Calendar of Events - see the newsletter in the Members Only area for more details on events.
We have guild meetings September through May.
To both promote the fiber arts in our csommunity and to encourage participation in a wide variety of events, the Guild welcomes individuals and businesses to advertise events & classes in our online Guild calendar. For full details and rates (if applicable) please review our Advertising Policy.
ZOOM Member Meeting: MONTHLY SECOND SATURDAY FROM 10:00 AM - NOON
https://us06web.zoom.us/j/88039851546? pwd=ZU53bFdPNnZ5a1BweFVtK29CMVNJZz09
Meeting ID: 880 3985 1546. Passcode: 032709Make It and Take It July Gathering - cancelled
The Make It Gathering for July is cancelled. See you at the Mat Su Fiber Festival. We will resume in August.The Mat Su Fiber Festival will have the Sheep to Shawl project as well as the Creative Weaving Event. The registration link for the Creative Weaving Event is here - https://www.signupgenius.com/go/20F0E44AEAC2BA1FC1-49460756-creative. You can sign up at the event as well.
Creative Weaving Event at the Mat Su Fiber Festival - July 20-21, 2024
https://www.signupgenius.com/go/20F0E44AEAC2BA1FC1-49460756-creative
I'm excited to announce that the sign up genius is now open for the Creative Weaving event at the Mat Su Valley Fiber Festival. This will be our first year holding it at the festival. I encourage you to forward this to anyone you think might be interested. It will be a fun festival with many other things to do, including the sheep to shawl event!
Creative Fabric Weaving with the Anchorage Weavers & Spinners Guild - July 20-21, 2024
Express your creativity with weaving! You provide the imagination; we will provide the tools. In this beginner workshop, you will be expertly guided in the process of weaving by our skilled weavers.
There will be a variety of colors and textures for you to choose from to weave your fabric. Saori Piccolo looms are prepared with black cotton warp – the perfect canvas for any color you choose for the weft!
There will be enough time for you to weave a beautiful piece of cloth - perhaps for a scarf, a table runner, a tote or a unique wall hanging. At the end of the session, you will be taking home your own exclusive woven creation!
Dates & Times: Saturday July 20 & Sunday 21, 2024
Each class is 2.75 hours.
Saturday 10:15 – 1:00
Saturday 2:00 pm – 4:45Sunday 11:00 -1:45 PM
Location: Mat Su Valley Fiber Festival, Palmer Fair Grounds in the Farm Exhibits Building, 2075 Glenn Hwy, Palmer, AK 99645From the Glenn Highway, enter the large parking lot – identified as Rebarchek Road. Follow the road to the back access road for the fairgrounds. There is a parking lot near the Farm Exhibits building.
Class Fee: $55 (per class) will be required at registration which can be paid via PayPal (@AWSGFullMembership) or checks may be sent to:
Anchorage Weavers & Spinners Guild
PO Box 244055
Anchorage, AK 99524-4055Payment must be received by July 12th or class reservation will be cancelled. Cancellations shall result in the forfeiture of the class fee, unless a replacement can be found, whether from the waiting list or arranged by the person cancelling the registration in the workshop.
If you have questions, please contact Lorri Wright, (907) 360-0276, or email Lorri.
2024 AWSG Summer Camping Trip
Mark your calendars for the weekend of July 26-28, 2024 at K’esugi Ken in Denali State Park.December is the month to start making reservations at K’esugi Ken. If you want to arrive July 26th, you can make your reservation on Dec 26th. We meet at the large, covered interpretive pavilion. It has lots of space, electricity and 2 fireplaces! This is a very informal gathering and all are welcome. Some people arrive early or leave late. There is a lovely RV loop, where each site has a paved RV parking spot, a tent pad and electricity. You are allowed 2 vehicles per site. The tent loop sites have enough space for 2 tents. There are 3 cabins also.
If camping is not your thing, you can book nearby hotels: https://www.mckinleyviewlodge.com/ and https://www.princesslodges.com/princess-alaska-lodges/mckinley-lodge/ 5 and 10 miles away respectively. Byers Lake campground is about 20 miles away and has boat rentals, making it an alternative camping spot and a lovely spot for a boating outing. K’esugi Ken has some of the best Denali views in the state, a lovely hiking trail up Curry Ridge and several shorter interpretive trails. There is something for everyone.
K’esugi Ken books up fast, so do not delay. The cancelation policy is generous, as long as you cancel 3 days ahead of your start date. We will have a sign up later, just to coordinate who is coming and to let people share sites.
