One Reviewer
Reviewed in the United States on February 16, 2025
I wasn't sure what to expect of this plastic Mindsoft 195 Pieces Weaving Loom Kit Toys for Adults, Sturdy Frame Potholder Loom Making Kit," but found both good and bad things about it that leave me with mixed feelings. The plastic loom is sturdy enough to hold the nylon loops, and while the tines of the loom are short, they have angled hook-like ends that help to hold the loops on well.There is some slight bowing inward when the loom is loaded with loops, but it holds them just fine. What is an issue is that the hook (looks like a short, thick crochet hook) is much too short and chunky to smoothly get through the weaving loops without having to pause and try to pull the loops through before finishing a single row in the second overlapping round.This hook issue is awkward and unusual, as I've used several different kinds through the years, and this is the first loom/potholder kit that I've tried that includes a too short (and too thick) hook that doesn't even cover the width/length of the loom. I think this would be very discouraging and frustrating for young ones trying this for the first time and I feel it's a severe issue and downgrade from typical, old-fashioned potholder making look kits.I have the set with the more neutral colors, such as black, beige, tan, gray, etc. and must say that most of the colors of the loops are more grim than neutral. I did like the good feel/quality of the nylon loops (for nylon loops), although I will always prefer cotton loops over nylon when budget allows.Also included is a plastic needle, a small amount of a rainbow piece of thin yarn and an instruction manual. I thought that the graphics were very good visually, and there's an impressive amount of various patterns displayed with dots denoting around the edges of the loom in the photos showing where one must add the color of loops to achieve the desired pattern.Finally, there's a significant amount of the manual showing how one is to proceed working in any single letter of the alphabet into the potholder design. So, while there were some good points, having such a short, stubby hook to use on the loom makes no sense to me and makes an otherwise relaxing craft frustrating and annoying. While the feel of the quality of the included loops is good, many of the colors are just not good at all to me. The slight bowing in of the (loaded) loom was concerning, but it didn't seem to affect the process thus far.I don't think that the included accessories (needle and rainbow thread of thin yarn) or the loom and loops is a very good value, particularly with an abnormally short hook and I personally would choose a more classic style with a normal sized hook to keep young ones happy and creative in potholder looming. Thanks for reading.
Hibou
Reviewed in the United States on February 15, 2025
I got this to use with my 7 year old who wanted to weave some bags and it has been easy for her the learn. The loom itself is not super sturdy and I don’t think it would tolerate rough use. It comes with enough bands to make a couple of blocks, so you will want to get more. You need a device to look up the instructions, it has a QR code for that.