Send your news items to Sylvia Emard by the 25th of the month for inclusion in the next month’s newsletter.
Guild Calendar – September 2021
September 9, 2021 Virtual Meeting
7:00 pm Evening Meeting Only
Library Pickup/Return
Thursday, September 16, 2021
10-10:30 am at the MAC back patio
Please send your requests to Robin.
Virtual Board Meeting
Thursday, September 23, 2021
7:00 pm – 8:30 pm
President’s Message
Hello weaving friends!
The summer is flying by at what seems to be a super quick pace, our nights are cooling down, we are getting kids ready to head back to school, Pumpkin Spice everything is starting to appear, and PHG meetings and newsletters are back in full swing or quickly approaching! Woot! Our first PHG Meeting will be 9 September on Zoom at 7:00pm. The Multnomah Arts Center will not be open in September so we we stay with our Zoom call for our first meeting. We will keep the same format we did last year with the one zoom meeting for the day. There are hopes the MAC *may* open in October, so we will have to see what the reality of the situation is as we near that meeting date.
This summer has been one of extremes for me – both difficult challenges and amazing highlights. There were definitely many more ups than downs, but all of those challenges changed me in some way. I am finding that as I work through challenges and disappointments, I am growing as a person and I am finding inspiration, more compassion, and a sense of togetherness. I am finding people to connect with, sometimes in surprising places. I am trying to be extra kind to myself and those around me because I know things are challenging for everyone. I am also really trying to find some humor in it all, which can be a really fun “challenge”! I am finding big belly laughs absolutely delightful right now and realizing how much I have missed them. In the good times I am able to ride those highs to the fullest extent possible and remembering I can’t have the highs without the lows, no matter how hard those lows are. I am seeing this in several aspects of my life and that is a pretty wonderful thing, especially as we are traveling through another challenging time with our recent surge.
My wish for you all is that you all have traveled your recent challenges safely and are enjoying life’s highs to the fullest extent possible. And I certainly hope your good times outnumber those challenges!
We have two new board members this year that I would like to introduce. You may have seen Jessica on the Zoom calls, but for those who couldn’t make our calls, I asked both Jessica and Jane to send me photos to include so you will recognize them later!
Jessica Bardsley – Membership Director / Sales Director Co-Chair
Jessica is a newer member to the guild, joining in 2018. She has loved working with different types of textiles, which was instilled during lessons in needlework from her grandmother and quilting from her mother. She has spent time working with many other fiber arts along the way. As a child she was enthralled by the looms, tartans, and spinning wheels she saw at the Highland Games. As an adult she naturally gravitated towards weaving and is mainly self taught, tapping into her family heritage (she learned that her line of Bardsleys were professional weavers in England and Wales before the start of WW1). She has studied with Madelyn van der Hoogt and through WildCraft, where she now teaches Beginner Rigid Heddle classes. She also gives weaving lessons in her private studio. She weaves on a variety of looms which include: a rigid heddle, two 8-shaft jack looms, and a 16 shaft Compu-Dobby AVL.
Jane Wilson – Sales Director
Jane has been a member of PHG since 2016 when she moved to Portland from Kansas. She mentioned to me that she rarely makes it to our meetings but participates in our Fall Sale annually, so if you have seen the amazing woven gourds, you will know her work. Jane was introduced to gourds in 2007. She is an avid crafter who already had wood-carving skills when she became intrigued by another artist’s use of color and wood-burning techniques on gourds, and began to develop these skills through classes and videos. Jane began to add coiling or twining to her gourds. Her vividly colored, beautifully coiled gourds can be seen at various shows in the Portland area. Jane recently won Best of Advanced Division at the Missouri Show Me Gourd Art Festival. She placed third in a national gourd weaving competition sponsored by the American Gourd Society and her gourd art has been featured in the society’s GOURD magazine. Jane has participated in Gathering of the Guild and the PHG Fall Sale since 2016 and has served on the GOTG Sales Committee since 2017.
Please join me in welcoming our newest PHG Board Members! I also want to say a big THANK YOU to Janis Johnson for all of her work as our Sales Director and our GOTG Representative. She has been in those roles for 4 years and was invaluable. She will continue to be treasurer of GOTG LLC and plans to help on the PHG sales committee. Thank you so much for everything Janis!
Enjoy the rest of your August and we will hopefully see you (either in person or via zoom) at the next PHG meeting.
Take care everyone!
