Threadlines_______________________________________________________________________________________Fall 2007
Newsletter of the Mid-Atlantic Fiber Association _________________________________ Vol. 5, No.5

President's Message

MAFA's Weekend Workshop a Huge Success!

Guild Calendar

Albemarle Handweavers' Guild

2007 meetings (3rd Sunday of the Month) 1:30 - 3:30 pm

September
Our VP and accomplished weaver, Laurie Duxbury, will offer a seminar on Rep Weave

October
Round Table discussion on weaving equipment
Dish towel exchange

November
Barb  Gentry of Stony Mountain Fibers, will present a program on Oriental Rug Weaving

December
Annual meeting; elections

Butler Spinners & Weavers Guild

The Butler Spinners & Weavers Guild in Western PA is sponsoring a number or workshops in celebration of our 25th year.

We are very fortunate to be one of only a handful of guilds in the US to be hosting Anne Fields from New Zealand .

Anne will be presenting 2 different workshops for our guild.  Very limited space is still available.  If interested please contact Wini Labrecque, 724-272-4285 or strwvr@zoominternet.net   Full payment required to hold spots.

"Spinning Wool - Beyond the Basics" Instructor Anne Fields

Dates: Friday October 26 thru Sunday October 28, 2007  (3 day workshop!)

Price: $175 plus fiber fee (yet to be determined) includes lunch each day

This workshop is based on Anne's book of the same name.  Workshop covers how to spin wool from different breeds of sheep, analyzing, spinning, plying and washing the wool with size and twist of finished yarn relating to original fiber size and drive ratio.  Instruction includes worsted, semi-worsted, semi-woolen and woolen methods of spinning.

This workshop requires a fair knowledge of spinning and plying and your own wheel.  Not for beginners!!!

"Spinning Other Fibers" Instructor Anne Fields

Date:  Monday October 29, 2007

Price:  $75 plus fiber fee (to be determined) includes lunch

Fibers covered will be silk, alpaca and mohair. Class begins with observing and discussing qualities of the fibers and compare those to the qualities we want in the spun yarn. Different preparation and spinning techniques, from worsted thru woollen will be taught to make the yarn reflect the look of the orIginal fiber and end use. Several different techniques can be used with each fiber depending on the required appearance and end use. Small sample skeins will be spun and washed then analized.

Requires your own wheel and a basic knowledge of spinning.  Beginners OK as long as you can spin a continuous yarn.

Chautauqua County Weavers Guild

Sept. 22 9:00-4:00 Rep Weave Workshop with Karen Loell
Oct. 27 10:00 Tricks and Tips with Suanne Pasquarella
Nov. 17 10:00 Holiday Celebration and Chinese auction

Chesapeake Weavers Guild

Nov. 10th and 11th is the Quiet Waters Show in Annapolis, MD. Sat. 10-6 and Sun 10-5 (tentative times)
There are quite a few artisans dealing with pottery, hand wovens(by Chesapeake Weaver's Guild), silk scarfs, paintings, wood carvings etc.

Jockey Hollow Weavers:

Jockey Hollow Weavers has invited noted weaver Vicki Tardy to present her "Overshot Variations" workshop on October 4-5th.

An astounding array of fabrics can be created from this one threading. In the workshop we will play with a variety of treadlings and fibers to coax these wonderful fabrics from our own looms.

Vicki is a well-recognized weaver and experienced instructor whose work has appeared in Weaver's, Handwoven, and also in books such as "Handwoven Scarves" and "The Best of Weaver's Huck Lace."

There are four openings left. If you are interested, please contact JHW Programming Chair Sherrie Miller at miller1127@aol.com for the particulars.

Vicki will be presenting a trunk show "A Bounty of Kitchen Linens" on Wednesday evening,
Oct 3rd. Non-members may attend the presentation for a $5 donation.

