Submitted by Jaimee Roberts
Vice President, WGRI

September 8th, 2023 at 6pm
Location: Rhode Island Weaving Center, 334 Main St, Wakefield, RI Suite 200

***Please note this meeting will be at a different time and location than our usual meetings!***

OUR JOURNEY WITH THE LOOM WITH LYNDA TELLER PETE

A discussion with 5th generation Navajo weaver, Lynda Teller Pete. An opportunity to look at the work done by the weavers enrolled in her workshop.

October 14th, 2023 at 9:30am
Location: New Hope Chapel, 80 Richmond Townhouse Rd, Carolina

***Please note this meeting will be at a different time and location than our usual meetings!***

REED MAKING WITH JIM WILSON

Jim Wilson, owner of Rhode Island’s own Gowdey Reed, in conversation with Norma Smayda. Please think of questions for our guest.

Show & Tell- Our September meeting will not have a show and tell, so please bring all of your recent projects to our October meeting.

November 4th, 2023 at 9:30am
Location: North Kingstown Library, 100 Boone St, North Kingstown, RI

A WEAVER’S JOURNEY IN TEXTILES WITH DONNA LAVALLEE

A show and tell and slide show with of weaving and wandering through textiles and museums with our new WGRI President, Donna LaVallee.

Donna LaVallee has been weaving for 39 years.  She is a color and texture weaver, loving to experiment with yarns, fibers, and textures.  She could be happy with just 4 harnesses forever.  She also decided to pursue a career in Textile Conservation in the late 1990s from the University of Rhode Island.  This added wonderful experiences as an intern at the Cooper-Hewitt National Design Museum in NYC and at the Textile Conservation Workshop in Salem, New York.  She worked on the Joseph and Annie Albers exhibition at the Cooper-Hewitt. Then her husband took her off to San Francisco and she worked occasionally with the Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco and as the Collections Manager at The Lace Museum in Sunnyvale, California. She served as the Workshop and Tour Coordinator for the Textile Arts Council of the FAMSF.  Through all of this, she continued to weave and to embroider.  Lately she has been making books, especially miniature books – under 3″ x 3″.

December 2nd, 2023 at 9:30am 
Location: North Kingstown Library, 100 Boone St, North Kingstown, RI

FRAGMENT FESTIVITY

We’ll celebrate the holidays with warm drinks, cookies, and small gifts made from your weaving fragments. More details to come!

January 6th, 2024 at 9:30am
Location: Zoom

INTRODUCTION TO SUPPLEMENTAL WARPS
WITH DEB ESSEN

What are Supplemental Warps? This power point presentation (with lots of pictures) is an introduction to what supplemental warps are and how you can use them in your weaving.

Deb Essen lives, weaves, and runs her business dje handwovens in the Bitterroot Valley, nestled in the Rocky Mountains of western Montana. In 2004, Deb achieved the Certificate of Excellence in Handweaving-Level 1 through the Handweaver’s Guild of America. In 2011 she was inducted to the Montana Circle of American Masters in Folk and Traditional Art. Her book, Easy Weaving With Supplemental Warps, was published originally by Interweave Press in 2016. In 2022, the book was re-released as an expanded revised edition, with more projects and weave structures, by Schiffer Publishing. She has recorded five weaving videos, available through Long Thread Media, ranging from supplemental warps to profile drafting and has written multiple feature articles for Handwoven and Little Looms magazines. Deb is passionate about teaching about the wonders of weaving and teaches at shops, guilds, regional and national conferences and festivals.

February 7th, 2024 at 7pm ***Wednesday Night***
Location: Zoom

SHARING THE STORIES OF GIST YARN
WITH SARAH RESNICK

I’ll be sharing stories from my weaving yarn company Gist Yarn, which I opened in 2017. I’ll start with sharing a bit of my experience working in cut-and-sew garment manufacturing, and what prompted me to take the leap over to star ng a yarn business focused on domestic textile production. Then I will share how our company has grown and evolved through the years, including how we partner with textile mills to create new lines of yarn for weavers, and how we work with emerging and experienced designers to create and publish new weaving patterns.

Sarah Resnick founded the weaving yarn company Gist Yarn in 2017. She manages the finances, works to keep the Gist Yarn team happy and thriving, and builds partnerships with mills and dyehouses to bring new lines of yarn to life.

Sarah learned to weave in Toronto in 2009, and has been fascinated with the colors and textures that roll off of her loom ever since. She started her career as a community and union organizer, and made the switch to small business when she helped to launch a sewing factory in Massachusetts 2016. Sarah also designs a line of printed and woven Jewish ritual textiles, which she sells through her business Advah Designs.

http://www.gistyarn.com/

March 2nd, 2024 at 9:30am
Location: North Kingstown Library 100 Boone St, North Kingstown, RI

IT’S NOT ALL ABOUT THE UNICORN
WITH LINDA RHYNARD

Contemporary Tapestry weaving has taken many creative paths. Building upon but migrating away from traditional works, Tapestry artists are being inspired by revolutionary fiber artists of the 50’s,60’s and 70’s. My presentation will show works of those early artists along with the works of currents artists, some who are local.

