As the saying goes...."It takes a village to raise a child".  Well, we are finding out that it takes a village to reproduce an early hand loom.  Three years ago I had the good fortune to meet two local timber framers - Ben Levitt and Don Estes. Having worked on timber frame barns for all of their working lives, they were so intrigued when they first saw my collection of early hand looms.  They had so many questions, which prompted more questions from me and we decided to find some of the answers by reproducing my favorite loom from Westford, MA.  Deciding to make this a truly Vermont loom had us then seeking out local timber and a local sawyer and that is when Sue Carpenter (the owner of the timber), Jim Colgan (the owner of the machinery) and Nathan Smith (the sawyer and blacksmith) came  into the picture.  Once the timber had dried the next winter was devoted to the actual construction. What resulted was a truly magnificent piece and the answers to some of the questions but not all.  Ben and Don will continue to work on restoring the early looms in my collection and Ben hopes to collaborate with Seth Kelly to reproduce yet another favorite loom of mine this winter. Nevan Carling is also a part of this team in between finishing his college studies in the UK.  Besides looms, Weavers Croft Woodworks also makes custom raddles, warping bars, skarnes and anything else out of wood that a weaver needs.  One day soon we hope to offer classes on loom making to all those interested in this ancient trade.