| 
                         
                             |  |  
                             | 
                                     
                                            | 
                                                    
                                                        | 
 
                      President’s Column   
                         
                   Hello Fiber Friends! 
 
Great news! The Guild has a new meeting place! Starting in September we 
will be meeting at In the Making in Cahaba Heights! Big thanks to Donna 
for welcoming us there! We will meet in the downstairs room. Be aware 
that parking will be an issue as construction will be ongoing.  
The specifics will be in the August newsletter. We certainly enjoyed our
 time at St. Peter's! But what better place for us than in a knit 
shop!!!!
 
 I am excited about 2 more things this month....color and spinning. 
Gale's presentation got me all enthused...can't wait to dye my sock 
blanks in August! Planning on some wild socks! Then the second thing is 
the Tour de Fleece. If you haven't heard, go to our Ravelry page and 
find out. Such a clever way to get us spinning. Our thanks to Gale for 
telling us about this. We are the Vulcan Spinners.....think you'll like 
the picture of our mascot! Also, we have spinning fiber packets for 
those spinners who want to participate....limit one per spinner and they
 are $10.
 
 Stay cool and hydrated...the Corgis are seeking out the A/C vents and 
ice cubes! Since there will be no meeting in July, I'll see some of you 
at the workshop in August. Then it's time for a Fiber Frenzy in 
September!
 
 
 Karen
 
 
 
 Remember no meeting in July!
 
 
We will resume meetings in August with our Dyeing workshop which will be at Karen Ford's house.
 Then in September, we will have Fiber Frenzy at new meeting place  In the Making in Cahaba Heights.
 
 
 
 
GBFG Sock Blank Dyeing Workshop
Saturday, August 8 
 
It’s
 not too early to begin thinking about our annual guild exhibit at the 
Homewood Public Library, during the month of September, 2015.  Our theme
 this year is “Bring Us Your Best.”  Please consider displaying your 
best work from the past year, or any work you’re proud of that hasn’t 
been seen in public.  For the past ten years or more, the library has 
welcomed us to use the two large glass cases in the entrance foyer, as 
well as three table-top cases in the central hallway.  The exhibit will 
run through the month of September, and we will collect your work at the
 August guild meeting, returning your work at the October meeting.  If 
it not possible for you to bring your work to the August meeting, please
 email Mary Kaiser  to arrange for pickup.  This is a great opportunity 
for guild members who do not sell their work to shine in a 
museum-quality setting, and it’s also a way for professional fiber 
artists in the guild to reach a wide audience.
We
 have 27 members that have signed up for dyeing workshop.  Registration 
is now closed.  The location has changed to Karen Ford's house .  More 
information will be forthcoming in August newsletter.
 
 
 
Bring Us Your Best for the Homewood Show 
 
Team Vulcan Spinners, TDF2015
 
 
While
 cyclists from all corners of the world are competing in the Tour de 
France, Ravelry (online community of fibery folk) holds an annual Tour 
de Fleece spin-along during the Tour de France. They spin, we spin. A 
real spinning-themed spin-along.The concept is simple:
Challenge Yourself. Spin.
 Have fun.
For
 the first time, the GBFG has a team, the Vulcan Spinners.  As a 
wildcard team, we make our own guidelines and keep track of our own team
 members.  As of noon on July 2 we have 13 team members including 2 
co-captains.  Each participant has stated her/his own goals and will 
post daily progress reports with supporting photos in the guild's Tour de Fleece thread.
Come
 cheer us on!  You don't need to be on the team to follow our progress. 
 The more comments that give us encouragement, the better.
Start
 date is Saturday, July 4.  We have two days of rest (just like the 
cyclists) on July 13 and 21.  The last day to spin is Sunday, July 26.
Go Team Vulcan Spinners!
  
