Guild Calendar
Thursday, June 11, 2026 – Annual Meeting & Strawberry Social
Multnomah Arts Center + Zoom, 7688 SW Capitol Hwy. (503) 823-2787
All meetings are free and open to the public
7:00 pm – Only evening meeting this month! – Gymnasium
6:30 pm – 7:00 pm: set up, social and library browsing time
7:00 pm – 9:00 pm: Meeting
See the website for full calendar including study group meetings.
President’s Message
Plan to come to the Strawberry Social and Hear What the Guild has been up to
On June 11th we wrap up the year with our annual strawberry social / membership meeting. Remember the meeting is evening only. At the meeting we will cover a bit of business including presenting the budget for the year and voting on board membership. We will hear from the small groups that meet throughout the year. If you have any questions about what one of the groups do, the meeting will be a great opportunity to chat with the leads and members. The meetings are open to any member and are free. Details of the are on the website.
As mentioned, at the June meeting we will vote on the board for 2026-2027. We still have an opening for Education Director and will have a prolonged silence at the meeting in hopes someone will step in. 😊 It’s a great board and, believe me when I say, you would not be stepping in without assistance. Most of the programs and workshops are already booked for the year, Legacy runs itself almost, and almost everything else is what you make it. Please consider this role.
I want to take a minute and thank all the volunteers that make our guild great. From the folks that set up and manage to library each month to the random members who just start to set up chairs and tables, we could not do it without you!
So much happens throughout the year. We hold the WeftOver Sale, Fall Sale, programs, workshops, Legacy classes and small groups covering various topics. We can offer these programs and events because so many of our volunteers. Thank you!
Looking forward to next year and all that we plan to offer.
Nora Gessert
Upcoming Programs
June 11, 2026 Meeting: Annual Strawberry Social
Join us for our annual Strawberry Social. In addition to Strawberry Shortcakes we will have a time for sharing recent work and Guild announcements. Note that there is only the evening meeting this month.
Upcoming Workshops
If you’d like some creative inspiration, to learn new skills, and connect with the PHG weaving community, please join one of our future workshops. If the workshop you are interested in is full, please join the waitlist. Here’s what we have coming up:
November 13, 2026: Introduction to Japanese Book Binding
Registration is open! Learn how to build and hand-stitch your own books using the four classic Japanese book binding techniques. We are happy to announce that Barbara Setsu Pickett will teach a one-day Introduction to Japanese Book Binding workshop at Ruthie’s Weaving Studio. Barbara is a Professor Emeritus in the Department of Art at the University of Oregon. The focuses of her research and creative practice are velvet weaving, shibori, natural dyeing, and the book arts. For information and registration visit: Workshop: Introduction to Japanese Book Binding with Barbara Setsu Pickett – Portland Handweavers Guild
February 13 and 20, 2027: Passementerie with Elizabeth Ashdown (online)
Looking forward to 2027, Elizabeth Ashdown will be joining us virtually from her studio in London to lead an online workshop in Passementerie. In this bespoke two-day workshop, you will learn five woven passementerie designs. Registration is not yet open, but you can learn more about the Elizabeth and the workshop here: Workshop: Passementerie with Elizabeth Ashdown (online in 2027) – Portland Handweavers Guild. Also, check the latest (Winter 2025) issue of Handwoven magazine. Elizabeth is featured twice: she has an article and fringe pattern, and there is a brief segment about her book, Passementerie: Handcrafting Contemporary Trimmings, Fringes, Tassels, and More. This workshop is for weavers on all loom types. Look out for workshop registration to open in September.
March 12-14, 2027: Rug Weaving Basics with Mary Zicafoose
We are excited to bring renowned artist Mary Zicafoose to PHG. Mary joins us for a program and workshop in March 2027. Learn, add to, or refresh your knowledge of a well constructed rug in Rug Weaving Basics. This is an in person workshop at the Multnomah Arts Center. Registration is not yet open. Look out for workshop registration to open in October. Learn more about Mary at: Mary Zicafoose Tapestries and Prints | Home Page
Workshop Wrap Up: Doubleweave Discoveries with Jennifer Moore
In May, Jennifer Moore joined us from Santa Fe to present her Doubleweave Discoveries workshop at the MAC. Jennifer led 20 weavers through creating a sampler demonstrating the many structure and design possibilities of doubleweave. I particularly enjoyed learning how to create folded and tubular cloth and was surprised to find how much I enjoyed weaving a two-layer cloth with the top layer in lace (Leno and Brook’s Bouquet). Jennifer presented an excellent discussion of block design which the eight shaft weavers were able to practice. Jennifer is a master teacher: she seamlessly interwove technical lessons on structure with technique tips like how to place your shuttles to avoid closing off the selvage when working with multiple layers. Her tip to think of and set up your loom as a series of four-shaft looms, each weaving a layer of cloth and/or a block, I found especially helpful and will stick with me. Her workshop was well structured, providing a nice mix of theory presentation and adequate time for practice and experimentation. As always, the workshop was a great opportunity to meet and re-meet local weavers and simply revel in a weekend of weaving with like-minded fiber, color, and structure enthusiasts.
