a handloom weaver
You would be forgiven to think that all of those old school traditional crafts from years ago that we associate with our industrial history have been lost or forgotten about. Well for Rae, that’s simply not the case. She’s rekindled one such craft and I’m about to enlighten you all about how she’s gone about it.
The craft I’m referring to is traditional handloom weaving. Now, handloom weaving is a skilled process that is steeped in centuries of cultural history from countries such as India, Egypt, China the UK and now of course Cornwall. Rae’s fascination with weaving wasn’t her first love in life as prior to this she studied Conservation & Countryside Management at Uni. That interest of hers followed her on from Uni and she set up a one-woman organic garden maintenance business owner. But then came Covid, the lockdowns followed and that then gave her an opportunity to re focus on new options and that’s where she found weaving.
“I began experimenting on a tiny borrowed frame loom, learning basic principles of handweaving”
So, she did some research, borrowed a loom, practiced and practiced and then the next thing she obviously needed to do, to take her weaving to the next level, was a full scale loom of her own. Now faced with that, you’d think that she’d go out and buy herself a loom off the shelf, but that wasn’t the case. Her skilled partner Eric, decided to build one. A feat that would scare anyone when you look at the complexities of how such a loom operates and the number of parts these looms have. So, set with some pencil drawn plans, see gallery shots, Eric set about building one! Major big skills there Eric I have to say. Hats off to you mate. A massive task from what I saw within the drawings.
So what did Rae end up with then? Well, a highly efficient custom made traditional weaving loom. A thing of beauty. How she got her new loom into the tiny space she works out of I’m not really sure, other than I guess it was built and assembled inside her rather splendid wooden hut of sorts. This year will be Rae’s third year of weaving as she continues to expand her business and skills, self taught I might add. She loves working with only high quality 100% pure British sheep’s wool. Rae told me, “Using a material which is renewable, abundant, accessible, biodegradable and native makes so much sense that I could not ever contemplate another.”
Here’s a couple of facts that you might not know about sheep’s wool, its anti-allergenic, anti-bacterial, breathable and temperature regulating. Key qualities that are important to Rae. She’s also a supporter of the Campaign for Wool. I watched Rae weaving away on one of her latest designs, utterly focused and clearly passionate about all she creates. Thank you again Rae for allowing me into your tiny space and capturing all that you design and weave. RD
