Beth Emmott

Several years ago a friend was moving and had an old loom in her attic that she did not want. She gave it to me and I set it up in my attic to see what it was and how much of it was there. From what I can tell it is the main frame and beater of an old PA Barn loom. Someone had begun to update it with new treadles etc but never finished.

PA Barn Loom-click image for larger view

I would like to find it a home, perhaps an historical society etc that could restore it and use it in demonstrations. All I ask is that you pick it up and take it away. It is on the third floor in Philadelphia, PA. I have no idea of its provenance and neither did my friend.
If interested, contact me at: beth@emmott.com

After Connecticut we drove to Maine where we stayed with Margie and Joe in their wonderful home where guest rooms are private apartments, the food and conversation are wonderful and their garden is perfect for both human folk and VERY large doggie folk.

Bob visited with Joe at work and photographed along the coast while Margie and I headed north to meet Sally and Pam at the Maine Botanical Gardens for this years Garden Hoax. Words don’t do justice. It was misty (as all our garden events seem to be) giving the garden an ethereal feeling. We’ve been to lots of terrific gardens but this was different. It was a Maine Botanical garden. Where elsewhere beautiful flowers are planted to create vistas and swathes of color and texture, here the texture is of Maine. It is a garden in a forest.

Pam and I are in the rain in this pic Margie took
and House in the children’s garden with a cat fence!

Back to Margie and Joe’s for a bowl of home made chowder (what else) and the next day Bob and I headed north to Waldoboro where we stayed at the Blue Skye Inn, visited Pam and David, and ate Ginger Ice Cream in Thomaston (my mother has always raved of the Ginger Ice cream she ate in Thomaston, ME as a child in the 1920′s).

Alpaca

Bought alpaca from an Alpaca farm to card with some wool I have for spinning—this winter’s stress reducing project! and then home driving in one of this summer’s wild rain extravaganzas.

Short and sweet and lots of fun!

I finally finished the small bag of fleece I bought in Ireland. It is from a Manx Loghon sheep which is a rare breed with four horns. The bag described it as “fine russet wool, some kemps, short staple”. This is the natural color when the darker and lighter bits were hand carded. I spun it fairly tight allowing the lumps and bumps to remain and love the energy that resulted.

Manx Loghon wool being spun and finished skein

Since I’ve been blogging about handmade books, esp. accordion books, I thought I’d show one I made several years ago for my Mom. Titled “The Distaff Side”, it lists known women in my mother’s family and the number of children they had. A distaff is a tool for spinning fiber and since this was historically women’s work, the female side of the family is called the distaff side. (click on image for larger view.)

The Distaff Side

This structure is based on an accordion book with separate back and front covers, allowing it to be read front to back and then continued back to front on the other side. The first side features my mom, her mom, two grandmothers and a great grandmother. Each image opens out to reveal additional information about each women. The back side lists known women alternating with block prints of a distaff.

I’ve always kept sketchbooks, whether for actual sketching or for recording and designing projects I’m working on. Today I came across some photos I’d taken to use in my classes when I teach about sketching/journaling/recording/etc. and thought I’d share them here.

Sketch Books