Monday, March 21, 2016

Little Looms Need Little Benches



Now I know many folks can and do use a regular dining chair for their smaller looms. I'm not one of those folks. Dining chairs are too low for me, and counter height ones obviously too high for anything but sipping an adult beverage.  And while Jack thought the big book and cushion idea brilliant I was less than happy with the arrangement. And who's doing most of the weaving anyway I ask? ;-)

So I started my search online for a bench for Fiona, the Schacht Wolf Pup. OMG! When did loom benches get so expensive? The last bench I bought was a Schacht bench with two side bags. It was $100.00 used, local and a steal. All my other benches came with looms. Harrisville and AVL too were out of the running due to price, but then there is Etsy and a seller many years ago who made a beautiful custom raddle for the Thought Products Barbara V loom.  Handywoman (Janet Fox), makes a great raddle and a fabulous, well priced, well crafted  bench. A perfect fit for the Wolf Pup and my butt! It's quite comfortable with it's generous seat and I love that she has given me some on bench storage underneath and the option of having a tilted seat or straight.



 I'm still deciding how to finish it, but if you need a loom bench this one gets high marks all around. Shipping was reasonable and very fast via FedX ground. Thank you Janet!

It was a busy week package wise. Two new to me fabric store packages arrived. Harts Fabrics had my order wrapped and taped in OOP pattern tissue.



 Both of these fabrics are a cotton linen blend.



These might sit until late summer for fall sewing. The second package came from Fancy Tiger Crafts which might be kind of the Purl Soho of the west. They are in Colorado and also have their own line of patterns. I couldn't resist the Fen Dress and top.

Why YES! Those are badgers! Couldn't resist those either.
 Muslin's have already been cut to try out along with some other items geared more for spring and summer.



Sooner or later the sun will arrive with a vengeance and on it's rays, fire season.  I have to say so far, my experiences with fabric buying online has been good, but nothing makes up for being able to shop in person.

I did up a second make of the Lotta Jansdotter Kiomi top. (There will be more!).

Can you find Hazel photo-bombing this pic?

 This one with inseam pockets.



 The fabric is a Japanese cotton lawn, quite silky and smooth. Completely wearable now with a sweater or linen jacket.

The Merchant & Mills Dress Shirt tunic was completed and made it out for St. Patrick's Day.






And I dug into all that linen for my linen blanket. It was a bugger to make. King sized anything is hard to work on. The linen was stiff and heavy. I did not get the softened fabric. The stiffness helped with keeping things lined up as I worked it through my sewing area. A couple of hours and some pretty tired arms later I had what I wanted. It was washed, tumbled and allowed to finish drying outside Saturday afternoon in the sun. I am very pleased with it.



 Reversible to white.



I might try a lighter weight one some day using a fine handkerchief linen. Oh and I grossly over bought. I have at least 6 yards each of the white and natural to use on other things.....

Parting shot: After the photo shoot real life happens.
The Itchy Scratchy Gang. 

12 comments:

Coco said...

Nice things going on. I looovve the bench, so beautifully crafted. I can imagine one working at a piano...Jack is adorable at the loom.

Cindie said...

Great bench!

Shuttle, Hook and Needle said...

The bench looks very nice and well made. I need a bench for one of my small looms so I will tuck this info away for when I am ready to buy one. Thanks for sharing!

Mary said...

Creativity abounds at Camp Runamuck!

Peg Cherre said...

Hey, I have 12 POUNDS of tow linen singles, so when you're ready to weave with it, just give me a shout...happy to share!

LA said...

I wondered how you kept the pups off the bed to snap the pic!!! Love the new banner....Jack does, too! I'm so glad you are enjoying your new little Pup!

Theresa said...

LA, I lock them out. Actually pups only get into the bedroom at night and when I am up there.

Peg, 12 POUNDS! Wow, that is a hefty amount of linen. I'm going to give hemp a whirl on this test run, but I may take you up on that offer for another run....

Mary, the key to sanity! Well, partial sanity at least. ;-)

Louise, It IS a nicely made bench. Comes in two sizes and Janet will custom make something if you need it a bit different. And how are YOU!

Cindie, It is very nice. Makes weaving a joy when you are the right height.

Coco, Yep Jack is fascinated by weaving, must that natural terrier curiosity!

Maggie said...

The blanket is beautiful! I had a new idea for that M&M pattern today that I want to try out. It is SO comfortable! I love your version of it.
Has Jack tried Invisiligns? Got a little underbite there!

Judy said...

What a great find on the bench! I know what you mean, just why are they so expensive?? Your linen project turned out so nice and I bet it will soften up over time. Linen is such a lovely fiber to have in your house.

Sharon said...

I had to buy both of my benches and I agree. They're pricey though I get it that unless they're sturdy and well built, they won't stand up to the rocking motion over the years. My son had to rebuild my Gilmore loom this year. It completely fell apart.

Susanner said...

Hi, just joined your blog. I found it from a Google search for the Julia loom. Did you replace it with the Wolf Pup? What led you to that decision?
Also, I just ordered the Lotta Jansdotter pattern book. Thanks for that info!

Theresa said...

Susanner, I simply didn't like the Julia loom. I found it flimsy and cheaply made and I could never get a decent shed from it. I replaced it with the Gilmore Gem II which I like very much. I love my Jansdotter book. Thank you for stopping by joining up! Welcome.