 Hello Fiber Friends,
June has arrived, marking the return of summer and the call of the outdoors. Our Guild takes a break over the summer months, with no scheduled meetings during July and August, though there will be plenty of opportunities to gather together (keep your eye out for announcements from Sharon Allen!). As this year closes out and I prepare to leave both the presidency and the area (*see note below), I've been reflecting on all the ways and places we have gathered as a group this year. We started off the year by hosting a booth at the Evergreen Quilt and Fiber Arts Show in Ferndale. A steering committee and many volunteers came together to create a space that allowed us to showcase both our Outreach programs and the talents of our members. It was a rousing success on both levels and raised money for the guild as well as the members who sold their work and met (exceeded!) our goal of exposing more people to the fiber arts and engaging them with our outreach projects. We are looking forward to participating again in September 2025 and encourage you all to think about weaving/creating work to sell in our booth. January ushered in the new year and a host of gatherings that brought guild members together to think about what is important to us about the guild and how we can nourish and continue to support the growth of our group. The first was at our monthly meeting in January; bad weather kept the meeting Zoom-only and canceled our speaker at the last minute which lead to a delightful and very touching discussion amongst ourselves about the value each of us gets as a guild member. The stories that were shared all spoke to the same thing - the best thing we get from this group is community. We were fortunate to have the opportunity the following weekend to attend an online retreat put on by the Handweavers Guild of America. A group of us met at Sharon Allen's to watch a series of panel discussions about challenges facing guilds and ways to strengthen and grow our guilds into the future given all the changes of the last few years. We had some exciting and visionary conversations after the presentations were done and it led to the creation of some committees to address specific aspects of this. Those committees continue to meet, and we will hear from them at our upcoming meeting; I'm looking forward to hearing their ideas for keeping our guild active and vibrant. On a more informal level, now that the weather has warmed a bit, Wednesday Weavers (aka Driveway Weavers) has resumed, and we've been coming together with our various small projects and show-and-tell pieces to enjoy good conversation, camaraderie, and inspiration. It is also a great way to stay connected through the summer when there are no monthly meetings. The location for our monthly meetings has been inconsistent this year and the board recognizes this is a problem. We hope to present some ideas and ask for input (and volunteers for a committee!) at our June meeting. Having a consistent location will increase our visibility and make it easier for people to find us. Leading us forward in that location next year will be our new President, Meg Spaulding. She has stepped forward with enthusiasm, experience with other guilds and some great ideas for handling the many facets of guild-building and sustainability. I think 2024-25 will be an exciting year and I'm looking forward to it! LeslieAnn Bestor WWG President 2023-24 To read the entire newsletter please click here. To see details about our upcoming meetings and events please click here. To see who our board members are please click here. To browse through our "Resources" page please click here.
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 Hi fellow fibers friends!
The colors of spring have been spectacular this year with the flowering bulbs giving way to the trees and shrubs covered in blossoms. I've spent the last year focused on leaves and am finding delight in seeing the flowers on the trees as well as the delicacy of the new leaves. You have heard me muse before about the seasons and how I see them reflected in the natural cycles of groups over time. This time of the year I am thinking of the seeds we plant, specifically the seeds we sow as a guild to provide for the continuing growth and nourishment we need to sustain our group. We have members with deep roots in the group that have created a strong network that will continue to support the group for years to come. And like any healthy ecosystem, we have saplings coming along with our encouragement and growing stronger, both as weavers and as active members. Planting seeds is another piece of keeping our guild strong long-term and community outreach is one of the best ways for us to sow those seeds. Our Education and Outreach Coordinator, Sheila Atwater, has established a very successful monthly Small Looms program at the Bellingham Library. Guild members volunteer to demonstrate and teach weaving to library visitors and the response has been overwhelmingly positive. We have been able to share our joy in weaving with others and let them know that our guild is right here in their community. We've gained new members as a result and educated many more about weaving and hopefully sparked some interest that will manifest later for some. Fairs and events are another great place for outreach, and we will have an opportunity for that this summer (stay tuned for details from Sheila). This is about planting those seeds and we are looking for more places to let people know we are here and invite them to join us so that they can learn to weave/learn more about weaving and become a part of the community that is our guild. To that end, we have begun doing outreach in a new space