Dixie Hamilton
Costa Rica
Visit Dixie on Facebook: www.facebook.com/CrosspatchCreations
Tell us a little about yourself: I am retired. I live in the beautiful country of Costa Rica, in a small pueblo high in the mountains, surrounded by coffee fields. For looming inspirations I have only to look out the window at the coffee fields, the volcano in the background, and all the astonishingly gorgeous flowers. In the past, I engaged in various careers including, school teacher, college professor, paralegal, and business owner.
What arts, crafts and/or hobbies are you interested in and how did you get interested in them? I began sewing at the age of five and also learned to embroidery and crochet as a child. As a young adult, my sewing interest turned to quilting, which has now been a passion for many years. I taught quilting before I retired. I learned to knit as an adult, which I continue to do. My interest in beading came through beading on my small quilts and then I began to make jewelry. I enrolled in several jewelry classes on Craftsy.com, where I discovered Claudia's class on beaded tapestries and cuffs.
Did anyone in your family do any crafts? Which crafts? Did this inspire you? My mother sewed, crocheted, and knitted. My primary inspiration was my Aunt, who was the one who taught me to sew, crochet, and quilt.
What type of weaving do you do? (Bead? Tapestry? Mixed-Media? Etc.?) I am a novice weaver and want to try it all.
What got you into weaving? I had decided that, even though I have enough uncompleted quilting, knitting, and crochet projects to last for my lifetime, that I wanted to learn something new. I have severe degenerative arthritis and my projects have had to evolve to meet the challenges I face. For example, I now quilt by machine, rather than by hand. I love making jewelry, especially off-loom bead weaving, which has now become a challenge. The Mirrix Loom has been a miracle for me, allowing me to create things I never could have done otherwise. I am now addicted to weaving and other projects are falling by the wayside!
How long have you been weaving? About six months.
What projects have you done on a Mirrix Loom? So far my weaving has been confined to Infinity Bracelets, beaded and tapestry cuffs, and beaded bracelets.
What projects do you hope to do on a Mirrix Loom in the future? Larger beaded items and I'm eagerly awaiting Claudia's new tapestry class on CraftArtEdu.com
Why did you choose a Mirrix Loom? I first saw it in the Craftsy class. I researched other looms on the internet and found that the Mirrix was the perfect loom for me. I am so glad I made that decision.
Do you have a website, Etsy page or social media site you'd like to share? Not yet. I'm working on that. I am an active member of the Mirrix Looms group on Facebook.
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Charles Gee
Victoria BC Canada
What arts, crafts and/or hobbies are you interested in and how did you get interested in them?
I retired in 2006 and had hoped to get into my fully equiped woodworking shop, but fate in the form of Asthma intervened some years earlier and I had turned to fabric art as a possible solution to keeping my hands busy and my mind occupied. I started off with crochet, then living in the remote boondocks started to spin my own yarns. However in time the wool caused the Asthma to attack again. I switched to cotton and now do my own plying and dyeing.
Did anyone in your family do any crafts? Which crafts? Did this inspire you?
My Father did all sorts of stuff made wooden puzzles, superb caligraphy and so on. My Mother knitted (and drove me nuts with the click, click of the pins) It did not inspire but I spent many years making and/or fixing machinery and then more years making items for the Tourist /Souvenir trade.
What type of weaving do you do(Bead? Tapestry? Mixed-Media? Etc.?)
I started off with Tapestry but was disappointed with the lack of control and the difficulty of getting clean outlines to say nothing of the numerous rules, and the weaving "police." I wanted a style that would allow vertical and horizontal lines and the precise placement of a single 'pixel' of color. I slowly developed an interest in Soumack or Swedish Knotting and am slowly working my way through translating the techniques of Formal Tapestry in to this way of working.
What got you into weaving?
I found that I was amassing a collection of yarn that needed to be used. I will not knit, I can crochet but the results are limited in many ways. Thus I started to weave cloth, Inkle weaving and so on. A bit of tapestry, then rugs in various Soumack styles and at last into Soumack Tapestry.
