Tag: Loom

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October 18, 2022 newsletter

Hot off the Press!

Free Bench with any Louet loom purchase at JST

(Offer valid for a limited time)

Purchase any Louet floor loom from JST now through the end of October 2022 and receive a complimentary Louet bench to match your loom. Your FREE bench will automatically be added to your order when you add a Louet floor loom.

Louet has been working very hard to increase production and we are excited to announce that most David and Spring looms are in stock and ready to ship! Louet is now shipping looms UPS express from Holland which means once the loom ships it will be at your door in approximately 5 days! 

David looms are in stock and ready to ship, Spring 8 shaft looms are in stock and ready to ship. Spring 12 shaft looms will be delivered to customers at the end of November.

See the videos below where Jane introduces and points out the features of the new David 3 and Spring 2.

We also offer FREE shipping on all Louet looms within Continental North America. We also offer the option to pay a $1000.00 CAD deposit on your loom with the balance due when the loom ships out to you. This gives you the flexibility to make smaller payments toward your balance, at your convenience.

Read more on David III
Read more on Spring II
Read more on the Delta Loom
Read more on the Octado Loom
Read more on the Megado Loom

Watch the videos below on the new David 3 and Spring 2

Jane will introduce you to the new looms with the updates and improvements on each of these fabulous looms.

Louet’s David Loom 3

Louet’s Spring Loom 2

From our Inbox

This week we showcase Joanna Bateman from Pound Ridge, NY.  She is mastering the art of layering lessons learned, from other projects, onto cloth that is uniquely hers. We love what she has created by layering the structure and some colours from the Ruckle Beach Wrap kit and weaving these fabulous tea towels. Beautifully done, Joanna!

I was just ironing these and remembered the newsletter saying submissions were welcome for ways we’ve used JST’s genius in our own lives! I made these tea towels (and one napkin with the leftover warp) using the design of the Ruckle Beach Wrap. I love the dark – dark – light sequence in the middle and think the design translates perfectly to kitchen textiles. I’m planning to make a set of napkins at some point in another colourway – keeping the black and white center but replacing the gold with I-don’t-know-what! Naturally, I used Brassard 8/2 cotton for both warp and weft.

Joanna

School of Weaving

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Have a weaving question? Find us on the Jane Stafford School of Weaving Forum and on Weave with Jane Stafford on Ravelry.

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August 2018 Newsletter

Oh it’s a long while from May ’till September

To celebrate the upcoming legalization of cannabis in Canada we’re having a sale on all things pot related: Potholder Loom Deluxe and Lotta Loops. Potholder Loom Deluxe makes six technicolour potholders whilst Lotta Loops is a 1 lb bag of cotton loops that fit the Potholder Loom Deluxe and makes approximately ten gaily coloured potholders. Get bonged up to your eyeballs and get weaving!

We’re also celebrating the close of the cricket season – who really understands the difference between silly-mid-wicket and a googly – by putting on sale the Stand for Schacht 15″ Cricket Loom, the Schacht 15″ Variable Dent – Rigid Heddle – Reed and the Schacht 15″ Cricket/Flip 10 Dent Reed.

Free stuff!!!* *with purchase

Buy a Louet Erica 30 Table loom (2 shaft) and we’ll throw in a free Louet Accessory Kit which consists of:

  • 2 stick shuttles (30 or 50 cm)
  • reed/heddle hook
  • warping posts
  • weaving instruction manual

You know you want it.

New tea towel kit

Taking inspiration from the greys and white seen on the mountains in Garibaldi Provincial Park in beautiful British Columbia, I’ve created two tea towel kits. The Garibaldi Flats Tea Towel Kit- 4 shaft version is great for beginners whilst the Garibaldi Flats Tea Towel Kit- 8 shaft version provides more of a challenge.

Undulating tea towel kit back in stock

We underestimated the popularity of the Undulating Twill Tea Towel Kit and sold out almost immediately.

Fear not, we’re back on our game and have loads more in stock.

