I've been dancing around buying a rigid heddle loom and finally succumbed to the 25" Schacht Flip folding loom. Mind you, aside from weaving on a weave it I'd never touched a loom before, nor seen the one I wanted in person. If you're thinking about the twentyfive incher, it's big. With a 7"+ scarf in progress...
Okay, instead of a coke zero can for scale, how about my Schacht Matchless?
Coolest thing about this picture? My Matchless is 20 years old, and made from the same wood as my new-to-me Flip. Excited thinking it'll honeypot up over the years :)
As with each of my tools it seems, I bought it gently used with the stand. I wasn't planning on buying the stand, but am glad I did-- the loom, like I said, is huge! It really would be unwieldy on my lap leaning against a table's edge, and takes up more than half of my already-taxed dining room table. I thought to myself that I really would like the Flip, one of the reasons being I could fold it to put it away. Honestly I haven't in the week it's been here-- the loom's attached to the stand by four screws, two of which need a screwdriver (read: I'm lazy) and I'd still need a place to store the stand. So, it's been out and about, enjoying the living room instead.
For the size, perhaps if I saw it in person I'd have bought the 20" size instead. No matter... I've already found a creative way to use the length up (for a later post). I really do like the loom, no matter the length. Like I said, I was looking (erroneously?) for a folding version, and was torn between the Flip and the Kromski Harp. Initially I wanted the Flip, just for my happy relationship with my Matchless and the whole made in the USA thing... but I did ask opinions on Ravelry and got several good answers about the differences, including a link to a very helpful blog post side-by-siding the nonfolding Schacht + the Flip. Finding this one used sealed the deal for me, and I'm glad I went with my gut.
I love it. (Did I say that already?)
Sheep and Wool Co. Plain and Fancy Sport, "Fall Foliage"
(a gift from Margene I'd been hoarding!)
used and warp and weft
for a scarf.
7" wide, 6'+ long not incl. fringe (76 ends, 10dpi reed)
leftover waste, reminiscent of that shaving time
I immediately warped (using the direct warping method, no need to fear warping time w/ a RH loom) after cutting that one off...
Regia Bamboo, another gift! from retroknit
detail of fabric
another scarf. 7.5", 6'+ excluding fringe
(80 ends, 8 rpi, 10 dpi reed)
I love woven scarves so much. Too much. Committing stuff white people like atrocities like scarf + tshirt much. They're just different from handknit scarves-- thinner, not squishy, have a body and hand that wants to stand and be molded. Oh, did I mention they took me about 2 days each?
!!!
I'm really enjoying the loom though. It's very plug and play-- with a single copy of Hand on: Rigid Heddle Weaving (only reading the first chapter ;) I was impatient!) I was able to crank these, plus more, out. Weaving won't replace knitting for me, though-- it's not portable, limited in fabric shaping and items able to be made. Still, there are a lot of exciting options out there with a rigid heddle-- using pickup sticks to create patterns like in Textures and Patterns for the Rigid Heddle Loom, or patterns with more than one heddle like in The Xenakis Technique I don't see myself outgrowing the rigid heddle anytime soon.
If you're in the Bay Area/East Bay, both A Verb for Keeping Warm and Article Pract can order the Flip looms for you :)
Off to warp for some more scarves :)
ps... Schacht is doing so well with their folding rigid heddle Flip version that they're discontinuing the 25" non-folding model... so there are a few retailers out there discounting them for sale (from $199 to $140-159-- here's one, here's another, here's one on SF craigslist with a stand...). It doesn't fold, isn't equipped with the second heddle block standard, a few other changes (Schacht can tell you exactly the differences), but still-- buying it + a stand at $160 would be $300-320, $35-55 more than the 25" flip with no stand. I might have gone this way had I realized I wouldn't be folding Flip up much as it is :)
Okay, instead of a coke zero can for scale, how about my Schacht Matchless?
Coolest thing about this picture? My Matchless is 20 years old, and made from the same wood as my new-to-me Flip. Excited thinking it'll honeypot up over the years :)
As with each of my tools it seems, I bought it gently used with the stand. I wasn't planning on buying the stand, but am glad I did-- the loom, like I said, is huge! It really would be unwieldy on my lap leaning against a table's edge, and takes up more than half of my already-taxed dining room table. I thought to myself that I really would like the Flip, one of the reasons being I could fold it to put it away. Honestly I haven't in the week it's been here-- the loom's attached to the stand by four screws, two of which need a screwdriver (read: I'm lazy) and I'd still need a place to store the stand. So, it's been out and about, enjoying the living room instead.
For the size, perhaps if I saw it in person I'd have bought the 20" size instead. No matter... I've already found a creative way to use the length up (for a later post). I really do like the loom, no matter the length. Like I said, I was looking (erroneously?) for a folding version, and was torn between the Flip and the Kromski Harp. Initially I wanted the Flip, just for my happy relationship with my Matchless and the whole made in the USA thing... but I did ask opinions on Ravelry and got several good answers about the differences, including a link to a very helpful blog post side-by-siding the nonfolding Schacht + the Flip. Finding this one used sealed the deal for me, and I'm glad I went with my gut.
I love it. (Did I say that already?)
Sheep and Wool Co. Plain and Fancy Sport, "Fall Foliage"
(a gift from Margene I'd been hoarding!)
used and warp and weft
for a scarf.
7" wide, 6'+ long not incl. fringe (76 ends, 10dpi reed)
leftover waste, reminiscent of that shaving time
I immediately warped (using the direct warping method, no need to fear warping time w/ a RH loom) after cutting that one off...
Regia Bamboo, another gift! from retroknit
detail of fabric
another scarf. 7.5", 6'+ excluding fringe
(80 ends, 8 rpi, 10 dpi reed)
I love woven scarves so much. Too much. Committing stuff white people like atrocities like scarf + tshirt much. They're just different from handknit scarves-- thinner, not squishy, have a body and hand that wants to stand and be molded. Oh, did I mention they took me about 2 days each?
!!!
I'm really enjoying the loom though. It's very plug and play-- with a single copy of Hand on: Rigid Heddle Weaving (only reading the first chapter ;) I was impatient!) I was able to crank these, plus more, out. Weaving won't replace knitting for me, though-- it's not portable, limited in fabric shaping and items able to be made. Still, there are a lot of exciting options out there with a rigid heddle-- using pickup sticks to create patterns like in Textures and Patterns for the Rigid Heddle Loom, or patterns with more than one heddle like in The Xenakis Technique I don't see myself outgrowing the rigid heddle anytime soon.
If you're in the Bay Area/East Bay, both A Verb for Keeping Warm and Article Pract can order the Flip looms for you :)
Off to warp for some more scarves :)
ps... Schacht is doing so well with their folding rigid heddle Flip version that they're discontinuing the 25" non-folding model... so there are a few retailers out there discounting them for sale (from $199 to $140-159-- here's one, here's another, here's one on SF craigslist with a stand...). It doesn't fold, isn't equipped with the second heddle block standard, a few other changes (Schacht can tell you exactly the differences), but still-- buying it + a stand at $160 would be $300-320, $35-55 more than the 25" flip with no stand. I might have gone this way had I realized I wouldn't be folding Flip up much as it is :)