Paumanok Weavers Guild:

Sept. 10: First meeting of the season; "what I did on my summer vacation" show and tell and a "weave-in" to make the fabric for the ornaments that will be on the holiday tree donated to the Suffolk County Historical Society. Pre-warped looms will be available so the membership can get a head start on a project we've enjoyed for so many years. Instruction sheets for the Sarah Saulson workshop will be available for those who have registered and paid for the fall workshop.              

Oct. 8: Creating the ornaments and decorating the holiday tree for the Historical Society.

Oct. 26: Pot Luck Dinner at the East Moriches United Methodist Church prior to a talk by Sarah Saulson on Painted Warp at 7 pm.

Oct.26-27: Workshop with Sarah Saulson on Controlling your Cloth with Colour and Sett. Registration Fee is $130 for members and $155 for non-members. There will be an additional materials fee of $15. Space still available. End of registration will be on Sept. 10. Call (631) 878-2912 for details.

Nov. 3: Members will meet at Villa Borghese Winery on the North Fork to demonstrate weaving from 1-3 pm. it was so much fun when we did this last spring.

Nov. 12: Pat Milford will speak give a talk on Overshot, especially for the new members who have only read about and not really understood the technique.

Dec.10: Holiday Bring-a-Dish Party with the traditional kitchen towel exchange.

Potomac Craftsmen:

• Non-members may register 60 days prior to the workshops. No meetings or workshops during July or August.

Frances Irwin Handweavers

Sep 10 Transparencies —Marylou Ricci

Oct 1 Off-loom Bead Weaving — Jeanine Lamothe

Nov 5 Versatile Plain Weaves— Margriet Carrico

Dec 10 Holiday Luncheon & Exchange—Stroudsmoor Country Inn
Coordinated by Karlyn Shedlowski & Doris Botshon

Jan 14, 2008 Inkle weaving with looms (hands-on)
OR
Quick warping (lecture)— Daryl Lancaster

Weaver's Guild of Buffalo

Eastern Great Lakes Fiber Conference
Center of Renewal at Stella Niagara
Lewiston, NY
October 6-8, 2007

A small regional conference held on the off-years from Convergence. The instructors for this conference are: Sharon Alderman, Inge Dam, Ankaret Dean, Jane Patrick, Lillian Whipple and Patsy Zawistoski.

There are a few slots left in most of the classes–to see a listing of classes, the schedule and other events for the weekend, go to www.weaversguildofbuffalo.org and look under events. There you will be able to download a schedule and registration form.

It’s not too late to enjoy the autumn along the Niagara Gorge.

Sept 13 6:30 pm Your Favorite Fiber Tool & Pot Luck dinner
Sept. 22 & 23 Harvest Festival at Amherst Museum
Sept. 27 10:00 EGLFC Folder Assembly
Sept 29 Knox Farm Fiber Festival in East Aurora, NY Sheep to Shawl
Oct. 6-8 Eastern Great Lakes Fiber Conference at the Center of Renewal at Stella Niagara, Lewiston, NY
Oct. 18 6:30 Making Holiday Ornaments with Peg Houseman
Oct. 25 10:00 Ribbon Pinecones with Suanne Pasquarella
Nov. 15th 6:30 Inside Natural Dyes with Carol Wood and Debbie MacCrae
Nov. 29 & 30 Chenille Workshop with Suanne Pasquarella
Dec. 9 noon-4 Holiday Party

Weaver's Guild of Rochester

Sept. 12 10:00 Working in a Series with Carol Taylor
Oct. 10 10:00 Adventures in Swedish Weaving with Barbara Wainright
Nov. 14 10:00 Weaving TnT with Robyn Spady
Nov. 14-16 Extreme Warp Makeover Workshop with Robyn Spady

 

Janet Stollnitz – Passionate About Fiber

Janet Stollnitz’s love for fibers began as child in Rhode Island where the textile industry was prevalent. Her first spark with the fiber world occurred while taking children’s painting classes at the Rhode Island School of Design as a young child. During the morning breaks, Janet would walk upstairs and gaze with fascination at the room full of looms poised waiting for the college students. Janet started her youthful weaving interest by making potholders and weaving them together for doll blankets.