How long have you been weaving?
Hard to say probably since about 2005
What projects have you done on a Mirrix Loom?
I bought and cursed 4 looms (which shall remain nameless) 3 were expensive but not able to maintain or even reach a decent level of tension, one could but it was way too big for a small apartment. I knew that I wanted something with a strong sturdy metal top and bottom, made do with a copper pipe job but awkward and irritating. Then I found the Mirrix and life started to be a pleasure again. I started off with a simple over two under one weave/stitch all going the same way - working always from left to right. Mirrix kept it beautifully straight until I cut off the warp and it went to 30 degrees out of straight vertical. Lesson number one - always do a balanced weave left to right then right to left. Lesson two was that I could not get the gradation in color I wanted from DMC Embroidery floss. Solution dye my own cotton so six months later I had a wall covered with a hand built shelving unit and almost 1,000 skeins of cotton dyed to my own specifications personally.
The next challenge was to see if I could make a straight line and a graduated color field and the result is the "Scarlet Meander." In that piece I had worked out how to deal with vertical slits. I wanted to see if I could use this approach to deal with both vertical and horizontal slits. I was very unhappy with the way traditional tapestry had to deal with horizontal and vertical lines. Thus I poked around for a design that would test my new technique to the limit. The piece entitled "Greek Sunrise" was completed recently and apart from some slight mishaps became a learning experience and a vindication of both Horizontal and vertical lines. Dealing with up to 50 changes of thread in a row was a challenge, slow and tedious as it was, the result was worth the effort. The next step in this process was to see if I could work from a cartoon and that piece is coming to completion. It is to be a small amulet bag worn around my neck to hold my hearing. The front and back of the bag is complete and I am working on the last few inches of the strap/sides.
What projects do you hope to do on a Mirrix Loom in the future?
The next task is to draw a cartoon of overlapping circles in a full set of colors and in a range of sizes then to weave it and teach myself the technique of fudging a circle. After that exercise I will do something that captures the technique of traditional hachures. I may then do a protractor of 360 degrees in order to pin down the exact way to deal with various angles. Then on to my passion of the moment "Flowers" and the nuances of light and shade etc.
Why did you choose a Mirrix Loom?
There was but one reason: tension, tension, tension! Once I had it then I discovered the simplicity of warping a Mirrix and the great pleasure to be had from the warp spring system - never, ever again will I go back to the hit and miss (to not even mention the mess) of a traditional warp on a warping board or even with the single pin method of one of my former looms. All a source of frustration and needless complexity
Do you have a website, Etsy page or social media site you'd like to share?
I weave period - no time for messing around with these new and wondourous techniques and technology. I may in time do a blog as the start of a Book about the techniques I have discovered but the learning curve is far from complete
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Anne Gately
USA
Tell us a little about yourself: I've been retired for over 20 years with plenty of time to explore and develop the things I love to do. I live near the ocean in Maine with my husband Arthur. One of my daughters lives in
Costa Rica and the other lives in New York so without family around I devote most of my time to sewing, quilting, beading and volunteer work. I am currently on the board of directors serving as treasurer of the York Art Association.
What arts, crafts and/or hobbies are you interested in and how did you get interested in them?
I always sewed my own clothes and the clothes
of my daughters. Quilting became my passion in 1978 which later developed into a passion for off loom beadwork, mainly Peyote, and that has developed into a passion for my Mirrix loom. I have made many pieces with my Mirrix using beads, but I am challenged when it comes to using fibers. However, I have never liked working with kits and enjoy experimenting on my own.
Did anyone in your family do any crafts? Which crafts? Did this inspire you?
I always had a natural interest in crafts and made my first sweater when I was nine years old and my first afghan
a few years later. During my working career and while raising my daughters I made theirs and my own clothes.
I dabbled in painting and pottery but it wasn't until the resurgence in quilting in the 70's that a passion other than sewing took hold.
What type of weaving do you do?
I work with beads almost exclusively. I have tried a few projects using a mixture of fiber and beads but am not
completely happy with the results. I need some help with technique and have purchased several books on the subject but I tend to do what comes easy to me.
