Last year Caroline took possession of a floor loom, a big contraption used for weaving cloth. Back in July 2010, she was on the verge of making her first sample weave, but with our monumental Grand Canyon trip that put everything else in the backseat. It would be a while before she could return to learning the craft of weaving. Well, here we are in June 2011 and her first fully completed project is now off the loom. This almost 10 foot length of dish towels are yet to be cut up and washed the first time and already Caroline has taken possession of a more sophisticated tabletop loom. If only it were the 17th century and she had these skills, we’d be making good money with what is now a fading hobby only practiced by a small minority of men and women who are keeping the art alive.

Here’s my wife, Caroline Wise threading her 4-shaft homemade counterbalance loom. She’s on her way to making her first cloth with a purpose, cloth that will be in the form of kitchen towels. Previously, she made a test piece of cloth, but that was just to determine if the loom worked and if she could figure out the process.  It was just a little more than 3 years ago that Caroline and her mom Jutta took a Navajo rug weaving class with Sharie Monsam over at Fiber Factory in Mesa, Arizona. Since that time, Caroline has developed an ever greater interest in weaving and the fiber arts in general.