and just like at the library, the response has been great. We are partnering with the Bellingham Queer Center to start an ongoing textile group in their new center in downtown Bellingham. The Q Center will be opening in June, and we are pretty excited that they chose textiles as the focus for their first project because it furthers our own goals of creating new weavers, and introducing ourselves to another segment of our local community. There will be work parties throughout May with Guild volunteers on hand to teach and mentor. Within the first week we had taught 4 new inkle weavers and another 4 were working on tapestry looms. The seeds are sprouting already. It gives me great joy to see new weavers! To move beyond the seed metaphor, I'll just say that new weavers are the new wefts that allow us to continue to weave the cloth of our guild community. We need those new threads so the web is strong and the cloth will continue to carry us for a long way. I am grateful for the opportunities to enrich our guild with more people who are passionate about textiles, so I'll be down at the Q Center often during May and I invite you to join us and spread the weaving joy! Contact me if you're interested in coming by the center to volunteer. I am also appreciative of the continuing efforts of our WWG Board members and others who show up to help at meetings and events. Your ongoing participation is also an important part of strength - thank you! LeslieAnn Bestor WWG President, 2023-2024 To read the entire newsletter please click here. To see details about our upcoming meetings and events please click here. To see who our board members are please click here. To browse through our "Resources" page please click here.  Hi fellow fibers friends!
As many of you have already heard, both our President LeslieAnn and I are going through difficult times this month, so here is your somewhat abbreviated WWG Newsletter for April. We hope to be back to normal next month. In the meantime, LeslieAnn has included a couple of her beautiful eco-prints to share with you all. May your springtime be lovely and full of joyful blooms... Wendy Eakle, WWG Newsletter Editor To read the entire newsletter please click here. To see details about our upcoming meetings and events please click here. To see who our board members are please click here. To browse through our "Resources" page please click here.  Greetings Fiber Friends!
I write this as the winds howl around us like the proverbial March lion entering the season. It's a bit harsh now but I do see the signs of spring that give me hope for a lamb-like finish to the month. I'm relishing the longer days and how the angle of the sun is changing and bringing new colors to the fore. And speaking of colors - I highly recommend a trip down to the Skagit Valley over the next month of flowers dancing jubilantly in the fields, it's glorious and vibrant! It's the season of new growth and we are stepping forward with new energy after the inspiring retreat hosted by Handweavers Guild of America in January. The Board identified some areas to focus on and created committees to come up with ways to strengthen and sustain our guild. Made up of board and general members, these ad-hoc committees are tasked with investigating options and ideas and bringing these to the group as proposals for the guild to consider. The Tech Committee will be focused on just what the name implies - our tech needs as a guild. It is a broad range to cover - everything from the hardware and people needed to run a hybrid meeting, to maintaining our Google drive and managing the passwords. (The passwords! Can I tell you how crazy our tangled web of passwords is?!) After 5 months of hybrid meetings, we've got a better sense of what we need to make them successful for both groups of attendees and this committee will come up with a plan for next steps. The Leslie Comstock Committee is looking at how to manage the money that Leslie left to the guild. We realized we wanted to make an intentional plan for the bequest instead of falling into the trap of just using it fill budget shortfalls. The committee will create a plan to allocate the funds over time and bring a proposal to the group. The Diversity Committee is looking for ways to expand the makeup of our group to be more reflective of the fiber arts community around us. Our guild is wonderful and strong, and it is also a subset of a larger community of fiber makers/creators (I keep thinking of Venn diagrams). The committee will look beyond just saying that 'we welcome everyone' to identify the ways that we can make people feel welcome and included. So, over the next few months we will be inviting community members to share how we can dive into our welcoming nature in more deliberate ways. We're excited to bring in new fresh ideas to our group while welcoming fiber artists in our diverse community to share in our passion for all things fiber. I'm grateful for this guild and the members who are engaging in the discussions, meetings and activities that will carry our group forward in a strong and thoughtful way. You may have heard me say this before (I won't apologize for repeating myself) - being actively involved in the guild is a great way to strengthen connections and friendships as well as nurture and grow the group. We've got lots going on and there are many ways to participate, don't hesitate to reach out with ideas or to volunteer. LeslieAnn Bestor WWG President, 2023-2024 To read the entire newsletter please click here. To see details about our upcoming meetings and events please click here. To see who our board members are please click here. To browse through our "Resources" page please click here.  Greetings Fiber Friends!