Additionally, I will be offering a brief hands- on experience with manipulated warp techniques, using small stretcher frame looms. Linda Rhynard is owner of Kindred Spirits Creations- a studio dedicated to teaching Weaving in Bristol, RI. Linda has been passionately engaged in Fiber Arts for the last 20+years and is a Certified Weaving a Life instructor, has taken extensive workshops at Harrisville Design Studio, John C

Campbell Folk art School, The Weaving Studio with Marilyn van der Hoogt, Tapestry Classes with Janet Austin, Susan Martin Maffei (ATA 2014) Workshops: Tamar Shadur, Northampton Mass., Color and Design Workshop with Rebecca Mezoff, Navajo Weaving classes through Weaving in Beauty in Gallup N.M (Gloria Begay and Jenny Slick) and multiple classes with Lynda Teller Pete and Barbara Teller Ornelas.

Linda’s work has been exhibited in several juried shows both locally and nationally. She was also a contributor the UMass Dartmouth Exhibit “Contemporary Textiles reflecting Abolition, Slavery and the Road North”(Spring 2017). She has also been included in several ATA Exhibit Publications.

April 6th, 2024
Location: North Kingstown Library 100 Boone St, North Kingstown, RI

PAINTING WARPS ON TWO CONTINENTS WITH SARAH SAULSON

In this presentation Sarah will examine the beauty and design potentials of painting warps on loom, as she focuses on her own work with the technique over many years, and the guild’s workshop over the previous 2 days. We’ll also have an opportunity to see traditional Mayan handweavers learn the same technique using back-strap looms, with stunning results.

Sarah Saulson has been weaving since she was 8 years old. For many years, she taught weaving in the School of Art at Syracuse University. She and her husband are now happliy living in Providence. Sarah is thrilled to now teach weaving at the Rhode Island Weaving Center in Wakefield. She also maintains her own weaving studio at Hope Artiste Village in Pawtucket, where she focuses on weaving heirloom quality Jewish Prayer

Shawls on commission. She is proud to be a member of the Rhode Island Weavers Guild.

May 4th, 2024
Location: WovenSeas Weaving Studio, 569 Main St. Suite 106, Warren, RI 02885

WOVENSEAS STUDIO TOUR WITH ELIZABETH SPRINGETT

Welcome to WovenSeas Weaving studio, where threads come to life and the art of weaving unfolds in a symphony of color and texture. Step into our studio humming with over 16 looms of 6 different models bathed in wonderful daylight. Explore our gallery of handcrafted masterpieces and shop our store. We offer the complete Gist Yarn line, some Webs linen and cotton yarns along with our new exclusive WovenSeas patterns. Elizabeth will give a short introduction and recap of her life in textiles.

Elizabeth obtained a BFA in Textile Design from Southeastern Massachusetts University. She began her career designing apparel fabrics in New York City then transitioned into home fabric fashion design, traveling the world shopping for fabrics and colors trends to inspire decorators and interior designers. In 2016 she opened her own weaving studio.

WovenSeas Weaving Studio is located in Warren, RI where Elizabeth shares her knowledge of weaving and creates hand woven cloth.

ANNUAL MEETING AND PARTY

Submitted by Jaimee Veronneau
Vice President, WGRI

November 5th, 2022 at 9:30am
Location: New Hope Chapel, Carolina, RI

TALKING FLAX WITH RENEE JOSEPHINE WALKER-TUTTLE

Residing in Portsmouth, Rhode Island Renee was intrigued when she discovered flax was grown, harvested, and spun on Aquidneck Island. In her talk she will outline the history of flax in colonial America. Flax, the predominant textile fiber in the 18th century, was spun in large quantities during “spinning bees” in protest of taxes on consumer goods prior to the Revolutionary War. Patriot commentators published articles in the Newport Mercury outlining the importance of flax, which was easily grown in Rhode Island, in establishing a self-sustaining colony. In conducting her research she found documentation of enslaved people being forced to participate in all aspects of textile cultivation, processing and manufacture. The invention of the cotton gin and spinning jenny solidified the institution slavery for almost another century in which all colonies actively participated. An increase in cotton production resulted in the rapid decline in the manufacture of linen and an increase in the products agricultural fragility.

Renee Walker-Tuttle received an M.S. in Historic Textiles & Dress from the University of Rhode Island where she served as both Collections Assistant and Textile Conservation Lab Manager for the Textile & Fashion Collection. During and following her undergraduate studies she worked for Colonial Williamsburg’s Costume Design Center and the Dewitt Wallace Conservation Center. As proprietor of Renaissance Conservation Services, she has consulted as a curator, conservator and collections manager for several national institutions including the Smithsonian’s National Museum of American History, The International Tennis Hall of Fame, and the Library of Congress. Regional organizations include Blithewold, Newport Restoration Foundation, Newport Historical Society, Old Colony History Museum, Webb Deane Stevens House, Connecticut Landmarks, and the New Hampshire Historical Society where she documented over 3,000, textiles and manufacturer samples. Her experience ranges from the analysis of textiles found in 5th century Maya tombs from Copan, Honduras to the conservation of 21st century plastics in textile and fashion collections. She served as a visiting lecture for Framingham State University Department of Fashion Retailing and Design from 2016-2018 and Roger Williams University Theater Department in Costume Design from 2018 to present. In addition to her professional endeavors, she is an active member of the American Institute for the Conservation of Historic and Artistic Works (AIC) and served as a board member for the Costume Society of America Northeastern Region from 2013-2016. Her expertise and research interests are in women’s 18th century hair, cosmetics, fashion as well as colonial and early American flax (linen) cultivation and production.

