Sunday, December 21, 2008

Weekend Project: Jumping into the Deep End

Challenge is a dragon with a gift in its mouth.
Tame the dragon and the gift is yours.
- Noela Evans

Last summer, a friend and I attended a convention hosted by the Handweaver's Guild of America called Convergence, which was held in Tampa, Florida. For the most part, I attended sewing-related classes and she attended beading-related classes. However, in the exhibit area, we each tried a bit of weaving on a floor loom, and I fell in love...

One day, I promised myself, one day...

Maybe after I retire, when I have more time...

So, what showed up on our doorstep last week as an early Christmas present from this friend? One of the books that kept calling to me at the conference:


You've probably seen comparable books for knitting - page after page of instructions for different patterns that could be incorporated into any project. This friend and I met in college because we were both math majors, and one of the things that appealed to me about weaving (and this book) was the decomposition of beautiful, complex patterns into systematic sequences of actions...


Now, I don't have ANY time in my life for another hobby... Between family, work, sewing, climbing, blogging, my sewing lessons, my internet friends, etc. I can barely squeeze in enough time to sleep!

But flipping through the book brought it all back - the comfort of the rhythmic motion of weaving, the satisfaction of seeing a beautiful piece emerge from my efforts... I couldn't help myself and had to do just a little bit of searching on the internet...

And that is when fate pulled open the curtains and revealed my dragon for 2009. A woman less than 100 miles from my house was selling a NEW Harrisville floor loom (the very model I used at the conference) for HALF PRICE!


If you re-read that last sentence, you'll notice that I said that she "was" selling a loom. Past tense. Enough said... ;)

9 comments:

Flora said...

I'm sure you'll find time for your new hobby. :-) Enjoy!

AmeliaSews said...

Congratulations! I'm sure you'll love it. My husband had always wanted to weave too and always said when I retire... Well, this summer we found a loom at a secondhand store in the very small town we live - they didn't know what they had and well, I know you've seen the results on my blog. It is something that will last for many years to come, they don't go bad. And if you're anything like my husband... you'll hear the siren's song long before you actually have time.

Joanne said...

Good for you! Even if you don't get to it right away, you know that you have it. Weaving sounds very comforting, with the motion, the sounds, the colors. Enjoy!

Anonymous said...

I look forward to seeing the results :) Hvae fun with it!
-Natalie

Christine said...

Alright! I can't wait to hear all about, and ultimately see, your first project on it!

Summerset said...

LOL. Past tense! Good luck - sounds like a fun new project.

Anonymous said...

Uh oh!! Actually, weaving looks like so much fun. I would love to get involved in something like that. I can't wait to see what you do with your weaving projects.

Alviana said...

mm.. something new to me.. sound interesting. i would like to know more bout it. looking forward for the result :)

Anonymous said...

Hooray for you! It was OBVIOUSLY meant to be...