 
 
 
Old Shale: Variations of an Old and Much Loved Lace Stitch
A Free e-book from the Wednesday Afternoon Knitting Study Group
  
Members
 of the Wednesday afternoon knitting study group came up with the idea 
to knit 25-inch samples of 10 different versions of Old Shale  to 
explore and record some of the possible ways to knit this lovely, old 
lace stitch. We pursued this project for the fun of seeing all of the 
different versions that could be produced by a group of knitters, all 
sharing the work of knitting useful swatches. Individually, none of us 
would likely have ever knit a 25-inch long  swatch, or knit 40 
variations of one lace stitch. Working together,laughing       and 
talking over coffee, the work was nothing. 
Old
 Shale, Variations of an Old and Much Loved Lace Stitch is a  stitch 
dictionary of variations of a single lace stitch. You can download Old 
Shale on Ravelry at http://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/old-shale-variations, which will let you find it easily in your own Ravelry library and keep up with updates.When we finished knitting the samples and recording them in photographs,
 charts and instructions, we turned them into three  small baby 
blankets. The instructions for making the blankets are included in the 
back of the Old Shale e-book. We hope you will find these variations of 
Old Shale inspiring and useful in your own work.
 The Guild on the Web
Between newsletters and meetings, keep up with the guild on the web at:
 
       If
 you don't want to miss new posts to the guild blog, you can choose to 
receive new posts by email. Go to the blog and look for "Follow by 
Email" on the right hand side of the page. Type your email address in 
the window and click "Submit." If you want to have something posted on 
the blog, send it to blog@greaterbirminghamfiberguild.com.
      You
 can post to the guild's Facebook page yourself! Emily shares 
information and posts that she receives on the guild's Facebook group 
page and keep Facebook users up to date on what is going on in the 
guild.Ravelry isn't just for knitters anymore. Crocheters, weavers, and 
spinners all upload photos, project information, and patterns. Kathryn 
is managing the GBFG group and has posted helpful information on 
participating in the Ravelry guild group on the blog, find it at http://greaterbirminghamfiberguild.blogspot.com/2015/04/gbfg-on-ravelry.html
 
 
 
Next in our series of craft mysteries
 
The Sugar Maple Chronicles by Barbara Bretton
Protagonist: Chloe Hobbs, owner of a local knitting shop called Sticks & String 
Setting: Sugar Maple, Vermont 
Number of books: 4, plus one short story 
Sugar
 Maple looks like any Vermont town, but it’s inhabited with warlocks, 
sprites, vampires, witches, and an ancient secret. And Chloe Hobbs, 
owner of Sticks & String, a popular knitting shop, has a big secret 
too. She’s a sorcerer’s daughter in search of Mr. Right, and she’s found
 him in Luke MacKenzie, a cop investigating Sugar Maple’s very first 
murder. Bad news is he’s 100% human, which could spell disaster for a 
normal future with a paranormal woman like her. 
Why we love it: The magic in Sugar Maple adds a fun twist to the traditional murder mystery. Not to mention, Luke is an absolutely dreamy love interest. 
 
 
Study Groups Meet Monthly
Spinning Study Group:  4th
 Wednesday of the month from 10 am to 2 pm at St. Peter’s Church in 
Hoover.  Please check out the GBFG Blog  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. 
 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 (Deborah 
Kattus ) by the 20th of the month to go into the following month's 
newsletter.Email me at dkattus@charter.net 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). Visitors are welcome.  The 
Guild offers programs almost monthly, focused workshops several times a 
year, and equipment rental (see below).
 
 
 2015 Officers and Board   
Karen Ford – PresidentMary Kaiser – Program
 Debbie Scott – Workshops
 Emily Levitan - Membership
 Nancy Lavender – Treasurer
 Janice Weinstein - Secretary
 Mary Spanos – Website
 Deborah Kattus - Newsletter
 Janelle Zorko Schultz - Past President
 
 
 
 Rental of Guild Equipment & Materials
 
 
The Guild has available, for rental to members, the following:  
There
 will be a $30 deposit per DVD (Lucy Neatby) and $100 deposit for the 
drum carder. Deposit for Laura Fry's materials still to be determined.The rental fee for all items is $5 per month rented.
 
Equipment
 can only be checked out at Fiber Guild monthly meetings and a check-out
 list will be posted inside the door of the cabinet. Deposit checks will
 be held by Nancy Lavender, treasurer, until returned in original 
condition.
 |  |  |  
                             |  |  | 
No comments:
Post a Comment