Freecycle Find

Those of you who know me well, know that I really enjoy handcrafts--especially the traditional handcrafts. I love spending time creating something with my hands that will last more than 5 minutes (unlike clean dishes!). When I went to Rhinebeck last month I kept stopping at the booths with looms and watched the process of weaving. "Someday I'd like to try that, but looms are too expensive so it'll have to wait." is what I told myself.

In our area (and probably in yours, too) there's a neat program called "Freecycle" where people can list items that they want to get rid of or items they are searching for. I've given several odds and ends away to others that we no longer needed, but were too good to throw away. I've also been able to find some terrific treasures for our family to use.

A couple of weeks ago I was browsing through the new postings on the website and was surprised to see a listing for a free weaving loom. I emailed the contact person and after several emails we made an appointment for me to come look at the loom.

It's an antique 4-harness loom which needs to be reassembled and restored, but the parts are all here and it'll be a fun project for Wayne to work on during the winter months. It was formerly owned by an 80-year old German woman who lived outside of Philadelphia who said it was her mother's or grandmother's loom. She had shown the woman who was giving it to me beautiful items that were products of this little loom. The woman who listed it on Freecycle had started restoring it, but since she wasn't a woodworker and would rather put her time into weaving, she kept putting this project aside and did her weaving on another loom.
As we talked, the woman mentioned that she was also giving me a rigid heddle loom (complete in its box) to have fun with. I was thrilled since this is the type of loom I had been considering at the fiber festival. When I told her this, she asked if I'd like some more rigid heddle looms. It seems that she had bought several through e-bay with plans on teaching weaving, but soon discovered that she was not a teacher. If I wanted all the looms, she'd gladly give them to me to use with the children or however I'd like.
As we left her driveway, I turned to Katelyn and said, "I can't believe that woman just gave me all those looms!" Katelyn rolled her eyes (she didn't understand the magnitude of the gift) and turned on the radio to a kids' show which at that moment had a character say, "Sometimes God performs miracles in amazing ways." She looked at me and said, "Now that's a God thing!"
Later that evening I got an email from the weaver. She had a warping reel that she wanted to give me also and would deliver it at our shop within the week...AMAZING!

So in the winter months ahead, when I'm not spinning or knitting, you'll probably find me sitting with book in hand learning to weave on my new looms.(A scene from our first 'big' storm with accumulating snow)