Sarah McCully-Posner
PHG President
Programs
Program News 2021-2022
For the coming year the board has decided to take its lead from MAC, and when they reopen to the public we will resume our normal meeting schedule of day and evening meetings. Meetings will be held in either the auditorium or the gymnasium as scheduling permits to allow sufficient space for distancing for the comfort of all members. In addition we will continue to include Zoom access for all our meetings for both the Zoom-only meetings as well as those held at MAC.
Until MAC reopens we will continue with our evening Zoom meetings on our normal meeting dates. The Zoom link is https://us02web.zoom.us/j/6742517131?pwd=Q2dlQkpaeFVQbGhieS8rTndTdTNidz09 and works for all meetings for both the normal monthly meetings as well as the monthly board meetings.
We will continue to record programs and make them available to members via the members-only page at https://portlandhandweaversguild.org/members-only/recordings/. Please note that we are working with presenters to ensure access to all and at the same time respecting the time and efforts of presenters. When requested we will be redacting presentations from the recordings after allowing a reasonable amount of time to allow members the opportunity to view the recordings. If you have missed any presentations from last year I urge you to view them now while you can. Updates may be made to those recordings at any time.
Thanks to all who have provided ideas and suggestions for this year’s programs. I think we have a good lineup, but there’s still a spot open for that amazing speaker or topic you’ve been wanting to see or share with the group. If you have an idea for a program please email me at dansteves@gmail.com.
In the meantime here’s what we have on the schedule so far.
| Month | Speaker | Topic |
| September | PHG Member Panel | How to start a fiber business |
| October | Diane Braun | Textiles in Medieval Europe |
| November | Linda Edquist | Textile Conservation |
| December | TBD | Mini Workshops |
| January | Tien Chiu | TBD, but probably working with color |
| February | Marilyn and John Harrison | From Flock to Fiber |
| March | OPEN | TBD |
| April | Carolyn Burwell | Inspirations and Works |
| May | Denise Kovnat | TBD: Either “Paint Two, Beam One: Painting Two Warps and Beaming Them as One” OR “Once Upon a Warp: From the Loom to the Runway” |
| June | PHG Board | Strawberry Social |
September Program:
How to start a Fiber Business
Evening meeting only, September 9, 2021 at 7 pm.
As new weavers we’ve all enjoyed making items for ourselves, then for family and friends. But at some point it’s only natural to wonder if you could make some money selling your work, if only to buy more fiber to weave with! In this program we set out to learn from those who are already doing it. PHG members who have been selling at shows and/or online will share with us what it takes to be successful at fiber sales. The panel will include Teresa Ruch, Debbie Ellis, Cindy Fowler, Judee Moonbeam, Karen Gelbard and Kate Dopheide. Come learn the nuts and bolts of fiber sales, including some do’s and don’ts from folks who have been there. If you’ve ever wondered if you could successfully sell your work to others here’s the program for you.
Please find the Zoom link under Program News, above, and Zoom in to the evening meeting starting at 6:30 pm if you want to chat with others during social time, and the program will begin at 7:00 pm. For those unable to access Zoom, the recorded meeting will be available later on the PHG website. The program speaker will begin at 7:00 pm and sharing of members’ projects will take place afterwards.
Share your work with the Guild
It’s been a while since we met, and I’m sure everyone has something that they’ve been working on since June. Now’s your chance to share it with the rest of us! Please send photos of your recent work to Dan Steves at dansteves@gmail.com for inclusion in the Show & Tell portion of the September meeting. Deadline for submissions is noon on Wednesday, September 8, 2021.
Workshops
Block Party
Robyn Spady
December 11-12, 2021
Robyn Spady will present IN PERSON, the Block Party workshop that had to be rescheduled due to the pandemic. The workshop will be held at the Beaverton Mill End store classroom. Pricing and registration will happen within the next month. (https://www.spadystudios.com/workshops)
Paint Two, Beam One
Denise Kovnat
March 13, 14, and 20, 2022
The next two workshops come as a set. March 13, 14, and 20, 2022, Denise Kovnat will present via Zoom, her Paint Two, Beam One dye workshop. Supply lists will be forthcoming, and I recommend we group up, or arrange for a group buy of some of the required chemicals.
One Warp, Many Structures
Denise Kovnat
May 12-14, 2022
May 12-14, 2022, Denise Kovnat will present IN PERSON, her One Warp, Many Structures workshop, using the two painted warps from the previous workshop. (https://www.denisekovnat.com/p/classes.html) Either workshop can stand on its own, but the Workshop Chair will first be opening registration to those who want to take both workshops.
