Janurary 2018 Newsletter

January 2018 Newsletter

Hello Fiber Friends:

Happy New Year to all of you! I hope your holidays were filled with peace and joy.
Have you made your New Year resolutions, yet? I hope you included “create and share the craft I love with others”, as one of your resolutions. I know I am grateful to all of you who have inspired and shared your craft with me over the years, whether it be weaving, spinning, knitting, felting, carving, beading, basketry, or other fiber related crafts. And, I know as Guild members’, we inspire others in the community to learn, inquire, and appreciate our craft.
One of the ways we can continue this is through outreach events. Last year, we participated in 5 exhibits, and we are starting this year with a bang, also! In March, members will be holding a skill share event at the Everson Library for children and adults to learn more about weaving. There will be hands-on demonstrations of weaving projects that participants can take home, and hopefully be inspired to continue to learn more about the craft. If you would like to join us, please let us know: we will be talking about it again at the January meeting.
I look forward to seeing you at the January meeting!
Best,
Kathy Hutchinson
President

Upcoming Programs
Jan 20 - It’s a Wrap! Working with Color.
Feb 17 - Towel Exchange, and “Walk the Dog” Challenge.
Meetings held at: St James Church (lower level), 910, 14th St., Bellingham. Third Saturday of each month, 10am-2pm. Meeting start—10am.
10-noon—business meeting, show and tell and lunch 2-4pm—program.

See whatcomweaversguild.org/events for further program information or contact as at [email protected].

2018 Dues Reminder
It’s time to renew your Whatcom Weavers Guild membership. Membership is annual from January through December. The cost remains the same at $25 per single membership or $35 for a family membership. Along with your check please add any updated information for the roster. Printed rosters are available at the meetings.
See you then and thank you, Cathy Thompson, Treasurer.

Program Notes

Looking Back, the December 16, 2017 Holiday Potluck and Finishing Bee was great fun! Soups, salads, treats, and a wonderful potato casserole were shared. ANWG Scholarship students Sharon Allen and Susan Torntore shared the results of the workshops they enrolled in at the ANWG Regional Conference in July. Sharon showed Tablet Weaving samples and new work, learned in a workshop with John Malarkey and many Saori weaving samples. Susan wowed us with Kasuri Ikat (Japanese Indigo tied-resist warp and weft) samples from her student days, and a new Kasuri project from her workshop with Marilyn Roberts at ANWG. We hope to bring Marilyn Roberts up for a workshop or two in 2018. Afterward, members who could stay awhile got out their sewing machines, set up an ironing board and iron, and accomplished some pressing, hemming, spinning, knitting and weaving, along with quite a lot of visiting. It was great to get to know new members and catch up with regular and returning members!

Bring a portable project, spinning wheel, sewing machine, or even a small loom that needs warping after the meeting – we have the Church Hall the entire afternoon, so Finishing Bee/Stitch and Chat/Spin and Knit can be a regular thing after every meeting. You can review the Library, too. We have many good titles and inspiring resources.

Looking Forward to seeing you at the January 20, 2018 Program: Working with Color.
Reminder: bring your left-over weft bobbins and scraps of yarn from projects, and a pair of snips or scissors. Cardboard strips for planning color schemes and making wraps will be provided. We will view Deb Essen’s video on Color in Weaving. Then we’ll sort out our yarn colors, review color schemes, color preferences and design resources. Everyone can take home some ideas, and take home your empty bobbins!
Popcorn will be served with the movie – bring your own butter or toppings.
If you have color and design resources and supplies to show or share, please bring them.

Thanks!
Carol Berry, Program Chair

It’s not finished ‘til it’s finished: I ordered woven cloth labels from the Dutch Label Shop https://www.dutchlabelshop.com/en_us I am very pleased with the quality, price, ease of ordering and speed of delivery. 30 basic woven labels cost $17. Why do I label my weaving, even dish towels? Because when I finish something, it’s usually hours before it goes into someone else’s hands. When I run out of 30 labels, it shows I have done something with my loom(s) that year! -CB

Letter from June Fraser Thistle to WWG

Carol and all the amazing members of the Whatcom Weavers Guild,

I arrived at work today to be greeted by your generous donation to The Bellingham Sock Monkey Project!
Yesterday, I took my community service day, a full 8 hours with what I thought would be sitting at my sewing machine and sewing puppy dog ears and monkey legs and tails but as always life has twists and turns.

