I sent out an email last week asking my mailing list what is on their loom and I got a pretty good response rate. Here’s what came through my inbox.

Susan Gaire, whose inspiration came from a photo of the Sandhill Cranes in NM

Love the texture in those wings- and, of course, there are some beautiful color blends, too. I’ve featured some of Susan’s work before and also written about the Hummingbird looms she and her husband have created.

Sheila Burke has been working on sampling some techniques and plans for weaving leaves.

Janette is working on a fun project: weaving alphabet blocks for her new granddaughter to play with as she grows- the letters in her granddaughter’s name, Maxine. She said it’s been a challenge since it’s the first time weaving from a cartoon (and letters) for her. If you don’t know Janette’s work you can find some of her work here. She credited Sarah Swett ‘s serif letters as a guide.

And this one looks like a fun project from Beth Richardson! Love the colors. It will be fun to see how this progresses. Beth is in the Elements class so I expect to see it evolve!

Beth Richardson, based on a cartoon by Olga, age 8

Next, Michael Crompton. You may be familiar with Michael’s work. I’ve written a blog post on his work and methods here. You can also find his writings and work on his website. He has over time developed this special lozenge technique which he also explains on his website. This piece is from his “Pollution” series.

Pollution Water On the Loom August 2026.JPG

He added a note I’m including here: "These images are for another of my "Pollution Series", this being based on Pollution of the water of Seas and Oceans I design through water colour paintings transferring the main shapes to the warp but in recent pieces I weave the backgrounds more direct and intuitive. These are interpreted as the weaving develops, through colour, lozenge shapes and forms depending on the neighbouring colour schemes and forms etc. With an overall idea in my mind i find this gives much more interest and vitality, and flow and movement."

in respect to request, this is from an anonymous weaver

Fun textures and colors in the photo above. This is an untrimmed double corduroy rug with some of the weft as yet uncut.

Speaking of fun(!) … check out this tapestry by Joe Wigon. I’ve known Joe for a number of years now - he’s taken both of my larger classes but I have not seen anything recently. So this was a real treat for me. Joe describes his work as almost like an assembly line in that he has so many going on at one time. (I can identify with that!) Always abstract; never pictorial. And I can certainly identify when he describes his process as a meditation and getting into the flow. I hope you can, too!

I love the energy in this; it leaves me hungry to see more. And I love the way it presents on the little loom., too. I suppose it would be an expensive way to display it, but it really enhances to overall effect of all those twists and turns.

Kristie Strasen is currently working on a series of panels that will be installed at the Portland, Oregon Airport (PDX) in the fall of 2027. Congratulations, Kristie!

Kristie writes ”My piece - which will be entitled "From the Pacific to the Snake - A Columbia River Tapestry" will depict the Columbia River from the Pacific Ocean to the Snake River - essentially forming the border between Washington and Oregon. The six individual tapestries will show not only the river, but all the significant tributaries that flow into it. They will also show the dams on the river as well as the cold water refuges where the salmon stop to cool down on their way up the river to spawn. There will be a narrative that goes along with the piece, so there will be a distinct educational element to the installation. The piece will be installed for one year.”

This next piece is a sample from Denyse Ewart. Denyse is a new student in Elements and she’s working on some of what she’s been learning. “Pigtails, …split weft outlining, …and hachures.”

And below, from Bonnie Britton. Looks like some Soumak outlining going on! Her work was one I featured back in 2020 from the Renditions exhibit but I hadn’t seen anything recent so it was good to hear from her.

Dina Michael is another member of the Elements class. We’ve been seeing her focus on triangles this past year in the critiques. Truly an incredibly focused study worth taking a look at. You can see a bit of it on her IG account.

She writes: “I’ve been reading about Alexander Girard & his playful use of color & how he was influenced by folk art. He wanted to bring color, humor & joy into mid century design, which could come across as intellectual & dry.

With Girard in mind, here’s what’s on my loom today:“

More triangles, this time from Shanna Robinson that she is learning from Nancy McRay.

Therese Coucher has an interesting story behind her piece.

“What’s on my loom is a surprise, to me. I did a little painting in my art class and my teacher was adamant that I do it as a tapestry. I pointed out that everything in it was going the wrong way, and explained why. As you may remember, I set my loom up in the new house a year ago. I was too busy and frazzled to even consider warping it. But in the back of my mind, I was mulling over ways to do the Things Going the Wrong Way tapestry.” Here’s the painting (left image below):

“And here it is a year later. I can’t say it’s been a lot of fun, but I have learned, or relearned, a lot from it, and am planning to use some of it in my more manageable pieces. It’s sewn to the cartoon, but I’m sending enough to give you an idea.”

I’m guessing some of you might identify with something in this, too!

And the last one here is a piece by Margie Shay. She describes it as her “Owl Weaving” - something she’s also been mulling around for a while.

I so know that feeling!

Love the shimmer in those weft bundles.

This has been fun to see what you’re up to. I did get a few images that were finished projects and those were great to see, too. However, I am saving those for another post in the future. Keep weaving everyone- and keep sending me images!

What's on YOUR loom?