Welcome, Louella!

January 06, 2013

Welcome, Louella!

I did it! I took the tapestry loom from Bonnie who needed it out of her studio to make room. I went to her house Saturday morning, and Bonnie and her husband manipulated it out of the basement and onto the lawn in their backyard.
If you look closely at the photo, you will see that there is no way the tapestry loom is going to fit into the Subaru. Out came the power drills and screws were undone to allow Louella to break down into more manageable pieces.
I used the wagon to get the smaller pieces into the house, and my strong, young neighbor pulled into his driveway at just the critical moment to help me carry the main piece into the house. He called it a sewing machine, until his wife corrected him!

And here lies Louella! She's in the dining room, awaiting reconstruction. But first I'm going to sand all the wooden parts down and give them a fresh coat of Tung oil. That will have to wait until tomorrow, since I have to work tonight, but it will be a fun project!
Bonnie gave me the letter that came with the loom, from the man who built it, George W. Mork, to the man who ordered it, Ozzie Christensen, for his wife, Louella.
Here's what it says:

Feb. 27, 1978
Dear Ozzie,
I thought it best to write this than to tell you about it over the phone.
Louella's loom is on its way. I started it a few days ago, as I thought it best to have it completed before we leave on our annual trek. I hope to have it finished in early April so you can leave it here thruout the summer or you can take it before we leave. I have perhaps two more to make up at the lake.
Now-- should you decide to tell Louella about it, and why not--you can give her a hug and a box of candy or some roses for Xmas!
Now to tell you a little about it. It is a Tapestry Loom, which it seems we both agree on as she is most definitely oriented towards the arts. The Tapestry loom allows the weaver to view her work from a standing position the same as a painter. Barby has confirmed this.
Specification:

Width of weaving 36"
O.A. Height 72"
" " Width 46"
Number of heddles 400--two hundred in ea. frame
Beater approx. 21" travel
Reed in beater 10 dent-but any dent reed can be inserted-She might want several sizes.

Barby recommends a 10 dent but also has a 12 and 15 dents--the dent means that there are so many spaces per inch--Which spaces the warp.

8. The loom is completely demountable--it's held together with screws in bolts with wing nuts, so if you ever have to move, you can take it apart.
9. The beater which drives the weft into the warp, since it moves in almost a vertical path is balanced by 6 springs--three on each side which work on a torque equalizer which make the pull at the bottom of the stroke almost nearly the same as at the top. I think is a new innovation.
10. I have included in the design a tray at lapp level for yarn, scissors, etc. It is removable so can be set aside when she is stringing the warp.
11. I will also include 6 shuttles-- 2-24", 2-18" and 2-12".

As I said before it should be ready by early April as I work on it every day. I'll call you at work when the time comes.

Sincerely,
Geo
P.S. Here's the sketch of the two andirons I want.

So, I guess George was swapping andirons for the loom? I don't know who Barby is, perhaps the person who helped George design the loom. Bonnie got the loom from Louella's and Ozzie's daughter, and I would love to meet her to talk to her more about the history of the loom. It isn't often we get so much information about our looms!
One of the happy coincidences for me is that I now have three looms from 1978 and two from 1979. If only I'd started weaving then! How far I'd have come by now! But I was a young single mom, with a lot more serious things on my mind, and I wouldn't have had time or money for weaving back then. I can enjoy the looms from others who were weaving then, as I worried about the wolf at the door and my son's happiness!
Photos will follow soon as Louella gets put back together and finds her home in my loom-filled house!