Kingston Handloom Weavers & Spinners
370 King Street West
Kingston Ontario K7L 2X4
October, 2008.
Falling leaves
The house comes
Out of the wood
Jim Kacian
Beth Abbott and Barbara Heins have planned a very interesting programme for
our Wednesday, October 8th meeting - 7 p.m. for social and library time upstairs in
the Guild Rooms and 7.30 p.m. downstairs for the meeting in the Rotunda. The
programme theme for the year is From Start to Finish. Beth and Barbara will kick
off the series by showing us how to find inspiration from many sources for projects in
spinning, weaving, felting and basketry. They plan to bring lots of things for us to draw
inspiration from and there will be hands on activities. They hope that participants will
leave with a head full of ideas that will begin in an abstract way and finish in a very
concrete way as the series progresses and perhaps be an inspiration for plans for the
March Challenge and other projects. They encourage everyone to bring items that have
been an inspiration in their work - either completed or dreamed about.
A useful workshop to take along the same lines is Susi Reinink's From
Inspiration to Creation -- on four Fridays (November 14th, 21st, 28th and December 5th
from 5 p.m. to 9 p.m.). Susi will lead workshop members through the whole process of
taking an idea for a woven piece and bringing it to fruition in a finished project. She
sees the workshop as an ideal follow-up to Roberta McKinney's recently given Beginner
Weaving workshop and an excellent refresher course for weavers who haven't woven for
a while. This is a very comprehensive course and no aspect of planning, execution and
finishing will be overlooked. Please see the bulletin board in the Guild Rooms for a
detailed description.
Other excellent workshops coming up are Inkle Loom Weaving with Alison Ginn
(Saturday November 8th 9 a.m. - 3 p.m.), Beginning Spinning with Doreen Jeffers
(September 27th, October 4th, 11th, 18th and 25th 10 a.m. - 12 noon), Drop Spindling
for Adults and Children Age 10+ with Pat Hardy (Saturday, November15th 9 a.m. to
noon; maximum for this workshop is 10). Note from Pat to members: "If you have old
CDs could you bring them to the October meeting or leave them in the Guild rooms before the workshop
date." Pat uses the discs for her unique handmade drop spindles.
We have an extraordinary range of talent in our Guild and each of these workshop
leaders could compete easily with others in their field of expertise. Do take advantage of
these very fine courses.
A 2 day workshop for the experienced weaver -- Loom Controlled Shibori
Weaving -- will be conducted by Ellen Good on Saturday, October 18th and Sunday,
October 19th under the auspices of MERA at the MERA schoolhouse in McDonalds
Corners. (<www.meraschoolhouse.org>) Fall Buzz Newsletter item # 4 gives all the
details,
We warmly welcome to our number six new members. Lory Dark, spinner and
weaver, Kate Michalska, spinner and felter, and four participants in Roberta's Beginner
Weaving Workshop, Shannon Boyce, Lee Anne Hanna, Brin Jones and Barbara
Landry.
Shirley MacGregor reports that we have 60 paid-up members. One new member
asked Shirley if our group might offer some kind of "weaving addiction counselling" and
while Shirley thinks that the Guild is a support group for fibre addicts, I somehow suspect
that it would be the blind leading the blind! For the 30 of last year's membership who
have not yet paid their dues, Shirley will be available at the October meeting or is happy
to receive dues by mail at her home address . She reminds those yet to pay their dues that
this (October) newsletter is the last they will receive until they renew their membership.
At the October meeting, Brenda Kuluk urges people to sign up for floor duty
(etc.) for our annual Show and Sale Yesterday and Today: Thursday October 30th 2 p.m.
