Well, where do I start?
Burlington was today. But that's not really where it begins, is it?
If I start where it begins, then I'll give the ending away, and I don't want to do that. So I'll just start with Burlington.
Burlington was today. I went without really expecting or wanting to find much, and ended up spending all the money I brought anyway, plus some.
Plus a lot, really. But I'll get to that, and why.
The first thing I found was a very nice and sturdy small pine bookcase, stained dark, that will probably end up somewhere in the Green/Loom Room for reference books. Or maybe not; it could go upstairs, too. We'll see. The bookcase was $20--well worth it. It's a nice piece.
The second thing I bought was a conversation piece--something we'd seen at the April Burlington that was too much then, and marked down now. It is a walker. Like if you're having trouble walking. Only, it's made out of a rolling pin with oak legs. It will actually make a good hat stand or holder for something. And hey, if I ever pull out my back again, I may need it! ;)
The third thing I bought was... well. Let's just start with this.
I had been looking at table looms, because they have more harnesses, and because that's what you need to weave more complicated fabrics. And while I could buy a larger rigid heddle loom, I thought that a table loom (for approximately the same price as a larger rigid heddle loom, if I could find one that cheap) would be a great thing to have. That way, I could have the best of both worlds, so to speak.
So I intended to bid on this one on ebay, because it was well within my price range for a whole week (of $200-$250, not including shipping) but at the very last hour, it shot up to twice the price I could afford. I then intended to bid on this one, but as you can see, it's way out of my price range now. And even this one has gotten too high.
So I had half decided to just wait, and continue looking, and that one would show up eventually.
And then I went to Burlington.
So I had just bought the rolling pin walker (I really have to post a picture of this thing, but both my camera's batteries are dead, as I just discovered) and we were going to walk back to the car to drop things off (Dad bought a bunch of graniteware pans and colanders for my sister Emily, who is using them as planters and then selling them with plants in them) and Dad suggested we go down this small row and stop at the barn where the guys we fondly call "The Junk Guys" set up. (They are not really 'junk guys'; most of their stuff is just fine. But we just call them that.)
Anyway, I was carrying this rolling pin walker, and I didn't think I could fit through the small rows of their tables without some trouble, so I said--
"I've never bought anything from them; why can't we just go to the car to drop everything off?"
Which were, in my case, Famous Last Words.
Because, as we rounded the corner, I spied something I had never seen at Burlington.
(And you've probably already guessed what it is.)
A table loom.
(Actually, the only loom I've ever seen at Burlington was the tapestry/rigid heddle loom I bought for $30.)
And not only a table loom, but a Glimakra four harness table loom. Which is like, good stuff.
I was almost afraid to look at the price tag, and I wasn't disappointed. The price tag read $350, which was far beyond even my upper limit. When Dad came over to see what I was moaning about, *grin* I showed him the loom, remarked that I had never ever seen one at Burlington, and I've been going for years, and showed him the price tag.
"Maybe he'll come down a bit," Dad said.
"Not to my price," I said, and then one of the Junk Guys walked over to us, just as I was about to tell Dad that my price was around $200.
He gave me a rundown of the loom, and told me it was a Victoria Loom (it's not, actually, but I'll get to that in a minute), and that a lady from the Weaver's Guild said everything was with it. (Again, not quite, but a surprisingly easy fix.)
And then, he told me that I could have it for $200.
Um.
It's like one of those times when you just know you aren't going to find something you're really looking for, because you've never found it before. And then you practically give up, figuring that it's not meant to be, and then, quite suddenly, you find one. Just like that.
Whatever higher power is looking out for me, thank you very much!
So anyway, to make a long story short, I came home with a 27 1/2" Glimakra (Pronounced "Gleam-oak-rah") Four Harness Table loom and a pile of various items that go with it. I wasn't quite sure what it all was, but I knew there was one piece missing--the reed that goes into the beater bar (I think that's the right words) and the metal piece that puts that part all together and attaches it to the loom.
So as soon as I got home and unloaded, I fired up my computer and Googled both Glimakra and parts as well. I found the very informative site at Elkhorn Mountains Weaving, but I wasn't quite sure what I definitely needed (a picture did help; I was still assuming that my loom was a Victoria) so I gave them a call, thinking that if they weren't open, I would just email and wait for a reply.
Well, someone answered, and I think it might have been the owner herself; I forgot to write down her name, but according to the website, it's Joanne Hall. Anyway, she was very nice and helpful (and even helped me go through the whole pile of stuff to identify it) and she was the one who told me that I didn't have a Victoria after all, but an older model called "Pysslingen." Which, in Swedish, means (approximately) "Little Elf." She said they could supply me with the missing reed for the beater bar and the metal part that attaches the whole thing to the loom, and told me that Ashford has a new book out for the 4-harness loom as well.
She also told me that they stopped production of the Pysslingen looms in 1979 and that's when the Victoria was released. So, just like my new bike, my new loom could be as old as me.
And thus my search is ended.
(I also found a humongous boat shuttle at Burlington for $15. I'm planning to sell that one on ebay, since none of my looms use boat shuttles (as far as I know, at least.) And I'm also going to stop by Windy's World in Williamsburg one evening this week (or at least see about their hours; I'm not sure how late they are open) and see about taking a class if I can manage it. That would be nice.)
What a day!
(My new loom definitely needs a name. Any suggestions? I'm thinking something Swedish would fit.)
