Category: equipment

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Antique Wheel, and My Fiber Stash

Two announcements:

First, I was given a beautiful antique spinning wheel, which I’ve fixed up. It’s from the 1860s; I know when and where it was made, and it was an heirloom in a family that went west in the 1880s in a Conestoga wagon! I’m using the wheel now for my own projects, and I’m willing to spin commissions on it. (Your yarn has to be on the thin side, though, as the wheel won’t do thicker yarns.) For more on the wheel, check the related posts on my personal site. There are even videos of me using it.

Antique spinning wheel against a white background.

Also, I have some really beautiful fiber in my stash these days. Let me know if you want to call dibs on any of it!

Multiple colors of wool.

(Click on pictures to embiggen.)

I hope you all are well. Happy holidays!

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The Grayson Loom

I didn’t name it after myself, I swear. The maker chose the name. It’s a warp-weighted loom (the style of loom used from ancient Sumeria through the Middle Ages) that I designed with a weaver/carpenter. It’s portable, and breaks down for storage. You can weave up to a four-shaft pattern with it once you get the hang of it. It’s great for reenactors and history nerds.

To see the story of the loom and info about it, go here. To purchase, it’s on Etsy here. I’m very excited to have helped create a reasonably priced WWL for people who don’t want to build their own!

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December? Already?!

A lot has happened since I last updated the shop. A friend from the weavers guild gave me a floor loom!

A large wooden floor loom.

It’s a Macomber Add-A-Harness, 40″ weaving width, with four shafts. I plan to upgrade it to eight when I’m able. I started a project on it, but haven’t had time to finish.

Why? Because I got a part-time job at the local yarn store, which just closed last month. My boss, the owner, had been running the shop for 34 years and was ready to retire. So I helped out until the end, and have been getting the leftover products ready to put on eBay and Etsy. I’ll share links when the time comes, as we’ll have some pretty good deals on yarn and needlepoint stuff.

Now that my life is a bit calmer, I plan to resume spinning for the shop, as well as finishing that weaving project. I have some other crafty plans, too, like learning to spin “in hand” for a medieval re-creation, and learning to spin flax. Should be fun!