Guild Calendar
Thursday, October 9, 2025 – October Meeting
Multnomah Arts Center + Zoom, 7688 SW Capitol Hwy. (503) 823-2787
All meetings are free and open to the public
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 – Auditorium (note room change!)
6:30 pm – 7:00 pm: set up, social and library browsing time
7:00 pm – 9:00 pm: Meeting
Saturday, October 11, 2025 – Weftover Sale
10:00 am – 3:00 pm – Multnomah Arts Center, 7688 SW Capitol Hwy.
Thursday, October 23, 2025 – Board Meeting
7:00pm – Zoom
Saturday & Sunday, November 8-9, 2025 – Fall Sale
10:00 am – 4:00 pm – Multnomah Arts Center, 7688 SW Capitol Hwy.
See the website for full calendar including study group meetings.
President’s Message
It’s finally raining which means more time indoors and hopefully weaving. We have a great line up of programs and workshops in 2025-26 to inspire everyone with new ideas and techniques. My goal is to attend at least 1 workshop this year.
Our WeftOver sale is approaching fast. If you haven’t attended one, let me say that the deals you will get on yarn, equipment and all things fiber is a great reason to attend. Last year I swore I was not going to buy any more yarn and left with a bag full. It is also a great way to clear out your stash of yarn that you realize you’re unlikely to use. All proceeds go towards supporting the Guild. Pass the word, the sale is October 11th. Plan to bring your items to the October 9th meeting.
I also want to give a quick update on the Gathering of the Guilds. The Board decided that we are not participating in 2026 due to the increased cost and logistics. It is a huge amount of work on the part of a small group of volunteers. The Oregon Potters Association (OPA) proposed taking over the event including assuming any financial risks; an idea we were amenable to entertain. At the last GOTG Board meeting, it was proposed that each guild commit to 2026 and 2027 and assume all financial risks. Although we have been successful in selling booths at $450, the proposal increased to the cost of booths, less flexibility on booth size (10×10 only), requirement that all booths have power (we only had 4 booths with power at a cost of $130) and guilds would assume any financial risk for the 2 years, the latter of which we have no insight into what price increases would occur from OCC, reinforced our decision. In good conscience, the PHG Board was not comfortable with making a huge $20,000+ financial commitment. If anything changes in their proposal, we will let everyone know. We will look for other opportunities to showcase our fiber artists to the community in addition to our Fall Sale. Feel free to send me any ideas
Nora Gessert
noragessert@yahoo.com
Upcoming Programs
October 9, 2025 Meeting – North American Linen Association
The North American Linen Association (NALA) is a nonprofit trade association founded and supported by individuals and businesses committed to developing the flax fiber industry across North America.
Learn about NALA and our goals for revitalizing flax fiber (linen) in North America, as well as the history of flax in Oregon
Website: https://northamericanlinen.org/
November 13, 2025 Meeting – Why We Weave with Rosalie Neilson
WWW: Why We Weave
This presentation documents Rosalie’s work from the earliest overshot pieces woven on a rented floor loom to her current studies in Kumihimo, Block Design, and Rep Weave. Teaching others has become one of the biggest rewards for her as to Why We Weave.
See her work at https://www.rosalieneilson.com/
Upcoming Workshops
If you’d like some weaving inspiration, to learn new skills, and connect with the PHG weaving community, please join one of our future workshops. Our November workshop is fully booked. If you would like to be considered for any spots opened due to cancellation, please add yourself to the waitlist. Here’s what we have coming up:
November 14 & 15, 2025: Color and Design in Huck Lace Towels with Rosalie Neilson
This workshop is fully booked. This workshop is led by PHG member, Rosalie Neilson! Explore Huck Lace while weaving a multi-colored towel in three sections. Discussions and design sessions will focus on converting a profile draft into a threading and treadling plan, and how literally thousands of designs can be created with a single threading by changing the tie-up. This 2-day workshop will be held at the MAC and is appropriate for advanced beginning to advanced multi-shaft weavers. Rosalie is well known as an excellent teacher. For information, visit: Color and Design in Huck Lace Towels.
