Have had thoughts of resort type camp or aging motel for this type of commune

Cynthia

Has everyone given up the BIG looms?
My problem seems to be that I want to house two 60" looms, a 100
shaft drawloom and a AVL Technical Dobby.

I have a studio that is 30 x 20+ but I can't seem to get enough room
to set up both looms and to walk around them when weaving -- further
more it is not enough space to adequately wind on the warp. (At least
for the drawloom)

As some folks know I am "temporarily" located in NJ, but am planning
my return to MT within the next year. I have to decide whether to try
to find a house with enough space -- or to plan on building it.

I have recently been considering the idea of building a multiple unit
dwelling for artists that includes studios and was tring to figure
out how much space to allot. How many units and what sort of Gallery
would be needed? Does any one out there think this would be a
worthwile adventure -- are all weavers "family" people with houses
and studios or are some looking to establish themselves?

I think the most exciting part of this move is the decision to begin
weaving full time. Now I have to figure out the best place to do that.

Eliz

--- In WeaveTech@y..., etritthart@w... wrote:

I have recently been considering the idea of building a multiple

unit

dwelling for artists that includes studios and was tring to figure
out how much space to allot. How many units and what sort of

Gallery

would be needed? Does any one out there think this would be a
worthwile adventure -- are all weavers "family" people with houses
and studios or are some looking to establish themselves?

I think the most exciting part of this move is the decision to

begin

weaving full time. Now I have to figure out the best place to do

that.

Eliz

I think that would be a grand Idea! I have wanted to do similar for
many years but how? It would take lots of money. I have a small
wooded area in the mountains between NC and VA and have thought it
would be nice to build several cabins and a large studio/conference
center/school/retreat for the arts. When I looked into the cost it
was unbelievable. Even though we're way out in the country and building
codes are rather slack, each cabin will cost at least $20,000 and
that's before any furniture or equipment forget paying for people to
help.

It would be nice and I hope you can do it but, I will have to wait.
Maybe when I retire?

Mike Davis

Hi Elizabeth:
If I were to do my studio again aside from adding 8 ft to each dimension, I would put each track light on a separate switch, and put the pot lights on each side of the room on different switches.
I would then double the number of electrical outlets AND put them above desk height.
My desk blocks 2 sets of 4 switches so electrical strip plugs are now installed so that I don't have to move 300lb of desk to plug in something new
Other advice put the phone jacks up above desk height too.

Put dimmer switches with timers on the non track lights

And I put in a floor plug for my loom with the e-dobby but unfortunately I have since rearranged the room, so I still have extra electrical cords trailing on the floor.

I want to put a spool rack on tracks on a wall, but so far I have not been able to get that wall free of other junk. Next time.
Ingrid Boesel, the weaving half of Fiberworks PCW

Visit us at: http://www.fiberworks-pcw.com
Email: ingrid@...

--- In WeaveTech@y..., mdavis@q... wrote:

--- In WeaveTech@y..., etritthart@w... wrote:

I have recently been considering the idea of building a multiple

unit

dwelling for artists that includes studios and was tring to figure
out how much space to allot. How many units and what sort of

Gallery

would be needed? Does any one out there think this would be a
worthwile adventure -- are all weavers "family" people with houses
and studios or are some looking to establish themselves?

I think the most exciting part of this move is the decision to

begin

weaving full time. Now I have to figure out the best place to do

that.

Eliz

I think that would be a grand Idea! I have wanted to do similar for
many years but how? It would take lots of money. I have a small
wooded area in the mountains between NC and VA and have thought it
would be nice to build several cabins and a large studio/conference
center/school/retreat for the arts. When I looked into the cost it
was unbelievable. Even though we're way out in the country and building
codes are rather slack, each cabin will cost at least $20,000 and
that's before any furniture or equipment forget paying for people to
help.

It would be nice and I hope you can do it but, I will have to wait.
Maybe when I retire?

Mike Davis

Mike...This was done many years ago, quite succesfully by Valborg "Mama" Gravander here in the SF area over in the Mill Valley area of Marin County. She had a rather large country property on a hillside and her husband..a retired ship's carpenter..built little cabins here and there on the site, each with a traditional Swedish loom. In the main house she had an enormous weaving room, which he had designed without interior pillars..huge free space to work.

The Gravanders, during the Depression of the 30s, had a large house in the Pacific Heights part of SF where they ran a boarding house and weaving school. Lots of young Swedes and others lived there and worked and learned. Once a week..or was it once a month...they opened the house to the public and they and the young people cooked and served a festive and authentic Swedish dinner..for money.

Mama knew the value of a dollar, and was thrifty all her life. In the years when I knew her she would travel to Sweden once a year and come back with lots of small Swedish antiques..spinning wheels, candle holders, copper pots. She'd have a Lucia Fest and send out invitations and have all the traditional thing to eat and music, the whole works. Then there were all these lovely things around...for sale.

I dearly loved her. We sat on her deck in the sun, me with coffee and a small plate of cookies, she at the spinning wheel. She looked up with a smile after bit and said.."spinning is such damn fun!"

She also put old tennies on the feet of her looms so they would not walk across her wood floors.

I hope some of the other Northern California listers will come up with more anecdotal stuff about this great lady. glen black