If you missed her this time, or want to weave with her again, Jennifer will be joining us at ANWG 27. Here are some pictures from our workshop:
Happy weaving and learning! Any question should be directed to workshops@portlandhandweaversguild.org
Guild News
Summer Volunteer Opportunities
Watch for any PHG newsletters over the summer as well as notices from the PHG google group site for more demonstrating opportunities. Sign up schedules will be posted on the volunteer page of the PHG website. So far, we will have these summer opportunities:
Woodstock Farmers Market on Sundays, July 19 and September 27
Cedar Mill Farmers Market on Saturday, August 8
Art in the Pearl, Labor Day weekend, Saturday to Monday, September 5, 6, 7
In addition, The Oregon State Fair will run in Salem from August 28 to September 7. The Salem Fiber Arts Guild organizes those demonstrations and sign-ups and they are always looking for volunteers. Our Portland Guild has not sent many volunteers in the past years and they could use the help. Let’s show them that we are willing and able to promote weaving and other fiber arts state wide!!! The day you volunteer you get a free parking pass and entry to the fair. You can spend all your time in the air conditioned exhibits buildings or take some time to browse around the fairgrounds. Curley fries anyone? Or Dairy Women’s ice cream cones?
Watch upcoming newsletters for more information or contact CookiMessmer@comcast.net
2027 Conference Update – Online Instructors Sought
After much discussion the conference education committee has decided to open a call for online instructors and sessions. Our goal is to provide an opportunity for both remote instructors and remote attendees. Details are on the conference website at https://anwgconference.org/call-for-online-instructors/. If you’ve had a great online experience or would like to see someone special present a class or seminar online at the conference please let them know and encourage them to apply. Deadline for applications is June 30, 2026.
As always, see the website (anwgconfernce.org) for more information, and subscribe to the blog to get the latest updates delivered to your inbox as soon as they are posted.
The next conference committee meeting is Monday, June 1 at 6:00. You can join us via Zoom at https://zoom.us/j/2290207971?pwd=elJvd2w0L2NsMlJPZXhNM3JlTFphZz09.
Library Update
Here we are, it’s June already. How does time go so fast? Our incredible library crew has been stable this year. Thank you Nora, Cindy, and Vianne for all your dedication to helping members with the library during meetings. Jacque has assumed ownership over the equipment rentals and has been putting her own stamp on the way they are handled.
The summer is a great time to check books, DVDs, and equipment out from the guild. You can have them all summer! Three months rather than the standard one month. That gives you plenty of time to make the deep dive and experiment with new knowledge and techniques.
Earlier this year, I asked in my weaving class what book I should read next to write about for the newsletter. The first suggestion was one that I had reviewed a few years ago before she had joined the guild. I may start posting some reruns. Subjects that weren’t interesting then may have piqued your curiosity in the interim. The next suggestion was Handwoven Laces by Donna Muller. I had read it years ago but was willing to read it again knowing that there were things that I had missed the first time or since forgotten.
Handwoven Laces, like many of the books I have written about, is not a book of drafts and projects. There are a number of example drafts, but that is not its focus. It is a book that will help you gain a deeper understanding of the structures that are loom-controlled laces. Donna Muller doesn’t just give you the basic threading unit and treadling unit and the rules for putting them together. She starts with the plain weave grid and slowly makes changes to it, gradually building your knowledge. From the most basic lace weave she makes a minor change to the threading and treadling to make another lace structure, building your foundation.
