Lucky for me, when we were on our holidays earlier this month, we were driving our truck.

Why? Because we trundled home 2 ‘new to me’ looms!

You don’t need at truck to trundle potholder looms, but these looms…. well…. they took just a wee bit more space…..

Last January, I bought a second hand Leclerc Cendrel floor Inkle loom from a lady in Victoria, BC.

I had to wait until our holiday to pick it up, so I was counting the minutes until I could meet my new loomie!

I warped her up INSTANTLY, and am in love…..

photo by Noreen Crone-Findlay copyright

I think that the other campers where we were staying might have thought it a touch odd to see a weaver merrily weaving away beside the ocean.

But, I am a great believer in giving yourself permission to do your fiber arts in public.

It gives other people permission to follow their delight, too!

(A month or so ago, a woman at a party told me that she longs to bring her knitting along, but her husband had told her she couldn’t as he thinks  it’s rude to knit in public. [eh?]

When she saw me knitting a sock while carrying on a conversation, she declared that from now on, she is going to take her knitting out and about, too! Hurrah! and yessiree!)

The Cendrel is now in use as a warping board for my second ‘dream come true’ loom.

My dear friend, Terri Bibby, teaches Saori weaving on Salt Spring Island .

When we were visiting, I fell madly in love with a vintage Saori loom in Terri’s studio.

And, I am now the very, very happy owner of a dear loom!

Here she is, set up in my studio: (Note sleeping greyhound in pics)

photo by Noreen Crone-Findlay copyright

I added the little wooden cutout dolls and a shelf.

photo by Noreen Crone-Findlay copyright

The loom came with a race (for the shuttle to scoot along on). It needed some alterations, but it didn’t take me long to make them.

photo by Noreen Crone-Findlay copyright

The new Saori looms come with a built in bobbin winder, but mine pre-dated that feature, so her bobbin winder is an add on.

It has a tiny ceramic Salt Spring Tree Frog on a magnet clinging beautifully to the center of the flywheel of the bobbin winder.

The miniature frog is a great reminder of the gorgeousness of Salt Spring Island, and also it’s a little joke about all the frogging I tend to do…. (ribbit ribbitt, rip it rip it).

I love the freedom I have in weaving and in crochet and knitting to be able to take chances with the yarn.

If I don’t like the results, then I tear out what I have done, and use the yarn again.

For me, ripping out is a major part of the design process.

I feel like I have permission to be very experimental, and if I don’t like it, then rip it rip it, ribbit ribbit, frog, frog, frog….

Are you a frogger, too?

My dear friend, Terri Bibby, master Saori weaver from Salt Spring Island, B.C. ,

is part of a really neat show at new show at ArtSpring on Salt Spring Island, BC called “Eye for Colour”.

It’s a show that brings together weavers and other fiber artists with poets and painters and artists who work in a variety of media.

Terri worked with photographer, multi media artist and poet, elehna de sousa to celebrate the beauty and majesty of the Arbutus tree.

Check Terri’s link: Eye for Color  to see more images.

Image source: Terry Bibby copyright used with permission

Salt Spring Island is one of my most favorite places on the whole planet.

My dear friend, Terri Bibby, lives there and has been participating in ARTCRAFT

She did an installation of her Saori Peace Banners that  is magical. Here’s the link to her blog entry about it:

weaving installation 

Be sure to click on

Shannon Wardroper’s link 

as her mixed media pieces are stunningly beautiful.

Oh to be on Salt Spring…. sigh…..

Last summer, my dear friend, Terri went to Japan to participate in some wonderful Saori weaving events.

She brought back this lovely bag:

The butterfly outline was satin stitched with the weaving behind the cotton. Then the black cotton was carefully cut away to reveal the weaving.

This is a variation on Mola or San Blas appliqué technique.

Terry made a lovely T shirt using this technique….. here’s the link: Terri’s dragonfly shirt

and a neat shirt that has a woven appliqué image of the map of Salt Spring Island: Map shirt

I think that this is a great way to use treasured bits of weaving or embroidery or other fabric fragments.

Image Source: Noreen Crone-Findlay

Terri’s going to be facilitating the weaving of a  Saori peace banner on Earth Day on Salt Spring.

And, people are going to be bringing something special to the Earth Day celebration on Salt Spring….

Check it out…. it’s VERY inspiring!

EARTH DAY SALT SPRING