Tag Archive | yarn

Hazel Rose Looms 20th Anniversary!!!

OKAY! It’s Monday and time to start Weaving! We’ve gathered up our square and Triangle looms and found the perfect yarn and we’re ready to weave! The Pattern is posted below, You’ll also be able to find it on my project page at Ravelry and on the facebook Pin loom group.

Be sure to enter for the weakly prize by posting a comment about the WAL here on my blog. name will be [picked at random at the end of the week. This weeks prize is a set of Packing forks the regular and the small sizes, one will be one of Randy’s arty ones! Very handy tools to have in your kit!

Red Bird Pattern.

It’s a Party! There’ll be weaving and pictures and projects and prizes and chatter and fun!!

First an anniversary story.

A little History…

I’ve been reading about companies moving their manufactories back to the US and it got me to thinking. Randy & I have been making small looms for nearly 20 years now and all those years have been right here in the US. Right here in Trinity County, California, in fact. We started out in Grandmother’s garage. We now have our own shop but it’s less than 100 yards from that old garage so we haven’t moved far. In the beginning I told Randy that I would not publish our web page until he had at least a dozen looms made that first time and last year we made over 1700 but it’s still just him and me.

Some people may think they see too much of me ‘on-line’ but it’s what I love. I belong to many groups, to a bunch of Ravelry groups, as well as facebook, even twitter, tho my internet and ‘dumb’ phone won’t let post there. Most of these are about yarn in some way. I knit, crochet, weave, felt, spin… you name it. It’s what I like to do, just as you do or you would not be reading this here. And I like making the looms. I think we do a good job with them and I think the fact that we’re still doing it after 20 years proves that a lot of other people think we do a good job, too. I use the same looms we send to our customers. Well, almost. I usually end up using the ones he doesn’t think he got quite right. You know, what some other company would call ‘seconds”. It has an extra hole drilled in the wrong spot or the grain of the wood caused it to develop little hair line cracks when I put the nails in, that sort of thing. But they are still good looms and sturdy!

Yeah, if you ever manage to wear out your loom or find a flaw in it, send me an email. We’ll make arrangements to repair or replace, depending on what’s wrong. For instance, if you drop your loom in the driveway and then back over it, we may not be willing to replace it free but we’ll try to fix it if you think it might be done. I’m still using the very first looms he made for me and they are going strong. And I don’t really treat my loom tenderly; they kick around all over and get tossed in the car to go to shows or just on trips with us. They aren’t hung neatly on the wall like my sister’s but are piled in a box in the closet. Sturdy!

And if you need something special made, Randy’s your man. Several of the looms we make started with a weaver saying, “Can you make a….”. Randy says, “I can make anything.” And so far he’s made good on that bit of boasting, I have to admit. He made a tiny purpleheart trapezoid for a weaver and recently made a long thin loom that will be used to weave purse straps. Our Diamond looms started with a customer request. And the Multi’s were a result of another company dropping their version of the old Weave-it looms. Weavers kept asking so we finally gave in. Now we make 6 sizes of Multi squares, three rectangles, and two triangles in that style.

We ship the looms, not all over the world, but I can count at least 10 countries I have shipped to. If you are in England, Canada, or Scotland there are shops carrying them. There are weaving teachers giving workshops using them, too. We are quite proud of our little looms and are just tickled pink by the number of people who also like them. If I sound like I am bragging, well, I guess I am. We’re not in the same category as Schacht or Ashford or LeClerc or any of those Big Guys but I think we have a quality product in our nitch. We want to make weaving tools as beautiful as the projects weavers make on them.

And we are lucky enough to live in one of the most beautiful parts of California and get to work from our home. How could it be better? I try to post on the blog regularly and there are pictures of our part of the world. Take a look and then go look at our looms and see if I exaggerate.

I learned about this kind weaving from my sister who built herself a 6′ triangle for weaving shawls. I was visiting her and she showed me how to do it and I went home and ordered Carol Leigh’s 7′ adjustable loom. I wove a few shawls, Okay, done that. And the loom set up in my small house took up just too much room so one day I got inspired and got some finish nails and some scrap plywood from Randy’s construction stuff and made myself and 7″ tri. I was able to weave these small triangles while sitting in my chair in the evenings.

The first rough loom. It worked, even if it wasn’t pretty!

