Looms - Weaving
See below for Looms in our Online
Shopping Cart
Imagine the joy of the recipients of gifts
of handwoven baby blankets, housewarming gifts of beautiful table coverings, rugs,
afghans, pillows… How about a lovely handwoven scarf or shawl for a special friend or
family member…?
Do you want to learn how to weave? Where
to start? Unless you already know exactly what loom you want, I would recommend starting
with Harrisville Design’s "Easy Weaver" rigid heddle loom that comes
pre-warped and ready to weave with -right out of the box. These are suitable for both
children and adults who want to get a simple introduction to weaving.
If you’re a handspinner or knitter with
lots of fabulous yarns already on hand, the Sprigg’s Triangular Frame Loom is truly
fun and produces beautiful shawls in a very short time. No weaving experience is
necessary!
Now, if you know in your heart of hearts
that you are a weaver and all you need is a loom and a little guidance, go ahead and get
that floor loom. How to choose? What are your space restrictions? Do you want to use
handspun or mohair in your warp? Are you interested in working with fine linen yarns or do
you want to make wonderful rag rugs? Do you want to start with a smaller, portable loom
(to bring to workshops) now and then get a large one later? A great way to start narrowing
down your choices is to review the looms listed in this catalog. Then, DO purchase Debbie
Chandler’s Learning to Weave book. She has a fabulous chapter on choosing the
right loom for you. Her companion videos are wonderful – like having a weaving
workshop in your own home, at your pace, with a teacher that never gets impatient if you
have to review a step over and over again.
All in all, after looking through the looms section, if you
feel the urge to try your hand at this ancient AND contemporary craft, it probably means
you need to do just that. And there is SO MUCH contemporary inspiration out there! In
addition to comprehensive and delightful books and videos on weaving, there are also
beautifully produced colorful and informative quarterly magazines for handweavers: HANDWOVEN from Interweave Press and SHUTTLE SPINDLE & DYEPOT from Handweavers Guild of
America (see membership and program info on page 49). There are also weaving workshops
held at arts centers, fiber conferences, fiber shops, and through private instruction
throughout the country and throughout the year. Happy Weaving! |
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Please see our Online Shopping
Cart for:
- Tapestry
& Frame Looms - Ashford, Beka, Glimakra, Harrisville
Designs, Hazel Rose Looms, Leclerc, Louet, Schacht, &
Weavettes
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Inkle
Looms - Ashford, Beka, & Schacht
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Rigid
Heddle Looms - Ashford, Beka, Louet, Kromski & Schacht
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Table
Looms - Ashford, Glimakra, Leclerc, Louet, & Schacht
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Floor
Looms - Ashford, Glimakra, Harrisville Designs, Leclerc, Louet,
& Schacht
There are basically three different types of floor looms available: Jack, Counterbalanced
and Countermarche. Jack looms have separate lifting mechanisms for each harness that can
operate independently or several harnesses can be connected to one treadle. Most Jack
looms are "rising shed". Counterbalanced looms have harnesses that work in
pairs. Countermarche looms allow you to raise or lower any harness or combinations of
harnesses with a good shed - especially great for "sticky" warps (like mohair!),
preferred for working with handspun yarns or linen in the warp. An extremely wide variety
of features and options are possible with most of the looms listed here. Which floor loom
is yours? If you have a hard time deciding, I must recommend some reading material for
you, specifically: LEARNING TO WEAVE by Deborah Chandler - even more specifically,
page 214, starting with the chapter headed: On buying a loom, subheading
Deciding
what kind of loom you need.
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| Please contact us if you want information regarding any of the
looms we carry. |
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