March, 2022 The Sakiori workshop lead by Yoko Tamura may return. Should it be a go, first priority will be given to those who had originally registered. (Lynne Fitzsimmons still has her warp and silk sari squirrelled away in anticipation!)
September or October, 2022, Patty Huffer will present a Beginning Rigid Heddle workshop. This is being organized by WeGo, and has a maximum of 6 participants.
Guild News
PHG Website News
Some of you may have noticed, but there are a couple of things that have changed on the PHG website. The forums have been removed, including the Items for Sale Forum. They never really got much use, and the Items for Sale was really the only one that got much traffic. In it’s place we’ve created a separate page where we’ll post these things, and there’s now a new form where you can provide item details and upload pictures for the posting. Many thanks to Rebecca Robb for helping out and taking on this page and posting these additions. The form to submit items is here: https://portlandhandweaversguild.org/list-my-item-for-sale/ and the items for sale can be found here: https://portlandhandweaversguild.org/items-for-sale/
PHG Special Projects Grant Program
Have you been thinking about an aspect of weaving, dyeing, or spinning that you would like to explore? After being cooped up for a year with these ideas floating around, isn’t it time to act on them, and would the incentive of a little cash help?
PHG is here to help with you with that!
The Guild has a grant fund available to members for just that purpose and all you need to do is fill out a simple application form and submit it the Director of Education. REALLY this is not some LONG government form and it does not require a COVID test so please think about applying. Go to the website and look under education/special projects or just click on the link below and get started.
This is an opportunity for new weavers who are interested in experimenting with a new type of weave or yarn, experienced weavers to finally research a topic more in depth or attend a workshop that otherwise would not be within the budget. All that PHG asked is that you share you experience with us sometime in the future!
I look forward to hearing from you soon!
Linda Edquist
Director of Education
https://portlandhandweaversguild.org/education/special-projects-fund/
Library and Rental News
Let Your Holiday Shopping Give a Gift to PHG
If you’re buying materials to create a gift for that special person or treating yourself to that tool that you’ve been eyeing all year, let your purchase give a gift to the guild. Portland Handweavers Guild is a member of the guild rewards program for two well-known yarn retailers, The Woolery and Halcyon Yarn, and Long Thread Media. When you purchase from The Woolery or Halcyon Yarn, up to 5% of your purchase can accrue to the guild, 10% from Long Thread Media. Once a year, these companies will send a check which can go towards programs and other guild expenses.
Enter the Woolery’s website from the ad on our website (better yet, click now and forget) and 5% of your purchase will accrue towards PHG’s yearly reward. Halcyon Yarns is initially a little more complicated. You need to choose our guild on their guild rewards page after logging into your account. Once you do this, your browser can remember for you. Do it now and forget about it! For Long Thread Media, you will also want to click through the PHG site. However, their cookie only lasts 30 days. You’ll want to access Long Thread Media through the PHG site before each purchase. Assuage that guilty pleasure!
NEW! – Small Equipment Library
Most members are aware that the PHG has table and tapestry looms to rent. Many are probably not aware that we have a number of smaller tools that you can borrow for a month with no charge. These items have been moved from the Rental Equipment page on the PHG site to a new page, Small Equipment Library, under the Resources menu. Kathy Sengenberger’s husband, Dave, generously gifted the guild some wonderful additions to this collection. Now available to borrow are a Glimarka yarn swift, a ball winder, a fringe twister, a bobbin winder and a McMorran balance (to determine how much mystery yarn you picked up at the latest sale. Sorry, you will still need to do a burn test to find out what it is). Try things out, then put them on your holiday wish list! Please email Robin with requests. They will be available for pick up and return during the regular library schedule.
Are you interested in teaching weaving?
As we are doing outreach in the community, we keep referring people to our website for information on how to get started weaving. We tell them that besides Guild workshops and some area studios, there are individual members in our Guild who will give weaving lessons. Currently only two people are listed. If you would like to be added to that list go to the Guild’s home page at www.PortlandHandweaversGuild.org. Click on Education. Click on Instructors. At the bottom of that page is a link for Call for Instructors. Click that and fill out all the information so people will know what style of weaving you can teach. You might also consider mentioning if you are open to teaching teens or younger children and perhaps what part of town you live in. We have had some requests for weaving lessons for youth.