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June 2018 Newsletter

Limited number of Louet Ericas on sale

Suitcase packed? Check. Dog’s in the cattery? Check. Mail’s on hold? Check. Floor loom packed into the station wagon? No?! You’re going on vacation without a loom and you call yourself a weaver?

Maybe you’ve overlooked the Louet Erica, the mightiest little table loom that fits right in your luggage? This ain’t no beginner’s loom and there has never been a better time to buy a Louet Erica 30 (2 shaft) or a Louet Erica 50 (4 shaft) as we have a very limited number in stock and on sale.

Pocket looms

Can’t tempt you with a Louet Erica loom? Why not try something from our small loom range? From the Schacht Zoom Loom through the Purl & Loop Stash Blaster down to the Purl & Loop Wee Weaver – you don’t need to pick up that iPad.

Pucker up scarves!

Looking for a summer project to complete in time for fall? Look no further than these pucker up scarves. They’re a great introduction to simple collapse weave. Each kit provides enough silk and merino to create two stunning scarves with finished dimensions of 12″ x 75″ plus fringe. All you need is a simple 4-shaft loom, a 10 dent reed and a weaving width of 18″.

Available in these colourways: Mochachino, Autumn Equinox, Salish Sea, Under the Sea and Ha Cha Cha.

3-2-1-blast off!!!

Yeah, you could buy Organic 3/2 Cotton in 3 1/2 pound cones, but why risk putting your back out? Organic 3/2 Cotton in 1 lb cones are now available instead.

Exclusive, very limited edition silk colours

We’ve been experimenting with lovely gradient pastel colourways.

There’s only a handful of sets available, therefore stocks are limited.

The world’s bestest yarn!

Last time we asked, “Which is your favourite yarn to weave with?” Whilst cotton is the undoubted winner of the popular vote, a significant number of respondents believe that pigeonholes really aren’t their thing:

Cotton – 33.0%
You can’t pigeonhole me Stafford! – 21.4%
Wool – 16.7%
Cottolin – 8.5%
Silk – 8.2%
Mercerized cotton – 4.7%
Linen – 4.5%
Alpaca – 1.6%
Mohair – 0.6%
Synthetics – 0.5%
Cashmere – 0.3%

The JST Helpline

Have you ever struggled to remove a warp from your loom to use later? Of course you have, you’re only human right? Right!? Well we’ve decided to highlight an underused part of the JST website, the JST Helpline and we’re starting with the article Removing a warp from your loom to use later, which sounds like it might be right up your street.

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February 2018 Newsletter

The Great Canadian Silk Sale of 2018

We’re having a sale on all natural silky things (not unnatural silly things). That means our 20/2 Bombyx Spun Silk, 30/2 Bombyx Spun Silk, 20/2 Tussar Spun Silk and Tussar Tweed are on sale… ten percent off, those savings add up when you’re buying silk. Sale lasts until March 2, 2018 PST 11:59 PM.

Note that this doesn’t include our range of dyed silks.

Fibres West

We’re off to Fibres West 2018 which will be on Friday and Saturday, March 23 and 24, 2018 on the Cloverdale Exhibition Park Grounds, in the Agriplex building, Surrey, BC, Canada.

This show definitely won’t be baaaaaaaahd.*

* I am in no way responsible for the very low hilarity level of this pun.

Online Guild update

The first two episodes of Season 2 are up and it is so exciting to see what weavers have been weaving. You can check things out on Ravelry and on the JST Online Guild Forum.

Just a reminder that Season 2 is all about Colour and Design, which is our most sought after workshop and thanks to this wonderful thing I like to call, “the internet”, it will never go away… you can start it whenever you want and move at your own pace.

Kits for the first three samples are now available on the JST website.

Louet floor loom prices

Thanks to the miracle of competitive pricing I can now offer you great prices on all Louet floor looms. Hurray for market forces!

And rather shamelessly I’m copying an idea from the lovely Joan Sheridan and including a one year membership for the Online Guild with every floor loom purchase. Already a member of the Online Guild? Then you could gift your membership to your BFF (Best Friend Forever).

