Pulling Up Stakes

Well, after all our prep work and waiting all summer long, the day finally came for the packers from the moving company to arrive.  The kitchen cupboards were full of china and many other full cupboards. We had downsized as much as we could anticipate (and that is the key word for this!). The crew arrived bright and early and said it would take them two days to pack everything including the garage and outdoor gardening gear. 

Amazing, when you think of how fast it can go when you know what you are doing!  They also arrived with this well supplied truck loaded with boxes of every size, tape galore and an endless supply of packing paper.  They were packing machines and powered their way through our house!

At the end of the first day they had boxed up everything but the basics. They left us two cups, plates, cutlery, the coffee maker, our bed, the TV and dog food for Calli. 

It felt strange having these 'tunnels' of boxes to walk through all neatly stacked. Only marked "kitchen" or "linen cupboard". It was the same downstairs too. Below is Bruce's office. Books, office equipment and paraphernalia all neatly parcel and stacked.  We ate pizza and watched TV.  It felt kinda weird .....

Earlier in the day I walked through the studio when the yarns were being boxed and the  guy working commented "I've moved craft studios before, even looms before.... but this is the most yarn I have ever packed up".  So what do you say to that?     Thank you!  😇  They assured me that my babies, the looms,  would be well wrapped and cared for. I decided the best way to handle that was to not be around when they did the deed. What I didn't know would save my one good nerve left. 

On September 29th, the two five-ton trucks arrived and neatly parked within inches of each other in the driveway.  It was quite the symphony men and dollies as boxes were carted out the door and arranged on the lawn outside. Thankfully it was over cast but no rain. They emptied the upper floor first.  It slowed down some at the truck as they carefully fit together a jigsaw puzzle of our household goods into a neat and tidy wall.  They needed a flat front to the load and then using  tie down cords, they cinched it into place so the load would not shift. Then they would build another layer.  

One young helper likened it to a giant Tetris game. I nodded in agreement (but I never played or understand video games like that.)    He said loading took longer due to the fitting process but unloading usually was done in half the time.  I hope so since we're paying by the hour!  

Everything in the house, with the exception of a few items fit into the five ton truck. That includes three looms and loads of yarn..... and all of our books.   The second truck gathered up all the patio furniture and garden shed stuff and headed down to the garage for the last part of the job.

Then the trucks rolled away to be in a storage yard for two days and we were officially home less.  Well, we still owned it for two days but it was completely empty and waiting for the cleaners to come the next day.  Technically the possession was for Oct 1st but the new owners got the keys mid afternoon of the 30th.  I took time out to walk about, check for any forgotten items and take some last pictures.

The fireplace wall was the only original item from when the house was built in 1979.

Our personally designed kitchen, new in 2010.

The lovely hardwood floor "Imperial Walnut" and new doors and windows.

..... and a completely empty studio!  Not even a thrum left behind, though there some lint bunnies.

Below is where the big Woolhouse Tools countermarch sat for years.... then more recently, the Megado. After nine years and one month, this chapter in our lives was over. This room would soon be filled with a large screen TV, comfy couch, and two kids, two dogs, two cats and a whole new focus for the home and property. 

The path was clear for us to leave and so we were off to our hotel for the night.  Next instalment will cover our  transition between homes, and communities.  It seems you are never too old for new adventure!

Hang on for a Bumpy Ride

Sixteen days is what it took for there to be an accepted offer on our house and property!  Oh, and a total eighteen viewings and two other offers.    It was a nail biter finish yesterday. Someone is very happy and another family is very disappointed.    We're just feeling numb right now.    To be fair, our realtor told us after we signed the listing papers to strap in for the ride!

So that's part one done and now we move onto the next phase which is finding a new place to live.  Kinda scary letting go with one hand and having faith the next step is there.  A second ride and hopefully smoother....

I have finished weaving the second scarf and just have samples to weave off and then I'm into fringe twisting (when I'm not on the road viewing homes).

I can stop cleaning now.  

