Readers of the blog will know about Peg Moorhouse, the damask weaver from Aotearoa New Zealand.
Peg’s loom is with her family at the moment and they are looking for anyone who might be interested in acquiring it to get in touch. The loom is from Sweden’s AK Joinery. It is a draw loom of Cyrus design made by Oxaback, with 8 weaving shafts, 20 pattern shafts and texsolv heddles. The family is open to offers for the loom because they want it to be used and loved, just as it was when Peg worked on it.
For those who are not used to draw looms, here is a video of a similar model being demonstrated and explained.
Damask is a particular kind of cloth. Although it is an ancient process that was used in China more than two millennia ago, the name is derived from the city of Damascus, a stop along the Silk Route, in the Middle Ages. The basic technique of damask is to weave a background fabric with an additional pattern added to that “ground”. Readers may be familiar with damask from tablecloths and napkin sets. The use of a patterned cloth integrated with the ground cloth makes for a lustrous and heavy reversible fabric.
Sometimes there is confusion between damask and brocade. Brocades use similar techniques but the pattern is actually laid atop the ground rather than integrated, meaning that the cloth is not reversible because the pattern is raised up from the background. Damasks are flatter and have a shine to them because of the yarns used to make them and because of the satin technique used in weaving them.
I hope there is someone out there who would like to use this loom. If you are interested please get in touch and I will pass on details to the family.
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