Introductions are in order

I just thought you’d like to know who’s answering the phone at JST now. Chances are you’ll hear the dulcet tones of Elizabeth – a weaver’s daughter who was utilised as child labour to produce warps – or Alastair – if there are computer problems, blame him! Or Grant, who is my own personal handyman. Or Joan, basket weaver extraordinaire. Or “Person Saturday”, Klare. Or even Jane, who does a bit of weaving now and then. Charlotte has now left to go back to school, or rather trades college – cheerio and good luck Charlotte, but remember you can’t escape the JST gravitational force field for too long.

Survey time

I’m currently planning for future episodes of the Online Guild and I would love to know which type of loom you use most, so I’m running a mini-survey.

Click here to go to the mini-survey.

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November 2017 Newsletter

It’s Blankie Season… YAY!

At this time of year we always love to encourage blankie weaving… we need to stay warm up in these parts!

To this end we’ve done two things.

1) We’ve produced a free leaflet to download: Quick yarn requirements for Shetland, Mohair and Alpaca

2) We are giving a 10% discount on our favourite blankie yarns:

This sale lasts until November 18, my milestone birthday when I’ll be 40… again!

Don’t forget to review Episode 9: Making a Mohair Blankie….. Yes! of the Online Guild which was all about making blankets with brushed mohair.

 

Clockwise from top: 1) Shetland warp, brushed mohair weft, twill, 2) Shetland warp, Shetland weft, plain weave, 3) Mohair warp, mohair weft, plain weave, 4) Shetland warp, Shetland weft, twill, 5) Shetland warp, natural alpaca weft, twill.

Are you Confused about what the Online Guild is?

I have had a few calls lately from weavers interested in the Online Guild who weren’t quite sure what it’s all about.

The Online Guild is a series of one to two hour lessons released every five weeks. This is the first year we have done this and it has been hugely successful providing support for new weavers and weavers who have been at it for decades. There is a theme to each episode and each episode has been broken down into mini videos and indexed. You can watch them over and over…. play, stop, rewind, repeat… they never ever go away.

I chose the guild model because when you are a member of a guild you have access to a library. If you pay your yearly dues you get to borrow from the guild library. That is how our guild works. The videos are the library and as long as you are a member you get to watch them 24/7, 365 days of the year.

Your membership starts from the day you sign up. If you sign up today you get access to every single video in the library plus you get every video we release for the next 12 months. That means you can do some serious binge watching 🙂

The programme for 2018 is Colour and Design. Colour and Design has long been my most popular workshop resulting in hundreds of students on wait-lists. I have decided to tape the entire workshop and offer it in episodes which will allow you to weave along through the months and experience everything you would if you were actually in my studio. We will offer the kits to support the samples or you can delve into your own stash as you wish. I can guarantee that you will be liberated around making decisions in regards to colour choices and design choices through these episodes.

This past year we have woven each one of the seven samples on 27 yard warps creating a amazing library of visual ideas which will be shared throughout the season. Each episode will be one sample. The first two episodes will be laying out the process. My ideas just don’t float out of my head… I have a process that brings all my designs to life and I am so happy to be able to share it all with you. No holding back 🙂

We have years of episodes in the works so the online guild will be the place I can deposit all my knowledge for weavers anywhere in the world. My staff call it “Jane’s Brain Dump”. Too funny!

I am trying to keep the cost of this similar to what you would pay for guild dues, $75.00 for the entire year. This means it is accessible to everyone and I am accessible to everyone. We also provide a forum where all members can post questions and create a dialogue within a like minded community, all walking down the same road to become strong, independent, happy weavers.

I hope this little babble has cleared up any confusion you may have had about we are doing around here. Come join us today and Happy Weaving,
Jane

Join The Online Guild

The next Online Guild episode

Release date is November 16, we’ll be tackling wet finishing. In a washing machine, by hand in the sink, I collapse fabrics, we go over fringe twisting and, believe it or not, ironing! That’s a good way to finish up the year… with finishing.