A Little Stroll down Memory Lane

It was just over a week ago that we laid my Dad's remains to rest and we all gathered as a family.  We shared a meal and reminisced.  Since coming home I have found my thoughts drifting back in time and so I went digging through old photos and I recently scanned some into my computer to share.

Yes, that's a much younger (and thinner)  me above with a lady who's name is lost from my memory. It was fall 1995 and I was buying her forty five inch Leclerc Colonial loom with 4 shafts, 6 treadles and it could be set up as either jack  or counterbalance.  It came with bench, electric bobbin winder, shuttles, bobbins, many books including New Key to Weaving, Marguerite Davison's Four shaft pattern book with the green cover, Burnham's Keep Me Warm One Night, and Peter Collingwood's Rug Weaving book.   All for $500.00 and I was so new to weaving, that I had no idea of the super deal we had found! It did involve a trip from the Okanagan to the Vancouver area to view and collect.   I found out later it was missing the apron rods but had some made at a machine shop.  Not a big deal really...

Summer  1996

Coldstream house 1995-1997

The house we first lived in after our move to the Okanagan was in Coldstream, adjacent to Vernon BC. The Leclerc Colonial filled a small bedroom and I don't have any pictures of her set up. What I do have a picture of is the small loom I agreed to 'store' for the local weavers guild and eventually bought from the owner.  We lived on Tassie Drive and the loom was owned by Libby Tassie. Her husband's family had been early settlers in the area. It was a little slice of local history.   It was called the Tassie loom by everyone for obvious reasons, but what it actually was, was a thirty six inch Leclerc Artisat four shaft loom.  You can see that the  "loom creep" was well under way with a loom in a bedroom and this little one was artfully angled in the large living room.  The stash at this point fit well into a closet. 

I upgraded the heddles to the inserted eye variety and in this picture I'm threading a baby blanket for a nephew (who is now nearly twenty!)    We were renting this house and our landlord decided a leaking roof did not merit repairs and so, with the support of the property management company, we broke our lease and moved after ten months....

 Winfield / Lake Country house  July 1998-2004

We rented another home in a community called Winfield (later changed to Lake Country) and were perched on a hill above Gray Monk Winery's vineyards. There was a stunning 180 degree view of Okanagan Lake.    In July 1998 I received the brand new Woolhouse CM loom and so I sold off all the others to help pay for it.  It was an eight shaft model at the time and the wood is so blonde for being newly made.  My brother Kent came for a visit and took pictures of me weaving on her.

No bedroom for this baby!   We placed her in the formal dining area and angled her so I could also see the lake and all its moods. Here I am weaving snowflake twill for the very first time in silk.

Estamont Beach house 2004- 2006

Another move but this time we were buying a home and we moved to a small community called Estamont Beach on the north west side of Okanagan Lake. Here there was an above ground, walkout basement with a rec room and I set up shop there.  The stash and associated equipment had grown (of course) and I used a small office downstairs to store things there.

We were enjoying a  new lake view once again, and the Woolhouse got the window, while a smaller eight shaft Leclerc Compact loom sat across from it. I bought the Compact loom from a dear friend who had woven many, many yards on her since she was new..... so much that she was actually wearing out!  I was warned she was 'tired'!  The loom needed some repairs and replacements and basically a reinvention of the tie up system as the slots for the cords had widened.   I struggled with it for a time and eventually sold it to a weaver in the Shuswap who's handy husband fixed the treadles and some other issues and she happily wove away on it. 

I found the loom was a bit too low for my height as well. New owner Jenny was of a more diminutive height than me.  It just goes to prove that there is a perfect loom and weaver match for every loom and weaver!

I had also bought a gently used 12 shaft Woolhouse Tools Carolyn table loom. It had only ever had one warp on it!  I got the support table frame and it made it much more accessible for use.  It ended up being too big and heavy for workshops, though it was really nice to stand weave when all set up over standing at a table all day. Eventually it was sold to Theresa of blog "Camp Runamuck" fame in Oregon and I believe she sold it in time to someone in Massachusetts.  That loom certainly was going places!     I love table looms for workshops and smaller projects, but if you are looking for speed, then it a floor loom all the way!