The square came next, thus the first Quilt Weaver set. It was very rough and ugly but worked fine. Sometime later, things were looking down for us, his big job for the summer was canceled when the people found they could not afford to build after all, and the K-8 school where I was aide and art teacher was losing students and had to cut back my hours, so we were feeling sorry for ourselves. I jokingly said, “Well, we can always make looms.” He asked to see what I was talking about and – it just grew from there. We haven’t looked back. When we first started he made one loom at a time. Today he cut out and assembled 30 looms. My Dad used to say that when you make something for money, it’s not fun anymore. Well, I don’t know if loom building is exactly fun, but it is very satisfying. And it’s also satisfying to know that we are helping other people learn the art and enjoyment of weaving.

I think that sometimes we should remember that the people we buy from on-line, especially in this yarn line, are not corporations for the most part, but people, almost neighbors, no matter how close or far they live from us. There’s a weaver sitting at a floor loom in the back bedroom weaving dishtowels to sell, with the timer beside her so she doesn’t forget the roast that’s in the oven for dinner. A spinner on the porch spinning yarns for sale while she watches her kids playing in the yard. A couple of knitters working on lace scarves to put up on etsy, I know a weaver who is weaving I-pad cases on our looms to sell at the spring craft sale in her area. It’s the same with the gal who spins or the family raising sheep or alpaca. This is all true. It’s that huge village and we all contribute to it whether we sell or buy or just share what we make via donations to charity or pictures posted to group, blogs or even facebook.

But now I’d better get back to work, neighbors are waiting for their looms!

Weaving a Pot holder

Sep4

Okay, finally here’s some weaving content! When packing up the kitchen in case of evacuation I used all my potholders as packing material between breakables. Clever, huh? Yes, but I still have to cook meantime! The too thin commercial pot holder that was left is cute but I may as well use my barehand and burn scars are not cute! I I dug out some yarns and the 3.5×7″ Quilt Weaver rectangle and wove a few. Two are Brown Sheep’s Lamb’s Pride 80% wool, 20% mohair and a skein of my own handspun, unlabeled, of course. That’s how I know it’s mine. Rosy, my spinning sister, labels hers with fiber type and yardage. Anyway, I wove two of each yarn and felted them in the washer with some bath mats. Not a good choice by the way as they incorporated a nice bit of white fuzz onto my blocks. But as I am not after pretty with this project I didn’t let that stop me, just something to keep in mind!

So now I see that the Brown Sheep felted up nice and tight, the hand spun less so but still good. I decided that the Brown Sheep were going to be a little too small for my project and that both were still a little thinner than I wanted for a pot holder. So I sewed the smaller ones to the larger to make my holder a double thickness. Then I used a blanket stitch to sew the two pads together.

Those of you who use the original non-stick (cast iron) skillets know how hot that handle can get but I think I’ve fixed that now! I’ll tell you after breakfast tomorrow!

It’s not pretty or cute but it looks like doing what I need. It ought to be pretty fire proof too, so hopefully I won’t set the kitchen on fire! However, I think I’ll make another and make it just a bit shorter. And maybe this time I’ll go for cute as well as safety!

Happy St. Pat’s day!

Mar9

Here we are in March again! St. Valentines day is gone and Easter is coming. It was spring yesterday and today started with winter white! St Pat’s day is right in the middle. I started weaving this little project awhile back but time got by me and now it’s nearly here, But this one is a quick one so go ahead and start!

Have a happy March!

Shamrocks

© HazelRoseSpencer 2021

Small HazelRose SweetHeart Loom

100% wool worsted weight yarn, green.

Weaving needle

Notes:

You can weave this with man-made fibers but it will be bigger as it will not felt. You’ll need a washing machine to felt this. These are useful as well as decorative. They work as a doily under a tea cup or soup bowl or as a mug rug to protect your furniture from drips. They are quick to make and make nice little hostess gifts as well.

Felted they will measure about 5″ or 12.5cm across.

Instructions:

Weave four hearts.

Weave in tails leaving about a half inch of yarn hanging out. Once these are felted you can clip these ends. This helps make sure nothing comes undone.

Sew two hearts together on one side. Twice.

4.Sew the two sets together.

Crochet a double chain* to make a stem. Connecting it just off the underside edge, weave in ends.

Felt. I put these in a small laundry bag and washed them in hot water with a couple bath towels. Smooth them out when washed and lay the flat to dry. I did not put them in the drier. When they were dry I steamed them flat and trimmed the ends. These are sort of felted to the back so you would not have to clip them but I think it helps them lay flat.

