Send your news items to Tim Prins by the 25th of the month for inclusion in the next month’s newsletter.
Guild Calendar
Thursday, December 14, 2023 – December Meeting
Multnomah Arts Center + Zoom, 7688 SW Capitol Hwy. (503) 823-2787
10:00 am Day Meeting – Auditorium
9:30 am – 10:00 am: Set up, social time and library browsing time
10:00 am – 12:00: Meeting
7:00 pm Evening Meeting – Room 30 (in senior center)
6:30 pm – 7:00 pm: set up, social and library browsing time
7:00 pm – 9:00 pm: Meeting
President’s Message
The holidays are upon us. Time for baking (Billy has been busy – 8 different cookies have been made so far, and there were a couple he wanted to try but hasn’t gotten to yet!), leaf raking (leaf day was this past weekend, and things are looking much better), and giving thanks. I’m thankful for my health, my home, and my friends, including all of you.
Did you make it to the Fall Sale? Many people did, and the sale was a success, with more people coming thru the door this year, and more sales on Saturday than all weekend last year. Many, many thanks to Judilee Fitzhugh for leading the sale again this year, and to the folks who help with all the publicity that brought to the sale. I know my Facebook feed had something in it all the time about the sale, and it seemed to make a big difference.
Just a reminder that we have a vote coming up at the next meeting on the proposed amendment to add a Development Director to the board. And a quick heads up – we’ll have another one to vote on in January to create a new membership level aimed at providing a way for folks from other guilds to join us for Gathering of the Guilds in the spring. If you have any questions please email me.
I hope everyone has a wonderful holiday this year, and as always I hope to see you at a meeting soon.
Dan
Upcoming Programs
December 14th: PHG December Tradition ~ Let us make something together
This year we have 2 easy ornaments to make with yarn and there will be time enough to make several of both. All yarn and structural supplies will be available at the programs but you can also bring some from your stash if you wish.
Tiny Tapestry Ornament – Tiny looms warped and ready for you to play with. Please bring – scissors, fork, bits, or small balls of yarn (worsted weight or bigger is faster to weave up), large eye tapestry needle. We will have a few extra tools and yarn on hand if you do not have something (although it is hard to imagine we do not have any of these items ;-))
Tiny Hat Ornament – Tiny hats to make for your holiday decorations. We will have a print out of additional ideas you can add to your tiny hat. Please bring the tools mentioned above and a bit more yarn (though Dianne donated plenty of holiday yarns for our use). You will need 40-50 10″ long pieces of yarn. We will have a yarn jig to wrap and cut your yarn as well as some pre-cuts available.
If you would like to share some holiday cooking please do. You know we all love treats!
January 11th: June Cashmere: Empowering people through cashmere
A talk by director, Amy Swanson of June Cashmere Yarn
June Cashmere works directly with shepherd families in Kyrgyzstan toward the sustainable, ethical, and transparent production of highest quality cashmere yarn. Learn about how June Cashmere began, the Kyrgyz textile history that led to the need for June Cashmere, what it means for cashmere to be produced responsibly in terms of people, environment, and product. Discover the qualities of highest quality cashmere. As a bonus, enjoy a brief overview of the textile traditions of Kyrgyz shepherd women.
Guild News
PHG Retreat – It’s a Go!!!
Hello, PDX Handweavers Guild Members and Fiber Friends –
It’s a Go!!!
Thanks to all of you who have already registered for the Annual Portland Handweavers Guild Spring Retreat 2024! The sign-ups have been steadily and we have enough folks to say it’s on for sure. There is still plenty of room so if you are considering it, please let me know. We’d love to include you! Friends are welcome, too. You do not need to be a member of PHG and there is no surcharge if you’re not but as a PHG Member, you will get first dibs on signing up. Here’s what you need to know and what you need to do:
What Do We Do at the Retreat?
- The short answer is, “Anything fibery that you’d like to do.” We also have a great time socializing with other interesting Guild members and friends, eating lovely food with NO preparation before or clean up afterwards ☺ , and having dedicated time and space to work, learn, and share with other like-minded, wonderful people.
