Send your news items to Tim Prins by the 25th of the month for inclusion in the next month’s newsletter.
Guild Calendar
Thursday, June 8, 2023 – June Meeting
Multnomah Arts Center + Zoom
7688 SW Capitol Hwy. (503) 823-2787 – Gym
7:00 pm Evening Meeting Only
6:30 pm – 7:00 pm: set up, social and library browsing time
7:00 pm – 9:00 pm: Meeting
President’s Message
Where did the year go? It’s June already. The end of another fiscal/program/membership year for PHG. Our focus, as always around this time, is the June meeting. And there’s lot’s to talk about.
First, we’re vote on the budget for next year. Many thanks to Mike Schlieski for his working keeping our financial house in order, and for putting together a budget for next year. The proposed budget is on the website if you’d like an advance look. There’s not much substantially different from last year.
Next will be a vote on whether we should form a committee to look into options for a new home for PHG. The board has spent considerable time this year discussing it, and while we’re in agreement that a new home makes sense and would allow us to expand our support for the local fiber arts community, at the same time we recognize that a full-time space would require a higher level of commitment from everyone. So, before we proceed further it was the board’s desire to get guidance from the membership. We’ll attempt to do that at this meeting.
Then we will move to the election of officers and the board for next year. We have filled most roles, though we still need a program chair, or co-chairs, or maybe even a committee. We’ll be looking for some last minute volunteers to help with that, so please give thought to what you’d like to see next year and how much you might be able to help in this area. And, I’ve decided that I’m willing to stay on as co-president next year, but would like someone else to work with me to share the work. If you’ve got a little time to volunteer I’d love to work with you to keep things moving along.
Lastly, we’ll be returning to our regular June event – the strawberry social! We’re all looking forward to this. Billy has agreed to do some baking, Lynne and Sarah will be working on the strawberries, and there’ll be gluten-free, sugar-free and dairy-free options available. If nothing else I hope you come to the meeting for this, to socialize with other members, and to see the mini Noh coats that folks have created for the ANWG conference booth, which will be on display at the meeting.
Remember – there’s just the evening meeting in June, but the sun is setting pretty late now so hopefully a lot of the folks who normally come to the day meeting will venture out to join us in the evening. I’m really looking forward to it, and I hope you are too. And, as always, I hope to see you at a meeting soon.
Dan
Upcoming Program
June 8th Annual Meeting: Strawberry Social evening meeting only
No day meeting in June. The evening meeting features approval of the 2023-24 spending plan, and election of 2023-24 officers and board of directors. Come socialize, and show what’s you’ve been weaving!
Workshop News
Registration for the Supplementary Warp Patterning workshop October 20-22 is open. The workshop is taught by Barbara J. Walker, and this topic rated very highly on the workshop interest survey. There is a HARD REGISTRATION DEADLINE of September 29, 2023.
While the initial workshop cost may appear breathtaking, remember that as more people sign up, the cost to each participant goes down.
Hope to see you there in October!
Guild News
Membership Update
PHG Friends!
The end of our year is drawing closer which means it is time to renew your membership! This can easily be done through the website here: https://portlandhandweaversguild.org/archive/portland-handweavers-guild-membership/renew-my-membership/
If you prefer to mail in a check, you can send it to our PHG mailing address:
Portland Handweavers Guild
PO Box 6676
Portland, OR 97228
If you haven’t joined our Guild yet and would like to, we would love to welcome you as our newest member! On top of helping us pay for our meetings and receiving our newsletters, your membership provides you with lots of benefits, which include:
- Member rates and access to our workshops
- PHG Library Access
- Rental Equipment
- Bi-Yearly Sales of Member’s Work
- Study Grants
- Study Groups
- WeGO & ANWG News & Events
- Access to other PHG Members
New members can also send in a check to our PO Box or join online using this link: https://portlandhandweaversguild.org/archive/portland-handweavers-guild-membership/join-phg/
Thanks so much!