March 14 & 15, 2026: Mastering Multiheddle Weaving on a Rigid Heddle Loom with Carly Jayne
Registration is open! This two day workshop at Ruthie’s Weaving Studio is led by PHG member and fiber artist Carly Jayne. Looking to explore the possibilities of a rigid heddle loom? This workshop will cover both 2 and 3 heddle weaving. You will be looking at threading drafts and profile drafts and discussing how they can be used on a loom with at least 3 shafts. This is an excellent class for shaft loom weavers who are structure nerds because you will create multiple structures (Summer and Winter, False Damask, Tabby, Taquete… etc) by manipulating slot threads while the heddles act as shafts one and two. Carly recommends this workshop for rigid heddle weavers, curious floor loom weavers with a little rigid heddle experience, and weavers curious about shaft switching. For information and registration visit: Double Trouble and Triple Treats – Mastering Multiheddle Weaving on a Rigid Heddle Loom
May 15-17, 2026: Doubleweave Discoveries with Jennifer Moore
Learn all about the magic of doubleweave! In this workshop, participants will weave a sampler that explores weaving two independent layers of cloth, double-width cloth, tubular weaving, color-and-weave effects, pique, quilting, and doubleweave pick-up. Students with 8-shaft looms will also be able to weave samples of 2-block doubleweave techniques in log cabin, checkerboard, windows, and double-blocks. Graphing designs and working with multiple colors will be introduced. These techniques can then be taken home to create clothing, sculptural pieces, decorative hangings, and whatever else the imagination can dream of. This in person workshop will be held at the MAC. Registration is not yet open, but you can find out more information at: Doubleweave Discoveries workshop with Jennifer Moore – Portland Handweavers Guild
February 13 and 20, 2027: Passimenterie 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 Passimenterie. In this bespoke two day workshop, you will learn five passimenterie designs. Registration is not yet open. In the meantime, learn about Elizabeth’s amazing work at: Elizabeth Ashdown | Passementerie Artist – Textile Art – Weaving – Craft – Maker – Handmade | London – UK – US – International. This workshop is open to weavers on all loom types.
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. Registration is not yet open. Learn more about Mary at: Mary Zicafoose Tapestries and Prints | Home Page
Workshop Wrap Up: Indigo and Shibori, an Exploration of Resist Techniques with Judilee Fitzhugh
September’s workshop on indigo and shibori with Judilee Fitzhugh at Ruthie’s Weaving Studio was so much fun. This was the first workshop held in Ruthie’s recently opened dye space. I’d like to thank the Ruthie’s board for making this unique space available for Portland’s textile community. We spent 3 days learning to make and maintain 4 different types of indigo dye vats (fruit, fructose, henna, and iron), practicing the dyeing process, and playing with different shibori resist techniques (nui: stitched, itajime: clamped shapes, and arashi: pole-winding). The workshop was information packed and provided plenty of time for practice, exploration and sharing. What a great time. Check out Judilee’s work at: Judilee Fitzhugh. Come to the October PHG meeting to see some of our work up close.
Judilee adds: Thanks so much to everyone who participated in the Indigo and Shibori workshop! What a fabulously thoughtful and creative group! And a big shout out to the staff at Ruthie’s Weaving Studio who made it possible: gracious and accommodating folks who responded to our every request. We had a very productive weekend and I can’t wait to see all your samples on the table at the October guild meeting. All the best, Judilee
Here are pictures from our workshop:
Happy weaving and learning!
Any question should be directed to workshops@portlandhandweaversguild.org.
Guild News
WeftOver Sale October 11
The WeftOver Sale is our annual clean out the closet event! It’s when we clean out the PHG closet and you can clean out yours. At our sale, you’ll find yarn is organized by fiber type and sold by the pound. Books and weaving equipment are also available with the price individually marked.
If you have items to donate to the sale, there are several more opportunities to drop them off:
- October 9 monthly meetings (morning or evening), any items
- Friday October 10, 5-9pm as we set up
- Saturday October 11, 9:00-10:00 am during final set up
Come early on Saturday to find the best deals! The sale is at the Multnomah Art Center October 11th, 10am – 3pm. All proceeds support the Portland Handweavers Guild programs and workshops.
PHG fall sale November 8 & 9
10:00 am – 4:00 pm – Multnomah Arts Center, 7688 SW Capitol Hwy. Portland, OR 97219
There is ONE 6×10 space available for the Handwovens for the Holidays fall sale, Nov 8 & 9. If you and a friend would like to share a small space or you want to assemble a guild booth (demos and program info? ANWG promotion??) now is the time to grab it up! We have a great variety of wonderful vendors this year. For info: judilee.fitzhugh@gmail.com
Demonstrators Needed for PHG Fall Sale!!
We can use some volunteers to demonstrate at Handwovens for the Holidays, November 8 & 9, Saturday and Sunday. Even if you don’t have anything in the sale, please consider helping out. Many customers have questions about weaving in general and what kind of resources the guild offers. Help promote weaving and other fiber arts in our community. Bring your own small project to work on or use one of our small looms. Click on the link below to sign up for a shift!
