Inspired by the loom at the Berlin Technical Museum, Adam and I have started building our own loom. From scratch. We’re going off of the photos/video of what we saw at the museum, and my dim memory of the looms I used when I was in college.
So far we have the frame mostly built, constructed a reed, and I’ve started working on the head.
The reed on a loom is used to compact the fabric as you weave it, helping to make things even. They usually consist of a wood frame with thin strips of metal making a grill. One or two yarns will go in between each space.
Our was made from a 12″x3″ sheet of poplar and a handful of popsicle sticks. Cutting popsicle sticks on the laser is fun! Although laying them out is a little tedious.
The frame for the reed was cut on the laser and then the popsicle sticks were glued in. The holes on either side are for attaching the reed to the beater.
We got a bit of a late start yesterday and had to make way for Craft Night in the evening, so work on the loom will resume next Wednesday.