The lace or open weave structure Donna Mulling discusses is basket weave. Basket weave is not really a structure that I had considered to be a lace weave, but the grouping of threads will give small holes between them. She demonstrates how you can design with basket weave using combinations of basket weave and imperfect plain weave on only two shafts. From there she builds to four shafts with perfect plain weave, eventually building up to more blocks on eight shafts. She shows how sett can effect the end cloth.
From basket weave, she makes a small tweak to the threading and treadling to get canvas weave. For those who are not familiar with canvas weave, you may recognize it as aida cloth if you have done counted cross stitch. Given the threading unit, she walks you through the derivation of the treadling so that you have an understanding of how the weft is interacting with the warp to give you the lace structure for units of canvas weave in four shafts. From this foundation, the author demonstrates how to design a cloth with the basic unit and plain weave. She then shows how you can add more units with more shafts to add complexity to your design. You learn how the units will interact with each other and how to derive your treadling.
This format of making small tweaks and the derivation of the treadling is continued throughout the book. From canvas weave you move to four shaft huck laces. From four shaft huck to multi-shaft huck, Bronson spots, Bronson lace and Swedish lace. Once you get to multi-shaft huck lace, she begins to show you how to design more complex patterns and motifs. One thing that I don’t think I appreciated the first time I read the book is the discussion of how you dent the reed can affect how the threads interact to form the lace structure. There is always something new to learn and ways to improve your technique. And new tidbits to glean from books already read.
This book would be of interest to weavers of all levels. Beginners will appreciate the care that Donna Muller takes to describe each of the lace weaves and how the threads interact with each other to produce the lace structure. There are plentiful diagrams showing the interlacements of the warp and weft on and off the loom. They clearly show how the threads deflect to make the lace unit. They also provide reassurance while weaving that things will become more clear once your project is off the loom. For more advanced weavers, a greater understanding of basic units will help you with your own designs and appreciate the why behind some of the “rules” that you were taught.
—Robin K.
Browse the PHG library online from the comfort of your home anytime. The first tag for each item tells you in which section the item can be found. Newer acquisitions may be on the “New” shelf. Also explore tools you can check out from the Small Equipment Library. Both are available for browsing during our regular meetings.
Bulletin Board
Rigid Heddle Class Info at Fiber Rhythm
Carly Jayne is teaching Krokbragd for the rigid heddle at Fiber Rhythm on July 18th from 11-3ish. It’s a small class (only 4-6 students). We cover warping on two heddles or 1 heddle and a pick-up stick + string heddle. Students begin weaving their own mug rugs and can design their own projects using graph paper. Hand-dyed wool is available for $5 a “bonbon” of 25 grams.
Latest ANWG Newsletter
The Association of Northwest Weavers Guilds has posted their April 2026 newsletter (plus April Update 1 & April Update 2). Check out the creative ways other Northwest weaving guilds are getting their members together for fiber activities. All ANWG newsletters are available here.
Looking to Buy or Sell Weaving Equipment or Materials?
Check out the Items for Sale page.
Fiber News and Events
Damascus Fiber Arts School presents Tapestry Talks
On Saturday, Jun 13, at 10am Pacific, our guest will be Jennifer Edwards. Since childhood, Jennifer Edwards has loved making things with her hands. The act of making has been a golden thread through the years, guiding, healing, leading her on. This talk will briefly touch on highlights of the years leading up to weaving tapestry and then take a deep dive into what Jennifer loves about translating drawings into woven images, using predominantly her own hand spun yarns. She’ll share what she learns and discovers about tapestry, a medium with endless possibilities. The daily discoveries keep her curious and enchanted with building an image on vertical strands of string. Maintaining a playful approach allows the golden thread to continue weaving beauty into the warp of everyday life. See Tapestry Talks – Damascus Fiber Arts School for more information.
Fiber Fusion Northwest
Date: June 6th & 7th, 2026
Location: Monroe, Washington
FiberFusion.net
Black Sheep Gathering
Date: June 26 – 28, 2026
Location: Albany, Oregon
BlackSheepGathering.org
HGA Convergence
August 12-16, 2026
New Orleans, Louisiana
https://weavespindye.org/convergence/
ANWG 2027 Conference
June 14-19, 2027
Portland, Oregon
https://anwgconference.org/
Handweavers Guild of America
Textiles & Tea
Tuesdays
Handweavers Guild of America, Inc.’s (HGA)‘s 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.
Newsletter Contributions
Send news items and fiber events to Tim Prins by the 25th of the month for inclusion in the next month’s newsletter.
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.