The (hand) finished article:

My new babies.

I am not a machine! - The Joy of hand making.

Oh the joy of hand making! What a wonderful and rewarding pleasure! Even when I make a gazillion mistakes, as the reward of rectifying them is great and brings order to my chaotic and confused world! (studio) If I were a machine these eccentricities and occasional imperfections would not occur, they are the traces of me as a person and maker, evident through all that I make, each telling a small message about me.

I have spent the last week glued/tangled to my loom, weaving like a demon! Getting over some very sticky situations with some new 100% British wool I'm using, and breaking the record for number of snapped threads per 1" of weaving ! (all rectified now, thank you). It was freezing cold in my studio, but radio four, weaving and a continuous supply of earl grey kept me warm, and I realised that when I'm weaving, my life seems to make perfect sense!

New Warping action...

So among many other things, one of the reasons I have had a bloging break is to spend more time making. This is the biggest warp I've made so far and on the far right is a totally new design I'm trying out to create larger block sections. It's extra long and extra wide and extra beautiful. This is a real test and challenge for me, but I so love spending time actually working with the material and getting stuck into a few days of maths, it makes the back pain worth it! Will be spending the rest of today getting the dam thing weaving! But loving and learning all the time...x

Holly Berry seasons greetings!

It's been a while I know, but I'm back...well almost. I've been looming, winding, designing and weaving...all very studious really, getting lots of exciting projects and pieces off the ground for next year! The special luxury blankets are currently on the looms in a very lovely Scottish mill, and will be party-worthy when they are delivered to the studio in January, so keep looking to see news on studio events.

Well what an exciting year this has been! I have been embraced into the wonderful world of weaving like I couldn't have imagined! New friends and collaborators, adventures to the Shetland islands, inspirational trips to Scotland and everything in between! I'll have to do another post with images of my recent doings! But for now, I wish all those who have supported and encouraged me this year, a Very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!!

Love Holly.xx