Summer’s Hotting up in SW France
What a lovely summer we are having here at The Loom Room! The weather is hot and sunny, the workshop cool and creative, the plunge pool the icing on the cake!! I've been privileged to have hosted students from many parts of the globe this year so far, and still...
Book Review – Hidden Tapestry, and other interesting books
Hidden Tapestry: Jan Yoors-His Two Wives-And the War That Made Them One Debra Dean Northwestern University Press 2018 ISBN 978-0-8101-3683-0 This book details the incredible story of Flemish American artist (and World War II Resistance fighter) Jan Yoors...
1st Video blog!! An insider’s view into The Loom Room France
Hi and welcome to my first ever video blog notes! Unfortunately, I can't upload the video directly to this page because of its file size, so you'll have to view it through Facebook. During the 5min video, I referred to Complex Weavers, an organisation for curious...
Le Fil Ambulant exhibition, Chateau Varaignes (Dordogne), France / Intern announcement
It's been a great month or two here in Nérac. We've had our fair share of rain, thunderstorms and brilliant sunshine, and the countryside is lush and wildlife abundant! On the weaving front, my solo show in Leek (UK) went very well, with many visitors and some really...
Springing into Summer
Bonjour à tous! This week has been a busy one - the grass will persist in growing at a rate of knots! We have several species of protected orchids in our garden (as have most people in this area of France) and we have to do our bit to keep them safe. Various areas...
Mountain walking, Rock spotting, and wave watching… Where am I?
Mountain walking, rock spotting and wave watching..... That sounds like heaven to me! Where the mountains meet the sea, all sorts of past geological upheavals are exposed to wondering eyes! Our wonderful architect, Mariette Marty, moved to the Pays Basque with her...
Spring, New Courses, New Skills!
Spring has sprung here in SW France. The temperatures are gradually climbing, the sun is more and more apparent, the birds are singing their hearts out, and Graham is learning new culinary skills to wow our weaving students this year! Homemade marmalade is now gracing...
Muscat Memories
Photo credit: unknown - Source Pinterest This morning, I found myself back in the souk in Muscat, Oman, ten years ago and all I did was open the lid of a new shower cream! A single smell can transport you back in time in the blink of an eye - for me, the smell of...
Revisiting the Past
My new-to-me Dutch table loom with 16 shafts, all warped up and ready to weave. Isn't it wonderful when someone reminds you of something you did a long time ago and that you had forgotten about? My sincere thanks go to Monica, a recent student, who remembered having...
Woven Shibori for Textural Effects – pdf available now
I am delighted to announce that Woven Shibori for Textural Effects is now available as a downloadable pdf for 15€. I can't believe that I wrote this in 2010. That means that I have been playing with (oops, sorry - 'working on') shibori, seersucker and other...
Release the load!!
You know what it's like, I suspect.... I've had a warp on the loom that didn't like the humidity changes we experience here in France. There were lots of different yarns in stripes, which I am quite used to, but a couple, in particular, didn't want to play ball. I...
Underneath the Arches /Cloisters at La Romieu
What a wonderful weekend has just passed! It may have rained - a lot! - and blown a bit of a gale from time to time, and also had us reaching for the woollies and puffa jackets, but the visitors turned up and the atmosphere was fabulous!! It was Journées du...