Handmade Weaving Implements

I thought I had already posted something about these lovely shuttles my husband, Kim, made for me, but now I can’t find it.

Kim has made me many frame looms over the years. One is very small, and I use it on trains and planes. I find it difficult using my fingers to pick up the warps and make a shed, when the warp threads are so small, so I asked him to make me these.

They are based on the tongue depressors I used in my classes with school children years ago, only much smaller, and much nicer. They are about 3 inches long, and made of hardwood.

I discovered that, in addition to using them like a yarn needle, with the weft just threaded through the hole, I can also wrap the weft around like a bobbin.

Used like a needle, I can pick up the warps to make a shed, and used like a bobbin they are good for just passing the weft through the shed.  They are good with the Mirrix, which makes a shed, but a very narrow one; these fit much easier than a bobbin.

I have also made weaving tools myself, from the various sizes of wood craft sticks I’ve bought at Michaels craft store.

I bought myself a small electric drill, because it’s very hard to drill a small hole in a small tool with a large heavy drill.  The shaping is done with coarse sandpaper, then fine sandpaper smoothes them out. This photo shows the scale, Kim’s shuttles on the left, my own on the right, with my favorite ruler. I bought this for $1 at an antique store. My favorite antiques are those I can actually use!