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