Handweavers’ Guild Of Connecticut
Programs 2011-2012
The Guild meets five times a year the third Saturday of
the month, bimonthly from September through May. All meetings are held
at The Congregational Church of South Glastonbury, located at the intersection of Main & High Sts. in S Glastonbury, CT.
Maxi Workshops usually are scheduled two to three times a year, generally one or two days before a state Guild meeting.
Mini Workshops are held from 10:00 to 11:45 a.m. For most workshops, the fee is $10.00. If the guest speaker gives a mini, the fee is $12.00. Members are advised to register ahead by email. Members and non-members may also register at a meeting.
Open Workshops are held in the meeting room from 10 a.m. to 11:45 a.m. at each meeting. Taught by individual guild members, they are free and open to all members and guests.
**Many of the workshops, particularly the maxis, fill very quickly. You are encouraged to sign up right away.
Guild Meeting Schedule
| 09:00 - 10:00 am | Delicious Snacks available (please bring you own mug), Sharing Exhibit, Library, Weftovers, Vendors (at most meetings), New Member Orientation |
| 10:00 - 11:45 am | Workshops (Open and Mini's) |
| 11:45 - 12:30 pm | Lunch (brown bag and/or purchase), Library, Weftovers |
| 12:30 - 1:15 pm | HGC Business Meeting for all members, Show and Tell |
| 1:15 - 2:30 pm | Program Speaker |
| 2:45 - 3:30 pm | HGC Board Business Meeting |
HGC State Program Schedule 2011-2012
Maxi Workshops
March 15-16, 2012
Weaving White Dimity Counterpanes, Southern Style
Kathleen Grant
$100
In this workshop, we will weave samples of two types of Southern style counterpanes, dimity and honeycomb. This is a less familiar type of dimity that produces a highly sculpted look when woven and set properly. The drafts are from actual surviving pieces, manuscripts from the 1800s, drafts published by Atwater and Davidson and drafts derived from pictures of these types of counterpanes in books. The information and drafts for this workshop are based on the work of Ute Bargmann, the current expert on this type of dimity. Kathleen Grant, who has worked on this material with Ute, will teach the workshop.
We will use 4-shaft floor looms in the workshop. You need a fairly heavy loom, such as a baby wolf, because you have to beat hard, and the loom must be in good working order, appropriate for a round-robin workshop. The original counterpanes were woven in fine singles cotton, but we will get a similar look using 20/2 unmercerized cotton for the warp and a singles cotton for weft.
Maximum: 20 participants.
Guest, Open and Mini Programs
March 17, 2012
Area 1 & 4 - Hospitality and Cleanup Guest Program: What to do with all of these Bands?
John Mullarkeyn
This is a fun look at what to do with all of the woven bands you have been weaving. We will explore findings and fittings for belts and straps and brainstorm on creative uses of woven bands. Many examples will be available.
Open Workshop: Shades of Wright: Anatomy of a Slow-Cloth Project
KC Alexander
KC’s beautiful rep weave window shade, inspired by the designs of Frank Lloyd Wright, won awards in our biennial show and at NEWS, including the “Weavers’ Choice” award. KC will explain how she managed this major project, from her initial ideas to installing the finished shade, and tell us about a few bumps along the way.
Mini Workshops:
- Pin Loom Cozies - John Mullarkey ($12)
- Beading on Fabric - Laurie Dhandapani
- A piece of fabric 10”-12” square (solid color or tone-on-tone)
- A beading needle and beading thread (your choice of color, but grey or white are probably the best neutrals)
- Embroidery hoop (8”-10”)
- Small Scissors
- Seed beads (size 8 or 11) and bugle beads (¼” to ½” long) in your choice of color and any other beads you have- we will incorporate them into the design.
