My New Loom

It's finally here!! My new - to me - Structo Artcraft 4-shaft table loom is here!!

Isn't it beautiful! I went to De Leon Springs, FL yesterday to pick it up and to learn how to warp it. First I learned how to use a warping board where you count out the threads you will be using on your loom. This seems like a monumental task but it really isn't and only takes about an hour. Then I learned how to wind the warp onto the back of the loom - always covering the threads with brown paper bags to protect them. After the warp is wound onto the loom, you have to sley the heddles. This involves putting each thread through a flat, steel heddle that looks like a long needle with an eye in the middle. There are four shafts on my loom and you have a pattern that you have to follow and put the thread into the correct heddle on the correct shaft! This sounds tedious but it really goes fairly rapidly! After sleying the heddle you have to pull the threads through the reed. I have a 15 dent reed. This means that there are 15 slots to the inch on my reed. There are tables that tell you how many threads to pull through a reed that is not the same as the one in your pattern. Then you have to tie the threads to the front of the loom and you're ready to weave! I can't wait to become more proficient at this new craft! I am working on a scarf for my first project and will take pictures as soon as it's completed!