Wichita Weavers, Spinners & Dyers Guild

Another school year has started, fall is on the way with football and – more importantly – sweater weather, and Guild meetings are resuming from our summer break (such as it was).

Many Guild members were involved in assisting with Convergence, an international fiber conference of the Handweavers Guild of America that was held in Wichita; so for some people, it was much busier than most summers. It was a great experience, bringing opportunities to learn, shop, and meet other fiber artists face to face!

Other Convergence-related events included a gallery exhibit of members’ textile art, an open house and a tour, all with more cooperation by Guild members.

As we begin another yearly cycle, it’s time to join or renew your membership – either in person at a meeting on the first Saturday of the month or online, and then participate in local activities at whatever level fits your schedule and interest. And if you don’t find anything that aligns with your interests, let us know! We might be able to add a class, and you might even be willing and able to teach. Learning a new skill from an enthusiastic and knowledgeable practitioner is the best way to help build an interest group.

And now, a word from the Guild President, Terry Harrison:

As incoming president, my goal this year is to help develop a robust weaving program better utilizing our looms, also developing many more fiber classes. We need to maintain a higher level of financial stability and also to build a greater level of guild participation. It’s time we modernized our online presence, and also time to create more community outreach.

I hope to have a number of creative and fun fundraisers bolstering our involvement with each other and with the public.

Please reach out to your friends and acquaintances and invite them to our meetings. Encourage participation in our classes and in our workshops. Pick up a few of our brochures and drop them off at places you frequent. We have some exciting programs scheduled for this year. I hope to see you at many of them.

Welcome back,

Terry

It’s almost here! The Handweavers Guild of America’s Convergence will be held in Wichita from July 11 through July 17, at the Hyatt Regency and Century II.

We look forward to welcoming as many as a couple of thousand fiber artists to Kansas – and for many, this will be their first visit to our state. Let’s help make it a memorable one!

As always, there is much work to be done behind the scenes, and while they’re experienced, the small HGA staff only stretches so far.

A number of our Guild members have been working away for months to help with preparations, and once the event begins, there will be many other volunteer opportunities.

Check out some of these urgent needs to see how you can help, all while growing our own skills and meeting new people who share our passion!

NOTE: This information is included in the July newsletter as well.

Loom Room & Equipment Room

This is open to everyone – whether registered for Convergence or not. A big benefit is that working just 2 hours will get you a free pass into the Marketplace. So if you are unable to register for and attend workshops and other events for whatever reason, you can still participate and contribute – and then go shopping in the fabulous marketplace with over 50 vendors!

This is not a difficult job – you’ll just keep an eye on the equipment to make sure that it stays or goes as needed; there will be some traffic as people come in to warp looms in preparation for their workshops.

If you can help in either room, send an email to wichitaweavers@gmail.com with your room preference and time availability. We’ll forward it on to the right person, with your contact information.

Small Equipment Loans

Here’s another easy way to help make this Convergence a success for attendees…

The following items are needed for workshops. If you can lend any of these, please notify Carol, and plan to take them to our weaving studio before July 10th.

Stainless steel pots, large and small, for dyeing
Electric burners/ hot plates, turkey roasters for dyeing
Irons & ironing boards
Sewing machines

Imagine trying to figure out how to pack any of those items for a road trip (not to mention a flight!) and you’ll see right away how important it is for people to be able to borrow them for their workshops.

July Special Events

First Friday, July 5

We will be participating as part of the larger Wichita event, from 6:00 – 8:30 pm. While the gallery exhibit will be the main draw, we expect visitors to swing by the weaving studio to find out what we do! If you are available, come share the fun, meet some new people, and help show off what we do!

Meet & Greet Table at Convergence

Our Guild signed up to have an informational table at the Meet & Greet Networking Session on Friday, July 12 from 6 – 7 pm, just before the Marketplace Twilight Madness (from 7 – 9 pm, the only evening shopping hours).

We have a full complement of people signed up to staff the table, but if you’re there, stop by to say hello and then circulate, informally representing the Guild!

Open House on Saturday, July 13

Convergence in our city provides us a wonderful chance to showcase our Guild, our weaving studio, and our work! We will be hosting an open house on the Saturday evening of Convergence, and invite all attendees to visit our space, browse the gallery, and get to know us.

Naturally, Guild members will be needed to help in a variety of ways, whether it is ‘spiffing up’ our space beforehand, seeing that refreshments are kept topped up, or just mingling with other fiber folk at the event. See the June and July newsletters for details on having your work included.

Convergence Tour Stop on Wednesday, July 17

The Convergence Prairie Heritage and Artisans Tour on Wednesday, July 17 will start at our building! This is a private tour, open only to registered participants. but it’s another time when we’ll need one or two people to help guide visitors and answer questions, so if you can plan to assist, please email wichitaweavers@gmail.com. The time frame is 8 am – noon.

Tour participants will learn about Kansas-grown wheat and cotton, see how they are processed and used in fiber art and get some hands-on experience. Each person will create a twig wreath decorated with both wheat and cotton. They will also have time to visit the gallery and our weaving studio before heading out to Newton for lunch and a full afternoon.

Final Friday, July 26

The bookend to the month’s events is the Final Friday gallery crawl! Again scheduled for 6:00 – 8:30 pm, this will be the last opportunity for people to see the fiber arts exhibit and tour our weaving studio. It will be a fun way to close out the busy, busy month.