Creative Solutions
A few weeks ago, I had a weaver in my home warping before a class. She was using multiple cones of cotton, and the colours were getting tangled as she warped. So, being the helpful sort that I am, I went to grab my cone holder. But before I could get it, I heard a slightly panicked, "NO!! Then I’ll need to buy more equipment, and I can’t do that right now!"
The panic might have been in my head, because I totally get it! There are so many tools we can buy, so much yarn to collect, and then, of course, the additional looms...and suddenly, a relaxing hobby becomes a huge budget item—and not quite so relaxing.
This is my internal conversation while out shopping:
💖 Heart: Sees random beautiful thing… or something I actually need.
*Oh! This is beautiful, I love it, I could buy this!
🧠 Head: Would you like this… or more yarn?
💖 Heart: Sigh Yarn. Always more yarn. Puts random beautiful object back on the shelf and continues to wear 15-year-old jeans.
So, I completely understood her hesitation. I don’t want to be tempted to buy things I never needed—until I tried them! That meant it was time for a little creativity:
A laundry basket and a dowel.
I’m sure this isn’t a new trick, but if you haven’t tried it: Slide the cones onto the dowel, then rest the dowel across the handles of the laundry basket. You can even use small baskets from the dollar store and dedicate one to each colour.
This setup worked beautifully—except for one small issue. If she picked up any speed, the cones kept spinning when she stopped, and the cotton would fall off the cone, wrapping itself around the dowel. That stopped the dowel from turning and meant we had to keep unwrapping yarn mid-warping.
To fix it, I grabbed a couple of plastic lids, cut an “X” in the centre of each, and slid them onto the dowel on either side of the cones. Problem solved!
Once upon a time, I was a hobby farmer, and I heard the phrase:
"You know you’re a real farmer when you learn to make do with what you have."
Well, I think most hobbies are like that too. We can buy all the tools and all the things, but there is something delightfully satisfying about seeing a problem, coming up with a solution, and not spending a penny.
I’m curious…what are your creative solutions to weaving problems? Please share them in the comments.
