All posts by St S

Denise Kovnat: Tactile Art: Collapse Fabrics from 4 to 32 Shafts

Past Programs

Note: Meeting starts at 6:30 PM on Feb 16, 2023

This lecture explores the many techniques and possibilities for creating dimensional fabrics. The three basic elements for these fabrics are structure, active and inactive yarns, and finishing techniques. The results make the most of an often-overlooked aspect of weaving: that of texture and depth. Add color and form, and weavers can maximize the potential of our craft to create imaginative fabrics with great visual and tactile appeal.

Denise is a hand weaver and teacher who lives in Rochester, NY.  Her weaving interesting include extended parallel threadings, fine yarns, hand-painted warps, Deflected Double Weave and collapse techniques.  She says she loves yarn and chocolate, not necessarily in that order.

Note: Meeting starts at 6:30 PM on Feb 16, 2023

Barbara Shapiro Introduces the New World Shibori Network Foundation

Announcements

Barbara Shapiro Introduces the New World Shibori Network Foundation

Artist, author, scholar, and friend Yoshiko Wada has presented several times at Black Sheep
meetings. In1975, she taught the first Shibori class in the US. In the 1990s Wada and Japanese colleagues held the First International Shibori Symposium (ISS) in Nagoya, Japan, seeking to promote shibori textiles in Japan and beyond by preserving this century-old technique from disappearing. The World Shibori Network (WSN) aims to share information and inspiration and to preserve Japanese shibori and similar heritage techniques across the globe by creating a bridge between the ancient and the contemporary in textile technologies with an emphasis on sustainability. In 2022, WSN became a non-profit foundation.
Slow Fiber Studios (SFS) https://shibori.org/slow-fiber-studios/ is now the official
educational arm of WSN and will continue to offer in-person and online lectures and workshops on a variety of textile subjects. The Shop https://shop.slowfiberstudios.com/ offers excellent sustainable indigo and other dyes, Shibori tools and products, and a range of pertinent books and videos, etc. Newly developed Slow Fiber TV https://shibori.org/slow-fiber-tv/ offers subscription-based access to uncut versions of the various SFS workshops and other content.
Trips and tours https://shibori.org/international-tours/ are in the planning stages. Join our
mailing list for updates on our programs and consider become a member of WSN
https://shibori.org/membership/. Full disclosure, I am a founding board member of the new WSN Foundation.

— Barbara Shapiro

It’s Doup Leno with Daryl Lancaster!

Past Programs, Programs

January, 19, 2023 19:00 – 21:00 PST BSHG Guild Meeting

Let the loom do all the work!  Beautiful lace effects can be achieved by creating half heddles or doups and with the press of a treadle, or lift of a lever, threads magically cross themselves in the warp.  This technique is possible on four shafts and with eight shafts the possibilities are even better!  Learn how to create doups, thread for doup leno, and how to treadle some wonderful lace fabrics.  Based on the lengthy article featured in the January/February 2019 issue of Heddlecraft Magazine.

Daryl Lancaster, a hand-weaver and fiber artist known for her award-winning hand-woven fabric and garments, has been constructing garments for more than half a century. She has given lectures and workshops to guilds, conferences, and craft centers all over the United States. The former Features Editor for Handwoven Magazine, she has written more than 100 articles and published digital content, still frequently contributing to various weaving and sewing publications. She now has a YouTube channel, The Weaver Sews where she shares her extensive experience sewing handwoven garments. Daryl offers a complete line of digital sewing patterns for handweavers. https://www.weaversew.com/shop/sewing-patterns.html She maintains a blog at www.weaversew.com/wordblog Find her at www.Daryllancaster.com

 

Show and Tell January 2023

Show and Tell

Barbara Shapiro – Featured Friday Artist for the National Basketry Organization

Jan 6, 2023

 As I explored Japanese Flower Knot plaiting on a jellyfish for Bay Area Basket Makers‘ participation in the CNCH Tableau event, it occurred to me that the surface resembled that of a pineapple. And off I went seeking to capture the shape of that once exotic fruit.   By the time I finish the fourth and fifth ones, I had figured out that I could use spacers between knots to create a nice plump form. The crown is made with two rows of twining on some extra elements and rolling them up to insert into the top. 

