Meet the Maker: Friendly Loom by Harrisville Designs

We’ve always taken great pride in working with small manufacturers and individual makers—true
craftspeople whose devotion to their trade is evident in the quality of their work. For this series, we’re
spotlighting some of our longtime (and more recent) makers. Harrisville Designs has been making
impeccable yarn, textiles, and weaving looms for over 50 years in their New Hampshire mill, and their
Friendly Loom line of starter kits is the perfect entry point for crafters of any age. We spoke with
Harrisville’s Emmi Haddock to see where the family-owned company has been and where it’s heading.

It’s the same story in so many New England towns: industrialization the 19th century created a boom and a thriving community blossomed seemingly out of nowhere, only to be ravaged by the nationwide collapse of local industry in the decades following World War II. But in Harrisville, New Hampshire, something almost miraculous happened: where so many similar towns slid into decay and blight, it got a reprieve, kept its industry alive—and, improbably, began to thrive again.

But as all that historic machinery was cleared out, there was a sense that something irretrievable was being lost. Harrisville was a textile town. The Colony family thought it could re-emerge as one again.

Riding a fortunately timed wave of seventies counterculture ideals and “back-to-the earth” movements, the newly minted Harrisville Designs came along at just the right time. Young people from all over the country, tired of crass commercialism and low-quality mass-produced wares, came to the area to learn how to make things for themselves. The people kept coming. When the Colonys hit upon the idea that weaving could be accessible beyond those with access to expensive looms, they pioneered the idea of building and selling loom kits, which were an immediate success. And as they noticed younger children taking an interest in the craft, they conjured up the idea of Friendly Loom, marketing a large Tapestry Loom that the company still sells today—manufactured, like all of their looms and kits, right there in their Harrisville shop.

“A lot of schools still order those,” explains Harrisville Designs’ Emmi Haddock. “The 48” Standing Loom, is great for classrooms, because you can have three kids working side by side, independently or collaboratively. And you can also have three other kids on the other side of the loom, so you can have six kids or maybe even more work on something at the same time.”

Seeing children experience the satisfaction and pure joy of making things inspired the company to expand their lineup of looms and kits, including our popular Hardwood Table Loom, a rigid heddle tabletop loom that’s easy to start because it’s already warped—in other words, ready to weave.

"We started out with trying to preserve the art of weaving, creating floor looms,” Haddock says. “That’s sort of the genesis, the core, of Friendly Loom. So you’ll see different fiber arts — weaving, knitting and crocheting, needlepoint, wet fleecing, and la tch and rug hooking — in Friendly Loom products .”

This sort of dedication — to inspiring and educating coming generations — is a common theme among a lot of the makers Garrett Wade works with. Harrisville Designs take s matters a step further, offering in - person classes , and even lodging!

“With Friendly Loom products, you should be able to just pick it up and figure out how to do it, with things like crocheting and knitting . However, with weaving on a floor loom, if it’s literally your first time, you’ll likely need help ,” Haddock says. “We have five-daylong classes — you can’t just buy a floor loom and know how to warp it and start weaving. You really need classes or lessons to know how to do that weave on a floor loom. We have other classes, like knitting and sewing, but our most popular is beginning-to-intermediate weaving. We have students come for the week for these classes, and the old boarding house, where mill workers lived, has been converted and available for students to stay.”

While they’ve done an admirable job of keeping the textile industry alive in Harrisville, Haddock and the team at Friendly Loom and Harrisville Designs—still headed by John and Patricia Colony, some 52 years later—are even more encouraged by the future.

“We’re super psyched to have all these new crafters who have come to learn how to weave, to knit, to crochet, making potholders,” Haddock says. “In the last couple of years, at the New York Sheep and Wool Festival in Rhinebeck [New York], and I’ve noticed—more so than, say, even back in 2019—there’s been a huge increase in millennials and Gen Zs there, and they’re doing some really cool things.”

Friendly Loom is uniquely positioned to welcome new crafters into the hobby, and they’re working to expand their offerings to young makers, with craft kits in felting, needlepoint, weaving, and more classified by experience level, making it easy for beginners to work their way up through progressively more challenging projects.

It’s worth noting that all of Friendly Loom’s offerings are made in the same Harrisville workshop, bythe same artisans, as the company’s highest-end, professional-level equipment. Your Table Loom was made by the same people, from the same high-quality hard maple, as their giant $7,000 rug loom.

We take every piece seriously for the new crafters,” Haddock explains. “I think that’s really important, that we’re not making some stuff with plastic that’s going to break after one use. These are professional weavers, knitters, and builders who make little ‘toys,’ but they’re really not toys. They’re just a miniature version of the larger things that we make.”