- Splashes, Flashes and Dashes –Using Specialty Yarns to Add Sparkle and Zing to Your Weaving - Anne Gladczuk Graham
Learn how to weave on pin looms such as the Weave-it, or Weavette. Create a cozy for your cell phone or iPod while learning joining and construction techniques for these addictive little handheld looms. Looms will be provided (and also available to buy). Materials fee of $5.00
Laurie is a textile artist, whose interests range from traditional appliqué and pieced quilts to contemporary mixed media. The common thread throughout her work is the use of surface embellishment. This workshop will highlight the use of beads and how to incorporate them into your work. Learn about the types of beads available, the basics of beading and the tools you will need. Discover how to secure beading directly to your work, create three-dimensional motifs, and make beaded fringe. Come and play!!
You will need:
Do you have knitters’ envy? Can’t help yourself when you walk into a yarn store? Do you love those yarns but you’re not sure how to use them? Let Anne share some suggestions and schemes to showcase those fancy yarns to best advantage.
May 19, 2012
Area 3 - Hospitality and Cleanup Guest Program: Traditional Coverlets
Gay McGeary
Gay is a traditional coverlet weaver who has learned her art and craft by studying the legacy of the early weavers. She has documented her research in articles in the Complex Weavers Journal and the Early American Coverlet Study Group Newsletters. It is not her goal to copy the early coverlets, but to use them as inspiration for her weaving, just as an early weaver would have done. She will discuss her explorations of the early coverlet patterns and weave structures and how she uses them for her weaving. Gay invites you to bring in geometric coverlets you own and she will use them to explain how she analyzes and identifies coverlets.
Open Workshop: What Can I Do With All That Bunny Fluff?
Charlene Schurch
Learn how a bunny’s soft angora goes from fluff to yarn. Charlene will talk about raising Angora rabbits and show examples of blending, dyeing, felting (on-purpose) and creating products with angora.
Mini Workshops:
- Coverlet Fringes - Gay McGeary ($12)
- Origami Top - Sharon Northby
- Thank a Weaver … or Things I Learned from Other Weavers - Kathi Spangler
19th century coverlet weavers used a variety of fringes including weft and warp fringes, tape fringe, leno lace fringe and several varieties of a woven tied fringe. Using photos, coverlets from her collections and her own work, Gay will show examples of different types of fringes and explain how to weave them.
The Origami Top is a simple, no waste bias garment created with a narrow length of handwoven cloth. The Origami fits and flatters everyone. Sharon will explain its mysteries and provide help with fabric design and fitting. An Origami by Marjie Wheeler won first place in the Guild show last year. If you have made an Origami Top, please bring it to the meeting to share.
Tips, tricks and techniques that will help you get from inspiration to finished project. This workshop will focus on project development from cone of yarn to finishing techniques for specific fibers, with attention to time (and good humor) saving tips and tools for successful projects. These tips are also known as “things my weaving teacher didn’t tell me” or “why didn’t I think of that.” Join the group for an explanation of why one of Kathi’s favorite stores for weaving supplies is Damon’s Hardware and another is Allie’s Tack and Feed! Bring a tip to share with your fellow weavers.
A description of programs from earlier in the year:
September 17, 2011
Guest Program: The Fabric of Life
Sarah Saulson
Cloth is the object in the world with which all people have an intimate, every-day experience. And for most of history, most people have also had daily contact with the processes of making cloth. In this illustrated lecture, Sarah will take us through space and time, examining how handweaving has permeated human experience, and virtually all aspects of human culture for thousands of years on every continent. We look closely at this and develop a greater appreciation for the role of cloth in human history over the last 7,000 years. We’ll see images of contemporary ethnic weaving traditions, some of Sarah’s own work, and the results of Sarah’s school residencies with local children.
Open Workshop: Friendship Projects
Nan Jackson
Friendship Projects range from casual exchanges of towels among a group of weavers to more formal studies on a specific topic. You can learn a lot from such exchanges, and it's fun to weave items for other weavers and to receive items in return. Area Three has been organizing Friendship Projects for a long time, including ‘Beast in a Bag’ and ‘Weavers’ Poker’ projects. Nan will show us some of these projects and talk about what her Area has learned about Friendship Projects. If you have participated in a Friendship Project, bring along a sample to share!