Here is the link to sign up: https://portlandhandweaversguild.org/volunteer-new/
Or email PHG member, Susan Naïve (sgnaive@gmail.com), who will be helping with the sign-ups, if you have questions or get stuck on the computer process.
ANWG 2027 Conference is coming to Portland!
Well, we can finally announce that the PHG will be hosting the ANWG 2027 Conference at the Holiday Inn – Columbia Riverfront. We’ve booked the venue for June 14 – 19, 2027. Many more details will be coming soon, including the conference theme, colors, and committee chairs.
Planning for the conference is well underway, and we’re really excited about it. You can help us make this conference a success by telling your favorite instructors that you want to see them in Portland in 2027, and invite them to submit an application to teach at the conference. The Call for Instructors is up and ready to go. Potential instructors can find information at https://anwgconference.org/call-for-instructors/ including links to the forms for submitting applications and session proposals. And, proposals are now being accepted for both workshops and seminars.
If you want to help with the planning you can contact us at co-chair@anwgconference.org. We still have slots open on the committee and will be looking for help with ribbons, badge holders, and more.
Keep an eye on the ANWG Conference website – https://anwgconference.org/ – for updates. And subscribe to the ANWG Conference Blog to get all the latest news delivered right to your inbox.
We’re thrilled to be bringing the conference to Portland, and we hope to see you there in 2027.
Education Update
The program and workshop season has started and it has been a wonderful success. This month’s program will be all about Linen. Did you know that Oregon used to be a top producer of linen in the US? We will hear about it from the experts this month. https://portlandhandweaversguild.org/events/2025-april-meeting-486-348-749/?occurrence=2025-10-09
October is also Portland Textile Month with activities planned for all over Portland, please check it out. https://www.textilex.org/
I would like to remind members that PHG offers a Special Projects Fund to any member of the guild as well as study groups. The amount available each year is $300. Old and new members can use it to buy some special needs for a project or a workshop one is interested in attending, The information and application form is available on the website under Education.
Linda Edquist, Director of Education
Art in the Pearl Demonstrators
Many thinks to all the volunteers who helped out demonstrating at Art in the Pearl over the Labor Day weekend! Some people demonstrated for the first time and found out how fun and rewarding it can be!! We had so much interest in weaving and advertised our Fall sale at the same time. Here’s hoping that many of those folks will follow up and zoom in or attend one of our meetings, or get on the list for lessons, or call one of you who have listed your name as someone willing to teach private lessons. If you are interested in teaching weaving privately and haven’t added your name to that list yet, go on the website and add your name!
Plan Now for Next Year’s State Fair
I went down August 23 to demonstrate for the Oregon State Fair in Salem. I was told that I was the only PHG member who signed up this year to help. Also they were disappointed that no PHG members entered the competition for ribbons this year. They had a nice exhibit of all the Fair entrees for weaving and other fiber arts. I think it is WEGO who heads up that effort. It is a lot of work for them and usually the Salem Guild folks take on the lion’s share of the work. There were some outstanding entrees including woven jackets, scarves, rugs, and handspun yarns. There are many categories for prizes and besides ribbons, some categories award a cash prize. I would like to see our outreach efforts extend to the state fair, so we will be reminding you all when the sign up times come next year. The Oregon State Fair is always held at the end of the summer.
Latest ANWG Newsletter
The Association of Northwest Weavers Guilds has posted their July 2025 newsletter. Check out the creative ways other Northwest weaving guilds are getting their members together for fiber activities. All ANWG newsletters are available here.
Bulletin Board
Looking to Buy or Sell Weaving Equipment or Materials?
Check out the Items for Sale page.
Fiber News and Events
Pacific Northwest Fiber Arts Expo
October 3-5, 2025
Port Angeles, WA
More info: https://www.pnwfiberx.com/
Damascus Fiber Arts School Tapestry Talk
Saturday, October 25, 10am
Damascus, Oregon
Saturday, October 25, at 10am Pacific, our Tapestry Talks guest will be Tricia Goldberg. Tricia will be showing images of her work showing the design process including photographs, drawings, yarn samples and completed tapestries. She will explain her steps from the beginning idea, her inspiration, and the development. Tricia has taught tapestry weaving and exhibited her work widely for over thirty-five years. See Tapestry Talks Archives – Damascus Fiber Arts School for more information.
Oregon Flock & Fiber Festival
October 18-19, 2025
Albany, Oregon
More info: https://www.oregonflockandfiberfestival.com/
HGA Convergence
August 12-16, 2026
New Orleans, Louisiana
More info: https://weavespindye.org/convergence/
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.
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.