December 3rd, 2022 at 9:30am
Location: New Hope Chapel, Carolina, RI

HOLIDAY PARTY!

January 7th, 2023
Location: New Hope Chapel, Carolina, RI

OFF-THE-GRID, ELISABETH HILL

Feeling hemmed in by the ho hum of parallels and perpendiculars. Join me in an adventure out of the straight and narrow! Through the miracle of Zoom/Powerpoint, we will examine multiple structures that allow the warp and weft to shift and move, creating a dizzying array of curves, undulations and textures. We will discuss techniques and tips for weaving these structures, and examine many fabric sample slides. A small set of drafting exercises in .PDF form will be sent prior to the presentation.

Elisabeth (Lisa) Hill is a weaving enthusiast. She has been weaving for close to 30 years, and completed a 6-year Master Weaver Program at Hill Institute in Florence, MA in 2012. Elisabeth is past Program Chair for the Weavers of Western Massachusetts and formerly a tech editor for and frequent contributor to Handwoven Magazine. She has taught at guilds, weaving conferences and folk schools all over the country and has kept a weaving blog since 2010. Elisabeth has designed weaving patterns for WEBS yarn store and Gist Yarns, and continues to create original designs for sale through plainweave.net.

February 4th, 2023
Location: New Hope Chapel, Carolina, RI

GO BIG WITH COLOR AND WEAVE EFFECTS, KAREN DONDE

Have you ever wanted to weave giant houndstooth patterns that show up frequently on fashion runways? Houndstooth is simple to weave on four shafts, belonging to a class called color-and-weave effects. Generally, motif size is limited by yarn thickness. However, using a thick-and-thin technique in a structure similar to shadow weave can simulate the large motifs seen in jacquard woven fashion fabrics. Participants will see how to expand popular motifs.

Karen Donde weaves garments, fashion accessories and home textiles for sale and teaches beginning-advanced weaving classes and assorted workshops for guilds and conferences. Teaching credits include HGA’s Convergence 2012, 2014 and 2016 and 2020, Southeast Fiber Forum, the Mid-Atlantic Fiber Association’s Workshop Weekend, Midwest Weavers Conference, Intermountain Weavers Guild Conference and Florida Tropical Weavers Conference. In Asheville, NC, she has taught at Sutherland Handweaving Studio, Friends & Fiberworks and Local Cloth.

Karen is a juried member of the Southern Highland Craft Guild and graduated in May 2013 from Haywood Community College’s Professional Crafts-Fiber program. An experienced and award-winning writer with a bachelor of journalism degree from the University of Missouri, Donde now writes for and about weavers. She is a contributor to Handwoven magazine and other industry publications.

Karen is currently president of Complex Weavers.

March 4th, 2023
Location: New Hope Chapel, Carolina, RI

INSPIRATIONS AND REVELATIONS OF FIBER ARTIST, LAURIE CARLSON STEGER

Laurie Carlson Steger will present the personal side to her inspiration and art work recently on view at the Fuller Craft Museum. Discussing her works Clouds of August:1945 and Last Wishes, she will talk about sensitive subjects commonly experienced by all, and explain how these feeling were expressed in fiber. A visual presentation will include design inspiration, the technical development, working with the TC2 jacquard loom, and the technical issues that lead to unexpected resolution of both works.

Laurie Carlson Steger began weaving in the 1960’s and studied at The Worcester Center for Crafts in the 1970’s and the University of Massachusetts Dartmouth, earning a BFA and MFA in Artisanry/Fibers. She is a Master Weaver who explored weaving with fiber optic materials and consulted in the field of smart textile applications. She earned the Handweavers Guild of America Certificate of Excellence in weaving. Steger is the current Associate Dean of the Weavers’ Guild of Boston. She recently led a collaborative project with the WGB members to create a quilt using handwoven cloth, titled Home Sweet Home displayed at the Fuller Craft Museum within the exhibit, Interpreting Change: Weavers’ Guild of Boston 1922-2022. Her work has been included in Fiberart International, FAN:Excellence in Fibers, and London Hat Week, among others. She taught Textile Science at Boston area colleges, and has led workshops/lectures at many weaving guilds and other textile organizations.

http://www.liteweave.com/home

April 1st, 2023
Location: New Hope Chapel, Carolina, RI

THE COMPLETED WEAVING:
HOW MOUNTING SYSTEMS AFFECT THE FINISHED DISPLAY OF OUR TEXTILES,
CLAUDIA P. IANNUCCILLI

This presentation will examine traditional mounting techniques, looking beyond at how new materials can be used to improve not only the display of textiles but also their longevity. Attendees are invited to bring in their finished weavings for a hands-on question and answer session to follow the lecture.