I heard over the weekend that Skookum Kids had a wee baby come into the house and they placed a call out to all us volunteers to sign up for a shift as they had such limited help. So, with that wonderful 8 hour day already booked I signed up for a 12:00 noon to 5pm shift. The baby boy was perfect in every way, beautiful blue eyes and a love of cuddling. We estimated his age at 3 weeks and because we didn’t know his name called him Enoch. The name means walks with God, a fitting name for this perfect little boy.

Enoch was left in the car when it was pulled over by police in Kirkland and the driver fled on foot. The office did not follow the lady driving the car because there in a car seat in the back of the car at 4:00am was a sleeping baby boy.

Enoch was not alone at Skookum House, there was also a family of three ages 5, 9 and 13 from Ferndale whose mom was pulled over and charged with driving under the influence so much like Enoch they landed on Skookum’s door as well.

The stories go on and on and our monkeys are there providing comfort, snuggles and a wee bit of control of ownership in an otherwise world that is spiraling out of control. So as I drove to work today a thought crossed my mind, I need to order some more puppy dog noses from Amazon and there in my inbox by my office door was an envelope, with a check, from an amazing group of hand crafters and I had to sit there for a moment absorbing the events of the last 24 hours. There is a lot of good in this world and sometimes it’s the little things, like puppy dog noses and a check to pay for them that shed light on that fact.

Blessings to you all and thank you for your generous help for the wee ones,

June Fraser Thistle
Comfort For Kids
The Bellingham Sock Monkey Project

Jansen Winter Textile Classes, from Sheri Ward

SPINIT: SPINNING AND KNITTING GROUP with Chris Paul & Cynthia Poppe, 1st & 3rd Thursdays, 6:00 PM - 8:00 PM, $8 Drop In or $40 per 8 Session Punch Card
KNIT PROBLEM SOLVING with Cynthia Poppe, 2nd & 4th Thursdays, 6:00 PM - 8:00 PM, $8 Drop In or $40 per 8 Session Punch Card
TWILLS, TWILLS, TWILLS! with Sheri Ward, 4 weeks, Fridays, Jan. 5-26, 1:00 - 4:00 PM, Adults & Teens 16+, CLASS FEE: $145, MATERIALS: $15
DYEING WITH NATURAL COLORS with Susan Torntore, 2 Weeks: Saturday, Jan. 13 & 27, 9:00 AM - 5:00 PM, Adults & Teens 16+, CLASS FEE: $140, MATERIALS: $25
FINGERLESS FELTED GLOVES with Donna Hunter, 1 Day Workshop: Wednesday, Jan. 17, 10:00 AM - 2:00 PM, Adults & Teens 16+, CLASS FEE: $40, MATERIALS: $6
TAPESTRY WEAVING EXPLORATIONS with Joyce A Noordmans, 4 Weeks: Thursday, Feb. 1 – 22, 1:00 PM - 3:30 PM, Adults & Teens 16+, CLASS FEE: $125, MATERIALS: $15
DYEING: COLOR WAYS FOR COTTON FABRICS with Susan Torntore, 2 Weeks: Saturday, Feb. 3 & 10, 9:00 AM - 5:00 PM, Adults & Teens 16+, CLASS FEE: $140, MATERIALS: $25
HEART OF RED – DYEING TO MAKE VALENTINES with Susan Torntore, 1 Day Workshop: Friday, Feb. 9, 4:00 PM - 7:00 PM, Adults & Teens 13+, CLASS FEE: $30, MATERIALS: $7
BEYOND THE BASICS: SPINNING with Chris Paul, 1 Day Workshop: Tuesday, Feb. 13, 1:00 PM -4:00 PM, Adults & Teens 13+, CLASS FEE: $35
FELTED NUNO SCARF with Donna Hunter, 1 Day Workshop: Thursday, Feb. 15, 10:00 AM - 3:00 PM, Adults & Kids 16+, CLASS FEE: $50, MATERIALS: $10
DYEING: COLOR WAYS FOR WOOL AND SILK with Susan Torntore, 2 Weeks: Saturday, March. 3 & 10, 9:00 AM - 5:00 PM, Adults & Teens 16+, CLASS FEE: $140, MATERIALS: $25
BEGINNING WEAVING with Marcia Ford, 4 weeks, Wednesdays, March 7-28, 1:00 - 4:00 PM, Adults & Teens 13+, CLASS FEE: $145, MATERIALS: $10

To see details and to register, visit https://www.jansenartcenter.org/textiles-studio/

From other guilds and Study Groups

Spindrifters Meetings:
Spindrifters meet the 2nd Saturday of the month and share with Skagit County. To be added to their e-mail list contact Tina [email protected]. There you have it: You are always welcome at the "J" on Thursdays which is open studio from 11-7. Happy Spinning!! Chris Paul. [email protected].