As an adult, Janet moved to the DC area in the early 1970s where she took an 8-session weaving class from Judith Arness for $75 which included using a table loom and all materials.  Before the end of the eighth session, Janet had ordered a 4-shaft floor loom.  Before the loom arrived, she ordered still another loom with  ten shafts.

Upon completion of the weaving course, Janet joined the Potomac Craftsmen where she participated in the Warped Minds Study Group.  Later she joined the Northern Virginia Dye Study Group that later became a Clothing Study Group.  In more recent years she joined the First Thursday Clothing Study Group and the Multishaft Study Group.  In the late 1980s Janet began dyeing her own fibers.  Other fiber enthusiasts were excited with Janet’s work and creativity, and asked her to dye yarns for them as well. When asked what sparks her passions for weaving and dyeing, she replies, “It’s magic to see the end result.”

Janet has won numerous awards for her dyeing and weaving works locally and nationally; among them are: Complex Weaver Award, MAFA Conference, 1999; Penland School of Crafts Award and the Complex Weaver Award, Blue Ridge Handweaving Show, 2004; Pro-Chemical Award, Convergence 2004, and many more.  Janet also has a piece of her work in the permanent collection of the Asheville School in Asheville, North Carolina.

Janet is active in and has held elected positions in numerous local and national fiber guilds. She is currently the Potomac Craftsmen Guild representative to the Handweavers Guild of America (HGA).  She served on the HGA Board, and also as Facilities Chair for Convergence 1992 held in Washington, DC.  Over the years she has served in various Guild positions, representative to MAFA and the Creative Crafts Council.  She is currently Education Co-chair for Complex Weavers Seminars 2008.  Janet is a member of the Handweavers Guild of America, Complex Weavers, Surface Design Association, Weavers Guild of Greater Baltimore, Seattle Weavers Guild.  She is also a member of the Potomac Craftsmen Gallery in the Torpedo Factory Art Center in Old Town Alexandria.
 
Janet currently lives and has a studio in Silver Spring, Maryland, where she continues her love for weaving and dyeing, and shares the hand-dyed yarn business, Dyed Dreams, with Roz Houseknecht. Janet teaches workshops locally and passes on her passions to others as well as her grandchildren. Her favorite fiber to weave is silk and loves to dye silk and rayon fibers; and, her favorite items in her current fiber “stash” are silk yarns. Janet most enjoys creating woven scarves which she sees as full-sized samples.  She has replaced the looms purchased in her early weaving years with 24-shaft and 40-shaft computerized looms.  Now she can design with unlimited treadles!

When asked about Janet, Roz Houseknecht says, “I have known Janet for more than 30 years and we have been dyeing partners for 15 years, and spend a lot of time chatting while working.  Janet is definitely a local, if not national textile resource.  She is involved in many groups and since the advent of e-mail she has been in contact with textile artists around the world and visited many guilds around this country.  Whenever there is a guild event or local textile organizational need, Janet is always available to lend her expertise.  She especially loves to create clear, well written support documents for shows, Potomac Craftsmen Gallery and the Potomac Craftsmen Guild. Janet is a “go to" person and always gets the job done.”

When she is not busy with weaving and dyeing or guild activities, Janet enjoys knitting, felting, surface design and sewing, as well as theater, music, art, and being with family and friends.

 

Nan Crawford is a Virginia native and a graduate of the Art Institute of Pittsburgh. Natural materials inspire her creativity and she feels best when combining nature’s raw elements.

Since entering the world of felting, Nan’s unique felted pieces have won awards during the Maryland Sheep and Wool Festival, Southeastern Animal Fiber Festival and Fall Fiber Festival of Virginia. Nan specializes in the large and small felted pieces, rugs and soaps. She also teaches felting workshops for children and adults.

Nan lives in Unionville, Virginia, with husband Steve, llamas and canine friend Roscoe.

Nan wrote this article about Janet Stollnitz for Threadlines.