Claudia P. Iannuccilli – Studio of Textile Arts
Conservation Emeritus, Textiles and Costume Conservation
Museum of Fine Arts, Boston

Claudia is presently the owner of the Studio of Textiles Arts (SOTA) which she opened after twenty-six years of dedication to the care and presentation of the collections of Textiles and Fashion Arts at the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston (MFA). SOTA works with private textile and conservation clients and national costume exhibition installations as well as consultations on archival storage and disaster preparedness.

During her two-decade tenure at the MFA, Claudia worked on numerous exhibitions, including Poetry of the Loom, Secret Gardens: Paisley and Kashmir Shawls, Common Threads: A Showcase of Samplers, Fashion Show: Paris Collection, High Style and Hoop Skirts: 1850s Fashion, Hippie Chic, Gender Bending Fashion; several international traveling exhibitions such as La Parisienne and Casanova’s Europe; and gallery rotations involving the Japanese Noh robe collection.

Claudia received a BS and MS in Historic Textiles and Fashion Arts with a specialization in Conservation from the University of Rhode Island. She remains an active member of several professional organizations, including American Institute for Conservation (AIC), International Council of Museums, Textile Society of America, Costume Society of America, and Providence Art Club. She is also part of AIC’s Cultural Emergency Response Team, an extension of her time serving as a standing member of the MFA’s disaster preparedness team.

May 6th, 2023
Location: Newport Art Museum Time: 10am
*we’ll figure out carpooling as the date gets closer

SOCIAL FABRIC: TEXTILES AND CONTEMPORARY ISSUES

From the cradle to the grave, human beings are wrapped in, and surrounded by textiles. What people make to clothe, protect, and decorate themselves and their spaces, tells us about their cultures, eras, identities, families, and lives. This exhibition brings together a diverse array of contemporary textile artists who are weavers, sculptors, quiltmakers, and visionaries to examine the complex issues of our time. Together, their practices demonstrate and reimagine the expressive and social functions of textiles. Some of the themes include: climate change and sustainability, adaptation and reuse, war and survival, human rights and social justice, the reclamation of history, the reaffirmation and celebration of communities, and gender, ethnic, and racial identities.

The artists in this exhibition take on the challenges of a variety of materials, pushing textiles in new directions and seeing how far they can go. Through textiles, they inspire new conversations about contemporary issues.

Featured artists and organizations include: AIDS Quilt RI, Jim Arendt, Judy Chicago and International Honor Quilt artists, Elizabeth Duffy, Brooke Erin Goldstein, Sabrina Gschwandtner, Letitia Huckaby, Tamara Kostianovsky, Jesse Krimes, Dinh Q. Lê, Aubrey Longley-Cook, Veronica Mays, the National AIDS Memorial, L. J. Roberts, Alison Saar, Marie Watt, Emma Welty, and Nafis M. White.

June 3rd, 2023
Location: TBD

YEAR END CELEBRATION!

Submitted by Cathy English
Vice President, WGRI

September 11, 2021
Location: Meeting and Speaker Via Zoom. Guild members can meet at the New Hope Chapel, Carolina, RI to view the meeting as a group.

ECHO AND JIN

This lecture illustrates how extended parallel threadings — known as “Echo” threadings — offer weavers unlimited options for designs, textures and color palettes, just by changing your tie-up and treadling and varying your weft yarns and sett. Echo and Jin designs take weaving “off the grid,” allowing weavers to create flowing lines, circles and unique shapes. These techniques can include networked threadings and treadlings, which will also be discussed.

Denise Kovnat teaches, writes and lectures internationally focusing on Echo threadings, collapse techniques, painted warps and deflected double weave. Her garments have appeared in Convergence fashion shows since 2008 and have won national awards. Most important, in her view: In 2002, she helped found the Weaving and Fiber Arts Center in Rochester, NY.  

https://www.denisekovnat.com/p/gallery.html

October 2, 2021
Location: Meeting and Speaker Via Zoom. Speaker is local and willing to present in-person or via zoom based on COVID.

LEAVER’S LACE

The presentation will emphasize the visual aspect of Leavers Lace.  What drew me in and why I wrote and photographed the book.

Steve Mason is a Rhode Island based Commercial and Fine Art Photographer.  Steve received his BFA in Photography from Brooks Institute of Photography in Santa Barbara CA.  Steve does assignment work for such clients as Merck, General Dynamics, CVS and more.  He exhibits locally at the Pawtucket Arts Collaborative, Attleboro Arts Museum, Hygienic Art and many others.  In recent years Steve has put his efforts towards individual projects such as his photo essay on Rhode Island entitled ‘3 mile radius” and his project on the last remaining lace factory in America called “The Leavers Lace Project”.  Steve has now published a book on this Rhode Island lace company.

https://www.stevemasonphotographer.com/leavers-lace/

November 6, 2021
Location: Meeting and Speaker Via Zoom. Guild members can meet at the New Hope Chapel, Carolina, RI to view the meeting as a group.