Having said that, here's a picture of me and a friend in 2003 working on a Leclerc Dorothy table loom. Julianne had found it in a local garage sale for $25.00 and thought she'd give it a try.   Well, we worked it and finally got  warp on her, but the heavy clunk action of the shafts and the slowness of the process meant Julianne had her own garage sale in due course.

Blind Bay house  2004-2006

We moved to the Shuswap in 2004 to a larger home and the idea was to find a community that was more temperate.  I was finding the long hot summers in the Okanagan really draining. You seemed to live in an AC house and run to your AC car.   It was August when we moved in and it was 39 degrees Celsius. So much for that idea!    The Woolhouse loom went to a small bedroom in the basement and stash and stuff went to the second bedroom down there.  I can't find a picture of the room just now, but they were both bright and cheery..... but very small and I did not feel very inspired in those spaces.

We literally had someone make us an offer on our home that we could not refuse!  Retiring accountants from the Oil Patch in Alberta who wanted our house on the 13th tee of the golf course. So we packed up and moved again.

2006-2007: A brief one year in Powell River 

The Woolhouse loom and Carolyn table loom stayed in a very large bedroom with excellent light. It was a nice space to weave in on the upper floor of our home.   Our situation there in Powell River changed and we made a decision to move, with our home selling in 3 hours, and went to Vancouver Island in 2007 to our present home.

I had become very proficient at dismantling and reassembling (single handed too) the Woolhouse loom.... which continued to expand and grow over the years and that included to an addition of more shafts, a second warp beam and a  20+ tie up assist.  

There's one more move ahead for us and hopefully in 2016 we can sell this house when my recovery is well under way.  Its time to downsize the size of property to look after.  Our home has the main floor 'up' and so a flight of stairs are required to get to bedroom and essential rooms.  Not ideal for someone with joint issues. I will still have another surgery to come even after the knee so the stairs will be an ongoing issue regardless.

You know, it will feel really strange not to have the Woolhouse to breakdown and pack up..... 

I also found some old photographs of past projects to share with you from 2003 - 2004 before I started keeping samples and better records.  It took me a few years to see the sense in it!

Baby blanket: white 8/2 cotton warp with a linen / synthetic blend; crocheted edging.  Sett would have been 24 epi. I used the draft you'll find in this post

Baby Blanket:  white 8/2 cotton with white #10 Aunt Lydia crochet cotton; hem stitched and hemmed.

Baby Blanket: white 8/2 cotton with beige #10 Aunt Lydia crochet cotton; crocheted edging.

 I was a fairly new weaver still and looking for sources of yarns to use.... Aunt Lydia jumbo 1000 yard cones were then $5.99 at Wal-Mart. It gave the blankets a crisp pattern and lovely shine.  I bought a few cones and still have them in my stash. Its nice to use actually. 

A dear friend Gloria, who is now long since passed on, gave guild members this draft for an 8 shaft false damask. I made some kitchen towels featuring Gloria's favourite colour purple. I still have one towel and its in constant use in our kitchen and still looking good after eleven or twelve years.

So what have I learned from this little wander down memory lane?  (besides the fact we have moved a lot, but all for good reasons).  That I tried and traded up different looms as I grew as a weaver. Some worked and fit right and some were interesting to play with for a time and move them along to another weaver.    The loom swapping slowed down in time as I found the right fit for me.

My later acquisitions of my Louet Spring are documented in this post, and my Louet Megado in this post. 

I also learned that our Province of BC is beautiful, one house move at a time!  I think we're happy being Vancouver Islanders now having lived here for 8 years now. It always feels like home when the ferry is heading for her shores. We might just be finally setting down roots! 

17 Years and 10 Days

The last warp on Emmatrude

....and with 6 yards still to go.... I cut this part off.

