Yesterday at the library I raided the children's section and came away with a great book that shows how to do various summer camp style crafts. After my friend Lynn showed me how her big loom worked last weekend, I was thrilled to find directions for a loom made out of popsicle sticks. It acts just like a heddle, took only a few hours to make including letting the glue dry, and I've already made a neck scarf and I'm halfway through a belt. I'll take it with me to an archery gathering I'm going to tomorrow so I can work on it some more. I was doing it outside but the sun is setting so I stopped for the day and forgot to take photos. I'll get some tomorrow for sure. You could even make this loom for free is you save your popsicle sticks. I used some other wood I had laying around for the top and bottom frame. Then I had to use some fine sandpaper to keep it from snagging the yarn.
The book is for children and when you have small hands you can easily push the ball of yarn back and forth. My big hands were a bit more challenging so I made a bobbin (shuttle) from a rectangle of basswood. I can see it would work better with the corners rounded but that's a task for another day. The book also says to use your hands to tamp the yarn, but I found a wide tooth comb in the bathroom that works a lot better. So with a few improvements, I'm off and weaving and having a great time.
