Saturday, February 11, 2012

Dancing cranes and weaving progress

I have settled a little in the new house outside of Alamosa, CO. And I have cranes dancing in my front yard. The house is surrounded by center pivot fields of mostly wheat and barley (I know, ironic for someone with celiac disease) which the greater sandhill cranes love to feed on this time of year. It is time for their migration north and they stop here in the San Luis Valley for a month or so every year.


The loom fared fine during transport and the tension on the piece seems about the same as when I packed it up. That is to say, not great, but definitely workable. With a little extra futzing I am almost happy with it and am sure that when the piece comes off the loom it will be fine.

I made a trip to Taos last weekend to pick up a bed to sleep in, my tapestries from Weaving Southwest, and my LeClerc upright tapestry loom. My awesome brother-in-law loaned me his Sprinter van and I was sure I could just put the bed and the loom right into the van and be done with it. The loom was a few inches too high to fit into the van and I had a Sunday afternoon in Taos of hunting for the right drill bit in sea of hardware stores all closed for the Super Bowl. Unbelieveably, WalMart came through for me and I got the loom apart and into the van.

My father took that pile of wooden parts and somehow put them all back together the other day. He strongly suggested it not be taken apart again (or at least not in the way I took it apart to get it in the van). So as soon as this commission is finished, I am ready to start a new adventure weaving vertically. 

I am pleased to be back in the San Luis Valley. The wildlife outside my front door (I also saw flocks of Canada geese feeding with the sandhill cranes, a hawk, and a great heron this morning as well as an owl last night), the quiet of the farmland, the endless views to 14,000 foot mountains, and this sunny little studio are all great. But of course being an auntie to the most beautiful little baby in the world is the best thing.

Blanca massif in the distance

4 comments:

  1. Wow! I was so excited to see the cranes in flight! How awesome to watch them dance!

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  2. My dream is to learn to weave and I am learning reading different books and blogs. My husband made me a small frame and it helps. I enjoy reading your blog. Thank you for so many interesting posts. I was born in Poland, moved to the States and I live on east-coast, NJ. Last summer I traveled in Arizona, Utah, Nevada. I loved this area, colors and space. I started this comment introducing myself but my question is if the cranes are making any noise. While I lived in Poland I saw cranes few times from distance and they looked beautiful.

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  3. Hi Halina, I'm glad you're learning to weave! I have enjoyed weaving on small looms from time to time though mostly I weave much bigger. Many people learn on picture frame looms though.

    I think the cranes in Poland are different than the greater sandhill cranes here in Colorado and I don't know if they would make the same noises. These cranes make an unmistakable croaking cry... and there are so many of them here now that I hear it a lot! I think you can find links online for the sound. Maybe I'll add a link to my next post.

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  4. Thank you Rebecca for your answer. I need to check what species live in Poland and here. Cranes are beautiful birds. White stork is very commons in Poland and at times I miss it to see it.
    Weaving is fun. I knit and crochet and tat. I like working with yarns.

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