Crocheted double chain:

Pull loop though to the back, chain 2.

Insert hook into stitch on the left and pull a loop up. Chain though both loops on hook. Repeat until your chain is as long as you want it. Fasten off and weave ends into chain to hide.

To use as mug rug, using a good fabric glue & glue the Shamrocks to a piece of non-skid backing. Cover the top with a bit of saran or foil and place a moderate weight, like a book, on it and let it set for at least several hours. Cut around the non-skid, making the backing just a little smaller than the wool so that it does not show from the front. Check your glue label for washing instructions. The saran is to keep any glue from accidently getting on your weight.

February again. 2021

Feb6

We did have some winter, 30″ of snow almost two weeks ago and bits and inches later which mostly melted off as fast as they fell. We still have 10 or so inches of that first one left on the ground.

I send in my seed order early as the companies are advising us to. And plants which I had set the ship Date at the end of March. Got my onion plants the day after the snow storm. What the heck? Not shoveling out the garden so I can plant onions in February! Lady at the seed company apologized, said their shipper thought we lived in south California. Isn’t that was zip codes are for? But she ordered more to be shipped early April and promised to hold the rest until then also. Hope so. The garden this year will be almost as big but different. Cutting back on tomatoes for one thing.

We go to town today to get or virus vaccinations. We’re luck to live in an area where there is not much of this plague so are comparatively safe. We do wear our masks and maintain social distancing. We go to the Grocery and the gas station and the hardware store, that’s about it. If we need anything else, there’s Amazon. I can use stash yarn for the nest 20 years and not run out so am good there, too! lol

I have been weaving on the large SweetHeart loom. The plan is a cowl using Crochet to joining and fill out a bit tho I have yet to discover if this will work. Maybe this way.

I think it’s springtime!

Apr19

Did I say that before? Well, I think it really is this time. Our lows have been in the 40’s and the garden is already growing. the early guys anyway. Flowers, too. And the trees are leafing out. All but the oaks, but they are always last, not really trusting kind of plants. Kinda like my Pop, he said don’t plant out until the Oak leaves are as big as squirrels ears. Yes, for most things but the peas like it early! And the daffies have been blooming, they never want to miss the last snow! But the tulips are now blooming on my new bulb bed, too.

And Grandmother’s favorite wild flower. She said they look so cheerful in the lawn, the first to bloom in her yard. They always make me think of her. She was Randy’s grandmother but we cared for her in her last 20 or so years and I was closer to her than to my own grandmother so I just leave the in-law part off. A great lady. Too bad the new owner does not like them and has killed them all off, along with the wind flowers and English daisies. Only hawkweed left out there now. I suppose it is pretty too but way too invasive.

And The PUD says the power will be out from 8am to 4pm on Tuesday so I am designating Tuesday as Weaving day! Got my bins ready!

The Mystery Weave Along using the 3.5″ Quilt Weaver Square and a couple projects for patterns I’m writing up. I think it’ll be enough to keep me busy all day! But weaving today, too, working on some color designs for the big triangles. And I badly needed a haircut so I figured I may as well re-dye it, too, as I cut most of the pink off. Himself & dog have gone firewood cutting, you’ll see why I like to do this when everyone is gone! Now, while the Kool Aid is doing it’s thing, I’m going back to weaving!

First 12″ square Multi project… and a little more.

Sep8

I finished my 12″ square project, I guess you can call it a sort of sampler. I’ve always thought this was a cute saying so decided to use it here. I think this is going to stay on the 12″ as it’s frame for the time, at least. If I decide I need it again I’ll come up with something else. Or have Himself make me another one! 🙂

It took me most of the summer to weave the square, not because it was hard, but there were just too many other things going on. Then between trying to chart it out (no, there is no pattern!) and doing the actual embroidering, there went another month. But it’s done now & I’m hunting a place to hang it.

So now it’s back to garden and weaving for my sweat pants, another long term project. This time because it needs so many of them! I have about 24. I’m afraid to calculate how many I’ll actually need, but I am on my first skein and still have quite a bit of that one left. I knew this would take awhile but I wanted to do it and I have the yarn for a top to go with when I get the pants done. Maybe I should challenge myself to lose weight while I’m weaving these and lessen the # of squares I need as I go! Good idea, I wonder if it would work?

