Woolhouse Tools began in 1977 with Turkish drop spindles, hand carders, and knitting needles soon followed by umbrella swifts and bulky spinning wheels. Thirty years later, umbrella swifts remain on the list, together with a wide range of other tools from drop spindles to looms capable of weaving fine damask. Some tools, such as the WhichOne and 20+, are unique to Woolhouse Tools.

Now it's time for us to retire.

We'd like to see Woolhouse Tools' history of innovation, practical design, and good customer relations maintained, even enhanced. We imagine a couple who, between them, have some knowledge of woodwork and an interest in hand crafts, particularly weaving. They should be within a few hours drive of a raw material source.

We offer an inventory of many hundreds of parts, all with templates with the most efficient order of work written on them. Over the 30 years we've designed, built, and improved a great number of jigs, specialty drill bits, cutters, and fixtures for making the many parts accurately and efficiently. In order to be able to fill orders for all items except Kirsten and Gertrude looms within a few days of receiving them, we make many parts at a time, many with jigs developed over 30 years. We make wooden pulleys, for example, in batches of 900. With the ratchet forming and cutting jig, a dado head cuts 20 perfectly formed teeth at a time. Larger versions of the same jig make ratchets for Kirsten and Gertrude looms. Because we buy hardware in bulk to cut costs, there's a huge inventory of hardware parts, too. We've always maintained at least a year's supply of birch. That inventory, too, is part of the sale.

We offer unlimited consultation for two years to anyone purchasing Woolhouse Tools, and all our 30 years experience from designing to selling the product and attending weavers' conferences as vendors. The website and conference gear, too, go with the sale.

We've been making tools with which people make beautiful and useful things. While our primary market is Canada and the U.S.A., we've sent a 24s Margaret to Tasmania, a 16s Margaret to Belgium, Mimi looms to Mexico City and Tel Aviv, and recently more Mimi looms to Japan. We meet the world's most interesting people and work at our own pace.

Those interested in acquiring Woolhouse Tools should write and tell us a little of what they can bring to the business and what they expect from it.