Weaving Adventure: Lowell, Massachusetts

I found my summer was quite lacking in "actual" weaving, but I enjoyed plenty of "social" weaving activities, especially my recent trip to Lowell, Massachusetts with guild mate Joan Adams. Here's a thumbnail planning guide if you want to visit this fall:

With no vacation left in August, I planned a weekend trip, leaving New Jersey about 5:00 p.m. Friday afternoon. We were only driving as far as WEBs, in Northampton, MA, but it was slow going since I haven't found an efficient way to avoid Connecticut traffic southwest of Hartford.

There are plenty of hotels in the Springfield/Chicopee area, just south of WEBs, but I have yet to find one above "adequate" at a reasonable rate (less than $100). Since WEBs doesn't open until 10 a.m. on Saturdays (and is closed on Sundays), early birds might want to check out the Dr. Seuss National Memorial at the Quadrangle in Springfield instead of twiddling their thumbs in the hotel room. (www.catinthehat.org/memorial).

For breakfast, drive up Highway 5 north just past the I-91 interchange, and enjoy a cheap but tasty diner-style breakfast at Bickford's, on your left. With breakfast accomplished, we timed our arrival precisely when WEBs opened. I had allocated exactly 1 hour to keep our purchases reasonable. Unbeknownst to me, it was Joan's first time at WEBs. As I emerged from the warehouse an hour later, ready to settle up, and Joan was still within 10 feet of the doorway, empty basket in hand, totally glassy-eyed by the overwhelming selection of everything! In the 25 minutes it took to ring up my purchases (WEBs is quite busy on Saturday mornings), Joan made a significant contribution to her yarn stash. Actual time spent was 1:45. Damage to our wallets was as expected. (www.yarn.com)

We arrived in Lowell by 1:30. Our first stop was the Visitor Center. Free parking is available, and it is very easy to get in and out with clearly marked signs. We watched the 20 minute multimedia presentation that set the stage for what we would see over the next two days, and we proceeded to the Mill Girls Boarding House Exhibit a few blocks away. You can take a pleasant walk through cafes, coffee shops, and galleries in this urban setting, or take the free trolley that runs around the perimeter of the park. (www.nps.gov/lowe or call 978-970-5000)

At 3:00, we took the last Canal Tour of the day. The cost was $8, with seniors paying $7, and advance reservations are recommended. During the delightful 90 minute boat ride, a Ranger explained the importance of the canals for powering the mills and transportation of goods, and we experienced a "lock" that brought us up to the Pawtucket River level for a tour of the dam by boat.

Unfortunately, the American Textile History Museum is currently closed for renovations. However, we visited the lobby to see if there was any information available about the museum shop, cafe, or reopening. No luck, but we found a floor loom, set up for visitors to weave chenille. (www.athm.org)

An excellent dinner was steps away at Cobblestones. We enjoyed the chef's specialties of regional fare as we ordered our own entrees, although in retrospect, there was enough to share. The experience was not inexpensive, but well worth the cost, and we both indulged in a glass of wine AND cream brulee for dessert! Visit www.cobblestonesoflowell.com to look over the menu and prices.

Accommodations were stellar in Lowell. We stayed one exit south, at the Marriott Courtyard for less than $90. We were charmed by the fireplace in the lobby and returned later in the evening to sit, spin and chat about our amazing day. The hotel also provided a pool, hot tub, work out room, and free high speed Internet access in case you want to bring travel companions who might have interests other than textiles! I understand a Doubletree hotel is also nearby.

We returned Sunday morning to try the 70-year old diner across the street from the park. We thought the waitress's query about beans for breakfast was odd, until we remembered we were just outside of Boston! I regretted the lost opportunity to have tried this local fare for breakfast.

The Boott Cotton Mill was next on our radar, and the self-guided tour was excellent. Cost is $6, but discounted to $4, because we displayed our canal tour receipt. We talked to the two "mill girls" in the weave room, one was a former mill worker from Portugal, the other a younger gal just exploring weaving and new to the Boston guild scene. Seeing (and hearing!) the looms operate and having a chance to talk one-on-one as weaver-to-weaver was wonderful. We left with generous fabric samples and a huge appreciation of all that has come before us in the textile tradition. This part of the visit was especially important to Joan, whose family worked in the Patterson Silk Mills in New Jersey.