- 8 p.m., Friday October 31st 10 a.m to 6 p.m., and Saturday November 1st 10 a.m. to 4
p.m.. Please make this a priority as we need a full roster of people to run the sale
successfully. Contact Brenda if you do not have a consignment letter. Two copies of
your consignment sheet are necessary -- one for the Guild and one for personal files. A
special thank you to Elizabeth Dueck's husband for taking the very attractive photographs
for our coloured posters advertising the sale, which are available for members to display
in prominent places after October 1st. Bookmarks with the same information are
available and should be distributed as widely as possible. The information on your
consignment sheets should match the sales tags on your items. Quality control
information is posted in the Guild Rooms or can be obtained from
Brenda. Filling out the sales tag attached to sale items is pretty well selfexplanatory. The front, under the Guild logo, has 3 lines. The first line should have the
maker's name (e.g. Mary Brown) and the second line a description of the article for sale
(e.g. tea towel). At the bottom left hand corner, on the tear-away strip of the tag, your
consignment letter and item number should be clearly written (e.g. A.1). At the right
hand side of the tear-away strip the price of the item should be clearly written (e.g.
$20.00). On the back, under the various headings -- method, contents, care -- the
applicable boxes for the item should be ticked off. For small items under $10 you may
use a small, homemade tag, but all the above information should be indicated on it and a
perforated, tear off strip (easily done on a sewing machine). Items that are stuffed (toys,
pot holders, etc.) must, by law, have a stuffing information tag attached.
Items for the Sale should be brought to the Rotunda on Monday, October 27th from
1p.m. - 3p.m. and 6.30p.m. - 8p.m.. Contact Brenda if you wish to be included, or if you
want to change your present entry in the Guild's Artisan Brochure. Please note that the
deadline is the 15th of October.
Nancy Cutway shares some prices of items sold in the 1976 Show and Sale.
Handspun mitts $7 a pair, hats $7 - $15, skeins of handspun wool $1/25 - $5.00, ponchos
from handspun $38-$45, handspun/woven sofa throws $35, pillows $22.50, inkle belts
$5, placemats $3-$3.50 each, runners $5-$14, skirt lengths $49.50, linen placemats $8$12 for a set of four (!!), and baby blankets $15 - $22.50. The most expensive item sold
that year was a dress for $100. Nancy notes that "given that salaries have probably
quadrupled in 32 years, this suggests that 2008's asking prices may need to be adjusted
upward as well!"
From Dorothy Young … The City of Kingston is holding a public meeting to
address the space needs of the arts community, Monday 29th September, 7 - 9 p.m. at
the INVISTA Centre (the multiplex) in rooms A and B. The principal purpose of the
meeting is to start the process of determining the tenants of the future arts cluster at the
J.K. Tett Centre. We have filed the requested submission. Dorothy suggests that a good
turn out from our group would show appropriate vital interest in the whole ongoing
procedure, and urges attendance if possible.
The Royal Agricultural Winter Fair announces two new spinning competitions for
2008. Both competitions will take place on Sunday, November 16th -- a Team Spinning
Competition and a Drop Spindle Competition. Following the competition all skeins will
be auctioned at the annual Fleece Auction on Sunday afternoon. Competition
rules/regulations as well as entry forms can be found at <www.royalfair.org>.
FOR SALE: 4 sets of carders -- all scarcely used, rubber backing in good shape,
but with a slight amount of rust on the wires that experienced spinners say one carding of
fleece in the grease with dispose of. $15 set or best offer. Nancy Cutway, .
5 fleeces -- cross between a wool sheep and Suffolk. Different colours -- silver grey and
brown. The sheep were shorn a couple of weeks ago. Price uncertain, but a fair market
price is expected.
The Belleville Weavers and Spinners Guild Show & Sale will be held at the
Belleville Recreation Centre, 116 Pinnacle Street, Belleville on Friday, November 7th (4
p.m. - 9 p.m.) and Saturday, November 8th (9.30 a.m. - 5 p.m.).
The Spinning Pot Luck Day is Wednesday, October 1st and Sheila Deane will
be our hostess. Bring a pot luck dish and enjoy a wonderful day of spinning, learning,
and fellowship.