KUMIHIMO

This program will include both a live demonstration and a PowerPoint presentation of braids.  During the live presentation Brenda will describe the marudai (the round Japanese braiding stand) and show how the groups of fibers are attached to the marudai.  She’ll then demonstrate the movements that create a round braid and a flat braid.  If time allows, she’ll also demonstrate a square braid.  During the presentation Brenda will show braids she has made, what she learned from her mistakes, and the considerations involved in making braids for various outcomes.  There will be time for questions.

Brenda Osborn has been weaving on looms since 1976. She was intrigued to learn kumihimo in the early 1990s and met Rodrick Owen (well known for teaching and for having written a number of books on kumihimo) in the mid-90s, when she began to braid quite seriously. She taught kumihimo at Newark Museum, which has an extensive Asian textile collection, for several years in the early 2000s before moving out of the area to settle in CT. While she loves making braids, she continues to be challenged and intrigued by how to use braids in non-traditional ways. Brenda makes braids on both the marudai and the takadai.

December 4, 2021
Location:  In-person meeting (New Hope Chapel, Carolina, RI) 

HOLIDAY PARTY

JANUARY 8, 2022
Location:  Meeting and speaker via Zoom.   Guild members can meet at the New Hope Chapel, Carolina, RI to view the meeting as a group. 

THE FABRIC OF CIVILIZATION: HOW TEXTILES MADE THE WORLD

Textiles are one of humanity’s oldest and most influential technologies, but nowadays most people take them for granted. Drawing on her widely praised new book The Fabric of Civilization: How Textiles Made the World, author Virginia Postrel will take us on a tour of some of the innovations–in fiber, spinning, weaving, and dyeing–that gave us today’s textile abundance and the ways textiles shaped civilization as we know it.

Virginia Postrel is an award-winning columnist and a research fellow at the Smith Institute for Political Economy and Philosophy at Chapman University. Her most

recent book is The Fabric of Civilization: How Textiles Made the World. Her previous books include The Power of Glamour, The Substance of Style, and The Future and Its Enemies. During her research for The Fabric of Civilization, she learned to weave and is now the program co-chair for the Southern California Handweavers’ Guild.

www.vpostrel.com.

February 5, 2022
Location: Meeting and speaker via Zoom.Guild members can meet at the New Hope Chapel, Carolina, RI to view the meeting as a group.

GREAT WEAVE STRUCTURES FOR COLOR AND TEXTURE USING NOVELTY YARNS

Perhaps you have walked into a yarn shop and been fascinated with stunning novelty yarns. But as a weaver, it can be a challenge to figure out how to incorporate them into weaving projects in order to showcase the yarns without breaking the bank. Or you may have been inspired by the fabric used for a Chanel-style jacket that was created by Linton Tweed, Lesage, or Bernat Klein and would like to understand how these fabrics were created so you can design and weave your own. In this program, Robyn Spady will share a small collection of weave structures that let you take advantage of fun and exciting yarns and to add new dimensions to your weaving.

Robyn Spady was introduced to handweaving as a baby with her handwoven baby blanket woven by her great-grandmother. Inspired by her blankie, she learned to weave at a young age and has been weaving for over 50 years. She completed HGA’s Certificate of Excellence in Handweaving (COE-W) in 2004 with the specialized study Loom-controlled Stitched Double Cloth. Robyn is fascinated by the infinite possibilities of crossing threads and loves coming up with new ideas to create fabric and transform it into something new and exciting. She is committed to turning the weaving world on to double-faced fabrics, four-shaft weaves, uncommon and advanced weave structures, and passementerie techniques. Robyn is also the founder and editor of Heddlecraft® magazine.

March 5, 2022
Location: Meeting and Speaker Via Zoom. Guild members can meet at the New Hope Chapel, Carolina, RI to view the meeting as a group.

KROKBRAGD

 Krokbragd, a traditional Norwegian bound weave on three shafts, is used for rugs and wall hangings.  Although it is a simple weave structure, it looks complicated because of the use of color and varied motifs to produce the traditional Scandinavian designs.  Before starting to weave a rug or wall hanging your project should be worked out on paper.  This project is large, time-consuming and expensive, and details should be decided before ordering yarns.  We will look at woven examples, and discuss designing and suitable yarns.  Most of the morning will be spent designing on graph paper, using 3 and 4 shaft threadings.  Materials needed:  bring graph paper, 8-10 squares to the inch is best, at least 5 colored pencils or markers, and an eraser or white-out.