Karen Williams, Sarah Robicheaux and Mindy Alvord are the informal “den mothers” if you have questions. Enjoy our winter, but think of summer and plan to join us!
2024 Fairbanks Fiber Festival - October 11-13th
Vendor applications are available now for the 2024 Fairbanks Fiber Festival, happening October 11-13!*NEW* this year, the Fiber Festival will be open to the public starting on Friday evening!
Friday, Oct. 11: 5-8pm
Saturday, Oct. 12: 10am-4pm
Sunday, Oct. 13: 10am-4pmVendors will be able to start setting up as early as noon on Friday and must be set up by 5pm.
Click the link below for more details and to apply online!
https://calypsofarm.org/product/2024-fiber-fest-vendor-app/A PDF application is also available at the link above, if needed.
The deadline to apply is September 9th, however, spots are really limited and are filled as applications are received so vendors are encouraged to apply early!
Sponsorships: this year we are offering Pay What You Can discounts on vendor fees and workshop registration. If you'd like to help with this effort and get some extra promotion for your fiber business, you can add-on a $50 Sponsorship in the vendor application!
Workshops & Demos: We're looking for people to teach workshops and/or offer demos! If you're interested, please let us know!
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Calypso Farm and Ecology Center
P.O. Box 106, Ester, AK 99725
(907) 451-0691 | www.calypsofarm.org
Study Groups
Band Weaving - Led by Joanne Teague, third Thursday of the month, 6pm
The AWSG Bandweaving Study Group started up on Aug 17th, after a summer break. We meet the 3rd Thurs of each month @ 6pm (virtually, at this time).
We support each other in all types of Bandweaving: inkle, card/tablet weaving, band weaving. We often have (optional) group projects, where we all do a similar band, to learn, support each other and compare notes. Ours goals are learning and sharing. We are open to non-AWSG members, and via Joanne, encourage textile re-enactor participation. Please contact Karen Williams if you have any questions: email Karen Williams
Topic: AWSG Bandweaving Study Group
Join Zoom Meeting https://us02web.zoom.us/j/84156633985?pwd=eVRDcGNYRzBVMzVGU0F4UzBMZHJJdz09
Meeting ID: 841 5663 3985
Passcode: weavingChuranunu - Led by Scharine Kirchoff, Meets 4th Sunday from 11:00-2:00 p.m.
See 2023 projects
The next Chu-ra-nu-nu Study Group meeting will be held on Sunday, Dec. 3 at 11:00 am. Our next project will be focused on "ASEMIC Writing". The meeting agenda will include a mini-workshop on an introduction to asemic writing, and form drawings with Sumi ink. Please email Scharine Kirchoff for additional information.
Local Opportunities by Sherry Rogers, usually the 3rd Saturday of the month, 10am - 12pm
We spin at the Eagle River library as a community outreach, to introduce our community to spinning with both spinning wheels and drop spindles. The Eagle River library advertises this event for us, and consequently, it is important that someone show up each time. Additionally, the library, as part of their publicity, will advertise that if someone is interested in trying to spin on a wheel, they may contact the library in advance. The librarian then reaches out to us so that we can have someone bring an extra wheel and fiber. If you have an extra wheel and fiber that you would bring, or are willing to let someone try spinning on your wheel, please let me know.
While it is a library, the old rule of complete silence is no more, however, they would like us to keep it to a conversational level of speaking, as there are those who are studying. Sorry, no whooping it up... Generally speaking, we will spin on the 3rd Saturday of the month, with the exception of Jan and Feb, when it will depend on the library’s holiday closure schedule. (Often they are closed on the 3rd Saturday because of MLK Day and President’s Day. This Feb, we will spin on the 4th Saturday.) Also,we will NOT spin during the summer (June-Aug), nor will we spin in Dec.
We will be advertised as spinning from 10 AM to 12 noon, HOWEVER, if you can’t come until 11 AM, that’s just fine. Everyone is welcome to stay longer than 12 noon, if they would like.
Online and at your own pace by Karen Williams
- https://classes.warpandweave.com/ Tien Chui is a weaver who specializes in color theory. She offers several classes, both pre-recorded and live.
- https://www.schoolofsweetgeorgia.com/ This is a monthly/yearly subscription. For one price you get access to their whole catalog that has many spinning and weaving classes in addition: knitting, crochet, dyeing, felting
and color theory.- https://janestaffordtextiles.com/school-of-weaving/ This is a yearly subscription course. There is an amazing amount of weaving content. AWSG members have taken these courses and given them high reviews
- https://heddlecraft.com/on-line-weaving-education.html Heddlecraft has a listing of other weaving online courses.