Sarah
Library 102
Back in April, we had a brief introduction to the guild library. Then we looked a little more at the online catalog. We’ll repeat some of the basic information from Library 101, then we’ll look a little more at the physical library.
When is the library available to browse? The library shelves are available to browse on meeting days. The specific times depend upon in which room the meeting is being held.
If the meeting is being held in the auditorium, it is easy to maneuver the library carts to the auditorium. The library will be available for the half-hour before either the day or evening meeting and during the meeting break.
However, for many of our meetings, we have been assigned to the gym. The library carts cannot access the gym due to the many high door sills that must be crossed to get there. We did try that once in May, 2022, which led to cart-astrophic failure (picture available in the June, 2022, newsletter). We’re not trying that again. If the meeting is in the gym, the library will be available after the conclusion of the morning meeting in the hallway outside the guild closet. In the evening, it is available from 6:30 to 7:00 again in the hallway outside the closet. Please be aware that there are classes being held in the classrooms, so please keep voices low when browsing in the hallway.
Is the catalog available online? Yes. The guild library is available to browse using the third party platform, LibraryThing. Individual books and DVD’s are listed. Individual issues of periodicals are not. More information on using LibraryThing is presented below. There is also basic information on the library page of the guild website. Browse the guild library.
Will the online catalog tell me if an item is available for check-out? No. When the guild library was first put on LibraryThing that was not an option. In order to make it possible to find the status of items, each item would need to be assigned a barcode. That would also require each individual periodical issue to be cataloged as well as barcoded. This would require a lot of time and effort for the number of check-outs we currently have.
How long do items check-out for? Books are checked out from one meeting to the next. However, if you can’t make it to the next meeting, you will not be flogged. Please try to return them as soon as possible. This is especially important for new, in-demand items and those relevant to programs and workshops. Be thoughtful and considerate of your fellow PHG members.
For those of you who have not attended an in-person meeting, the PHG library resides on two large rolling carts. These carts are double-sided, books and/or periodicals are accessed from both sides of these carts. The materials are organized into a number of categories. The basic system was set up many years ago by previous guild librarians. Overtime, some of these categories have been broken up into smaller ones to make it easier to find materials. Some have gone away. Some have absorbed new topics.
As we learned in Library 101 in April, the shelf category is the first tag listed in the item record in the online catalog. However, some, not all, of the newest items of the PHG collection are on the top shelf of one cart. Many people like to see the latest items available so they kept on the New Shelf for a period of time to allow ease of browsing. If you are looking for a recent title, check there first.
The physical library not only has books, but there are also DVDs and some books in .pdf format on CDs. These are found interleaved in their appropriate category rather than their own shelves. That way when you go to look for a book about Doubleweave, for example, the DVD will be near it readily available as a supplemental resource.
To help you locate the item that you are searching for, there are two wayfinding signs on the sides of each cart. Below we have an example:
(This is an old sign. These categories are likely no longer shelved together. Piecework has been removed from the collection.)
The signs will only list the categories that are on that individual cart. The background arrow points you to the correct side of the cart. The categories are on the indicated side of the cart in the order listed on the sign. As you can see, each category has been assigned dots in one or two colors. When looking for your item, notating the correct combination can be much easier to spot than the category on the spine label. The dots on an individual item may be either horizontal or vertical depending on the width of the item. The dots may not always be in the same order: Sometimes yellow comes before light blue, sometimes it may be after for items in Clothing and Sewing.
The signs will only list the categories that are on that individual cart. The background arrow points you to the correct side of the cart. The categories are on the indicated side of the cart in the order listed on the sign. As you can see, each category has been assigned dots in one or two colors. When looking for your item, notating the correct combination can be much easier to spot than the category on the spine label. The dots on an individual item may be either horizontal or vertical depending on the width of the item. The dots may not always be in the same order: Sometimes yellow comes before light blue, sometimes it may be after for items in Clothing and Sewing.