    

Stefanie S – Tencel Scarf

I wanted to feature both colors on this scarf, so I chose Blue as warp and Green as weft and wove in a cross-twill. I added a few rows of herringbone twill every few inches to mix it up a little. The scarf is very soft and has great drape and I really like the color combination. 

 

Barbara O. –  Samples from Rep Workshop with Kelly Marshall

December 15, 2022 Holiday Party via Zoom, 7:00 p.m.

Past Events

We will be holding our holiday party on December 15th on Zoom this year,
Meeting time 7 pm (usual time since we aren’t having a meal)
Our holiday party brings us together for social time, good cheer and reminders of our
common love of textiles.
We will be meeting on zoom for the health and safety of all. So put on something festive,
wear a holiday hat if you’d like, and join for a special session of Show and Tell.
Weaving and textiles are handmade and heartfelt. We welcome one and all to share a textile item that has a special meaning for them. Show us the piece and tell us about it. It could be Black Sheep Handweavers Guild December 2 2022 Newsletter
something you made, or something that a friend made, or something you acquired in a special place or at a special time.
When we share our textiles, we share of ourselves. We’re looking forward to getting to
know our weavings and the weavers through this holiday meeting.
There will also be some time after show and tell to do some catching up and sharing news.
Look for the link on the member calendar on our website: https://BlackSheepGuild.org Set
yourself a festive place-setting and raise a cup of cheer.

                                                                               

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Invitation for (Extra) Holiday Cheer!
Betsy Blosser and Diana Herr will be meeting in person on Monday evening, December 19th, for some holiday cheer at BJ’s Restaurant & Brewhouse, 2206 Bridgepoint Parkway, San Mateo.
We would love to have you join us. We will show up around 6:30 PM and depart around 9:00 PM. If you would like to share a drink or some food, or just some good company, please stop by.
The restaurant has a selection of main dishes and sandwiches, as well as alcoholic and nonalcoholic drinks. The main attraction, however, is a chance to be together. Hope to see you there!
(Let one of us know in advance of your plan to join us, and we will reserve a table.)

Show and Tell December 2022

Show and Tell

Gudrun  P – Christmas Trees

Christmas Trees

These trees came to be in my early days of weaving. I had taken a 6 week weaving class at the studio of “The Handweavers of Los Altos” with my teachers Jane Koldorff, Yvonne Kortum and Margaret Gaynes. I had learned about rose path and this is what I used to create patterns in a plain weave background. It was fun play to weave, creating patterns using colors and the floats that rose path gives you.


Ulla d L – Hatband

I bought a hat at the second-hand shop in Burlingame and decided to do a hatband for it.

It is in split ply twining. 8 strands of 10/2 cotton per cord, in the SCOT ( single-course oblique twining) technique.

Linda Hendrickson calls it the “Waves” band. I haven’t had the guts to wear the hat.

   

Ply-Split Hatband, wave pattern – Ulla d  L

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Ange M – Baby Blanket

Baby blankets for my grandnephews, made from 8/4 Brassard cotton in a rosepath threading.

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Laura B – Rigid Heddle Project in process

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Sarah A – My recently finished wrap

this is my recently finished wrap. Cottolin warp and weft, with supplemental handspun weft of Malabriho nube merino and handdyed locks from Namaste farms. Spiral plied with metallic thread. Finnish bird’s eye draft.  One armhole to keep it in place.

 

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Barbara S – One Object for 2022

Barbara Shapiro, Never again is Now, 2022. Japanese handwoven hemp, plaited strips of Kozo fiber, clumps of Kozo fiber, Red silk thread stitching, and Sumi ink. Stitched and assembled. 