Norma Smayda, master weaver, teacher and author, established the Saunderstown Weaving School in 1974.  She learned to weave in Norway; Scandinavian design, colors and weave structures continue to be an important focus of her work.  She also specializes in the contributions of William Henry Harrison Rose and Bertha Gray Hayes, and is coauthor of Weaving Designs by Bertha Gray Hayes.  More recently she has immersed herself in weaving with fan reeds and has written Ondule Textiles: Weaving Contours with a Fan Reed.  She received the Weavers’ Guild of Boston Distinguished Achievement Award and the New England Weavers’ Seminar Weaver of Distinction.  She is a Past President of the Handweavers Guild of America.

https://www.saunderstownweavingschool.com

April 2, 2022
Location: Meeting and Speaker Via Zoom. Guild members can meet at the New Hope Chapel, Carolina, RI to view the meeting as a group.

NEW WORKS IN PLEATED WEAVING / STUDIO TOUR

Kate Barber has graciously offered to open her studio to the WGRI for a tour.

Kate Barber – I make sculpture with a textile sensibility; textile materials and techniques are the foundation of my creative process.  As I weave, stitch, print, paint and collage I use a variety of materials, including thread, fabric, buckram, wax, metal leaf, and wire.  I coined the phrase “practiced play” to describe the way I work.  “Practiced” references hard-won and well-developed skill; “play”, on the other hand, references a looser way of working where freedom to experiment with materials and techniques brings creative breakthroughs.  For me, both are crucial to making art that is well constructed, innovative and fresh.

It all started with handweaving, my first textile love and my focus for many years.  I sharpened my skill as a weaver during five years at the Silk Weaving Studio in Vancouver, British Columbia where I designed and wove small-production scarves and shawls.  I expanded my toolbox of textile techniques when I studied for two years in the textile program at Capilano University in Vancouver.

In 2012, I began making non-functional textile art. In 2016, I had my first solo show, “Forward Folding” in Providence, RI. Since then my work has been exhibited regularly in galleries across the country. I am currently co-curating “Luminous”, an exhibition featuring artwork by 5 Rhode Island artists, scheduled for fall 2021 at the Dedee Shattuck Gallery in Westport, MA.

https://www.katebarbertextiles.com

May 7, 2022

Location: In-person meeting (New Hope Chapel, Carolina, RI)

NEGRO CLOTH – SOUTH COUNTY’S SAD LITTLE SECRET

Back during the time when manufacturing success was largely dependent upon the energy supplied to a mill or factory by a water source, South County, a place that abounds with rivers and streams, albeit small ones, was at a serious disadvantage with communities to the north with much larger rivers, which in turn supplied significantly more energy to work with. Realizing that they could not compete with the larger broadcloth mills on major rivers in northern RI, Massachusetts, and New Hampshire, South County mill owners had to come up with a different business strategy, they had to find a niche product line that they could make their own and ensure financial success for themselves, their families, and their communities. In many cases that niche product turned out to be negro cloth; textiles designed, manufactured, and marketed in the south for slaves.

Tim Cranston can trace his Rhode Island roots back to 1637. It was then that his ancestor John Cranston, a young boy of 12, left Scotland traveling aboard a sailing vessel bound eventually for Rhode Island. Cranston would later become colonial Governor and his son Samuel would one day marry the granddaughter of Roger Williams. The Cranston family eventually went on to settle in North Kingstown; in the villages of Wickford and Swamptown. Today that long standing lineage, and inherent Rhode Island sense of place, is personified by Tim Cranston, self-proclaimed arbiter of all things “Swamp Yankee,” and local historian of Ye Old North Kingstown and South County, and all of Rhode Island. His popular local history newspaper column has run in the South County Independent for more than twenty years, and has won two RI Press Association “Spirit of RI” and three PreserveRI Education Awards. His work as a historian and preservation advocate through his non-profit corporation “Swamptown Enterprises” has garnered education and advocacy awards. The South County Tourism Council awarded Tim its South County ‘Starlight Award’ for his entertaining and educational walking tours and guided bus tours of the region and the NK Arts Council honored his work as the inaugural recipient of its Skog Award. The Town Council of North Kingstown honored Cranston by naming him the Town’s very first official town historian. The culmination of Tim’s efforts to learn about the details of the history of the village of Wickford, once the RI Colony’s second most important seaport, is the “Walking in Olde Wickford” guidebook series, a four-volume set of handbooks to the history of this critically important South County village. All told, the histories of more than 225 buildings are in these pages. Additionally, Tim has partnered with Historic Wickford Inc. (HistWick) to create innovative signage in the village of Wickford that is designed as a self-guided walking tour. Swamptown Enterprises and HistWick are now jointly engaged in a project to move all four of the Walking in Wickford books into the virtual world on the HistWick website. The Walking in Olde Wickford guidebooks along with his groundbreaking recent book, We Were Here Too – Stories of Black History in North Kingstown, as well as his newest book a historical fiction book for young readers, The Day The Bay Froze, can be purchased in shops in the village itself or all on line bookstores. Tim is now wrapping up work on We Were Here Too, Vol. 2 – Stories of Women’s History in North Kingstown Also available is the Arcadia Publishing Company book North Kingstown 1880-1920, written by Tim and featuring the photo postcards of 19 th century Wickford pharmacist Elwin E. “doc” Young.

