make a HAIRPIN crochet lace LOOM - DIY

Hello again, still procrastinating so  today I rushed off to Great Missenden to ensure I had spares for my yellow CLOVER hairpin loom, I didn't want to pay postage and get it online and as it was sunny I fancied a trip out and took Lucy the dog.

It's such a pretty little village: see the lovely crocuses and snowdrops and how they combine with the heather?

 I lurve this shop: Alpahbet Soup: it has some blue and white mugs I'm hankering after... hint hint and it'll be Mother's Day soon? And gorgeous blue and white cake tins too , not to mention glorious patchwork style cushions with dogs and foxes on them?

 This shop had a print of silhouetted wire-haired dachshunds with the motto: I fancy a bit of Rough?!
They had the wide snout and the beard effect to show they were really wires and NOT smoothie sausages.

 AND how about this for an amazing and supercalifragilisticocious word?
GLORIUMPTIOUS loving it!!!!

 This is Rainbow Silks and it has more yarn than ever before! I bought my Clover loom BUT also a pack of glue sticks and a pair of 2mm knitting needles, the longest I could find....

TAH DAH! I made my own hairpin loom! 8 cm wide.

 I had read about a lady on some blog who had done this using a husband's fine drill.....
Well I don't have access to that so I thought I'd try my AWL?
It takes a few tries and a lot of wriggling and turning and pushing but eventually I had my first two holes:

 I had of course marked my spot: 8 cm apart with a Sharpie pen first?

 Here you see what I used: Knitting needles, Pony £1.95 size 2mm  and a pack of glue sticks , but you only need two? The upper pic has the glue remnants still on the awl and the one below is wiped clean.

 An old school ruler and a Sharpie pen that I put names into school uniform with.

So you repeat the hole making exercise 4 times and then you pick out the bits of glue that have been extruded. Then you carefully twizzle- technical term this- the knitting needle into the holes.

Be careful though as the needles can bend very easily!

Here it is again: TA DAH!

You can tie the guideline onto the knobs of the needles and remove the bottom glue stick when your strip is getting too long for the needles.

I haven't tried using it yet though.

But for a try- out it's a lot cheaper than the £13.99 for a Clover tool!