It was our intention to visit the New England Quilt Museum next, but we got waylaid by the Brush Gallery, just across the walkway from the Visitor's Center. A juried art-quilt show was in progress. We took the opportunity to wander beyond the show among the working studios. We stumbled upon textile artist/weaver Cynthia Hughes' space, and couldn't resist buying some of her hand-dyed yarn. (www.thebrush.org)

Unfortunately, with many sites still unvisited, we needed to hit the road for the 5 hour drive back to New Jersey. Happily, we had a trunk brimming with colorful yarn, a digital camera loaded with great images, and some fantastic memories to share with our guild. In fact, I am hoping we can make this a group trip in the near future, as I would love to hear the insights of my fellow guild members and learn even more about the craft of weaving on my next visit to Lowell. Hope to see you there!

Submitted by Sally Orgren
Frances Irwin Handweavers

Guild Field Trip Inspires Members to Polish Their Design Skills

By Karen Donde 

For the past few winters, the South Jersey Guild of Spinners & Handweavers has planned a group field trip to an interesting fiber exhibit, museum collection or other site of interest to our membership of weavers, spinners, dyers and fiber craft enthusiasts. Last March the group visited a special exhibit entitled “The Art of African Women: Empowering Traditions” at the African American Museum of Philadelphia. The exhibit featured more than 100 photographs taken by Namibian-born photojournalist Margaret Courtney-Clarke over 20 years, as well as her collection of African textiles, beadwork, pottery, exterior housing design and other decorative arts.

This field trip, however, came with a challenge. Participants were asked to bring sketchbooks, colored pencils and the like to capture the images that caught their attention, and to use these as inspiration for an original fiber art design that would be included in a special exhibit during the guild’s annual Show and Sale in October. Guild member Kathleen Remsa, a professional textile designer, volunteered to assist the group as its design coach, as such “inspiration trips” are a regular part of her work. 

Kathleen met with us immediately prior to our museum tour suggesting what to look for and how to record our impressions in our sketchbooks. We gathered again immediately after the tour to share our initial musings, and Kathleen helped us devise a plan for how to develop these ideas further. Over the next five months, Kathleen met with the group four additional times, guiding us through the design process from start to finish, critiquing our sketches, doodles, color palettes and ideas and challenging us to take everything a step further. 

In September, participants will be busy finishing up their projects for the show. The special exhibit is entitled: “Bound by Shared Traditions.” It is expected to include scarves, garments, belts, wall art, pillows, bead-woven jewelry, hand-dyed and hand-spun yarn, coiled basketry and more. In addition, each participant agreed to donate 50 percent of the sale proceeds from one of their entries to an organization that supports African women earning their living in the fiber arts. The name of the recipient organization will be announced in September.

The Show and Sale, with special African-art inspired exhibit, will be Saturday, Oct. 13, in the guild’s booth at the Apple Festival at Kirby’s Mill in Medford, NJ, from 9 am-4:30 pm. 

This whirlwind design experience did more than teach us some valuable lessons and add an exciting (and hopefully newsworthy) twist to our annual show. It whetted our appetites for more design lessons. So after the October show, the group will continue to meet as the guild’s Design Study Group. Kathleen has generously offered to continue as coach and mentor. This time, however, she suggests we work through the design process a little more slowly, without the pressure of producing a finished project by a deadline. The first assignment was something Kathleen tried to teach us from the first meeting following the tour: “Buy a BIGGER sketchbook!” 

And by the first meeting in late October we are to have filled…completely filled…four pages of the sketchbook with all different kinds of lines. Yes, we are going back to the beginning and are thrilled to have the opportunity.

Candidates for MAFA Offices, Fall 2007

Threadlines is the Newsletter of the Mid-Atlantic Fiber Association
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