Donegal tweed -- the real thing 2

Yesterday I wrote about the carding and spinning machines at Studio Donegal in Ireland, which we visited last month.  I was interested to come home and review my photos of a similar textile manufacturing operation that we visited in Germany a couple of years ago.  In both places, the machines are quite old -- the once vibrant textile industries in Europe and the US have almost disappeared, which makes me sad.

But let's move on to the loom room in Donegal -- which should properly be pronounced to rhyme with pony-doll.  Here are bobbins waiting to be used.

Two warped looms.

Here Kevin fixes a broken warp thread on a lightweight wool throw. I was happy to see a young man taking up this ancient trade.

Next door is the sewing room.

Here's the hallway outside the sewing room, with knitting yarn draped on the stair railing.  Reminds me of my own stairway, except mine is a parking place for quilts, not yarn.

If like me, you can't get enough of watching textiles being made, check out the YouTube video for Studio Donegal.  Tomorrow I'll show you some of the finished goods.