RIGHT EFFING NOW.

Admirably, I waited for a while. When I was at Fibres West, I had a look at the Harmonique (Ashford retailer) booth to check the quality of the materials and construction. I loved that the 20" loom was big enough to work just about any kind of scarf or wrap, and even perhaps fabric I could use for sewing. As a person with very large hobbies in a fairly small home, I loved that it could fold down completely flat. Jacob was very impressed by that aspect as well, as his job takes him into other people's homes every day, and the only loom he had ever met was a floor loom big enough to need her own bedroom.

But I waited, because I didn't NEED a loom, not really. My friend Ursa told me she would be willing to sell her very lightly used Knitters Loom for a great price.

Sold.

Wanna see my first project? I warped it with two boring colours of Patons Kroy sock yarn left over from Christmas presents, and used a single skein of Noro Yuzen as the weft. I used the 10dpi reed, and the finished scarf is about 2 yards long. It took me two evenings from start to finish, and was an extremely pleasant experience all round. The loom was lovely to work with, the instructions on warping were very clear, and the whole process was logical and soothing.

The edges are a little bit wibbly, but overall it turned out great. I am so, so happy with this loom. I am endlessly fascinated by the way colour and texture in warp and weft interact. I can definitely see why weaving has worked its way into the heart of many powerful myths and stories.

I went and purchased the 12.5 dpi reed to work on my current project, and I'm loving it just as much. More on that when it's done, because I've been working on it for two evenings and weaving is the hare to knitting's tortoise (except they both get there in the end and each is just as good. That was a poor metaphor. It's fast OK?).

 

Also, taking up weaving means I've achieved one of my yearly craft goals - learning a new crafting skill. Yay!