My most recent Horn Bag was completed in April 2022 with the constant specter of war in Europe on my mind. Damaged and soiled, its contents have singed edges. It is not pretty. As I did with Tikuun Olam, I gave this one a title that reflects my Jewish heritage. Never Again was what we said after WWII with the founding of the state of Israel. Never again would the Jews have nowhere to go when the world turned against them. And now again we see people fleeing their homes with just a bag of their possessions in their arms, not knowing what the future holds for them. It’s heartbreaking.  If these past years have taught me anything, it is that I should feel empowered to speak in my own true voice at this point of my life. If I see the world as fragile, all of us fragile, it’s OK to express that in my work. And If I feel like repairing that fragility with stitches and woven patches, because each of us can bring about change, stitch by stitch, then I can say that with my work too

Show and Tell November 2022

Show and Tell

Archana N

One warp, many structures

Here are photos of the sample to be turned into a scarf project from CNCH Workshop One Warp, Many Structures: Explorations in Extended Parallel Threadings.

10/2 pearl cotton warp and 20/2 weft. 

Three patterns – Echo – falling stars, shadow weave and turned twill. 

Past Events

Past Events

Textile Arts Council Lecture, Fashioning an Exhibition: How Textile Conservators
Prepare Christian Dior’s “Junon” for Display
10 a.m. June 17 – Saturday Lecture with Beth Szuhay,
Anne Getts and Laura Garcia-Vedrenne

The Textile Conservators for the Fine Arts Museums are responsible for the care of over
22,000 textiles which includes costumes, flat weaves, contemporary fiber art, pile carpets and tapestries. From the moment a textile enters the collection, conservators research and document major events in its life to create a narrative that informs the object’s treatment and preservation. Using Christian Dior’s evening gown Junon as a case study, this presentation will reveal what conservators do on a daily basis to preserve such treasures in the collection.
Presented In-Person *and* via Zoom
Koret Auditorium, de Young museum, Golden Gate Park, San Francisco
In-Person Tickets: $5, sold at the door only \ free for TAC members
Virtual Tickets (Zoom): $5 Members of the Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco and
Students. $10 General Admission \ free for TAC members. https://bit.ly/3ONet2g
Information about the presenters and the event is available at
https://www.textileartscouncil.org/post/fashioning-an-exhibition A recording will be available for two weeks following the

FiberShed : Ongoing East Bay Mending Bar June 17, 1:00 – 4:00 p.m.

Hosted by Elaine of KOSA Arts at “The Werkshack” in Oakland (25th street close to
Broadway. Buses and 5 block walk to Bart), each session will have a mending teacher with an area of mending expertise, but all mending welcome! RSVP to Elaine – ejhamblin [at] gmail [dot] com

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Textile Arts Council May Lecture 20
Embellished Art History, Julia Bryan-Wilson

Examining Filipina artist Pacita Abad, Brazilian embroiderer Madalena Santos Reinbolt,
and African American quilter Rosie Lee Tompkins, Julia Bryan-Wilson considers how
embellishment, particularly needlework, has served as a strategy for mother-taught artists
whose work frequently blurs the lines between function and décor. Though located in distinct geographies and rooted in different identifications, these three artists have much in common, and this talk takes seriously their decision to adorn the objects of domestic life. In doing so, Bryan-Wilson speculates about how their handcrafted practices open onto more expansive art histories.
Presented In-Person *and* Virtually via Zoom on Saturday, 5/20/23 10:00 am
Koret Auditorium, de Young museum, Golden Gate Park, San Francisco. In-Person Tickets:
$5, sold at the door only \ free for TAC members

Virtual Tickets (Zoom): $5 Members of the Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco and
Students. $10 General Admission \ free for TAC members.
Purchase Zoom Tickets : https://www.eventbrite.com/e/lecture-embellished-art-historieswith-julia-bryan-wilson-tickets-598102620037?aff=WS
Julia Bryan-Wilson is Professor of Art History and LGBTQ+ Studies at Columbia University
and Curator-at-Large at the Museu de Arte de São Paulo. She is an influential queer feminist art historian, critic, and curator who has organized exhibitions on women’s making before 1900, histories of dance, and monographic shows on Liz Collins, Louise Nevelson, and Cecilia Vicuña.
Her award-winning books include Art Workers: Radical Practice in the Vietnam War Era
(2009), Fray: Art and Textile Politics (2017), and Louise Nevelson’s Sculpture: Drag, Color, Join, Face (2023). Some of Bryan-Wilson’s numerous accolades are a Guggenheim fellowship, grants from the National Endowment for the Humanities and the Center for Advanced Study in Visual Arts, CAA’s Frank Jewett Mather Award, the Art Journal article award, the ASAP Book Prize, and the Robert Motherwell Award. She has also won multiple awards for her teaching and her mentorship.