Our January meeting was a roller coaster of last-minute changes due to the weather, but I was pleased to see how well we were able to pivot and have a group of 24 for the business meeting on Zoom. The best part, however, was the informal round robin discussion that followed in lieu of our regular speaker. I had asked people to think about sharing their favorite memory of a guild event or talk about what they've gained by being in a guild and the ensuing discussion was rich and warm. When I talk to other people about the benefits of guild membership, I always list our resources - the book/media library, study groups, equipment library, speakers and workshops, the hundreds of years of collective weaving experience coupled with mentoring, the list goes on and on. And those things did get mentioned briefly, but what most people spoke of at our January meeting were the friendships made and sustained for years, the support network that started as a group that flocked together over a common interest in textiles and grew into much deeper connections. Those connections have enriched not only our fiber journeys, but our daily lives and a number of folks spoke of how much they were helped by fellow guild members during challenging times. Yes, it's about community and I'm delighted to see how strong our community is. The following weekend a group of 8 WWG members attended an online Guild Development retreat hosted by the Handweavers Guild of America, the national organization of weaving guilds. Most of us gathered at Sharon Allen's to watch together and were treated to some great panel discussions about developing/sustaining a strong board, diversity and inclusion, and keeping up with technology. It was exciting and inspiring, and we had some lively conversations following each panel. It was also encouraging to see the mix of WWG folks who showed up - some new members (yay!) and some of the stalwarts. This is part of a healthy eco-system, the succession of 'generations'. Our guild continues to thrive because of the contributions and participation of our members, both new and longstanding. Becoming involved in the guild as a board or committee member or through our community outreach events is a great way to both sustain our guild and build those personal connections that so many mentioned last month. And I gotta say, it's alot of fun getting together to 'work' on guild stuff - good snacks, creative inspiration, a certain amount of silly laughter (in addition to accomplishing amazing things as a group). Let me know if you'd like to become more involved, we welcome your input! LeslieAnn Bestor WWG President, 2023-2024 To read the entire newsletter please click here. To see details about our upcoming meetings and events please click here. To see who our board members are please click here. To browse through our "Resources" page please click here.  Greetings Fiber Friends, and happy new year!
The hubbub and festivities of 2023 are past, and we are settling into winter, albeit a mild one so far. I like to take some time in the week between Christmas and the New Year's to reflect on the year and look forward to what's ahead. My textile work/practice continues to evolve and go down new rabbit holes. I am excited about the new/deeper explorations I am making and looking forward to a creative new year. Every year-end inventory also includes the carryovers, projects that we're still working on. For our group that means the Guild Challenge, Weavers Poker. My 'Inspiration' card is Bhutanese textiles and I recently burrowed into my storage unit to find the weaving, a gift from my sister's visit to Bhutan, that inspired me to put this in the card deck. I swear, it's a complete coincidence that I happened to pick that card! Anyway, I've now got this beautiful piece (sash? wall hanging?) on my wall and it is indeed inspiring me! The star motifs reminded me of some tiny crochet stars I made decades ago that surfaced in recent unpacking; I'm supposed to incorporate knit or crochet, check that box! Tool or tote bag? How about a travel bag for my beloved Freyja inkle loom? The ideas are starting to swirl and coalesce and I'm having fun trying to include as many of my cards as I can. How are you coming with your weavers' challenge? It's still possible to draw or redraw cards, we'll have them at the January meeting or contact LeslieAnn by email. And speaking of our meetings, I just want to say how lovely it has been to meet as a group in the new hybrid format. We've had around 32 attendees, almost evenly split between in-person and online, for both November and December, which is almost 40% of our membership, an impressive turnout! Each month we get better at the tech side of things and we're purchasing a mic and some other equipment to continue to refine/amplify how it works for members. Many thanks to Nancy Ridenour and Shawn Rush for setting up and monitoring this important piece of our meetings each month! We'd love to have backups for them in case one of them can't make it to a meeting. If you know how to run a zoom/computer interface and can help out occasionally, please let LA or Nancy know. I have to admit to feeling constrained by the time limits of our new meeting space. I love the chance to socialize, the casual chats while admiring the show and tell together, catching up with someone I haven't seen in a while, and it felt like we were rushing to get out last month. But then a group of us decided to get coffee/lunch together nearby. We basically continued the social portion over food, and it was fabulous! We talked about weaving and the day's presentation, botanical gardens to visit and holiday lights to see, we discovered things we didn't know about each other and laughed a lot. To me, this is one of the treasures of guild meetings - time to hang out informally and share, weaving and strengthening the network of connections that go far beyond just our love of threads and fiber. So I encourage you to continue the meeting beyond the official time limits. We've started opening up the Zoom earlier and keeping it open later and I'm hoping we can get in-person attendees to jump onto Shawn or Nancy's computer to say hi to the Zoomers. And I will be looking for restaurant recommendations in Ferndale, maybe we can get a big table together! Until then, happy creating! LeslieAnn Bestor WWG President, 2023-2024 To read the entire newsletter please click here. To see details about our upcoming meetings and events please click here. To see who our board members are please click here. To browse through our "Resources" page please click here.  Greetings, Fiber Friends!