Introducing the new Erica table loom by Louet

Named after the great weaving teacher Erica de Ruiter, a specialist in three shaft weaving, the Louet Erica 30 Table loom is small and very portable. For over 40 years Erica has done research on weaving with three shafts: twill, huck, M’s and O’s, honeycomb, thick and thin, padded weave, Krokbragd, supplementary warps, block weaves, color-and-weave, and much more.

The Louet Erica loom is an attractive alternative to a rigid heddle loom: it is easier to operate, the warp tension is more even, it has a large shed of 4.5 cm (1 ¾”) and you have flexibility in the number of threads per cm. The option to expand it to 3 or 4 shafts will make it an even more interesting alternative.

The loom is made of unlacquered beech and laminated birch. It comes complete with built-in raddle, stainless steel reed (10 dent), 200 Texsolv heddles (150 mm) and lease and tie-up sticks. The folded size is 55 x 48 x 16 cm (22” x 19 1/8” x 6 3/8”) and it weighs 3.5 kg (7¾ lb).

At this point the Erica loom is available with in a 30 cm (11.75″) weaving width. In early 2018 a 50 cm (19.5″) weaving width version will be available, along with a floor stand, accessory package (unfinished warping posts, 2 flat shuttles, and a threading hook) and bag.

Our first shipment will be leaving Holland in mid-November, arriving in north America early December, just in time for Christmas (fingers crossed!).

Pre-order the Louet Erica 30 Table loom

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October 2017 Newsletter

You’re the fringe twister… twisted fringe twister!

If you’ve been finding that twisting fringes has been twisting your melon then I’ve put up a short “how-to” video showing how to twist fringes on handwoven items.

Don’t be a twisted sister, subscribe to our YouTube channel as I’ll be putting up more video shorts.

Brand spanking new weaving kits

It’s getting chilly on the west coast of Canada so… I’m thinking scarves… I’m thinking mohair… and I’m thinking new kits for October.

What better time of the year to weave that mohair blanket you’ve always thought about but have shied away from. If a project always takes you far longer than expected, get cracking on our Spring Stripes Mohair Blanket Kit. Even if it takes six months to complete, you’ll still be in time for those crisp spring days!

Taking its colour themes from Arthur Conan Doyle’s Sherlock Holmes, I present to you the Natty Sherlock Scarf Kit. Designed by Mavis MacMillan of Salt Spring Island using two of our silk yarns. Her striping sequence is based on three numbers from the Fibonacci number sequence.

This scarf is perfect for keeping the chill off your neck and impressing your friends at the same time.

The latest Online Guild episode

If you bought your Spring Stripes Mohair Blanket Kit before you reached this section, I salute your impulsiveness. Now you’ll want to view the latest Online Guild episode, “Episode 9: Making a Mohair Blankie….. Yes!” which is available to Online Guild members now.

I think this episode is great but then I’m slightly biased, so don’t take my word for it have a look at what Online Guild members are saying about Episode 9.

What a fantastic episode!! Mohair is beautiful but I had no idea how to tame it. Thank you Jane! – Inga

Join The Online Guild

Overenthusiastic dyer vs overenthusiastic buyer

Due to an overenthusiastic dyer, we have an overstock of 20/2 Birch Tussah Silk, so we’re having a flash sale of 20/2 Tussah Silk – Birch #30 until Monday Oct 22. If you’ve got a 20/2 Tussah Silk project that’s crying out for birch colour then strike while the iron’s hot, carpe diem, just do it, etc. Forget birch coloured bombyx silk, that’s sooooo last year.

Due to an overenthusiastic buyer, we have an overstock of the following Bambu yarns:

These are all down from $15 to just $12 until Monday Oct 22.

There’s never been a better time to start weaving in these temporarily over-abundant colours.

Schacht Inkle Loom

A new product on our website was suggested by the lovely Susan. She’s getting her students started on weaving for which the Schacht Inkle Loom is ideal.

Single foot loom operation

Recently, we had a long time customer and friend in the studio with a bummed out knee. Whilst discussing treadling with one leg a light bulb went on, “why don’t you try the Octado.” She did and it was an instant fit. Even if you’re just tired of climbing underneath your loom, or if it’s difficult to get up and down to change your tie-ups, have a look at the Louet Octado Loom.