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Fibershed Webinar : Designing for Resilient & Healthy Ecosystems in Our Region’
May 11 @ 6:00 pm – 7:15 pm

The following webinar is part of the Fibershed Speaker Series for our “Borrowed from the
Soil” Design Challenge. The event is free and open to all designers and the general public and registration is here at https://www.eventbrite.com/e/designing-for-resilient-healthyecosystems- in-our-region-webinar-tickets-616001124947
Are you a designer or textile producer who wants to better understand how you can
connect with regional fiber and dye producers to improve the ecosystem impact of your textile operations?
Do you want to learn more about how regional, nature fiber and dye farming systems can
benefit ecosystem health in measurable and tangible ways?
This webinar will cover an introduction to Climate Beneficial™ farming systems for wool
and cotton in California, including visions for a more resilient future for these fibers, and a
discussion about sourcing natural dyes for textile and garment production to improve ecosystem health.
Three industry experts will share their work and perspectives: Lani Estill (rancher and
artisan of Lani’s Lana), Lauren Tucker, and Kathy Hattori (of Botanical Colors).
Moderated by Heather Podoll of Fibershed.

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Treadles to Threads Spinning Guild invites you to our new Fiber Frolic

(formerly known as Spinning at the Winery)

Saturday, May 27, 2023

10 am – 4 pm

at Soul Food Farm

6046 Pleasants Valley Rd., Vacaville, CA 95688.

Spend the day spinning, shopping, and visiting with your fiber friends.

Featuring  California vendors with goodies from raw fiber to finished yarn, fiber related items, and a dynamite raffle that will be utterly enticing.

Want someone else to process your newly purchased fleece or have unprocessed fleece at home?  Morro Fleece Works will be at the event.

Bring your wheel, drop spindle or fiber related project, along with a chair, lunch, and beverage for a truly enjoyable day.

We will have awesome raffle items!  

Here is the list of Vendors for the event. Updated list will be posted on Instagram.

Peggy Agnew    Red Creek Farm           
Jackie Post                             Sheep to Shop
Colleen Simons Fiber Confections
Mike & Donna Dachuk Black Diamond alpacas 
Benda Collins Pan’s Garden Yarn and Fibers                 
Erin Macean  Bungalow Farm Angoras                 
Shari McKelvy Morro Fleece Works   
Bev Fleming Ewe and Me 2 Ranch 
Elissavet Livitsanos Wonderland Dyeworks 
Anna Harvey Harvey Farms
Lisa Carver Sew Long Marianne
Anna Yurutucu Great Buttons
Marcail McWilliams *tentative Valley Oak Wool Mill
Roger and Mary *tentative Dream Goat Design Studio 
Brooke Sinnes *tentative Sincere sheep

Admission: $10 per person.  

Contact: T2TFiberFrolic at gmail.com  

Follow us  @ fiberfrolicfestival for all event updates.

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Conversations with Cloth, Series 4: Stories of Wool, Felt
First Thursdays, Feb. – May, 2023
On the first Thursdays of February through May 2023, at 15:00 PST, and from Japan on
Friday at 8:00 JST.
This series will feature Jorie Johnson–wool and felt specialist, artist, and researcher–from
Kyoto, Japan. Jorie has been on the research team for the ancient Japanese Imperial felt rugs that are colorful and intricately patterned and are housed in the Shosoin Repository in Nara, Japan.

World Shibori Network Foundation brings you the research, stories, knowledge, and tools
from artisans and artists around the globe and, specifically, the makers themselves to inform and inspire your creative practices. So that the art, material knowledge, tools, and methods of people who came before us are not lost. So we may reimagine and build a sustainable future in a continuum for today.
For more information and to register, please visit: https://shibori.org/event/conversationswith-cloth-series-4-stories-of-wool-felt-journey-1-of-4/

Jorie Johnson work: Stories of Wool, Felt

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San Mateo County Fabric, Thread, & Woven Group
Textile Art Exhibition: Call for Entries

Fabric, Thread & Woven showcases and celebrates the strong community of local artists
working in the textile and fiber art mediums.
This is a juried exhibition in the San Mateo County Government Center Caldwell Gallery
presenting a distinct approach to innovative and traditional fiber and textile techniques, and a contemporary concept for the use of traditional and unusual materials.