I've been thinking about the ebb and flow of light and dark these days. Although sunset comes early now, we are surrounded by glittering lights, bright colors and festive gatherings. This will then be followed by the grays and whites and dark colors of winter. It strikes me as somewhat ironic that the approaching Solstice marks the shift when days begin to lengthen again yet it is really just the beginning of winter. I have never been much for New Year's resolutions, but I do love taking time each year to reflect on and look ahead to what I want to work on in the new year. I've come to think of this instead as planting seeds, which feels very apropos to the upcoming season of hibernation and dormancy. I'm the kind of person who can get spread too thin because I am interested in trying so many things (squirrel!!) so I use this to focus my time/efforts (that's the hope, anyway). I want to develop solid skills and get better, not just dabble. Winter is a great time to hunker down inside and this year in particular I've got time to dive deep with a few things. Here are the seeds I'm planting this winter:
I will stop there because, well, remember the "too many things" bit? I think it's a good list to start the new year with. Some new things, some finishing up loose ends; it feels balanced and enticing. What seeds do you want to plant this year, what will you grow? LeslieAnn Bestor To read the entire newsletter please click here. To see details about our upcoming meetings and events please click here. To see who our board members are please click here. To browse through our "Resources" page please click here.  Greetings, fiber friends!
I write this letter as the rhythm of the rain and the sounds of migrating birds fill my ears. We just finished a week of gloriously sunny (though quite nippy) weather, probably the last stretch of such days for a while. I am inspired by the riot of color around me and the rapid pace of change. There is a flurry of activity preparing for upcoming winter weather and celebrations. There is a seasonal and cyclical rhythm to our creativity and making. For some of us, this lines up with the seasons in nature - the warm sunny weather beckons us outside to garden and hike/boat/play and we return to our looms/wheels/needles during the colder/darker months when it's cozy and bright inside. Others weave throughout the year and are perhaps tuned into different cycles - holiday gifting and sales, entry deadlines, availability of materials. And some follow a more spontaneous flow, exploring different things as their interests take them. Although I work on textile projects year-round, I do find my activities are connected to the weather. This year in particular I feel a bit like the animals stockpiling food for the winter, gathering my supplies so that I will have (creative) sustenance to carry me through the grey months ahead. I'm focused on botanical printing right now because the leaves are at their peak and they're about to be gone. So there's an urgency to not only print as much as I can but to preserve as much as possible so that I can continue to print during the winter. Exhausting sometimes, yet I know it's just a moment and the next part of the cycle will be quieter. (Well, once I get through making things for the gifting season ahead). At least that's what I tell myself, as I think about the new things I want to try during the 'quiet' time of the year while I snuggle on the couch with the dogs and handwork in my lap. Enjoy the vibrancy of Autumn! Our next meeting is November 18th at our new meeting location (see info below), I hope we see you there! LeslieAnn Bestor To read the entire newsletter please click here. To see details about our upcoming meetings and events please click here. To see who our board members are please click here. To browse through our "Resources" page please click here.  Greeting Fiber Friends,
We have moved into one of my favorite seasons and I'm loving the crisp air that invites the soft woven scarves to drape themselves around my neck once again. I'm dreaming of making holiday gifts and decorations and starting to mull some new directions with my looms and yarns. For many of us Autumn is the beginning of the year, partly because of the calendar - schools & guilds start up again after a summer holiday - and partly because the seasons move us from outdoor to indoor activities and we move (back) into creating with renewed vigor and inspiration. Our new year for Whatcom Weavers Guild kicks off with our meeting on October 21st. We are ushering in the return of in-person meetings with a new meeting place and a commitment to continuing both in-person and Zoom meetings throughout the 2023-2024 year. I am