Weaving a life

Staff

Published Monday, June 27, 2005

By Ann Austin, Tribune staff writer

Freeman Jacobson grew up around Clarks Grove which is where he met his wife, Opal. They were friends growing up, but it was while Freeman was overseas during World War II that Opal's letters began to speak to his heart. The couple married in 1947, and began to build their home where it still stands.

They lived in their basement for several years before they could afford to build the second level of their home.

"You didn't have credit cards back then," Freeman said. "No one had any money, so you do what you can do."

Jacobson worked at a body shop for most of his career and had his own body shop business for a while.

He's always liked to keep himself busy so when he retired Jacobson took up a new hobby: weaving rugs on a loom.

"You can't just sit in a Lazy Boy and put your feet up and expect to live too long. You've got to do something," he said.

Years before, Opal purchased two looms which she used to make table runners and placemats for personal use and gifts, but she never had time to do more than a few pieces a year.

Since Freeman had hours to burn, he learned the craft and has been busy ever since, creating rugs of different sizes out of old jeans and random pieces of fabric.

"Blue jean rugs are most popular because they wear good and they look nice," Freeman said.

Weaving keeps him on his feet and works his arms and legs.

"It's good exercise," he said.

Making rugs is a slow process, he said, since fabric must be divided into strips and the loom prepared before the weaving even begins.

"Some days you only make one, some days you can make two," Freeman said. "It's not a money-making job. It's more of a time killer," he said.

Every year, the couple attends a craft fair at Blooming Prairie. They bring hundreds of rugs, and are a very popular booth.

"People wait outside and stand in line until the door opens and then it's a mad rush," Opal said.

Their rugs, which are as good a quality or better than what people would find in a store, they said, are reasonably priced from around $10 to the mid-$20s.

They've had offers for people to sell their rugs at other shows, but the demand would be too high.

"You can't keep up with that. It takes the joy out of it," Opal said.

(Contact Ann Austin at ann.austin@albertleatribune.com or 379-3435.)

---

WOULD YOU LIKE TO SHARE THIS STORY?

---