Towards the bottom of the sample sign, you will notice the titles of some of our periodicals. They do not have a color system. They are in magazine boxes labeled with their title and the years of the issues found in that box.
Currently, the embroidery section and the periodicals, Loom Music, and Handweaver and Craftsman are archived in the closet due to lack of room on the carts. Please ask for assistance if you are looking for one of these items.
GOTG Community Booth Wrap-Up
It has always been my belief that all members of our guild should have an opportunity to participate in our sales if they wish. Events like the Gathering of the Guilds aren’t for everyone, though: The expense, inventory, energy, booth set-up, etc, can be prohibitive factors, especially for those who do not make their living at these events. But the opportunity should be there.
With that in mind, I suggested a community booth this year at the GOTG. We’ve tried these in the past, with apparent mixed reviews and limited success. Amidst some discussion at our recent PHG retreat, one person asked, in effect, “Why not give it a try again and see what happens?”
So we gave it a try and this is what happened: Our booth grossed over $2000.00, 20% of which went to the PHG. I would consider this pretty successful! We had a great representation of fiber art, which included handweaving, dyeing, felting and sewing. We had a very engaged group of participants, who connected wonderfully with the public and each other. Our group included new, current, and returning PHG members, which spoke well of the notion of community, since we all worked together in numerous ways – staffing the booth, setting up, taking down, helping with product check-in and check-out, etc.
People loved the look of the booth, as well as the concept. One visitor declared it his favorite among all the guilds.
Special kudos to the stylings of Denise Wild, who arranged things so artfully. Who knew she created pop-up booths in another life? And what do you do with the woven fabric from past PHG demos? If you missed the fantastic drawstring bags created from the stash by Michelle Lee, it’s because they sold out immediately! A huge thank you to President Dan, for the donation of his old laptop, and for helping us navigate the rather mind-boggling complexities of the Convention Center WiFi system, so we could take credit card sales. And special thanks to Perry Drevo, who stayed until the end, helping navigate the halls and elevators with my clown car of a cart!
The PHG may want to revisit this idea going forward. It’s a fairly simple blueprint, which requires just a little dedication. I am unable to take this on again myself, but will be very happy to consult with anyone who might be interested. Well worth it!
-Debbie Ellis
ANWG 2023 Conference: Fiber Connections
Time is running out to register for the Conference. The deadline for some workshops has already passed, although a few others are still available. May 22 is the last day to register in advance for seminars and events. If you can’t make it to Bend, consider one or more of the seminars available via Zoom. Don’t wait – register today!
For conference details, go to https://anwgconference2023.com/
Latest ANWG Newsletter
The Association of Northwest Weavers Guilds has posted their April 2023 newsletter. Check out the creative ways other Northwest weaving guilds are getting their members together for fiber activities. All ANWG newsletters are available here.
News from Complex Weavers
Hope to see you at the Complex Weavers meeting at the ANWG conference in Bend, Oregon. The next Convergence and Complex Weavers Seminars will be in Kansas in the future. See you in Bend.
Not a member? It is easy to join this wonderful group of Weavers. They have become friends as well as Weavers.
If any questions please let me know. Ladella Williams LadellawilliamsCZZ@gmail.com or text message to 503 729 1704
Bulletin Board
Good News from Ruthie’s Weaving Studio
We are all very excited to say that a major transition at Ruthie’s Weaving Studio is going really well and we are on our way to our next generation of the studio. Many of you know that Melody Ruth is selling the studio building. In addition, several of the long-term partners (owners) of the studio have decided it’s time to hand off their great leadership. So, we are very thrilled to say:
WE ARE CLOSE TO SIGNING A LEASE ON A NEW, BIGGER SPACE with room for more weavers! WE HAVE A GREAT GROUP OF NEW PARTNERS/ LEADERS AND ARE ON OUR WAY TO TRANSITIONING TO BEING A NONPROFIT ORGANIZATION. FINALLY, WE HAVE RAISED ABOUT ¾ OF THE FUNDS WE NEED TO MAKE THIS MOVE AND CONVERT TO A NONPROFIT ORGANIZATION. Any contributions you can make will be greatly appreciated. Contact Robin Boyce at (503) 310-9811 or rbtwo@msn.com for donations or questions, or call the studio to get on the waiting list at (503) 232-7328. More information will be coming soon!
