Woohoo! New looms for me!

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?