How to Make a Bead Loom
by Dave Tewes, with the usual kibitzing from Dan Boucher

Loom beadwork is a very popular style and produces a flat, rectangular strip of beads. The design of a loom can be really simple. The first thing you'll need to make a loom is a long, flat piece of wood; plywood is good, but anything similar will work. This piece needs only to be 1/2 to 1-inch thick. It will be the base of your loom. You may use any width or length you choose, the longer and wider your loom, the larger your panel of beadwork can be. The next thing you'll need are two pieces of wood to make ends for the loom. These will be attached to the loom a couple of inches from the ends of the base. They can be pieces of 1x2, and should be no wider than the loom base.

Before attaching these pieces, however, you should put your spacers on them. The spacers will separate the strings of your beadwork, which will make up the length of the strip; these are called warp threads. The spacers are easiest to make if you use a couple of old, or new, pocket combs. You can cut them down a little, if they are too long for the end pieces, using a large pair of scissors or maybe wire cutters. The combs just get nailed onto the end pieces so they will stand up above the the tall edge of the piece.

Next, attach the end pieces, again a couple of inches from the end of the base. Nail them on from the bottom, being careful not to break the combs. You may have to put another piece of 1x2 under the end pieces as you nail from the bottom, to avoid damaging the combs.

Finally, put a nail in either end of the base about an inch outside the end pieces. You may want to put it in at an angle, leaning away from the middle of the base. Be careful not to go all the way through the base with the nail or you'll scratch whatever table you're working on. These nails are used to tie-off the warp threads to keep them tight as you use the loom.

At this point, your loom should be ready to begin. (From the ARROWHEAD: Good job Dave and Dan! Perhaps we can persuade you to tell us in the next ARROWHEAD where to go from here.)