I spy with my little eye…

Aeons ago (or maybe it was six months ago) we stocked the very popular Thread Count Magnifier; they practically flew off the shelves. We have just received a new shipment of twelve dozen of these little gems.

Order now to avoid future disappointment.

 

You’re on Salt Spring Island? Drop in to see us! We’ve got lots of Maiwa clothes in stock. We’re open Mon-Fri 10-4.

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July 2017 Newsletter


Louet loom sale ends July 31st

Our Louet loom sale ends July 31st 2017. All our Louet looms (but not Louet accessories) have a 5% discount. Treat yourself to a Louet Jane Loom, or really push the boat out and grab yourself your dream loom. You really can’t go wrong with a Louet Spring Loom.

Due to high demand, delivery may be anywhere between mid-September through November, depending upon when you place your order. Please remember these looms are crafted by hand in The Netherlands.

Let me at the Louet looms!

New brushed mohair colours

New brushed mohair colours have arrived!

Get cracking now on these new autumnal flavours in preparation for the fall: Brown, Butterscotch, Light brown and Mink.

Or why not unleash your inner demon with the fiery Diablo?

I really can’t decide – show me them all!

JST Online Guild – Episode 7 – All About Yarn

We’re bringing forward the next release of the Online Guild to Aug 1st.

This episode is about yarn construction, the count system, cotton, linen, silk and wool.

To celebrate this episode we’re offering 10% off all our yarns to members of our Online Guild for the entire month of August 2017. Make sure to be logged in before you get to the checkout to see the 10% discount.

Please note that the August 2017 yarn sale is only for Online Guild members. You must be logged into the Online Guild to see the discount.

The story so far…

Here’s the episodes that we’ve released so far:

  • Episode 1: The importance of making a good warp – on a warping board, on a table top warping mill, on a big floor model, tying the cross, counting your ends and keeping track, chaining
  • Episode 2: Warping a loom back to front – placement of the raddle, spreading your warp, beaming it, threading it, sleying it, and tying it on
  • Episode 3: Proper posture at the loom – winding a good bobbin, shuttle handling, throw beat change beater back, mending a broken warp thread, selvedges, hemstitching, a brand spanking new weaver
  • Episode 4: It’s time we had a little chat about Sett – wrapping a ruler for PW, wrapping a ruler for twill, introduction to master sett chart with samples, we now have a canvas
  • Episode 5: Project Planning 101….putting it all together – on your canvas, how long, how wide, how much, what do all those numbers mean, Sheesh!
  • Episode 6: Division of Space – Fibonacci the man of my dreams, broad strokes and the big picture, fine tuning the details

Join now to get all the episodes that we’ve released so far, plus a further 10 episodes throughout your year’s subscription, and 10% discount on all our yarn during August 2017.

As a taster, here’s a sample from Episode 7 Our Hand Dyed Silks with Cheryl, our intrepid hand dyer.

Replenished 8/2 cotton range

Our 8/2 cotton range has been replenished. It’s not quite at full complement yet and a further delivery is expected in the third week of August. The long delays have been caused by our supplier falling victim to a dead dying device – how’s that for alliteration?

If you happen to be on Salt Spring Island, do drop in to see us. We’ve got lots of new Maiwa clothes just in. We’re open Mon-Sat 10-4 throughout the summer.

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June 2017 Newsletter

Louet Sale until July 31st

Until July 31st 2017 all our Louet looms (but not the Louet accessories) have a 5% discount. So if you were splashing out on a Louet Megado Floor Loom, you’d save almost $1,000… and yet still incur the wrath of your bank manager.

Due to high demand, delivery may be anywhere between mid-August through November, depending upon when you place your order.

Take me to those Louet looms

Dr Beckmann’s Color & Dirt Collectors

We have finally received our large consignment of Dr Beckmann’s Color & Dirt Collectors.

We’ve done some sampling and you can see the “before” and “after” pictures below; they speak for themselves.

