![]() ![]() ![]() This worked out because once the patent papers were filed, I was beyond ready to get it out there without restraints. Up until this point, few people had seen the tool, and I couldn’t talk about it. Once I got the tool to the right place in 2015, I filed the patent papers. To me, to design a tool that people can use to make a variety of things was so motivating and made me totally happy and absorbed in getting it right. The more I used the tool, and with each design tweak, the excitement built. From this phase, new designs took shape too. I spent the next six months tweaking the prototype and testing its capabilities with a few friends from sizing the depth of the notches, to curving the corners, to making actual things. The shape was modified to look modern, and notches were added to expand the tool’s functionalities. As with knitting and crochet needles, design and utility stand the test of time. To design a new tool, I knew that the end product must be simple, modern, and useful. The inspiration for the first Loome tool design was the y-shaped braiding device called the lucet, which goes back to medieval times. Now, thousands of pom-poms and hundreds of tassels, weavings, cords and friendship bracelets later, it’s so nice to look back and see this intersection. Designing the Loome tools brought together the craft and design-related interests toward which I had been channeling so much of my time. I was trucking along with my day job when Loome started materializing in my life. (My day job was private wealth management, then philanthropy and community engagement).įast forward to 2014. I loved it so much that I started taking on side projects that helped me test my own skills. In 2003, I bought my first copy of Illustrator to teach myself digital design. ![]() ![]() I have been drawn to design since I was a kid, always tinkering and making things for people. How did I get into the pom-pom business? It was a happenstance of timing, borne out of my love for crafting and design. They’re also the best way to use up your yarn stash make someone a simple pom-pom, or attach it to a knitted hat, and spread pom-pom happiness! No matter when or where, pom-poms are instant happiness that can be made in a jiffy or with a long, meticulous technique. From Peru to Poland to Japan, they’re a part of nearly every culture. Perhaps it’s in our DNA, since pom-poms have a long history among us. Have you ever seen a pom-pom that you didn’t like? Me neither. Vilasinee Bunnag at world pom-pom control Center, aka her desk. We wanted to know, how did Vilasinee get this job? Where do you get a degree that leads you to be a Pom-Pom Ambassador-at-Large? Here is her answer. Vilasinee is the author of Loome Party: 20+ Tiny Yarn Projects to Make From Your Stash. For a glimpse of what we saw, watch the video up top, and learn Vilasinee’s technique and tips to make a dense, round pom-pom on the Loome tool. Her enthusiasm for pom perfection, for making small gifts that contain big cheer, and for tweaking her Loome tool design to its highest state of usefulness, is apparent the first time you meet her. Vilasinee is what they used to call a real go-getter. (We covet her neat enamel tray for catching stray pom-pom floof.) We stood transfixed in front of her booth as she used her patented Loome tool to make perfect pom-poms, tassels and cords, all while chatting and having a great time. We first met Vilasinee Bunnag a few years ago at the TNNA yarn industry trade show. ![]()
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