Meet a Member -- October -- Janice Penney
Janice (39 years old and holding!) is a graduate of the Ontario Agricultural
College (now the University of Guelph) and has an undergraduate degree in Biology and
an M.A. in Zoology. After university she worked for several years as a biologist and
Park Naturalist. Marriage and family saw her take some years from work to nurture her
son and daughter. She became interested in spinning when she saw friends spin at
historical re-enactments. As a life long knitter she was naturally intrigued by the yarn
making process and a friend invited her to attend a Kingston Guild meeting. Like so
many spinners, her first lessons were with Doreen Jeffers and she spun on a handsome
Robideoux wheel. Janet was addicted from then on and enrolled in the O.H.S. Spinning
Certificate course from 1999 to 2006. Her topic for her in-depth study, which she is
presently working on, is the Jacob sheep. For many years she has worked as a Historical
Interpreter at Upper Canada Village where, in period costume, she talks to visitors about
quilting, spinning, sewing, knitting etc. as practised when Canada was a young country.
A 140+ year old knitting pattern of a Sontag (an intriguing shoulder shawl, also known as
a "bosom friend") has been beautifully interpreted by Janet in handspun yarn. She is seen
spinning in many venues such as Fort Henry and she educates visitors as she works. Her
original spinning wheel, which was not suitable for heavier yarn, led to her purchasing a
Louet and a walking wheel - most appropriate for a historically inclined spinner. She's
grateful to the O.H.S. course for exposing her to a broad range of fibres which she spins
expertly. Her stash of handspun yarn inspired her to knit 8 Izzy dolls whose home is now
with children in Afghanistan. Sheep with double coats have interested Janet and she has
passed on her enthusiasm for spinning to others by way of teaching. She has many
interests including rug hooking and will be preparing people's tax returns while she waits
for Upper Canada Village to open again after the winter hiatus. A discussion of grafting
(or Kitchener Stitch) at the last spinning pot luck reminded Janice of a crafty way of
remembering the order in which the needle must travel to make an invisible join in
knitting -- "T'hee and Fr'thee" (or "To thee, and from thee"). Thank you, Janice, for
leaving us with this delightful and most helpful historical knitting tip.
A thank-you to Peri (McQuay) for sending on three websites she thinks we might
be interested in -- <www.ravelry.com>, <www.WeaveTech.com> and
<www.weavezine.com>.
In an effort to keep the business part of our monthly meeting to the minimum,
Roberta McKinney, our President, has suggested that if you have an item you wish to
have on the agenda, you should tell her about it before the meeting and she will
endeavour to accommodate you.
At the September meeting, many of us were very moved when reminders of two
very loved former members were brought to our attention. Susi R. brought a bag of items
that Sue Smallman had donated to the guild. Sue's important O.H.S. in-depth study (the
costume, handspun and handwoven wool dress with a linen cap and apron, that a maid
servant would wear in MacPherson House in the 1800's) has found an appropriate home
at the historical house in Napanee. Ellen Shepherd's family have donated a variety of
beautifully felted items some of which will be sold at the sale. Both these women were
first class in their chosen fields of work and exceptional human beings. We miss them.
JENNIFER MACPHERSON'S QUINOA AND FETA CHEESE SALAD
Bring to a boil 2 cups of water. Add 1 cup Quinoa. Cover and cook over medium heat
for 12-15 minutes or until quinoa has absorbed all the water. Remove from heat, fluff,
re-cover and let stand for 15 minutes.
Combine in a bowl: quinoa
2 chopped tomatoes
2 tbsp. chopped fresh basil
2 tbsp. chopped fresh parsley
1/2 cup crumbled feta cheese
2 tbsp. olive oil
juice of l lime
Adjust seasoning with salt and pepper. Refrigerate for an hour or so. Serves 4 -6
(Jennifer notes that the way she prepares the quinoa is different from the traditional
method and says "I don't think the quinoa preparation should be so complicated. Who
has time for that?" She's a great cook and we can confidently follow her method.