 June 4, 2022
Location: In-person meeting (New Hope Chapel, Carolina, RI)

ANNUAL MEETING

September 8, 2018:
Location: North Kingstown Library

 BREAKING THE GRID

Every big turn in my path as a weaver began with the question “what if?” This question has inevitably followed by time in my studio playing, experimenting, and sampling. In this presentation I will talk about my evolution as a weaver and textile artist, and focus on my most recent work with woven and pleated textiles. I will talk about my creative process, the teachers who have influenced me, and what excites me. I hope my presentation will inspire others to tap into their own playful spirit to create work that is fresh and personally meaningful.

Kate Barber is a long-time weaver who recently crossed over from weaving functional textiles to weaving textile art. Two years ago, after 23 years of weaving wearables and textiles for the home, she ventured into new territory; making non-functional pieces using the technique of woven shibori.

Several teachers over the years have had a lasting influence on her, including Kay Sekimachi, Liz Williamson, Catherine Ellis, Rachel Meginnes, and Mo Kelman. She sharpened her skills as a weaver during five years working at the Silk Weaving Studio in Vancouver, British Columbia. At the Studio, she designed and wove small-production, one-of-a-kind scarves and shawls, and fell in love with natural dyes.  Toward the end of her tenure at the Silk Weaving Studio, she completed two years in the textile program at Capilano University where she built a foundation of other textile techniques. That foundation – and encouragement from teachers – gave her the confidence to set a goal for a solo exhibit of non-functional textile art. In 2016, she realized this goal with a show at the AS220 Reading Room gallery in Providence:  “Forward Folding” — an exhibit of shibori-woven, pleated, and shaped textiles. Since then she has continued to explore the many exciting possibilities of woven shibori.

October 13, 2018
Location: North Kingstown Library

CELEBRATING BERTHA GRAY HAYES

(OCTOBER 19,1878-DECEMBER 10,1947) 

Bring your copy of Weaving Designs by Bertha Gray Hayes to the meeting for a discussion of her life and work.  As part of the discussion, you can “show and tell” any weaving you have done from her designs.  Two of the authors, Norma Smayda and Gretchen White will be in the group to enhance our discussion.

Discussion Leader: Janet Cooper

November 3, 2018:
Location: North Kingstown Library

ORGANIZING FOR THE FIBER ADDICT

 Messy spaces are the sign of a creative mind, right? If your weaving space is more depressing than inspiring, maybe a little organizing would help. Learn about studio organizing from the perspective of a former Professional Organizer and member of the National Association of Professional Organizers (NAPO). Come to class with a list of your problem areas and take home some ideas for making your space work for you.  Materials/Handouts Fee: $2.00

Susan Targove started weaving in 1998 as an escape from her office cubicle and eventually left the cubicle for a fiber studio.  Completely unable to say no, she is a former Dean of the Weavers’ Guild of Boston and currently serves on the boards for the Boston guild, the Nashoba Valley Weavers’ Guild and the New England Weavers’ Seminar.  She lives in Lunenburg with her engineer husband and two cats.

December 1, 2018
Location: North Kingstown Library 

ANNUAL HOLIDAY CELEBRATION AND POTLUCK BRUNCH

YANKEE SWAP WITH SALLY RIANHARD

Use Your Loom Ends for the Yankee Swap

Make a potholder, hot matt, pin cushion, ornament or anything you can think of made from the end of one of your weaving project’s. Be creative!  Bring it in a holiday wrapping for our first Yankee Swap led by our own Sally Rianhard.

January 5, 2019:
Location: North Kingstown Library

WEAVER ROSE AND HIS WEAVINGS

William Henry Harrison Rose, better known as Weaver Rose, was a well-known 19thcentury Rhode Island weaver who cherished the hundreds of drafts he inherited from his ancestors, created more, and preserved them for prosperity.  His drafts include far more than the overshot we associate with him:  summer and winter, spot Bronson, M’s and O’s, and huck are among others in this collection.  Weaver Rose became nationally known for the high level of his artistic and technical standards, and his work was in great demand, enabling him to make his livelihood as a weaver.  This slide presentation will focus on his handwritten patterns, his weavings and contemporary interpretations by a study group, the Wednesday Weavers.  One of his weavings, and more importantly, some of his handwritten drafts will be shown.

Drafting From Weaver Rose Patterns:  We can now make use of patterns found in historic weaving books, and weave exact replicas or our own interpretations. Bring graph paper, pencil, and eraser.

Norma Smayda, a weaver, teacher, exhibitor and juror, learned to weave in Norway and occasionally returned to teach. In 1974, she established and continues to run the Saunderstown Weaving School. She has an MFA in Visual Design from UMass-Dartmouth, and has received the HGA Award of Excellence, the NEWS Weaver of Distinction, and the WGB Distinguished Achievement Award. At the 70thanniversary celebration in 2017, the WGRI established the Norma Smayda Guild Leadership Award for Excellence in Leadership, Weaving and Teaching.  Norma has written articles for various weaving journals and has had work featured in several books. Norma’s special interests include Scandinavian weaving, the works of William Henry Harrison Rose and Bertha Gray Hayes, and weaving with the fan reed. She coauthored Weaving Designs by Bertha Gray Hayes (2009).Her recent publication with Gretchen White is OnduléTextiles: Weaving Contours with a Fan Reed (2017).  She especially likes weaving functional pieces and reducing complicated designs to as few shafts as possible.