What got you into weaving?
I belonged to the Bead Society of New England and wanted to learn everything I could about beading. I purchased a "Larry the Loom" after seeing Don Pierce's work. I had no success at all with this loom and eventually sold it to a fellow beader at the Society. Shortly after I had purchased this loom I saw a demo of the Mirrix by Claudia at an event held by the New England Bead Society held in Concord, NH. I was intrigued but since I had already purchased "Larry"
I couldn't buy it. Somehow the image of the Mirrix stuck in my mind and when I was ready to try loom weaving again I purchased the Mirrix.
How long have you been weaving?
I purchased my loom about 10 months ago.
What projects have you done on a Mirrix Loom?
I've done many projects, pictures included. I've sold several pieces at the Ogunquit Museum of American Art
and at shows at York Art Association. I tend to like simple designs with a Native American look.
What projects do you hope to do on a Mirrix Loom in the future?
I have developed some designs for necklaces, and hope to expand into using a combination of fiber and beads but I don't want to work with kits. I'd like to learn technique and explore on my own.
Why did you choose a Mirrix Loom:
I don't know much about looms. My only other experience was with "Larry" I've seen pictures of other
looms in books and magazines but the Mirrix is by far the most attractive to look at. I love that is light in
weight and that it's made of smooth material. After the first go around with warping, it's very easy to use.
I'm taking it to my fiber arts group next month to do a demo. I wish I had purchased the loom that day in
Concord, New Hampshire.
Do you have a website, Etsy page or social media site you'd like to share?
I am on facebook but I just look at it to keep track of my grandchildren. I sell as much as I want to
at the Museum, the Art Center, and to friends without a web or media site and would not like to have
to push myself to fill orders. I do like to look at the work others are doing and there are plenty of
opportunities to do so on the net.
 This is a Peyote piece that I did some time ago. I don't do Peyote much anymore.
Pieces woven on a loom:
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Stacy
USA
Tell us a little about yourself: I'm a stay at home mom of two gorgeous girls, a student, a wife,and am proudly owned by four furkids!
What arts, crafts and/or hobbies are you interested in and how did you get interested in them?
Oh, boy! There are so many! Primarily I weave and spin, but I also do Kumihimo, crochet, knit, bead, and am now learning to do chain maille! I learned to weave on a homemade frame loom when I was a kid, and would spend hours cutting weft yarn, because I didn't know about continuous weft, so everything I made had fringe instead of selvedges. I started beading in my early twenties, but didn't get back to fabric weaving until a year ago. I'm in seventh heaven to finally be able to say "I'm a weaver!"
Did anyone in your family do any crafts? Which crafts? Did this inspire you?
Mom was an avid knitter when I was a kid, and I learned the basics from her. I always had my own skeins of yarn to play with next to her.
What type of weaving do you do?
All kinds! Tapestry, inkle, tablet, peg, multi-shaft, I love it all!
What got you into weaving?
The sudden realization that I had resources--in the form of the Internet--that I didn't have in the 70s, and I could finally learn what I wanted to learn. It's been such a ride, and its not over!
How long have you been weaving?
I've been weaving for a little over a year now, and I love it.
What projects have you done on a Mirrix Loom?
So far, I've completed one sprang project on my Big Sister loom, who is named Kaylee, and I have another one on there right now.
What projects do you hope to do on a Mirrix Loom in the future?
Beadwork! I haven't done that on Kaylee yet, which is kind of ironic.
Why did you choose a Mirrix Loom?
When I started learning loom beading, I came across Mirrix looms in a Fire Mountain Gems catalog. I couldn't afford one then, as I had just moved out on my own, but I kept looking at them over the years, and as soon as I had the money, I bought one. I couldn't be happier with it.
Do you have a website, Etsy page or social media site you'd like to share?
I have a blog, http://kidsdogscraftsohmy.wordpress.com. I mostly blog about my crafty endeavors, but occasionally there'll be other entries about the kids, the dogs, whatever is on my mind at the time.
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