When you’re waiting in line at the bank or having a long commute or you’re in between work things and you have time on your hands, the tendency for most of us is to just browse our smartphones. But if you’re looking for something more productive to do, you can always journal, read a book, or do some arts and crafts to keep your hands busy and enhance your creativity. If you’ve always wanted to take up weaving but don’t have space for an actual loom in your house, this tiny, portable one may be the next best thing.
Designer: Lauren Puchowski
During the pandemic, Puchowski came up with the boomloom, which is basically a portable loom. It’s something that both newbies and master weavers can find useful especially if they want to bring their craft wherever they’re going. She also wanted to make weaving something that’s more “intuitive and expressive” and having something that’s accessible to everyone, not to mention handy, is one step towards that. It looks like a toy at first but it can actually be used to create patches, sketches, multiples or to test out some color combinations and designs. There are two size options: the medium and the slightly smaller mini.
The loom is made from six parts using aluminum, beech, and maple. Surprisingly, it doesn’t use any screws or fasteners. Using it seems pretty easy even if you don’t have any experience in using the regular loom. You just turn the knobs to rotate the bar and it will automatically move the alternate warp threads up and down. There are hidden tabs that are able to stop the bar where you need it to stop while the slits hold the yarn securely. Because of its size, you can do your weaving in your hands, on your lap, or on a table.
The boomloom (still patent pending) is assembled in the designer’s workspace but she has been able to create it for people from all over the world. It is also now available at the Cooper Hewitt Museum Shop which is housed at the Andrew Carniegie Mansion in New York.