Mini Workshops:
- Sett and Density - Sarah Saulson ($12)
- Preparing Your Work for Ratings and Exhibits - Fran Curran, Lucienne Coifman & Jackie Heller
- Spinning for Weavers - Ginger Balch
This workshop provides a concentrated look at how to create cloth appropriate for its function by understanding and using good principles of sett, density and beat. We will examine a variety of factors that influence appropriate sett, including function, fiber, content and weave structure. Along the way, we will look at a variety of textiles. This is an interactive class. Participants should bring a small ruler and a small amount of yarn that you might want to consider using as warp for a possible future weaving project. If you don't have such a yarn, it can be another yarn you have in your stash.
Come and learn about the Guild Ratings program. Discuss the planning, weaving and submitting of your hand-woven pieces. You’ll have an inside look on how judges analyze the work. This is your opportunity to ask questions, form a support group and find out who can be a mentor in your area. We will also discuss how to enter a juried show, and hints on how to best present your piece to make it a winner!
Bring hand-woven pieces, finished or not, for critiques- not mandatory.
This is an introduction to spinning for weavers who haven’t tried it and those who would like to try again. Ginger will teach how to spin on a drop spindle and show how to prepare wool for spinning. Ginger will also provide information about the Nutmeg Spinners Guild so you know where to go if you get hooked on spinning. If you have a drop spindle or hand carders, bring them to the workshop. There will also be some drop spindles available to use in the workshop and ones to buy. $3 materials fee for fibers.
November 17-18, 2011
Warp-faced Rep - Eight Shaft Weaving
Rosalie Neilson
$120
Designs in warp-faced rep are created by the interaction of two different layers of color, a pattern color way and a background color way. Blocks of color are emphasized by the alternation of thick and thin picks of weft. In this two-day workshop, participants will learn the theory of 8-shaft rep weaving and explore the almost limitless possibilities of design. Weavers will thread their 8-shaft looms (table looms are acceptable) prior to the workshop by selecting a draft sent in advance. The width of each draft is suitable for creating a table runner. Weavers can modify the drafts to accommodate the width of their particular loom; however, the width should be two inches less than the weaving width of the loom for ease in winding warp onto the back beam. Discussions will focus on color, movement of blocks in independent and linked fashion, different methods of threading, and a skeletal tie-up. This is not a round robin workshop; participants will work only on their own piece.
Maximum: 15 participants.
State Meeting - November 19, 2011
Guest Program: "Ripped" About Rep
Rosalie Neilson
Ripsmatta is the Swedish name for a rug or mat produced in the weaving technique of warp-faced rep. In this slide lecture, learn how two layers of color interchange to form geometric designs, and how two different weights of weft contribute to the "ribbed" structure which is characteristic of rep. Photos will illustrate the various stages of weaving rep -- how to warp a sectional beam, thread, tie-on and tension a wide warp, and the process of weaving with two shuttles. Learn how designs evolve from one draft to another using the computer software program called Fiberworks. See how one weaver's designs have evolved over the past thirty years of experimenting with rep on a 16-shaft loom..
Open Workshop: Hartford Artisans Weaving Center
Fran Curran, Dorrie Hunt, Claudia Spaulding & Artisans from the Weaving Center
The Hartford Artisans Weaving Center is a vibrant weaving studio for weavers age 55 and older and visually impaired weavers, including several who are totally blind. Fran Curran, Dorrie Hunt and Claudia Spaulding are the individuals who bring this center to life. They will present a panel discussion about the center. They will have some of the beautiful items woven by the artisans and some of the artisans will be present. HGC was instrumental in helping the center get off the ground and provides many volunteers for the center. Come learn all about this extraordinary studio and the impact it has on the artisans. You will be awed by both the artisans and the dedication of Fran, Dorrie and Claudia.