- https://rebeccamezoff.com/online-learning Rebecca has a great online course for tapestry weavin
- https://www.alannawilcox.com/online-workshops Alanna has a broad choice of spinning and dyeing classes.
The guild has a scholarship program that can be used for virtual classes. There is no financial need requirement. We only ask that you give back to the guild in some way, like leading a study group, writing an article or teaching a class. The scholarship committee will work with you to find a perfect match between your skill/time and the guild’s needs.Live and interactive by Karen Williams
• https://lunaticfringeyarns.com/product-category/instructions/workshops-seminars/ Offers a variety of classes, from single project “weave a-longs” to special guest instructors.
• https://store.vesterheim.org/collections/fiber-arts-folk-art-courses An intriguing variety, ever changing of Nordic traditional textile crafts, including a free class “Viking Era Clothing And Jewelry” on Nov 19th and a recording of their most recent class “Symbols In Bandweaving: The Emojis Of Traditional Handcraft”.
• https://kakawdesigns.com/collections/online-classes Guatemalan weaving, dyeing and embroidery classesEagle River Library Spinning
Spinning at the library as a community outreach, to introduce our community to spinning with both spinning wheels and drop spindles. The library advertises this event for us, and consequently, it is important that someone show up each time. Additionally, the library, as part of their publicity, will advertise that if someone is interested in trying to spin on a wheel, they may contact the library in advance. The librarian then reaches out to us so that we can have someone bring an extra wheel and fiber. If you have an extra wheel and fiber that you would bring, or are willing to let someone try spinning on your wheel, please let me know. Contact Sherry Rogers at (907) 694-3319 for more info.While it is a library, the old rule of complete silence is no more, however, they would like us to keep it to a conversational level of speaking, as there are those who are studying. Sorry, no whooping it up...
Generally speaking, we will spin on the 3rd Saturday of the month, with the exception of Jan and Feb, when it will depend on the library's holiday closure schedule. (Often they are closed on the 3rd Saturday because of MLK Day and President's Day. This Feb, we will spin on the 4th Saturday.) Also, we will NOT spin during the summer (June-Aug), nor will we spin in Dec.
Library Spinning will be advertised as spinning from 10 AM to 12 noon, HOWEVER, if you can't come until 11 AM, that's just fine. Everyone is welcome to stay longer than 12 noon, if they would like.
July 11-17, 2024 Convergence®
More information
Value Package Online Registration Now Open
Handweavers Guild of America, Inc.'s (HGA) 2024 Convergence® Conference taking place July 11-17, 2024 in Wichita, Kansas. You can review our sessions, special events, and more on our website, and keep an eye out for the Delegate Registration Booklet in the fall issue of Shuttle Spindle & Dyepot.
Interesting Fiber Classes
https://lunaticfringeyarns.com/product-category/instructions/workshops-seminars/
This is not ANWG or HGA, but it is interesting. Each of these classes is one hour long and available for $20.00 over Zoom
Ukrainian Folk Art Project
The AWSG band weaving study group’s next project is in support of Ukraine. We will each pick a project either inspired by Ukrainian folk art, in Ukrainian flag colors or from a Ukrainian source. We are looking at various Ukrainian textile sellers on Etsy who sell PDFs, since this is a way to financially support textile artist in Ukraine. Ukraine folk costuming contains a lot of embroidery. In addition, there is some overlap in band weaving with fellow Baltic countries. A lot of patterns while not intended for weaving, would be very easy to use in weaving. Or this may be the perfect time to use your handspun in embroidery.Below is a list of Ukrainian Etsy sellers of PDF patterns. I searched Etsy for “Ukraine PDF”. This list is in no way complete. I did verify that each of the sellers below is from Ukraine. This idea came from this article: https://www.kvoa.com/townnews/commerce/before-the-ukraine-invasion-she-made-belts-now-she-makes-camouflage-nets-for-troops/article_71501489-6ed2-53a0-8be6-b7b0b49cbe51.html The lady profiled in the article is the first shop listed below. The article may inspire you to join us in this project.
Some examples are:
https://www.etsy.com/shop/WovenSlavicBelts
https://www.etsy.com/shop/EveEmbroideryShop
https://www.etsy.com/shop/HandyHappyFabrics
https://www.etsy.com/shop/JPCrossStitchPattern
https://www.etsy.com/shop/NatkoPatterns
https://www.etsy.com/shop/JPCrossStitchPattern
https://www.etsy.com/shop/Mufficorn
https://www.etsy.com/shop/VividStitchShopNeedle Felting by Pam Clifton
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