Thursday, August 12, 2010

DIY Raddle for Weaving Loom

HOW TO MAKE A RADDLE FOR A WEAVING LOOM




Raddle - An instrument consisting of a wooden bar, with a row of upright pegs set in it, used by domestic weavers to keep the warp of a proper width, and prevent tangling when it is wound upon the beam of the loom. [1913 Webster]


After warping my loom for the first time, I realized quickly that a raddle would be a very helpful tool. Unfortunately, I neither have the funds, nor the desire to purchase a $50 plus S/H raddle, when I can make my own.

The loom I have is an Ashford 32" 8 Shaft Table Loom. It's a beauty and a dream to work on (once I got it warped). The legth measurements I give or for my particular loom. To make it fit yours, simply measure the width and cut accordingly.


Materials:
1 1/2 inch Pine/Oak cut down to width of loom (34 1/2" for my Ashford)
3/4 Inch Dowel for Legs cut down to 2 1/4 length (optional)
Lots of 2" nails
Pencil
Measuring Tape















Directions:

1. Measure the space you would like your raddle to sit and cut. For my loom, it was 34 1/2".

2. Marking the center of the loom, place two parallel lines on either side. This is where you hammer in the nails. I use two lines to keep the close nails from splitting the wood.

















3. On one line, make a 1/2 inch marks from the center out. On the other line, stagger the marks, and mark 1/2 inch again across the wood. This will give 1/4 inch gaps between front and back nails.

















4. Now with your nail placement marked, start hammering in all those nails. I'm not very picky, so my nails aren't perfectly straight. It will still work. (Optional) I used different color nails to mark the center and every 4 inches out.
















5. (Optional) Since I needed mine to see up higher to keep the warp from stretching over the top, and making it uneven, I added in 2 1/4" dowel legs on either side.


6. Finally finished! I put the raddle on my loom and I'm ready to go.



It know it's not pretty, but it works great. When I'm actually ready to use it, I tie it down using a couple of pieces of scrap yarn to keep it from moving.


Another method I've seen it to drill holes down the wood and set in wooden pegs. I didn't want to buy more than I needed to or waste time drilling all those holes. It can look prettier though, so it's your choice. I hope this helps one of you out there to make your own!



If you like this or any other DIY tutorials, feel free to donate directly to me using the link below. I truly appreciate anything you can offer to keep me creating. 

Thursday, August 5, 2010

5th Annual Fiber Christmas in July



Once again, I had the pleasure to attend Fiber Christmas in Kellyville, OK on July 30-31. I had a glorious time getting to hug all my fellow fiber artist that I hadn't seen recently, and to peruse their wares. This year was not disappointing at all!




There were fleeces, roving (both commercial and handdyed), yarns, spinning wheels of every major make and model. I even got to try a few like Spinolution's Hopper that you pedal with you heels inside of feet. It was really neat!






The positive environment was very geared towards learning and and sharing from one another. I had the pleasure to teach drop spinning to several attendees that picked it up amazingly quick. I have now saved up enough to purchase a new Ashford 8 shaft Table Loom! I thought I would never be able to afford one, but I've seriously saved up and with the help of my family, it will be delivered next week. So exciting!!

So if you haven't attended a Fiber Fair, and you play with yarn in one of it's glorious forms, you have to attend one and see just what your missing.