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Saturday, March 25, 2017

Friday's Hunt 3.12


Our prompts from Eden Hills this week are:  Starts with L, Week's Favourite, and Antique.

Starts with L
L is for loom!  I have a few.  Looms are for weaving.  On occasion, when I have been at a public spinning event, using my spinning wheel, I have heard people say to one another "Oh look, she's weaving."  No, actually I'm spinning.  I've heard a mother say to her child "That's weaving" when I am spinning.  It's a bit frustrating.  Looms have a warp (threads that are vertical and fixed in place while you are facing the loom) and a weft, which is the thread that you use to go back and forth, across the warp.  That is how woven fabric is made.

My largest loom is this Nilus LeClerc floor loom.  I got it second hand, and I confess, I have not yet used it.  I really want to do so!  But I need to clean it up and get it warped before I can use it.  I got it about 5 years ago.  It's on the list of things to be done!

This is my table loom - a Rasmussen 4-harness loom.  The Rasmussen company doesn't exist anymore.  They were purchased by Montana Looms, who also went out of business.  It's a good quality table loom and I have used it.  Once.  Ahem.  I intend to rectify that.


 It has a floor stand too, so it doesn't have to take up table space.


This is my rigid heddle loom, leaning at the bottom of a shelf full of weaving yarn cones.  It's a vintage Erica loom made by Northfield Loom of Minnesota. They don't exist anymore either.  It's a great little loom and I've made several projects on it.  It's easy to warp and use - probably why I've used it the most.  As you can see, I have a lot of weaving yarn available.  I really need to use my looms more often!


This is my Majacraft circle loom.  These are currently in production, and a lot of fun to use!


I also have a DA Looms sock loom and a pot holder loom.

There are no more looms looming in my future!

Week's Favourite
My favourite picture from the past week is this one I took of a squirrel outside on the brush pile.  I really like the way the red colour of his coat highlights ties in with the branch colour.  I also love his assertive look - you can see he's watching me!

Antique
I have a couple of interesting antiques from my father's mother, who was from England.  Her name was Rose Lillian Towler, and she became Rose Lillian Moxon after marriage.  I have this lovely antique grandfather clock that lived in her home for many years before I inherited it.  It has a lovely, mellow Westminster chime.

The face has the Latin phrase "Tempus Fugit" above it, which means "Time flies" in English.  I put one of the cat's mouse toys up there, to look like the Hickory, Dickory Dock nursery rhyme!

I also have this interesting antique medal that she won in her younger days for the sport of push ball. Push ball was a sport that began to be played in the late 1800s.  It was played with a large, leather ball that was the height of an average man.  It was constructed from four leather hides placed over a wooden frame. The two teams had to try to push the large and heavy ball through a goal for a score.


I thought it needed a bit of cleaning when I got it out for the photograph, so I took to it with a toothbrush and some Silvo.  It turned out quite well!  I think she would be pleased with the clean up! The push ball match was sponsored by the Daily Mail, which was a newspaper.  I think it's still in existence today.

As you can see, it was awarded to her in June of 1927 in the town of Hanwell, which is a town in the London Borough of Ealing, in West London.

The original box is still with it and it shows that the medal was made by Fattorini and Sons, in Bradford, England.  I was inspired to look them up and found out that they were a jewellery business established by a family of Italian immigrants, originally opening their shop in Harrogate in 1831. The Bradford shop was opened in the 1850s.  Remarkably, the business still survives today, having been handed down over the years through the family. (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fattorini_and_Sons)

It's lovely to have these old family heirlooms to admire and to think about the history of my family members over time.

9 comments:

Margaret Birding For Pleasure said...

That medal cleaned up great adn i love the grandfather clock. Very impressive looms etc. Have a good week ahead.

Tom said...

"L"ooms galore! My Amish friends have a knack for finding old "L"ooms. That squirrel is a FAVORITE! Nice antiques to have.

Ralph said...

The loom is interesting, a mechanical device that I am not familiar with. Yet, the loom and fabric making seems to be a lost art, the giant looms in faraway lands making all our woven materials...you have a skill, lots of yarn and the desire to use it. So cool!

Jim said...

Those looms are so precious, Claire. Especially to you. I know looms a little bit but didn't know about the spinning machine, not a wheel at all.
Love your clock. We also have a similar one with the boxed in pendulums. It is a Thos. Whip made in England between 1820 and 1843. It doesn't have a moon dial but does have a day of the month dial.
..

Michelle said...

Lovely post, Claire. LOVE the photo of the squirrel and learning more about your family.

Crazy Lady with purple fingers said...

Loved this post and loved seeing your looms, I have a few too and have not used them since we moved to this place, had a lot of spinning wheels too but rehomed a few last year. The squirrel picture is perfect, what a cute little guy!

Gattina said...

What a nice loom ! Love the squirrel too ! Each photo is well thought of for the theme !

Anonymous said...

I am impressed with the assortment of looms you have. I have only ever used the little pot-holder variety. Fun though! The squirrel is adorable. I have a fondness for the little scamper rats. The clock is gorgeous, and I love the medal with its interesting family story. Of course, I do enjoy family history. Thanks so much for joining Friday's Hunt. Hope you have a great week!

Anonymous said...

All kinds of looms--I had no idea there are so many types. I have a lot of things I need to make time to do, also, having bought the project supplies a while back.