Mini Workshops:
- Introduction to Kumihimo: Braiding on a Foam Disk - Rosalie Neilson ($12)
- Foam Disk (available from: Braidershand: www.braidershand.com/disk.html)
- Ribbon for braiding elements (¼" Spool o' Ribbon – 3 or 4 colors. By Offray). Available at most craft stores like Michaels
- Key ring (can be bought in packages of 12 or so for sharing)
- Medicine bottle or film canister filled with 30 pennies
- Tape measure, scissors, large-eyed sewing needle, embroidery floss for finishing braid and attaching weight
- Sewing With Handwoven Fabric - Kathy Rubin
- Lace Weaves - Karen Chase
Learn how important cords are to the history of Japan, from fossilized remains in grave mounds to Samurai silk-laced armor to the fashion world of kimono, obi, obijime. See how current practitioners of kumihimo are evolving new designs to reflect the changes in the world of plaited cords. Following the brief slide lecture, make several different types of kumihimo cords using a round foam disk. Participants will provide their own materials for workshop:
Kathy will share her experiences sewing with handwoven fabric at the Hartford Artisans Weaving Center. Topics will include pattern selection, judging how much fabric is needed for a project, preparing the fabric, backings (or not), linings (or not), finishing edges and possible closures. Kathy will bring some of the patterns she uses and samples of work done at the Weaving Center. Bring your questions about sewing with handwovens and any sewing you have done with handwoven fabric to share.
What happens if you thread Swedish lace and use a leno treadling? You can weave lots of variations of lace weaves by combining the threading and treadling systems for different lace weave structures. Karen will explain the structures of different lace weaves and discuss appropriate uses and threads. Best of all, she will bring gamps that show many different combinations of threading and treadling for lace weaves. You can note your favorite combinations or make a plan to weave your own lace weaves gamp. If you have woven articles using a lace weave, bring them to share with the group.
January 21, 2012
Guest Program: Finding Inspiration Online
Kristen Kelley
A fast-paced overview of the resources available to weavers in the online world, including an overview of weaving-related sites and communities, as well as design-related sites that are great for inspiration in general. A very detailed handout is included, with links and descriptions of all of the sites that are highlighted during the lecture.
Open Workshop: It's All About Embellishment – A Discussion and Trunk Show
Gail Yellen
Are you looking for ideas to make garments from your handwoven fabric? Gail has developed sewing patterns, construction techniques and embellishments that will inspire you. Gail will show us her trunk show garments and describe various construction and embellishment techniques (her "Un-Beweavable" technique will be especially interesting to handweavers). Gail will be happy to discuss how to integrate handwoven and commercial fabric in a garment so bring some handwoven samples that could be used in a garment. You are also welcome to take photos of Gail's garments.!
Mini Workshops:
- Marketing an Ancient Art in our High-Tech World - Kristen Kelley ($12)
- Visiting the Weavers of Peru - Denyse Redington
- Sewing a Small Pouch from Handwoven Fabric - Sue Turner
- A piece of handwoven fabric about 14" x 8" and the same amount of cotton lining fabric to match. (Or, you can buy a kit with handwoven fabric and lining.)
- Sewing machine with a regular and zipper foot
- Scissors (or a rotary cutter and mat); 12" ruler; pins
- Thread to match your handwoven fabric or a neutral thread color
A frank, open discussion about the challenges and opportunities that face a weaver who wants to sell his or her work in today's marketplace. As weavers in the 21st Century, we have the incredible opportunity to sell our work to people from around the world. But with this global market come unique challenges as well. A weaver wanting to take advantage of markets near and far, both online and through the show circuit, must be willing to don many hats – business manager, customer service rep, photographer, web guru, and bookkeeper, to name a few. This talk is intended to be a lighthearted discussion of Kristin's own adventures in the on-line – and local – retail world, as well as providing a wealth of information and resources for weavers who would like to try their hand at selling their own work.
Peru is a country that every weaver would like to visit for its textiles, history, culture, the Andes and Machu Picchu. Denyse traveled to Peru last year and will discuss her experiences, show photos of her trip and examples of textiles that she brought home. This will be an informative and inspirational workshop for those dreaming of a trip to Peru or fascinated by Peruvian history and textiles.
Do you have a drawer full of handwoven samples or leftovers that you have no idea what to do with? Join us as we make a small pouch using these samples. These pouches are great for cell phones, iPods, digital cameras, credit cards or coins and they make great gifts. You will need: