President’s Column
Hello Fiber Friends!
As
I sit here watching the snow come down, my hands are itching to knit!
What wonderful knitting weather we have had lately! Our meeting last
month was energizing and inspiring...no excuses for feet not to be nice
and warm now! This month I expect the colors and fabrics of Peru to
inspire us! I can't wait to hear of Susie's many and varied experiences!
We will also have a door prize provided by Susie this month!
Personally,
I have been trying to finish up some projects...most notably my knitted
jacket...I have to admit I am a process knitter and love to plan, look
at yarn and plot...then once I see it take form I tend to get distracted
and try something else! So, I periodically have to play Let's Make a
Deal with myself....this year it's finish 3 and I can start something
new.......
Stay Warm and Happy Knitting!
Karen Ford
February Meeting - Visit Peru and its Fiber Arts and Artists!
Saturday, February 8th, 10:00 am
St. Peter the Apostle Catholic Church
2061 Patton Chapel Rd
Birmingham, AL (205) 822-4480
A Visit to Peru to Learn about its Fiber Arts and Artists
Come join Susie Strauss on a trip to visit Peru and its fiber artists!
Susie will bring photos and video clips of the 2013 Tinkuy (Gathering of
international weavers and fiber arts in Cusco) and the five villages
she visited during her two-week trip in November. She will introduce you
to the Center for Traditional Textiles in Cusco and its mission to
bring traditional textiles back to rural Peruvian villages. Learn about
how its founder, Nilda Callanupa Alvarez, has created a market for
handmade products, while building village fiber art centers and
conducting workshops. Susie’s unique video clips show knitting on five
double-pointed needles (some made from bicycle spokes), natural dyeing,
winding warps while visiting friends, weaving, and spinning. Along with
the visual show, Susie will bring samples of Peruvian knitting and
weaving. The meeting’s door prize will be a handmade item from her trip.
Note new time and location! When
you arrive at the church, park and then look for an awning at the front
left of the church. Enter through the door under the awning
Photos from January's Sockapalooza
(and the holiday party with everyone wearing their new cowls!)
  
DUES ARE DUE!!!
It's
February and time for payment of your GBFG dues! Membership dues are
$25 per year and need to be paid by March. Dues are used for our meeting
supplies, rental costs for our meeting space, supplementing workshop
fees when possible for Guild members, and for administrative expenses.
They may be paid to Nancy Lavender at January's meeting or mailed to:
GBFG, P.O. Box 660723, Birmingham, AL 35266-0723. Please make your check
out to 'GBFG' or Greater Birmingham Fiber Guild, thanks!
We always encourage guests to attend our meetings but if you come more
than a few times in the year, we kindly ask that you join.
Remember that as a GBFG Member, you have access to our Yahoo Group in
which we discuss current fiber news and events, priority registration
and possible reduced fees for GBFG workshops, and equipment rental.
The New Guild Blog
We're trying something new for sharing information online about guild activities. Please check out the new guild blog at:
www.greaterbirminghamfiberguild.blogspot.com
We
want to post links to pictures from guild events, so if you take photos
at meetings and upload them to a photo sharing site, please send the
blog person a link (the current blog support person is Mary Spanos, you
can reach her at mary@maryspanos.com). You can see the photos from the
Christmas party now (scroll down to see that entry). Newsletters will
also be posted there, so if you think you've missed a newsletter check
out the blog!. Since the blog archives everything, you will even be able
to look back through old newsletters.
We want to support our members, professionals and enthusiastic amateurs,
and would love to show your work on the blog. If you have completed a
project that you are proud of, send Mary a photo and a description. You
can also provide a link to your web site, your Ravelry page, your own
blog, or any fiber-related site.
If you know of upcoming fiber-related activities or events, please send
that information to Mary (mary@maryspanos.com) so we can share it with
everyone.
You can even sign up to receive an email notification when the blog is
updated. And if you need to get in touch with anyone on the guild board,
links to their email addresses can be found by scrolling down and
looking for the list of officers on the right side of the page.