We’ve always taken great pride in working with small manufacturers and individual makers—true
craftspeople whose devotion to their trade is evident in the quality of their work. For this series, we’re
spotlighting some of our longtime (and more recent) makers. Harrisville Designs has been making
impeccable yarn, textiles, and weaving looms for over 50 years in their New Hampshire mill, and their
Friendly Loom line of starter kits is the perfect entry point for crafters of any age. We spoke with
Harrisville’s Emmi Haddock to see where the family-owned company has been and where it’s heading.

It’s the same story in so many New England towns: industrialization the 19th century created a boom and a thriving community blossomed seemingly out of nowhere, only to be ravaged by the nationwide collapse of local industry in the decades following World War II. But in Harrisville, New Hampshire, something almost miraculous happened: where so many similar towns slid into decay and blight, it got a reprieve, kept its industry alive—and, improbably, began to thrive again.

But as all that historic machinery was cleared out, there was a sense that something irretrievable was being lost. Harrisville was a textile town. The Colony family thought it could re-emerge as one again.

Riding a fortunately timed wave of seventies counterculture ideals and “back-to-the earth” movements, the newly minted Harrisville Designs came along at just the right time. Young people from all over the country, tired of crass commercialism and low-quality mass-produced wares, came to the area to learn how to make things for themselves. The people kept coming. When the Colonys hit upon the idea that weaving could be accessible beyond those with access to expensive looms, they pioneered the idea of building and selling loom kits, which were an immediate success. And as they noticed younger children taking an interest in the craft, they conjured up the idea of Friendly Loom, marketing a large Tapestry Loom that the company still sells today—manufactured, like all of their looms and kits, right there in their Harrisville shop.

“A lot of schools still order those,” explains Harrisville Designs’ Emmi Haddock. “The 48” Standing Loom, is great for classrooms, because you can have three kids working side by side, independently or collaboratively. And you can also have three other kids on the other side of the loom, so you can have six kids or maybe even more work on something at the same time.”

Seeing children experience the satisfaction and pure joy of making things inspired the company to expand their lineup of looms and kits, including our popular Hardwood Table Loom, a rigid heddle tabletop loom that’s easy to start because it’s already warped—in other words, ready to weave.

"We started out with trying to preserve the art of weaving, creating floor looms,” Haddock says. “That’s sort of the genesis, the core, of Friendly Loom. So you’ll see different fiber arts — weaving, knitting and crocheting, needlepoint, wet fleecing, and la tch and rug hooking — in Friendly Loom products .”

This sort of dedication — to inspiring and educating coming generations — is a common theme among a lot of the makers Garrett Wade works with. Harrisville Designs take s matters a step further, offering in - person classes , and even lodging!

“With Friendly Loom products, you should be able to just pick it up and figure out how to do it, with things like crocheting and knitting . However, with weaving on a floor loom, if it’s literally your first time, you’ll likely need help ,” Haddock says. “We have five-daylong classes — you can’t just buy a floor loom and know how to warp it and start weaving. You really need classes or lessons to know how to do that weave on a floor loom. We have other classes, like knitting and sewing, but our most popular is beginning-to-intermediate weaving. We have students come for the week for these classes, and the old boarding house, where mill workers lived, has been converted and available for students to stay.”

While they’ve done an admirable job of keeping the textile industry alive in Harrisville, Haddock and the
team at Friendly Loom and Harrisville Designs—still headed by John and Patricia Colony, some 52 years
later—are even more encouraged by the future.

“We’re super psyched to have all these new crafters who have come to learn how to weave, to knit, to
crochet, making potholders,” Haddock says. “In the last couple of years, at the New York Sheep and Wool
Festival in Rhinebeck [New York], and I’ve noticed—more so than, say, even back in 2019—there’s been a huge increase in millennials and Gen Zs there, and they’re doing some really cool things.”

Friendly Loom is uniquely positioned to welcome new crafters into the hobby, and they’re working to
expand their offerings to young makers, with craft kits in felting, needlepoint, weaving, and more classified by experience level, making it easy for beginners to work their way up through progressively more challenging projects.

It’s worth noting that all of Friendly Loom’s offerings are made in the same Harrisville workshop, by the same artisans, as the company’s highest-end, professional-level equipment. Your Table Loom was made by the same people, from the same high-quality hard maple, as their giant $7,000 rug loom.

“We take every piece seriously for the new crafters,” Haddock explains. “I think that’s really
important, that we’re not making some stuff with plastic that’s going to break after one use. These are professional weavers, knitters, and builders who make little ‘toys,’ but they’re really not toys. They’re just a miniature version of the larger things that we make.”