Even after washing and pressing these things will get dye run out.

I want those Color & Dirt Collectors!

ANWG is just around the corner

We’ll have a big booth at this year’s Association of Northwest Weavers’ Guilds (ANWG).

If you want to pre-order and collect at ANWG, order on the website as normal but at the checkout make sure to click on the checkbox next to “Ship to a different address” and enter our address (142 Richard Flack Rd, Salt Spring Island, BC V8K 1N4, Canada). Don’t forget to add in the “Order notes” that you want to collect at ANWG, otherwise your order items will be sitting forlornly in our office.

Call me a stick in the mud but I won’t be entering this year’s ANWG Shuttle race.

New products

Two new products we’re very excited about are the Thread Count Magnifier and the Traditional Heavy Duty Scissors. The Thread Count Magnifier fits into your pocket and unfolds to allow close examination of your weave. The Traditional Heavy Duty Scissors are reassuringly heavy, giving precise control over your cuts.

Website progressive search

We’ve added progressive search to our website to help you find the product you want quickly. Start typing in the search box and progressive search will show all products that match your typing.

Kits by weaving level

We’ve started to classify our kits by the level we think they’re appropriate for:

Beginner weaving level kits
Advanced beginner weaving level kits
Intermediate weaving level kits

Please let us know if you found them too hard or too easy for your level.

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JST’s December Newsletter

JST’s December Newsletter

We’re sitting around here stunned that it is December already. We finished our last retreat with a stunning group of ladies in Units, Blocks, and Profiles. Retreats start again in February, so we have a little break from warping looms and keeping the house and studio clean! Phew!

 

It has been a while since the last JST newsletter, so we thought that we would give you a peek at some of the new additions to 3 of our cotton yarns lines.  Hopefully these new colours will  re-invigorate your weaving design (and be a good excuse to weave more and stay indoors!).

For those of you starting to panic about Christmas gifts, never fear, we have a whole bunch of new kits in new colour ways – a great gift for any weaver.

Read on for more information….

 

New Cottolin Colours

JST has brought in new colours for Organic Cotton, Organic Cottolin, and Mercerized Cotton!  Time to try some new colours in your weaving or else to branch out into sustainable fibres. Our Organic Cotton line has grown the most, with 11 new additions there are now 45 colours to choose from. Organic Cottolin has 6 new colours and Mercerized Cotton 4. Both the Organic Cotton and Cottolin are certified by GOTS, which not only requires stringent environmental standards at all points on the textile supply chain, but sets social standards as well

 

New JST Scarf and Tea Towel Kits

Heavenly Checks Bambu Scarf (aka Eben’s Scarf)

This simple classic scarf in 12 gauge bambu is fun and fast and easy to weave.  The scarf was designed by Eben (Jane’s son!) and has long been a studio favourite – now finally available as a kit in three beautiful colour ways!

New Arlene Tea Towels

We have two new sets of tea towels from Arlene Kohut and Kathy Ready.

 

Huck Lace Tea Towels

The first is a brand-new colour way of the popular Huck Lace Tea Towels. The rich browns, reds, and oranges remind of fall and are a beautiful warm accent to add to your kitchen (or your hoard of tea towels!). We have named the new colour way “Falling Leaves”.

Bronson Lace Tea Towels

The second is a brand-new design that includes beautiful Bronson Lace patterning down the edges. This Organic Cottolin tea towel was inspired by a traditional design. The kit is available in two colours, the traditional “Antique” and  the richer “Burgundy”. Arlene’s Tea Towels are another stunning example of lace in the kitchen!

New Swift from Schacht

The Schacht Ultra Umbrella Swift is such a brilliant new swift from Schacht that we just have to bring your attention to its many new and novel features. It does everything you ever wanted and more, making skein-making or ball-winding effortless. Especially worthy of note is the one-handed loading by pushing down on the swift (yes, it works just like the video, we tested it!).

 Hatbox Spinning Wheel

Louet’s classic Hatbox Spinning Wheel is arriving at JST next week! These are a limited edition, so a one-time offer! We have just four left ready to go under someone’s tree.  You can order your Hatbox today at our online store.

