What is special about the Finnish looms?

It is a question I am asked again and again
Since SKYTTEN became a Toika dealer in 2026, I have also been met with a fair amount of skepticism regarding the Finnish looms. I actually understand that. Many Danish weavers are familiar with Lervad and other looms that have been part of the Danish weaving tradition for generations.

But perhaps that is precisely where it becomes interesting.

Because a Toika is not just a Finnish loom.

It is part of the Nordic weaving tradition!
And that tradition also includes Denmark.

Finnish by origin. Nordic by tradition
Toika is not a new name in Denmark.
In the 1980s, you could find Toika looms at several Danish dealers. Among them was Lervad Anders S. Søn A/S in Askov, one of Denmark's significant manufacturers of hand looms.

In Kraks Vejviser (The Danish Directory) from 1987, Toika is listed with spinning wheels, looms, and spinning fibers, and Lervad is mentioned as a dealer.

So, even back then, Toika was part of the Danish weaving community.

In the early 1990s, Toika was still on the Danish market. But during the 1990s, much changed. Weaving lost some of its previous standing, and the Danish production of hand looms gradually disappeared.

Lervad continued until 2004.

Today, hand looms are no longer produced in Denmark
But the tradition did not disappear. It continued elsewhere in the Nordic countries.
And in Finland, Toika continued to develop and manufacture hand looms.

More than 125 years of Finnish history
Toika was founded in Finland in 1898. After World War II, the company began manufacturing hand looms, and over the decades, Toika has developed the looms based on the practice of weaving.

Therefore, it is not just a loom that has been designed and put into production.

It is a loom that has been developed through generations of weavers and weaving.
And you can feel it!

Built to weave
For me, part of what is special about Toika is the combination of strength, precision, functionality, and flexibility.

They are solid looms, built as work tools.

They stand stably and can handle fine textiles, linen, and wool, as well as heavy materials like rag rugs. With a countermarch, you get a precise shed opening, even when working with many shafts and more advanced weaves.

One loom can follow you through many years of weaving
And the practical details are incorporated into the construction. From the regulation of warp tension to the solid construction in Finnish birch.

It is not decoration. It is function!

A Nordic weaving tradition
This is where I think Toika becomes really interesting.
Because even though Toika is Finnish, the tradition it stands in is not only Finnish.

It is Nordic!

In Denmark, we have had Lervad. In Sweden, there is a strong tradition of hand weaving and solid wooden looms. In Finland, Toika has continued to develop the looms.

We have different histories, but we share a strong tradition of building and using looms for everyday textiles, rugs, and more advanced weaving.

Toika is a part of that history!
And that is why I think it is so wonderful that Toika is once again standing on Danish weaving floors.

When you buy a Toika
When you buy a Toika loom, you are of course buying a loom that is developed and manufactured in Finland. But you also get something more:

You bring the Nordic weaving tradition home with you!

A tradition that also encompasses the old Danish looms.
A tradition that Lervad was a part of.
A tradition that still lives on with weavers in Denmark, Sweden, and Finland.

That is why I am so proud that SKYTTEN has become a dealer of Toika.
Not to replace Danish weaving traditions.
But to help carry them forward.

From Finland to Denmark
From generation to generation
From weaver to weaver

So, what is special about the Finnish looms?
Perhaps the answer is quite simple:

They are Finnish by origin – but Nordic by tradition!

When you sit down at a Toika, you are therefore not sitting outside the Danish weaving tradition.

You are sitting right in the middle of it!
For when you buy a Toika, you don't just bring Finland home with you.

You bring the Nordic region home with you!
And the Nordic region also includes Denmark.

Warp up • Get comfortable • And keep on weaving......