But today I need to take care of this stuff!

I’ll be loading the dehydrator this morning. I make veg soup mix for winter use. Very handy and can be used for other things, too. The cherry tomatoes will be juiced. I will probably pick this many again tomorrow to add to then. The garden has done well this year. Probably more than we need for two people. This time of year I start thinking we’ll do less next year and then comes January when the seed catalogs start coming in… well, you know how that goes. Sort of like yarn sales. No, I don’t need any more yarn but this is a great price and I’d really like to make this project etc etc. next thing you know … 😀 Well, I only planted two zucchini this year! Next year I will try to restrain myself and stay at one! The peppers were an accident, really. I wanted a six pack but when I got home from the nursery and went to plant them I found there were two plants in each little ‘tub’. So I could plant one and kill the other or plant them all. What would you have done? I couldn’t bring myself to kill a healthy looking plant. Besides I like peppers so it was a bargain really! And the beans! They have been producing from early on! They are ratty and bug eaten plants but still blooming and making beans! It’s disgraceful! I have canned and eaten and am now reduced to putting some of them in the dehydrator as well. It’s like that 70 some year old woman I read about who just had twins. Just not respectable at her age or the age of these beans! They should be retired by now! I have even thought of euthanasia, just pull them up, but could not bring myself to do it.

And there’s some pretty stuff out there in the garden that I’ll add just for that reason, too! They can keep blooming, I don’t have to can them!

Marigold and borage. It’s little blue stars don’t photograph very well but the bees dont’ have any trouble finding them! There’s gloriosa daisy in there and the chard in the back ground. That’s keeping us in greens for the long term, too!

The zinnias. There was a butterfly in there but I can’t find it in the photo.

I just like this picture. I have no idea how many of these little pie pumpkins are hidden in there. It’s big patch!

Hope your summer is cooling off and you are getting ready for a lovely autumn! See you in Oregon at OFFF soon!

A Sunday off.

Aug19

Yesterday we took a picnic lunch & with dog, headed up Coffee Creek road to Mt. Meadow. The dirt road is 14 miles and dead ends up there but it took a good hour to drive. It’s in pretty horrible shape (county had no $, same story all over) and not advised for vehicles with low clearance. Not that that stops them! It’s the trail head into the Alps and hikers and packers love it. There were Prius’s at the trail head! And it was going home day for hikers and for the resort up there so the traffic was heavy and I guess those guys don’t value their cans all that much. On the ONE lane road as they were driving like it was paved! We tooled along slowly, more or less enjoying the bumpy trip and watching out for on-coming as most of them don’t know how to drive roads of this kind. Their idea of passing on a one lane road is to stop when they see you and let you figure out how to get around without climbing the bank or going over one! But we made it and I hope all them did too. Oh yes, there was another factor in the back woods ‘freeway’ traffice- opening day of bow season. These two photos might give you an idea of the road. But no photo can really show it.

Off the edge. That’s Coffee Creek way down there.

But before the trail walkers started coming back to their cars the campground was totally delightful! The quiet so thick it was almost tangible. Sis is right, it is not so much just the lack of noise as it is the lack of background noise. The noises we all have grown so used to that we don’t really hear until they are missing. The distant traffic, the lawn mowers & leaf blowers, the electronics and appliances in our houses, we just don’t really hear them anymore. But when they are missing it is very noticeable! The quiet falls softly on your ears. Talk about stress relief! It’s amazing. I just sat and listened. Once in awhile there was a bird chirp, and a breeze came up later adding a soft whisper above. Then around 1pm, as we were were finishing lunch, the hikers stared coming out of the woods. But even with added people noises it was still a lovely day.

We took a walk about the camp ground & down to the meadow. Most flowers were already done and the little patch of aspens have not yet started to turn. But it’s still pretty. Looking up to the resort & the old historical cabin.

Then while Randy and dog walked down to play in the Salmon River I sat at the table and got out my loom.

Weaving in the Wilderness

I don’t trust my bad knee on that very steep trail but He took pictures. Used to love wading the the stream. Dog enjoyed it!

Salmon river,

Salmon river, down stream it gets a bit more rugged.

And the view across the meadow into the Alps is just beautiful, anytime of the year. You can see there is still snow up there. The hikers told us there is a lot more than shows here on the sunny side of the hill.

And there are still some flowers blooming in the first meadows.