- It is an ideal place to bring any UnFinished Object (UFO) from the back of the closet to finish up. Or, maybe you’d like some dedicated time to work on items for the Gathering of the Guilds Sale in April?
- There are no scheduled things like classes or activities except for meals. ☺ On the other hand, there is a LOT of sharing of knowledge, techniques, ideas, conversation, inspiration, and good times.
- And, the Sharing Table is a great place to swap out some items you no longer need for something new-to-you for your stash.
We are at Cedar Ridge Retreat and Conference Center The Cedar Ridge Retreat and Conference Center just a bit northwest of downtown Vernonia is our destination. It borders on the Nehalem River and is very scenic. Hello, PDX Handweavers Guild Members and Fiber Friends –
Retreat Dates and Prices: 2:00 PM Thursday, February 22, 2024, through Noon, Sunday, February 25,
2024
Please see the Registration Form below for exact costs depending on the option(s) you
choose.
What to Do Right Now:
Please let me know your interest right away. We have the minimum of 15 registrations so the event is a go! For those in doubt, it’s simply a great weekend that is much anticipated and enjoyed. Friends are also invited and pricing is the same for them. You do not need to be a PHG Member to attend.
Call to Action!
We need decisions right now.
Your non-refundable deposit of $50.00 payable to PHG is due immediately.
Day Tripper fees (day usage fee plus meals, if any) are due in full.
Registration Deadline is Thursday, February 1, 2024 but we need to have commitments now.
For more information and to sign up see https://portlandhandweaversguild.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/PHG-2024-Spring-Retreat-December-Announcement.pdf
Upcoming Workshops and New Chair Needed
Dianne Totten will be teaching Crimp and Create, Sept 13-15, 2024. I have again requested the gym because Dianne will take up to 30(!!!) participants. Details on the website eventually; it is way too early to sign up, and I can’t really price it until closer to the date because airfare…
I am finalizing contracts with Francisco Bautista (Rug Weaving), and Amy Belgan (Novice Tapestry Weaving) for April and May 2024.
This is my last year as Workshop Chair; I will stay on through the completion of the workshops above, but I will not be scheduling any more workshops for PHG.
Should anyone want to volunteer, the job description is on the Guild website (you’ve got to log in first): https://portlandhandweaversguild.org/members-only/the-drafts/job-descriptions/
I find some knowledge of spreadsheets helpful for keeping track of costs.
I will happily mentor my successor.
Cheers,
Lynne F
Notes from Education
Responses from the Study Group Survey have been incorporated into a list of proposal for groups that will be announced at the January meeting. In December I will be contacting those that have agreed to be leaders/organizers for these groups, so if you volunteered you will hear from me soon.
I am very excited about getting this initiative off I the new year! Till then enjoy the holidays and I hope to see you at the December meeting to share some crafting together.
Linda Edquist
Education Director
Library and Rental News
The Weftover Sale had a lot of nice stuff in October. Thanks to all who helped with or donated to the sale. The donations allowed the guild to fill a few holes in the equipment that it has for members to check out. We now have warping paddles to check out – both a hole-and-slots type paddle and the all-holes type paddle. These are very handy if you are trying out a multi-color echo weave or have multiple cones of the yarn that you are using for your warp. If you are new to use a warping paddle, I recommend checking out Workshop Notes for Winding Multi-Colored Warps with a Warping Paddle by Leslie Voiers. This is a book that I dismissed for a long time when doing library inventory as just some old workshop notes. However, when I was looking for information on how not to twist my yarns as I was using my paddle, this was the one book that I found gave helpful information. I have since recommended it to a number of guild members who also found it to be helpful.
Try out some of the guilds equipment during the December meeting
Speaking of the Weftover Sale, did you pick up a cone of mystery yarn? Are you wondering how many yards you have to plan your next project? For the December meeting, we’ll be pulling out some of our small equipment for you to try out between craft projects. The yarn balance will be available for you to use, so bring that mystery yarn with you to either meeting. A reed and warp will be available for you to try out the auto-denting hook. The Baby Wolf will be available to try out a Bluster Bay end feed shuttle and the Ashford wavy stick shuttle, another of our Weftover finds.