February 2, 2019
Location: North Kingstown Library

MINI WORKSHOPS

Members will participate in mini workshops repeated through the morning, so you can choose different ones to try.

Dorset Cartwheel Buttons.  Margaret Moone will show us a handwoven or handknit garment is always improved with perfect buttons. These cannot fail to match as they are made with the yarn you have used for the garment. Margaret will show you how to make these buttons and you can go home with one of your own.

Hem stitching.  Janet Cooper will demonstrate a simple and easy technique for hemstitching handwoven items that produces an elegant openwork pattern. A finished item with this hemstitch has the advantage that both sides look like the “right” side. Examples will be provided for practice.

Seven Strand Ancient Viking Braid. Norma Smayda will introduce us to this braid technique. Bring supplies with you: a piece of cardboard (shirt cardboard, back of note pad cardboard, etc.), ca 8″ x  8″.  If they cut it to a circle, ca 6″ in diameter that is even better; 5/2 cotton or equivalent yarns in a few colors.  4-6′ long; scissors. 

March 2, 2019:
Location: North Kingstown Library

COLOR AND WEAVE EFFECT

Color and weave effect describes an infinite number of patterns which can be created by repeating a small pattern of light and dark colors in the warp and wefts using a basic weave structure.  The visual patterns formed do not resemble the weave structure and cannot be predicted without a color draft.  This presentation will explore the general characteristics of color and weave effect by looking at samplers, drafts, and reviewing color drafting. A 50+ page learning packet with notes, drafts, and project ideas will be available to each participant for a fee.

Bring:  pencil, eraser, ruler, colored pencils

Beth Cederberg Guertin of Waltham, Massachusetts has been teaching both rigid heddle and multi shaft weaving for more than thirty-five years to children and adults.  She enjoys designing projects to use up small amounts of yarns.  She is a member of the Weavers’ Guild of Boston and is their treasurer.  Beth was recognized by the WGB with the Helen Barrett Award in 2013 and the Celebration of Weaving Life Award in 2017.  Beth owns and teaches weaving at her studio, A Place to Weave,in Waltham.  Her website is www.aplacetoweave.com

April 6, 2019:
Location: North Kingstown Library

EASTERN EUROPEAN TEXTILES IN THE URI HISTORIC TEXTILE & COSTUME COLLECTION

The University of Rhode Island has been fortunate to have received many textile samples from all over the world, including some from the eastern areas of Europe. These countries share rich traditions of identification through clothing decoration. Their needlecraft reflects regions that are rich in culture. Changing political boundaries and two world wars combined with the influence of “western” dress have diminished the weaving and needlework decorative arts. Happily, through the generosity of others, we can admire some of these textiles here in Rhode Island, and explore a few of the many decorative elements in eastern European textiles. This presentation will include a PowerPointintroduction as well as time to examine (with gloves and magnifying glasses) textiles from the Historic Textile & Costume Collection.

Susan J. Jerome is the Collections Manager at the University of Rhode Island Historic Textile and Costume Collection. She earned her MS degree from the University of Rhode Island, Department of Textiles, Fashion Merchandising and Design. Prior to continuing her education, she worked for a number of years at Mystic Seaport Museum.Ms. Jerome works as a textile and quilt conservator, lectures on topics of fashion history and needlecraft, and is a consultant to museums and historical societies. An avid textilian, she is happiest when writing, talking and doing all things textile.

May 4, 2019:
Location: North Kingstown Library

CATALOGNES: COVERLETS OF QUEBEC

Through a lecture and Power Point presentation, Manon will briefly discuss the history of weaving from the Quebec area, particularly the history of rag coverlets known as “Catalognes”.    She will cover topics such as the origins of the coverlets’ name to what fibers were used in warp and weft, and her own involvement in the making of these traditional coverlets as a child.  Manon will finish her talk by showing pictures of today’s weavers from Quebec who continue this special weaving tradition.   Her personal catalogne collection spanning three generations will be on display.

Manon Pelletier, a member of the Weavers’ Guild of Rhode Island, started weaving in 1999 at the Saunderstown Weaving School. But her love for weaving began long before.   Manon’s passion for all things handwoven started during her years as a child in her native Quebec home.  Most precious to her are the rag coverlets known as “Catalognes”, handwoven by family members and passed on from one generation to the next.  Although Manon mainly weaves cloth for garment construction, she plans to one day create her own catalogne continuing this rich family tradition.

June 1, 2019
Location: North Kingstown Library

ANNUAL MEETING WITH ELECTION OF OFFICERS

Weaving Challenge with Sally Rianhard and Margaret Moone and Potluck Luncheon