Looking to Buy or Sell Weaving Equipment or Materials?
Check out the Items for Sale page.
Fiber News and Events
Handweavers Guild of America
Textiles & Tea
Tuesdays
The Handweavers Guild of America, Inc.’s (HGA) exciting new program, Textiles & Tea, takes place every Tuesday at 4 PM (ET). We’ve invited some of the most respected fiber artists in the field today to join us for an hour long conversation where we will discuss their artwork and their creative journey. Make a cup of your favorite tea and join us as we talk about fiber, creativity, inspiration, process and so much more.
The Weaving Guilds of Oregon (WeGO) committee is delighted to announce that the traveling show will take place beginning in January of 2023. This show travels around the state of Oregon showcasing the fiber arts in our communities. The Title of the show is “Filaments.”
Fiber Fusion Northwest
June 3-4, 2023
Monroe, Washington
More info: fiberfusion.net.
ANWG Conference – Fiber Connections
June 11-18, 2023
Riverhouse Convention Center, Bend, OR
Click the link below to read all the news for the ANWG Conference 2023.
anwgconference2023.com
June Fiber Events on the Oregon Coast
June 16-18, 2023
Lincoln City, OR
Karen Gelbard is participating in the Art on the Edge Artist Studio Tour happening on June 16, 17 and 18! Find her Pop-Up location in the Lincoln City Cultural Center, at 540 NW U.S. 101, Lincoln City, OR. While there, visit the Fiber Arts Studio Gallery in the same building and see the current exhibit of Rose Convert and her Fiber Sculptures and Basketry.
ART on the EDGE is a self-guided tour on the Oregon Coast of about 70 visual artists and their studios or pop-up spaces ranging in location from Neskowin to Newport and east to Toledo, Oregon. These artists will show off their exclusive locations, demonstrate their creative processes, and sell their work. Meet local artists and explore the vibrant art scene on the Oregon Coast.
Black Sheep Gathering
June 23-25, 2023
Albany, OR
More info: blacksheepgathering.org
Threads | Þræðir Intertwined in Iceland: Textiles and Book Arts
July 8 – November 5, 2023
Nordia House, Portland, OR
This exhibition showcases artists’ books and textile pieces by Icelandic artists and visiting artists who have been inspired by the country’s landscapes, people, language and textile traditions. The works in this exhibition are connected through stitching, weaving, knotting, tying, binding, pattern and storyline. The artists have found parallel lives in each other, unintentionally approaching art and life in similar fashions across oceans and between generations.
More info: https://www.nordicnorthwest.org/exhibits
Intermountain Weavers Conference
July 27-30, 2023
Logan, Utah
More info: intermountainweavers.org
Conference of Northern California Handweavers
August 3-6, 2023
San Luis Obispo, CA
CNCH 2023 will be located on the campus of Cal Poly, San Luis Obispo. Attendees will enjoy apartment-style lodging on the campus and 16 retreat-style classes in subjects including weaving, spinning, dyeing, felting, kumihimo, sprang – and more.
Registration opens on April 29, 2023, and students are urged to register early because classes are expected to fill up quickly. More info: https://www.cnch.org/
Oregon Flock & Fiber Festival
October 14-15, 2023
Linn County Expo Center, Albany, OR
More info: http://www.oregonflockandfiberfestival.com
Convergence
July 11-17, 2024
Wichita, Kansas
More info: https://weavespindye.org/convergence/
Rental Equipment
PHG has equipment available for rent to current PHG Members. Click here for more info.
PHG Board and Chairs
Please click here for a list of PHG Board Members and Committee Chairs.
Your purchases can benefit PHG! Click on one of these links before buying and PHG will earn a commission from your purchase.
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