Workshops in Fibers and other interesting stuff:
Dyeing, soaps, lotions, felting, spinning, weaving, botanicals… Please check my website as my schedule is always changing and usually current.
Liz Moncrief, www.aweaversway.com, 970-692-3949

From the Whidbey Weavers Guild:
Meetings are on the first Thursday of the month and run from 10:00 to 2:30, bring your brown bag lunch and cup. Meeting place: 15 NW Birch Street, Coupeville WA 98239, www.whidbeyweaversguild.org.

Small Looms Group—February 3, from Sharon Allen
Saturday, February 3, 12-3pm at Bellingham Library for the active Small Looms Group. Join in on the fun with your Inkle, tapestry, tablet weaving, rigid heddle or any loom small enough to bring to the library!

Madelyn Van der Hoogt Class Opportunity, from Sharon Allen
I will be attending Weaving II (2) with Madelyn Van der Hoogt in August of 2018. I am excited to attend and would be even more excited if I got to share the experience with one of my fellow Guild members. Let me know if this is something that you are interested in. Sharon Allen 360-305-0111.

Announcements

Save the date, start planning! HGA Convergence! Submitted by Marcia Ford.
Time to announce the 2018 Handweavers Guild of America conference Convergence 2018! It will be held next year at Peppermill Resort and Casino in Reno Nevada. Dates are July 6-12, 2018. I have attended a number of Convergences over the years and always have found them inspiring with exhibits, workshops, and opportunity to see first hand what is happening in our fiber community on a wider scale. Last year, few attended from WWG at Convergence 2017 in Milwaukee. However, it’s a great opportunity to learn lots, meet many, and have the opportunity to share rooms, transportation, memories. I hope our members will consider a Convergence experience.

From Barbara Young:
We have a great outreach opportunity coming up in March at the Everson Library. We will be there from 1:00 to 4:00 on Saturday, March 10, with demonstrations and hands-on activities for all ages and all skill levels. There will be a variety of inexpensive looms — pin looms, cardboard looms, etc. — that the public will be able to use for “make and take” projects, as well as demonstrations and other hands-on experiences. You can bring your own table looms or rigid heddle looms to demonstrate, or help the public make and take projects of their own. Join us as we introduce potential new weavers to the joys of weaving! For more information, contact Barbara Young ([email protected]).

ANWG Thoughts, from Liz Moncrief
Many thanks to all Whatcom Guild members for the Guild's membership in the Association of Northwest Weavers Guilds. If you don't know about ANWG, please ask Liz Moncrief, your Guild Representative. Being a member of the Whatcom Weavers Guild automatically entitles you to the benefits of ANWG, which include member registration to weavers conferences, held every two years. Our 2017 conference held in Victoria, BC was a huge success and may allow the ANWG board to issue financial grants again to the member guilds.

For Sale

Nilus Leclerc maple jack loom- 4 harness —$700.00 Great Condition!
56” W x 36” D x 44” H — Folds to 29” W 46” weaving width
Includes: Two 46” reeds - 8 and 12 dent
Wire heddles, with many extras
Ratchet brake
Swedish Bobbin Winder ($100 Value)
Boat shuttles and Bobbins
Please contact Jane Coombs 360 398-1637 or [email protected]

Arthur Allen 30" counterblance loom, $200.
4- shaft, 6 pedals. 12-dent reed.
No bench or other hardware.
Cloth aprons front and back, with new lashing to apron bars.
Loom folds for easy storage or transport.
Fits in the back of a Prius.
Kelley Dragon. Text 321-506-5985, or email [email protected]

Nilus Leclerc 4 harness, 6 treadle 36" beautifully cared for loom.
This is Jo Morgan's loom for sale, submitted by Sharon Allen.
I am asking $500.00. Phone 360 305 0111.