Burlington was today. But that's not really where it begins, is it?
If I start where it begins, then I'll give the ending away, and I don't want to do that. So I'll just start with Burlington.
Burlington was today. I went without really expecting or wanting to find much, and ended up spending all the money I brought anyway, plus some.
Plus a lot, really. But I'll get to that, and why.
The first thing I found was a very nice and sturdy small pine bookcase, stained dark, that will probably end up somewhere in the Green/Loom Room for reference books. Or maybe not; it could go upstairs, too. We'll see. The bookcase was $20--well worth it. It's a nice piece.
The second thing I bought was a conversation piece--something we'd seen at the April Burlington that was too much then, and marked down now. It is a walker. Like if you're having trouble walking. Only, it's made out of a rolling pin with oak legs. It will actually make a good hat stand or holder for something. And hey, if I ever pull out my back again, I may need it! ;)
The third thing I bought was... well. Let's just start with this.
I had been looking at table looms, because they have more harnesses, and because that's what you need to weave more complicated fabrics. And while I could buy a larger rigid heddle loom, I thought that a table loom (for approximately the same price as a larger rigid heddle loom, if I could find one that cheap) would be a great thing to have. That way, I could have the best of both worlds, so to speak.
So I intended to bid on this one on ebay, because it was well within my price range for a whole week (of $200-$250, not including shipping) but at the very last hour, it shot up to twice the price I could afford. I then intended to bid on this one, but as you can see, it's way out of my price range now. And even this one has gotten too high.
So I had half decided to just wait, and continue looking, and that one would show up eventually.
And then I went to Burlington.
So I had just bought the rolling pin walker (I really have to post a picture of this thing, but both my camera's batteries are dead, as I just discovered) and we were going to walk back to the car to drop things off (Dad bought a bunch of graniteware pans and colanders for my sister Emily, who is using them as planters and then selling them with plants in them) and Dad suggested we go down this small row and stop at the barn where the guys we fondly call "The Junk Guys" set up. (They are not really 'junk guys'; most of their stuff is just fine. But we just call them that.)
Anyway, I was carrying this rolling pin walker, and I didn't think I could fit through the small rows of their tables without some trouble, so I said--
"I've never bought anything from them; why can't we just go to the car to drop everything off?"
Which were, in my case, Famous Last Words.
Because, as we rounded the corner, I spied something I had never seen at Burlington.
(And you've probably already guessed what it is.)
A table loom.
(Actually, the only loom I've ever seen at Burlington was the tapestry/rigid heddle loom I bought for $30.)
And not only a table loom, but a Glimakra four harness table loom. Which is like, good stuff.
I was almost afraid to look at the price tag, and I wasn't disappointed. The price tag read $350, which was far beyond even my upper limit. When Dad came over to see what I was moaning about, *grin* I showed him the loom, remarked that I had never ever seen one at Burlington, and I've been going for years, and showed him the price tag.
"Maybe he'll come down a bit," Dad said.
"Not to my price," I said, and then one of the Junk Guys walked over to us, just as I was about to tell Dad that my price was around $200.
He gave me a rundown of the loom, and told me it was a Victoria Loom (it's not, actually, but I'll get to that in a minute), and that a lady from the Weaver's Guild said everything was with it. (Again, not quite, but a surprisingly easy fix.)
And then, he told me that I could have it for $200.
Um.
It's like one of those times when you just know you aren't going to find something you're really looking for, because you've never found it before. And then you practically give up, figuring that it's not meant to be, and then, quite suddenly, you find one. Just like that.
Whatever higher power is looking out for me, thank you very much!
So anyway, to make a long story short, I came home with a 27 1/2" Glimakra (Pronounced "Gleam-oak-rah") Four Harness Table loom and a pile of various items that go with it. I wasn't quite sure what it all was, but I knew there was one piece missing--the reed that goes into the beater bar (I think that's the right words) and the metal piece that puts that part all together and attaches it to the loom.
So as soon as I got home and unloaded, I fired up my computer and Googled both Glimakra and parts as well. I found the very informative site at Elkhorn Mountains Weaving, but I wasn't quite sure what I definitely needed (a picture did help; I was still assuming that my loom was a Victoria) so I gave them a call, thinking that if they weren't open, I would just email and wait for a reply.
Well, someone answered, and I think it might have been the owner herself; I forgot to write down her name, but according to the website, it's Joanne Hall. Anyway, she was very nice and helpful (and even helped me go through the whole pile of stuff to identify it) and she was the one who told me that I didn't have a Victoria after all, but an older model called "Pysslingen." Which, in Swedish, means (approximately) "Little Elf." She said they could supply me with the missing reed for the beater bar and the metal part that attaches the whole thing to the loom, and told me that Ashford has a new book out for the 4-harness loom as well.
She also told me that they stopped production of the Pysslingen looms in 1979 and that's when the Victoria was released. So, just like my new bike, my new loom could be as old as me.
And thus my search is ended.
(I also found a humongous boat shuttle at Burlington for $15. I'm planning to sell that one on ebay, since none of my looms use boat shuttles (as far as I know, at least.) And I'm also going to stop by Windy's World in Williamsburg one evening this week (or at least see about their hours; I'm not sure how late they are open) and see about taking a class if I can manage it. That would be nice.)
What a day!
(My new loom definitely needs a name. Any suggestions? I'm thinking something Swedish would fit.)
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