Weaving with Children – Blog Post
Part of finding the joy in weaving is dealing with challenges. Weaving with children around can bring its own special joys and challenges. Jenne has had some grand adventures in the past few years as she has learned to weave. We have convinced her to re-live some of the adventures and share them with you.
By Jenne S.
Ahhh…. The joys of weaving with children! As the end of the year approaches, I find myself reflecting on the life I’ve made. For almost 24 years I have been raising 6 beautiful children with my husband. We have had joys and pains, and many ups and downs. Now that I have learned to weave, I’ve learned it takes a special type of patience as you learn to navigate the ups and downs of weaving. Especially if it involves the children…
Weaving at Home!
My first attempt at weaving at home, with children, was a set of washcloths on a Cricket rigid heddle loom. I was so confident about warping the loom quickly and easily, that I let my 7-year-old help me out. We got the loom warped, but when I was ready to throw the first picks, I couldn’t get an open shed! I swore my daughter must have done something wrong. Whoops, guess it was me! Who knew you had to make sure to go over the back beam when you thread the reed? I do now!
Try, Try Again!
About a year later, I tempted fate again. A doubled 10/2 Tubular Spectrum™ mercerized cotton warp for napkins with a coordinating 5/2 weft. 108 inches of this lovely gray, gradient warp was elegantly being direct warped in my living room.
As a mom of 6, I am rarely not multitasking. Of course, in the middle of the warp, the timer on the stove went off for dinner, and I stopped warping to “quickly” attend to the timer. I’m not sure why I was surprised to hear a crash from the living room.
When I went to investigate, I found my half-wound warp tangled up with my 3-year-old and his puppy companion. He, of course, blamed the dog.
Learning and Growing!
Fast forward a bit, and I am now the proud owner of a Schacht Wolf Pup loom. After a few learning projects like the towel fabric shown in the picture on the right, I happily put on a Lyte hemp™ warp to make a Snowball Runner. After the warp was all beamed and threaded, I went to sleep knowing I’d be spending the morning sleying the loom and getting ready to weave.
I’ll never forget how hard I had to force a smile as my 4-year-old runs up to me the next morning and says, “Look Mama! The kitty is sleeping on your yarn!” The warp was unevenly stretched, but that was easy to fix. And the cat no longer sleeps in the same room as the loom.
When I talked to a friend about “Weaving with Children.” Her response was, “I think it would be easier to weave with bacon.”
This thought was not lost on me. But I will be victorious. One day I will complete a woven project, all without interruption….and I will be wishing I was weaving with children.
LOVE ♥️ IT!
You are AMAZING!