excited to shake off the isolation off the last couple years and gather together with my fiber friends, there is nothing like the camaraderie and fun of a roomful of weavers/spinners/makers. Although I am ever grateful to Zoom meetings for allowing our guild to thrive through the pandemic, I am looking forward to stepping out of those little boxes and exchanging hugs and engaging in informal chitchat, maybe even pick up a piece of handwoven beauty from the show-and-tell table and examine it closely. It will be refreshing and bright and we are going to have so much fun this year! Check out the program info below for details on the new meeting place and zoom setup. And speaking of fun, wait till you see this year's Guild Challenge! The annual challenge is a prompt - here's a colorway or an inspiration photo, let's see how we all interpret it through fiber and textiles. This year we are going to play a game, Weavers Poker, to mix things up and add a light-hearted touch (seriously, I have blue hair, you should not be surprised by this!). At our October meeting those who want to play will draw 6 cards, one from each deck (Color & Design; Weave Structure; Fiber, Grist and Yarn Structure; Final Use; Amp My Weave; and Inspiration) and our challenge is to incorporate as many of the cards in your piece as possible. You are allowed to lay down and redraw up to 2 cards at the meeting. Additionally, we have a wild card – LeslieAnn discovered a cone of thousands of yards of pale lilac lurex – you can trade any card for a bobbin of this fun sparkle to incorporate into your piece. If you can't attend the meeting or will be there on Zoom, do not fret - we'll make sure you get a hand, too. It should be a lively meeting and I hope it sets the tone for a year of enjoyable gatherings filled with both stimulating discourse and the informal, spontaneous fun that comes from being together in person. I hope to see you there. LeslieAnn Bestor To read the entire newsletter please click here. To see details about our upcoming meetings and events please click here. To see who our board members are please click here. To browse through our "Resources" page please click here.  Greetings Guildmates and welcome to the 2023-2024 year of textile fun!
Whatcom Weavers Guild is entering its 53rd year as a guild of textile makers/creators/aficionados and we are going strong! Our membership continues to grow (over 100 this year!) and includes folks from our corner of WA as well as neighbors from Canada and those who live afar but stay connected through the internet. You will be receiving our yearly membership packet soon and I hope you take the time to peruse, appreciate and make use of the wealth of resources within our guild. This richness will be on display right away, at the Quilt and Fiber Arts Show on September 15 & 16 in Ferndale. The guild will be displaying an array of our members' work and demonstrating weaving and spinning as well as selling items made by members. Stop for a chance to see what I think of as show-and-tell on steroids. We may still be looking for volunteers to help in the booth, send an email to [email protected] if you'd like to help out. Helping out is a great way to get involved in the guild and to get to know people. I've only been in the area for 2 years and was pretty reluctant when I was approached to join the board; I felt I was too new to the guild to take on a leadership role. But Carol and Sharon are pretty persuasive and pointed out that it would be a great way to connect with people and settle into the community. I'm here to report that they are right, and my life is so much richer for friendships and knowledge I have gained. After the isolation of the last several years, participating in our group is a great way to stretch out again and re-connect, especially with others who share a passion for textiles. So I encourage you, maybe even challenge you, to make this the year that you participate in the guild and spend time with other members to share and inspire each other. Come to meetings, chat each other up, work side by side on guild projects like the Little Looms day at the library. Our guild is rich with the experiences and inspiration of many, and we have many ways to share that with each other so take advantage of the opportunities to connect that come with guild membership. I look forward to seeing you at our first meeting of the year on October 21. LeslieAnn Bestor To read the entire newsletter please click here. To see details about our upcoming meetings and events please click here. To see who our board members are please click here. To browse through our "Resources" page please click here. |
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