The Guild does not sponsor these lessons nor endorse any teacher. It would be entirely up to you to negotiate the details of your lessons with students, like the location, price, length of lesson, etc. We are just letting the public know that some of our members are available to give weaving lessons.
Cooki Messmer
Maggie Patterson
ANWG Conference Fiber Connections 2023
The Weaving Guilds of Oregon (WeGO) are excited to host the 2023 Association of Northwest Weavers’ Guilds (ANWG) Conference at the Riverhouse Convention Center and Hotel in Bend, Oregon, June 11-18, 2023. Click here to get information leading up to the conference on how plans are progressing, along with details about events, workshops, seminars, and other exciting aspects of the conference.
Membership – It’s time to renew if you haven’t already
The 2021-2022 fiscal year started July 1, 2021. As a reminder, your membership runs from July 1 to June 30. All memberships are up for renewal on July 1. The only exception is new members who joined after March 1 of this year. For more information or to renew online go to https://portlandhandweaversguild.org/portland-handweavers-guild-membership/renew-my-membership/.
Please reach out to Membership Director Jessica with any questions or concerns.
Volunteer Sign-Up
The outreach effort to get the word out to beginning and potential new weavers has been going strong. Maggie Patterson and Cooki Messmer have organized PHG volunteers to demonstrate on small looms while answering the public’s questions about learning to weave. The pandemic has prevented some demonstrations, but so far they have had a table at a Gathering of the Guilds pop up sale, Gresham Farmers Market, Troutdale First Friday Art Walk, and the Woodstock Farmers Market.
If you haven’t volunteered yet, consider giving a few hours at one of the next scheduled events. It’s fun and you may inspire some new weavers while you get to know some PHG members better. On Labor Day weekend PHG will have a demonstration/outreach booth at Art in the Pearl for all three days, Saturday, September 4 through to Monday, September 6.
On Saturday and Sunday, October 23-24, PHG will be at the Oregon Flock and Fiber Festival (OFFF) to be held this year at the Linn County Expo Center in Albany. Please click the link to sign up for a volunteer shift https://www.signupgenius.com/go/70a0444cac2fabfe3-oregon. If you have questions, please email Maggie at mudgepatterson@hotmail.com.
Some of you may want to demonstrate at the Oregon State Fair going on August 27 through September 6 in Salem. Contact Carrie Rohn directly to sign up for a shift there. Carrie.Rohn@gmail.com
Latest ANWG Newsletter
The Association of Northwest Weavers Guilds has posted their latest quarterly newsletter. Check out the creative ways other Northwest weaving guilds are getting their members together for fiber activities. Click here to read the newsletter.
A Message from Your Complex Weavers Representative
The Complex Weavers Journal is in the process of being printed now. All members of Complex Weavers receive issues of the Journal and newsletters several times a year. To join Complex Weavers you can go to their website or you can contact Ladella Williams, your Complex Weavers representative, for help.
If you would like to join Complex Weavers or would like more information please send an email to LadellawilliamsCZZ@gmail.com, text her at 503-729-1704, or write to Ladella at:
4254 NE Flanders St.
Portland OR 97213-1636
Save the dates July 10-13, 2022 for the Complex Weavers seminars in Knoxville, TN, just prior to Convergence. We hope you will join us there!
Handweavers Guild of America
Handweavers Guild of America (HGA) is our national weaving organization whose mission is to educate, support and inspire the fiber arts community. Many of us think of Convergence, the biennial international conference, when we think of HGA. The next Convergence will be in Knoxville, Tennessee July 15-21, 2022. (Please check the link for updates on the conference schedule during this uncertain time).
Membership also entitles you to receive the quarterly Shuttle Spindle and Dyepot magazine, guided study opportunities, grants to study or take workshops, fiber resources such as textile kits and multimedia rentals, travel excursions and eligibility for Small Expressions exhibit and the HGA Award given to more than 30 deserving artists each year.
Please go to the HGA website www.weavespindye.org for more information.
Sale News
The PHG Fall Sale will take place in the MAC gym on Friday, November 12 through Sunday, November 14, assuming that Multnomah Arts Center is open at that time. Judilee Fitzhugh will once again be in charge of this sale but there’s lots of room for helpers to plan and get the word out. Watch for more information, or contact Judilee if you’d like to help.
Bulletin Board
Looking to Buy or Sell Weaving Equipment or Materials?
Check out the Items for Sale page.