This multi coloured warp has been on the Woolhouse loom for quite a long time. My information on the digital pictures say they were taken February 14th, 2014.  So long on the loom, that I told weaver friend Wayne that he'd have to come back from Michigan for several consecutive annual visits to complete his towel!   Well, the cloth section is off the loom now but not enough to be a full fledged useful towel.  Its now a nice stack of samples.

The draft is one of my favourites "Breaks and Recesses" or number 47 from A Weaver's Book of 8 Shaft Patterns by Carol Strickler. Nice tidy little boxes and fully reversible.   I used up all sorts of small 8/2 cones of various colours with black bands to bind it all together and make the colours pop.   Great warp to sample a loom for sale..... or weave away on to get acquainted with the loom's personality. 

I loved to treadle away and listen to a book on my iPod or a podcast..... or my favourite playlists. Its a simple treadling.

So new friend and weaver Jill came one day last week to view the loom and after trying her out and spending time with me in the studio for the afternoon, she decided to buy her.  There would be a delay of two days before she could take her home though...

The night before the loom was due to leave I spent time unpegging all 384 clips on the 20+ tie up assist cords and labeling all major beams and parts. I also put the cross back into the warp and secured the lease sticks to the  sectional beam. There's enough warp to weave at least 5 towels so Jill will be off to a flying start. 

I couldn't take the 20+ cords off as they are attached to the upper and lower lamms and I needed help with that. I thought to bundle the heddles together but pulling them together in the centre of the shaft sticks makes the shafts sticks unstable and collapse. So the balance of work had to wait until the morning.

10 am the next morning: once the heddles were bundled and secured top and bottom and off the loom, things progressed quickly!  Off came the shafts sticks and next thing, the lower, then  upper lamms were off in neat piles.  A decision was made to leave the treadles attached to the lower rail and so Jill secured the treadles so they wouldn't be an entirely swinging mess. There were four of us working and so things moved along smartly. With the sliding patio door right there, every newly released part started to be stacked out side on the deck prior to loading in their truck.

Everyone was busy!

Suddenly all the outer 'peripherals' were off the loom and it was down to the basic frame structure. This frame is what needs to be in place to rebuild her up again in her new home.  There is also a very detailed manual to help Jill from when the loom was brand new and also my many pictures, and my little green labels!

The main action shifted to the deck and loading up their vehicle and I was left with an empty spot and a herd of free roaming dust bunnies. (Actually more like buffaloes!)  So out came the vacuum and I gave the carpet a good going over! I didn't want any of them to get away, and besides I was of no use for the loading phase. 

Soon a quick scout around produced no more 'body parts' to go to the deck for loading and it was all over and done. Just the foot prints were left behind. 

  Then a group effort had the Megado shifted down to the spot where the Woolhouse had sat for seven years in this home. I was so grateful to have the loom moved into the spot so quickly.  No staring at an empty carpet!   There is a light fixture and fan assembly above the loom and two sets of windows so lots of light.

The Spring was sitting mid room and it was also shifted left to be under the other light and fan fixture at the opposite end of the space. There is all kinds of room now and it feels very open and airy.  The dog, Calli, went and got some of her toys and left them around the room!

Here's another looks at the Spring in her new spot where the Megado used to sit.  The studio ended up with a very thorough vacuuming in the next few days. I pulled things out and dug deep into corners. 

Today I just sat and enjoyed the space and puttered at odd jobs and continued with clearing things away.  I even just sat and wove on the Spring for a time!

Here's myself with Jill the new owner. 

Jill already has her new loom together and is now working on the slower process of setting the 20+ up and the fine tuning it requires.  The loom stayed local on Vancouver Island which I really like, and the sale and move was done quickly and painlessly.  Its hard to be sad when you see how loved the loom is.  I'm looking forward to seeing all the great weaving to come off her in the near future!

My name and the date she came to me was on the top of the jack frame for seventeen years and ten days before I wrote the final end date in.  I see Jill has carried on the tradition and added her name too.  As one friend said "we are simply their stewards for a time".  It was simply wonderful making beautiful cloth on her.