The chosen work invites the viewer to experience the many facets of fiber and textile art. Accepting both two and three-dimensional wall hung pieces, including wearable art.

In 2022 the San Mateo County Office of Arts and Culture is giving special consideration to
environmental and social issues. Works that address this theme are encouraged but not required to enter or for selection into the exhibit.
A first place $100 award, a second place $50 award, and a third place $50 award will be
determined by jury.

Fabric, Thread & Woven is co-curated by Laura McHugh and Shawna Vesco Ahern
Show Dates: March 1, 2023-April 28, 2023

Exhibit Location: Caldwell Gallery, Main Floor, 400 County Center, Redwood City; Free
and Open to the public Monday – Friday 8:00am-5:00pm
Submissions are due no later than January 20, 2023.

Eligibility (living in or employed by the County of San Mateo), applications, and all detailed information is at the event website: https://www.smcgov.org/ceo/fabric-thread-woven-group-textile-art-exhibition

 

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Holiday Shows: Dotty Calabrese, Just for Fun

Handweaving & Polymer Clay by Dotty Calabrese
December 3-4 – KPFA Holiday Fair – Sat/Sun 10:00 – 5:00
Alameda County Fairgrounds, Building A, 4501 Pleasanton Ave. Pleasanton – Booth #705
$12 adult admission – $10 seniors, disabled – under 18 free
Email dottycala [at] aol [dot] com for free admission to this Fair.

December 9-11 – The Artifactory Holiday Fair
1190 Hopkins Ave. Palo Alto, CA – F/Sat/Sun 10:00 – 5:00 http://www.artifactoryholidayfair.com/

December 16-17 – Dotty’s Holiday Open Studio,
2465 Richard Ct., Mountain View 94043 – F/Sat 11:00 – 4:00

 

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Textile Arts Council

The next Textile Arts Council talk will be in February; meanwhile, you can explore the
exhibitions, Lectures, events, and resources of the Textile Arts Council of the Fine Arts
Museums of San Francisco at https://www.textileartscouncil.org/about-tav

Zoom Guild Meeting, Thursday, November 17th

Past Programs

Please note the meeting will begin at 6:30 due to our presenter being on the East Coast

Karen Donde  https://karendondehandwovens.com/home.html

Turned Beiderwand: One Threading, Multiple Structures

Although the history of the weave structure known as Beiderwand predates even its name, Beiderwand remains a powerful tool for creating contemporary designs. When the traditional draft is turned, converting the customary supplementary weft to a supplementary warp, that power expands exponentially. This lecture will explore Beiderwand history and traditional drafting and design characteristics, then illustrate the exciting results of turning that draft, results that extend well beyond faster, one-shuttle weaving. Join Karen to discover the hidden potential of a Turned Beiderwand draft.

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 2022 (postponed from 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, Local Cloth and her own studio.

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 allied publications.

Please note the meeting will begin at 6:30 due to our presenter being on the East Coast

Show and Tell, October 2022

Show and Tell

Stefanie S

Napkins for my Daughter’s Wedding

My daughter is getting married in November and requested 30 napkins in the wedding’s color scheme “Wisteria”.

This is 22/2 Cottoline, 420 warp threads in two warps, 8.4 yd each. It is a plain weave with the pattern being a point twill with 4 threads of white and one gold thread between the two patterns. All napkins were machine-sewn, washed and ironed;  there was about 10 % shrinkage, which I accounted for in the initial width and length.

A fun project, although I am now ready to weave something else for a change.

Johanna G

First of 2 pieces from same cotton 10/2 warp from Lunatic Fringe.

Baby blanket for newborn grandchild Luca.  It is a 4 shaft waffle weave that shrunk considerably but is soft and light.

Second pieces is the same warp with a rose path pattern that was turned into a tunic with flounce sleeves. I created the tunic for my Canada Sewing Course Principles of Design. It is warm but comfy!