Fiber News and Events
7th Small Tapestry International Exhibit
Now through August 29, 2021
Lincoln City, OR
The American Tapestry Alliance (ATA) is proud to present its 7th Small Tapestry International Exhibit at the Lincoln City Cultural Center Fiber Arts Studio Gallery, July 2 through August 27, 2021. The exhibit includes a colorful array of weavings that showcase the best in small format tapestry.
lincolncity-culturalcenter.org/fiber-arts-studio-gallery
Damascus Fiber Arts School Summer Workshops
Summer, 2021
Damascus, OR
The Summer 2021 Schedule of Workshops is here. Workshops for Beginning Tapestry, Basic and Advanced Spinning, Drop Spindle, Acid Dyeing, Ravenstail, Wedge Weave and Weaving on a Cardboard Box Loom scheduled.
2021 Oregon State Fair Is Happening!
August 27-September 6, 2021
Salem, OR
The fair opens on Friday, August 27, and runs through Labor Day, Monday, September 6. It will feature the usual textiles competitions (Fiber Arts [used to be Felting, Spinning and Weaving], Needlework and Clothing and Quilting) though on a bit more limited basis. Competition classes have been simplified.
During the fair, we will have a Fiber Arts demonstration area for spinners, weavers and others who wish to show off their creative skills. All weavers and spinners are welcome. We will have chairs for spinners and a couple of looms for weavers to work on (or you can bring your own project). Just let Carrie Rohn (carrie.rohn@gmail.com) know when you would like to come. Demonstrators get free entrance to the fair and free parking. As far as Covid restrictions go, the fair plans to follow the governor’s guidelines. The demo area will be cordoned off to provide space between the demonstrators and visitors.
There will be no fair-sponsored remote pickup sites this year. However, for out-of-towners WeGO will pay postage or shipping costs to mail/ship guild boxes to the fairgrounds and return. The simplest way is to buy a return label at the beginning and enclose it in the box. Send the receipts to Annali Cross (rockytopweaver@gmail.com) for reimbursement.
During the fair, there will be no Quilt Walk, no culinary demos, no Jerry Frank chocolate cake competition, no best-of-the-county judging and no hands-on, make-and-take activities. There will be concerts in the amphitheater and, of course, display cases loaded with the competition entries. And ribbons and prizes.
If you have questions, feel free to contact Dorald Stoltz at dorstoltz@msn.com or 503-371-7177.
Portland Textile Month
October, 2021
Portland, OR
October is Portland Textile Month. Check out Textile Exchange to look for events.
Fiber Fusion Northwest
October 16-17, 2021
Evergreen Fairgrounds, Monroe, WA
The festival is planning for a live event in 2021.
www.fiberfusion.net
Oregon Flock and Fiber Festival
October 23-24, 2021
Linn County Expo Center, Albany, OR
OFFF is moving to the Linn County Expo Center with a new festival date in October.
www.oregonflockandfiberfestival.com
Red Alder Fiber Arts Retreat
February 16-20, 2022
Tacoma, WA
Rose City Yarn Crawl 2022
February 24-27, 2022
Portland, OR
Fiber in the Forest
May 13-15, 2022
Camp Myrtlewood, OR
Fiber in the Forest is coming back in 2022!
More info here.
Handweavers Guild of America-Convergence 2022
July 15-21, 2022
Knoxville, TN
Convergence® is heading to the Smoky Mountains for 2022!
Convergence
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.” A prospectus for submissions will be coming out soon and we hope to have a large response from participating guild members. The WeGO Traveling Show has been well received in the past, so now is the time to begin to plan your Filaments project.
Happy weaving,
WeGO 2023 Traveling Show Committee:
Sarah Mostkoff
Marilyn Roberts
Charlene Virts
ANWG Conference – Fiber Connections
June 11-18, 2023
Riverhouse Convention Center, Bend, OR
Click the link below to read about the new location and dates for the ANWG Conference 2023.
anwgconference2023.com
Calls to Artists
Currents Gallery 2021 Fiber Show
September 14-October 10, 2021
McMinnville, OR
More info here.
“Art with Flair” Festival of the Arts
November 5-6-7, 2021
Wilsonville, OR
This is a reminder of the Call to Artists with a deadline extension to artists and artisans to Tuesday, August 31, 2021.
The 2021 Charbonneau “Art with Flair” Festival of the Arts will combine the best of two worlds for lovers of the arts to enjoy, admire and purchase fine art, crafts, and music — a LIVE Art Show at the Charbonneau Country Club clubhouse and a VIRTUAL EXHIBITION of Art & Music online through the end of the year.
Click here for more info.
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.