You can find these and others on the Rental Equipment and Small Equipment Library pages on PHG’s website.
Have you read a good, bad or indifferent book available in the PHG library? Our catalog is available on LibraryThing. Tell us why you loved or hated it. Submit a review for publishing in the monthly newsletter. We’re also looking for members who are able to commit to help with checking in and out books at either the morning or evening meeting. Let Robin know if you want to help.
Proposed Bylaws Amendment
The past few years the guild has been unable to sell all of our allotted booth space at Gathering of the Guilds. The sale committee believes that we may be able to sell booth space to groups from other guilds, but there currently exists no way to do that without requiring everyone in one of these booths to become a guild member. The cost of guild membership on top of booth fees would be prohibitive for most, so the committee has worked with the board to come up with a proposal to create a new level of membership. The proposed membership will be called the Affiliate Membership level. Here’s the text of the proposed amendment to the bylaws that would establish this new membership level:
- 5.2.5. Affiliate membership. A group of people from an ANWG member guild may join as affiliate members. Affiliate membership is offered to allow participation in guild sales events only, and does not confer other membership privileges to the group or its members.
Here’s how this will work: Those wishing to participate in a sale would apply to the sale, and if selected they would obtain Affiliate Membership by paying a membership fee. The board has currently set the Affiliate Membership fee at $75. The group will supply their names and the name of the ANWG guild where they are members. The sales director will forward all participant names to the membership chair to confirm that they are either regular members of the guild as required, or if affiliate members that they are active members of their respective ANWG guild. The membership chair may work with the ANWG rep to obtain confirmation as needed.
The hope is that by offering this new membership level we can encourage other guilds to join us at Gathering of the Guilds, and that over time some of those people will want to participate with their own individual booths.
There is one other amendment that has been proposed, which is a small edit of the Lifetime Membership level:
- 5.2.4. Lifetime membership. Individuals who are 75 years old or older and who have been Corporation members for at least 10 of the previous 15 years
will receivemay request a Lifetime membership.
The change is intended to make clear that new Lifetime members need to contact the membership chair to obtain Lifetime status. We currently don’t have birthdate information so we can’t automatically change membership status when members meet the Lifetime requirements.
The text of the bylaws with proposed changes is available on the PHG website at https://portlandhandweaversguild.org/proposed-bylaws/. If you have questions or concerns about either of these changes please contact Dan.
Latest ANWG Newsletter
The Association of Northwest Weavers Guilds has posted their October 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
The next Complex Weavers seminar will in Wichita, Kansas in 2024 alongside Convergence, including workshops by Karen Donde the new Complex Weavers President.
If you any questions please feel free to talk to me at the next meeting or reach out. Ladella Williams LadellawilliamsCZZ@gmail.com or text message to 503 729 1704
Bulletin Board
Pictures from the Fall Sale
PHG members had a good turnout of customers at the Fall Sale, Handwoven for the Holidays.
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.”
Online Talk by Elizabeth Buckley
January 20, 2024
The Damascus Fiber Arts School is starting what we hope to be a monthly series of online speakers on fiber-related topics.
This first one, on January 20, 2024, features well-known tapestry artist Elizabeth Buckley. Elizabeth has been weaving and teaching for 50 years. She will talk about her tapestry journey, some of the people who influenced her life and work and some of the traditions from which she learned. Elizabeth plans to discuss her design work, how she uses design principles, how one idea leads to another. She will share images of her tapestry, both complete and on the loom. More details are on our website.
The presentation will be about an hour long, followed by a 30-minutes Q&A. Registered individuals will receive a Zoom link. Be sure your email address is entered correctly when registering. A recording of the presentation will be available to those who registered but were unable to attend, until February 18, 2024.
More information and registration at https://damascusfiberartsschool.org/courses/catalog-2023-2024/winter-2024/from-idea-to-woven-form-the-tapestries-of-elizabeth-buckley-online-jan-20-2024/
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.
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