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Crazy as a Loom

Tuesday, November 3, 2009

Ack! The Truth.

The truth is that this Weaver's Friend is a brute. Look at the size and heft of this girl.
With new straps on her front beam, and the brake adjusted, she looks like the workhorse she is.
But that's not the whole truth.
It started last Wednesday. I felt the beginnings of some viral illness coming on. But I was intent on putting a warp on this loom. I felt driven to get her up and running after she had sat neglected in a barn for several years. It seemed my responsibility.
But the back beam was round. My tension box didn't fit.
And, alas, my brain was not working so well, with little germs flitting about looking to take hold.
So instead of all the things I "could have" done, to make this work right, I did the one thing that was guaranteed to be a disaster.
I won't bore you with the details. Suffice to say that it would have been bad enough had I put 50 yards of warp on her back beam. But NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO, not me. I had to put 100 yards of warp on.
I should have quit 3 sections into it, but I persisted, and finished all 13 of them.
The sections are soft, they look awful, the threads break, and it is probably the worst warping job I have ever, ever done.
That is the truth, so help me God.
The rest of the evil truth is that while the weaving weekend was successful on many levels, I continued to get sick at an alarming rate. By Saturday night, I had lost my voice. I felt horrible that my two students might catch it from me, but honestly, they were pretty busy, and probably hopeful.
I hope they still feel that way.
And they didn't complain once about their whispering weaving instructor.
By Sunday afternoon at 4pm, I had all I could do to crawl home and take a position on the couch with my box of tissues, and hot tea.
Yesterday, I went to the studio and waited for the UPS truck to come.
It brought my Wolf Pup, and I had boxes to go. I opened the box with the loom, just to make sure it was all there, and crawled back home to my spot on the sofa.

I ordered it with a sectional beam, above. I managed to pound in all the dowels this morning. And I put the Wolf trap on the front, that little catch all that is cute as anything. And I put the heddles on, and the wheels, and a couple of other things.
The only thing that is left is to put the sectional beam on the loom, and that called for a 1/8th" drill bit. Looking for that seemed a gargantuan task that sent me right out the door, and back across the 8 miles or so to my waiting sofa.
Where I remain.
And that, my friends, is the sad truth. Today, I don't care if I weave or not, and that is proof that I am one sick cookie.

But I can still appreciate how sweet this one is. Maybe tomorrow I will feel like putting a better warp on this little Wolf Pup.

15 comments:

bspinner said...

Get yourself back to bed.

Hope you're feeling better soon!!!!!!

Daryl said...

Stop blogging! .. rest, drink liquids and feel better soon!

Lona said...

There's nothing as endless as a bad warp. Unless maybe it's the flu that's been going around. When you feel a bit better, get out some colored pencils and graph paper and design a few warps. That might tide you over until you feel well enough to sew strips together. And soon enough, you'll be weaving again.

And then you can decide what to do about that warp from heck...

Cait Throop said...

Awwwww, hope you are feeling better!!! Drink, drink, drink!!! I have never used a loom with a sectional beam! Fascinating! And love your little Wolf pup!! xo Cait

LA said...

You are going to LOVE your new little Pup! He fits very nicely in the back of my car, and people just love to watch you weave with him. I have demonstrated several times with my Pup, and even used it to take an Overshot Workshop last Spring. In the meantime, get some rest, drink lots of liquids, and just take care of YOU. Your pup will be ready when you are!

Delighted Hands said...

What a great post; sorry you have succumbed to the nasty virus! Take some time off for now and look through some weaving books while you rest.

Anonymous said...

Poor thing.... my daughter did not get to take her children trick or treating properly... she spent 45 out of 48 hours in bed sick and was up today only long enough to wash the bed sheets and then head back to bed. Thank goodness her mother in law lives close by and could help with the children.

Sorry to hear you have not been well. We are headed out of town so *knocks on wood* that we will stay healthy while away.

Take care!
Di

KarenInTheWoods said...

Ahhh your poor girl.. .get to bed and drink some tea and order some chicken soup!

ps... ya aint gonna wanna hear this, >>NOW<< but to warp them round back beams, ya clamp on a hunk of square wood with two big C clamps... and attach your tension box to that.... or you clamp your tension box to the back of a chair and set it up right tight to the back beam. I do it all the time with my two Newcomb Studio looms.

Anonymous said...

I hope you are feeling better soon you poor thing! Chicken soup is good but so is miso soup if you are able to order some? With extra tofu!
Jaimie in Evanston, IL.

Karen said...

hope you are feeling better soon, maybe that warp will look better when you get back to it. Or there will be an easy solution to the problem.

Sojourner Design said...

Hi Hilary,

I have a Wolf Pup and it's a great little workshop loom. It has a nice shed, is quite portable, has a small footprint when folded...

It's still quite miniature compared with my Glimakra, but it has its place. Right now I'm weaving a bunch of lowly but essential dishrags on it.

Diane

Country Girl said...

Take care of yourself. Honestly. Stop working now and rest. You do too much!

Benita said...

Congrats on the new Wolf Pup! I'm jealous as I need two more to fill out my workshop needs nicely.

Get some rest and wait until you feel better before tackling anything again. 100 yards! Sheesh! :p

Anonymous said...

You are going to absolutely love your wolf pup. This past June I took mine to Iowa for Midwest Weavers Conference. My assignment for the class was to put a warp on it to do velvet. Talk about an incredible experience! If you can weave velvet on that little guy, you know it's fairly sturdy! Alot of different people wove on it and not one had a bad thing to say about the loom. Take care of yourself and lay low until you feel better!
Carol P

Tina Job said...

My mind is worrying out the problem of the bad warp. Seems I have to do stuff like that all the time! Maybe you could chain off each section and have another go with the tension box. Slow going but it would work. Anyway, be sure and let us know won't you. Tina

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