 

 

Last Shipping Day Before Christmas

December 21st, 2015 is the last shipping day before Christmas! All orders must be placed by noon on the 21st to guarantee that they will go out that day. The JST studio will be closed from December 22nd- January 3rd, and will resume shipping on January 4th.

Last but not least

Don’t forget that we offer FREE SHIPPING on in stock yarn over $200.

Thinking about placing a large order? Ask about our discounts.

We want to expand our mailing list.  If you like getting the Old Ladies with String Digest, even if you’re a young lady or a gentleman, please spread the word.

 

 

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JST’s August Newsletter

Back to the  Loom

We have had a busy summer here at JST, as many of you who participated in the myriad of workshops will know. In this newsletter, we want to share with you the stunning results of those workshops and some of the projects that have kept us busy. With summer winding down, no doubt many of you already have a list of fall weaving projects running through your head. Here is some inspiration, new patterns for fall, and very important information if you have been considering the purchase of a loom….

Considering a Louet Loom Purchase?

We have been holding our prices steady despite the decline in the Canadian dollar, but we can’t do it for much longer and I doubt our suppliers can either. If you are thinking about purchasing a new Louet Loom, I would recommend that you do it before September 15, 2015. I can guarantee the present Canadian prices until then, but I am not sure if they will hold after that. All loom orders will need to be prepaid. Shipping by the end of October, in time for Christmas. To discuss a loom purchase call us at (250) 537-9468 or email or order online.

New Tea Towel Kits!

We are introducing two new tea towel kits just in time for fall! Tea towels are a great way to play with colour and design. These kits offer you a basis to begin experimenting and creating your own unique towels. The towel to the left was designed by Kathy Ready and Arlene Kohut from Victoria. They designed this wonderful Huck towel after their Lacy Places workshop here this spring. Thanks for sharing your pattern ladies!

The second is plain weave in organic and regular cotton, a beautiful zinger for your kitchen. Mixing organic cotton with regular cotton is a great way to begin supporting yarns that are respectful of the earth and the farmers that grow them, while still maintaining a wider range of colours and reducing the cost. To purchase these patterns & material, please visit our store.

10 New Colours for the JST Hotline of Hand-Dyed Yarns!

We are adding 10 new colours to our Hotline this fall. Cheryl, who does all the hand-dying for JST, has been hard at work getting the new colours ready. They will be officially unveiled at Knit City … Stop by and visit our booth!

 

Summer Retreats … Pushing the Boundaries of Plain Weave Even Further, Maiwa’s Natural Dyeing, & Deluxe Weavers

There has been so much happening at the JST studio, its hard to keep track of it all. So many amazing creative students have been through our doors. Here is a peek at some of the workshops…

We began the summer with two retreats, Pushing the Boundaries of Plain Weave Even Further. For those of you who have taken the first Pushing the Boundaries of Plain Weave, this workshop took it to a whole new level, beginning the exploration of double weaves and collapsible fabrics. It is phenomenal what can be done! Forget complexity, plain weave is stunning. 4 shafts can inspire a lifetime of weaving.

 

 

At the end of August, we hosted Charllotte Kwon of Maiwa, her daughter Sophena, and Linda Spence for a 4-day workshop on Natural Dying. We had a full house, with 16 students at the JST studio from far and wide!

 

Finally, we are finishing the summer with our popular Deluxe Weavers’ Retreat. Students spend 6 days creating stunning mohair blankets, silk and zephyr scarves, cashmere scarves, linen tea towels, and soft Monte Cristo baby blankets.

It’s Almost Time to Register for 2016 Retreats

On October 13th, we will be announcing the retreats for 2016 and opening registration. Watch you inbox for our next email with all the details or keep an eye on the schedule on our website.

Don’t forget that we offer FREE SHIPPING on yarn orders over $200.

Thinking about placing a large order? Ask about our group and guild discounts.

We want to expand our mailing list.  If you like getting the Old Ladies with String Digest, even if you’re a young lady or a gentleman, please spread the word.