So, visit the new guild blog soon and send in your pictures and information!
Interesting things to read and look at...
Study Groups Meet Monthly
- Spinning Study Group: 4th
Wednesday of the month from 10 a.m to 2 pm at St. Peter’s Church in
Hoover. Please check out the Yahoo Group (you must be a GBFG member)
for cancellations or schedule changes.
- Nancy
Clemmons is interested in sharing her love of tatting with others by
teaching one or more in her home. Please contact her if you are
interested.
- More
groups may meet in the future. Watch the newsletter for more
information and let a board member know if you are interested in a study
group.
FIBER TIP OF THE MONTH
from Victoria Moore
While
I love to buy beautiful handcrafted fiber tools sometimes the cost is
prohibitive or the item is needed right away. That is when I have to
improvise. One of the materials I use is PVC pipe that I buy at the
local hardware store in the plumbing department.
My favorite PVC pipe tools are my large and small niddy noddy. A niddy
noddy consists of a central bar and a crossbar at each end. This tool
is used by spinners and dyers to wrap single or plied yarn into skeins.
There are many tutorials online for making a large size niddy noddy from
1/2 inch PVC pipe, two t-connectors and four end caps. By using
different lengths for the center bar you can make one yard, two yard or
larger size skeins. I also make a smaller version using water pipe.
Some advantages to using PVC pipe to make the niddy noddy include cheap
cost, light weight, easy to take apart and reassemble, and can be cut
to size with hacksaw or pipe cutter. Another advantage of using a PVC
pipe niddy noddy is that it can be submerged in water to set the skeined
yarn.
Other fiber tools that can be made from PVC pipe include needle holders,
spinning wheels, looms, drying racks and warping boards. Recently I
needed a reed holder and played around until I was able to get the reed
to sit at a convenient angle and also arranged a place for the lease
sticks or a dowel to rest at the back.
Newsletter News...
Each
month, I am planning to have items coming from YOU, our Guild members.
These will include short book reviews related to any fiber art; a tip
you have discovered and used that make your fiber art a little bit
easier to execute; any fiber related articles; and a fiber question you
would love answers or suggestions from other guild members. Please send
your ideas, suggestions, book recommendations, questions to me (Susie
Strauss) by the 20th of the month to go into the following month's
newsletter. Email me at sushicoach@yahoo.com and put GBFG Newsletter in the subject line.
Greater Birmingham Fiber Guild
The Greater Birmingham Fiber Guild
is comprised of individuals dedicated to the dissemination and
preservation of fiber arts. Meetings are the second Saturday of the
month, 10:00-12:00 (no meeting in July and August). Visitors are
welcome. The Guild offers programs almost monthly, focused workshops
several times a year, and equipment rental (see below). Southern Strands, the Guild newsletter, is published monthly (no issue in August); deadline for submission of material is the 20th of each month). Send items to Susie Strauss at sushicoach@yahoo.com.
2014 Officers and Board
Karen Ford – President
Mary Kaiser – Program
Debbie Scott – Workshops
Emily Levitan - Membership
Nancy Lavender – Treasurer
Janice Weinstein - Secretary
Mary Spanos – Website
Susie Strauss - Newsletter
Janelle Zorko Schultz - Past President
Rental of Guild Equipment & Materials
The Guild has available, for rental to members, the following:
- Looms
of various types (floor, table, rigid heddle, tapestry), spinning
wheels, drum carder, and more. Rental fee is $10 dollars per month with a
deposit of $100 per item. Deposits will be returned when equipment is
returned in good condition.
- Lucy Neatby's DVD knitting collection. Deposit of $30 per DVD. This is the current replacement cost. One-month checkout. See http://www.lucyneatby.com/dvd_contents.html for description of DVD contents.
- See
inventory list and photos of Guild equipment in the Yahoo group folders
section (you must be a paid member to access the Yahoo Group files and
photos
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