But now it’s Monday. He’s back to deck building, I’m canning plums, peaches, and zucchini relish. I managed to fit a peach pie in there, too! Dog is snoring in her bed, staying out of the heat & dreaming of that nice cool stream for wading!

Hope you’re finding some cool too!

Starting August already!

Jul30

Been playing catch-up after our trip, loom orders, chores, garden, Himself putting brakes on truck and my car, and we tackled Le Shed! I am overjoyed at that! It has been such a mess that I could hardly even get in to find anything. Quite a bit went bye-bye and the rest got “organized”- and I use the tern loosely. There is still some sorting to do but at least everything is back on shelves and not just stacked around.

Mostly ‘stuff’ , with some yarn. The old dresser is outa here, too.

There goes the twin bed to the garage.

He caught me heaving another box out.

It’s all put away now and he’s built new shelves so some of the ‘stuff’ in the house can move out there, too! Now back to garden. The beans need canning and there is enough zucchini for a batch of relish. He gripes about eating too much zucchini but loves it in this form! I picked a couple bell peppers and some small cherry tomatoes today, too. The chard is doing well and the late planted kale is about ready to cut. Lots of melons & pumpkins coming on and I think some of the beets are starting to make roots as well. So I’m going to be busy. It only got to 97 today. Canning weather? Gasp. 😉

Maybe it’s time to try out our nearly full lake!

Insert wolf whistle?

Have a nice week!

Home again…

Jul20

We’re back home again after our two weeks on the road. It was a trip I really needed, I think DH did as well. After Black Seep Gathering we had a week before The Grazing hills event the next weekend so we spent the time wandering though NE Oregon and into Washington via back roads, avoiding the major highways as much as possible. We stayed in State or USFS campgrounds and on occasion just bushwhacking. Here’s our first encounter with an automated flagman!

Automated flagman!

Seafoam blooming at/in window!

It was still springtime up in the higher elevations and a nice wet winter has everything green and blooming. Warm, not hot, days, cool nights, no internet or phones… it was wonderful! By the time we reached Viola, Idaho, we were relaxed and ready for the next event. Katie, Christine, and crew did a great job with this new event. It was well organized, well advertised, well laid out, just an all around excellent fair, especially for a first time event! Lots of other vendors and very friendly people. We got to see new born alpacas taking their first wobbly steps, and chatted with lots of old and new friends. I had a class of 6 new weavers there and at Albany and I hope I was able to inspire them to continue with this fun craft. The grocery bag wind socks were a popular item and certainly put on a show on this windy hill top! Lovely rolling hills farm country!

Viola Booth

One row of vendor booths on Sunday morning. Sunday morning is a slow time at fairs. We had lots of people Saturday and Sunday afternoon.

So now we have a couple months to get ready for OFFF and Lambtown! Check out those events, too, if you have not already done so. And the garden is into production. I will have to pick beans again today. Randy pulled his crop of carrots and has replanted. I dunno if they’ll do much this time of year but as I have failed at carrots, I’ve turned them over to him! I’ll need to harvent some turnips today, too, as I see there are leaf munchers enjoying those plants!

First harvest! Not bad for a first time! And my first zucchini didn’t make it into the photo!

Randy has gone off with a neighbor to work on the water works up Treasure Creek. The spring run-off took out both the Beavers Dam and his own control system. People down stream are worried about their fishes, most politely, one forgetting that having this water is not her “right” and wording her concerns is less than acceptable ways. Ah well, not everyone is a happy person. Too bad.

And I now have a new ‘toy’! A summer resident and friend has given me his late wife’s knitting machine. She was a beautiful lady and will certainly be missed by everyone who knew her. I hope to be able to learn how to use her classic machine. But I am still weaving, never fear! lol

New projects coming up!

Hope your summer is not too hot or too busy!

Black Sheep Gathering!

Jun28

We’re heading off pretty soon for Albany, Oregon and the Black Sheep Gathering. We’ll have the booth all weekend, of course and I’ll have beginning Pin loom weaving class Sunday afternoon, if you know anyone in the area who wants to learn. After that we head to Viola, Idaho and the Grazing hills Fiber Arts Festival. This is a new show and the ladies have worked very hard to make this a good one. I’ve offered two classes there. The same beginning pin loom class and also weaving a dishcloth on the 10.5″ Quilt Weaver square. Check them out.

Black Sheep

Grazing Hills