WWG

Concept:

The Annual Show and Sale is the showcase for the great work created by the members of the Guild. It has gained a reputation for professionalism and quality handmade, artisan work, where patrons can find unusual and well-made articles which they can take pride in owning or giving as gifts.

Although weaving is the primary interest of the WWG, with all its related skills, such as spinning and dyeing of yarns, we are a Fiber Arts community with a rich diversity of talent and skills including but not limited to: knitting and crochet, basketry, felting, jewelry making, beadwork, metalwork, handmade paper products, needlework and quilting. We wish to foster our members' exploration in all areas related to fiber, and to offer our diverse and quality artisan-made goods at the annual sale. These categories are reviewed annually for appropriateness.

Examples of items to put in the sale include, but are not necessarily limited to:

Handspun, hand-dyed and/or hand-processed yarn and fiber (no raw, unwashed, fleece)

Handwoven products

Surface Design

Fiber arts accessories – items created by the Guild member for the use of fiber artists in their work

Basketry – all forms of hand-made basketry.

Knitted and crocheted products – wearable and household items made from yarn that is appropriate for use. For example, quality acrylic or acrylic blends for baby/children items.

Jewelry – hand-strung, beaded, woven, metalwork.

Beadwork – hand-strung beaded bags, belts, scarves.

Paper products – handmade paper cards, books, and boxes.

Quilts – may be machine or hand-sewn by the artist, or a combination of both. Hand sewing and handcrafted embellishment is encouraged. Due to display space limitations, quilts are limited to small art pieces no larger than a baby-sized quilt or lap throw.

Felted work.

Handcrafted metal and woodwork related to fiber products – for example, hand-finished napkin rings displayed with hand-woven napkins, shawl pins, buttons, shuttles, and small looms.

Handcrafted buttons/beads.

Pricing:

Pricing should reflect the stature of the Annual Show and Sale and the artisan quality of the items displayed. A good rule of thumb is double to triple the cost of materials, depending on the intricacy or complexity of design. For members who are unsure how to price their work, a list of prices from the previous year’s sale can be requested. Members can also discuss pricing at pre-acceptance review.

Process:

All items submitted for the event will be reviewed by an Review Committee whose primary goal is to ensure quality, appropriateness, professional finish, and if necessary, pricing. It is not in place to summarily reject items.

The Review Committee will consist of a number of Guild members who are generally considered particularly knowledgeable in one of the main categories (weaving, basketry, jewelry, knitting, etc.).

For any item rejected by the Review Committee for quality of work issues, the appropriate committee member will complete a rejection form, giving the reason for rejection and positive suggestions for improvement. If the Review Committee feels that an item’s price does not reflect the artisan quality of the item, suggestions of a more appropriate price will be made to the artist.

If there is any question about whether an item is appropriate for the sale, it is up to the artist to get prior approval from the Review Committee. Pre-acceptance review will be available at the May, June, and September WWG meetings at 6:30 p.m. New members selling for the first time, must have all items pre-approved by the Review Committee.

Any item that has appeared in the sale for one year and has not sold must be held aside for one year before it can be in the sale again.

Artists should be respectful of all copyrighted materials.

Given display space limitations, if an artist has many items of a similar nature, some of those items may be kept aside and displayed as space allows. This is the responsibility of the Display Committee to decide.