April Program April 11 @ 10:00 a.m.

Meet at 10 a.m. in the Lobby of the Visitors Center

RSVP to Dinah Kirby by Monday, April 8

Our April Meeting will take place at the Winterthur Museum, Garden & Library, 5105 Kennett Pike, Winterthur, Delaware. We will meet in the lobby of the Visitor’s Center at 10 a.m. and will be escorted by the staff via shuttle bus to the Museum, where we will tour the Library and Conservation Laboratory.

The tour will take about 2 hours, after which we will have a brief business meeting in a classroom reserved for us. After the meeting, HWG members are free to tour the rest of the house, dine in the cafeteria in the Visitor’s Center, and take a walking tour of the gardens with Pam Sapko, one of our members who volunteers in the gardens. Winterthur is offering this exclusive behind-the-scenes tour for the Harmony Weavers Guild free of charge as thanks for all of our contributions to their events and workshops! Please RSVP to Dinah Kirby by Monday, April 8.

Winterthur is the premier museum of American decorative arts, with an unparalleled collection of nearly 90,000 objects made or used in America since 1640. The collection is displayed in the magnificent 175-room house, much as it was when the family of founder Henry Francis duPont called it home. The graduate degree programs and extensive research library make Winterthur an important center for the study of American art and culture. The Winterthur Library is an independent research library with a world-class collection dedicated to the understanding and appreciation of artistic, cultural, social, and intellectual history of the Americas in a global context from the 17th to the 20th centuries. Its holdings include rare books, manuscripts, original works of art on paper, ephemera, photographs, the archives of the Winterthur estate and its history as a museum, and more. Of particular interest to our Guild, the collection includes several pattern books which we will have a chance to see.

The Conservation Department cares for the 90,000-piece Museum collection, prepares the objects for display and trains the next generation of conservators through Winterthur’s Art Conservation Program at the University of Delaware.

Winterthur is also 1,000 acres of protected meadows, woodlands, ponds, and waterways. The 60-acre garden, designed by du Pont, is among America’s best, with magnificent plantings and massive displays of color throughout the year. Don’t miss this wonderful opportunity to experience Winterthur on a tour tailored to our unique interests!

March Program — Zoom and in-person
March 14 @ 10:00 a.m.
presented by Molly Elkind

The world of contemporary work in tapestry is exciting and diverse. Many artists are exploring the potential of texture, creating works that come forward in space or even become completely three-dimensional. In this slide lecture, view the work of a wide variety of weavers who are pushing tapestry beyond two dimensions. Warning: you may leave with a strong desire to weave with weird materials in new ways!

From her blog Talking Textiles — https:// mollyelkindtalkingtextiles.blogspot.com/ — “So . . . what is woven-ness? Over-under-over-under. Interlacement. Warp and weft crossing in specific patterns. All of these, and also: the making of a web, the combining of two or more elements into one integrated whole, the weaving together. Not for nothing do we speak of the fabric of society and the worldwide web. If we probe deeper into the modality of weaving we find an approach, attitude and orientation, that is crucially different from that offered by knitting and crochet, different from surface embroidery, different from felt- and paper-making. All of these connect elements in different ways and moods and for different purposes. All can make images, but those images will be very different from each other because of their modality.

So I continue to read and to make small experiments, seeking to find the magic center place in the Venn diagram where technique, material, form and concept all converge. I am a weaver, and weaving is a beautiful, ancient, and nuanced language. But all languages grow
and change by incorporating “foreign” words and phrases too. Is it tapestry when the weft is plastic? Grass? When the warp includes wire? Is it weaving when strips of fabric are interlaced into metal hardware cloth? I’m about to find out. If you’re still with me, thanks for following along.”

February’s Program — Zoom
Thursday, February 8 @ 10:00 a.m.
presented by Lisa Trujillo

Lisa Trujillo, is a member of the Trujillo family of weavers who settled in the foothills of the Sangre de Cristo Mountains, between Santa Fe and Taos. Spanish settlers came through
Mexico seeking land and the Trujillo family was one of the original families who made Chimayo their home. Lisa learned to weave after marrying seventh-generation master weaver Irvin Trujillo in 1982. She has developed into an award-winning weaver, using traditional techniques and materials to create new work. She has taken an active role in preserving this rich Hispanic weaving tradition by publishing “A Chimayo Weaver’s Guidebook” and teaching workshops. She and her husband have passed their love of weaving on to their daughter Emily Trujillo, who has become the eighth generation of the Trujillo weavers.

If you are interested in learning more about this weaving tradition and the Trujillo family, visit www.chimayoweavers.com. If you would like to borrow “The Centinela Weavers of Chimayo; Unfolding Tradition”, “A Chimayo Weaver’s Guidebook” or “Images of America:
Chimayo”, contact Dinah Kirby. They are available for purchase on the website listed above.

January 11, 2024 @ 10:00 a.m.
Zoom Only
presented by Susan Conover

The program will be offered on Zoom, using Ms. Conover’s own Zoom account. She will provide the link and any handouts one week in advance of the program. Any handouts will be sent to Guild members and posted on Groups.io in Files, under Programs 2023-2024.

After the program, a recording of her presentation will be available for viewing by Guild members for one week. The recording will be on her file, and she will send us a link to the file after the conclusion of the program.

Susan began spinning and weaving in 1980 and spent the next three decades studying under numerous national and international instructors. Her focus has always been on the historic aspects of her chosen craft.

Since 2000 she has offered courses in hand spinning and floor-loom weaving from her studio. Her experiences have included being Operations Manager at Vavstuga Weaving School in Shelburne Falls, MA for five years. Being a consultant and demonstrator for Historic sites has brought her a great deal of joy and sense of accomplishment. She specializes in lectures and workshops for guilds and craft schools throughout the country.

In this one-hour lecture Susan Conover will share a seventeen minute video of an adventure in flax planting, harvesting and processing. Flax spinning results in linen yarn. Susan will discuss some of the intricate ins and outs of spinning this ancient fiber.

A PowerPoint show will highlight how to wind a linen warp efficiently; humidity control of your weaving space, etc. And last but not least, how to remove certain food stains from your hand woven linens.

Of course, there will be a question-and-answer session at the end of her presentation, so start thinking of any linen-related questions you might have!

December 14 @ 11:00 a.m.
Brandywine Town Community Center (map in newsletter)
4050 Brandywine Parkway
Wilmington, DE 19803

Celebration will include:
★ Opportunities to catch up with guild members;
★ A shared activity — Stick Weaving*
★ Show and Tell of guild members’ works;
★ A short business meeting;
★ Delicious holiday food brought by our members! Beverages provided.
★ Donation of Non-perishable food pantry items, or warm socks, gloves or hats

What to bring:
★ Show and Tell
★ A food dish to share, and serving spoon as needed
★ Your own silverware, to reduce plastic waste (we will provide, if you forget)
★ Non-perishable items to donate for food pantry, or warm socks/gloves/hats
★ Don’t forget the importance of basics – flour, sugar, feminine hygiene products or diapers!

For the activity, bring whatever thrums and leftover yarns and fibers you wish, a tapestry needle and scissors. Sticks will be provided, as well as extra yarns, needles and scissors. THESE SMALL WEAVINGS WILL BE USED TO CREATE AN INSTALLATION FOR THE HWG BIANNUAL SHOW IN MAY.
This gathering is all about fellowship and fun!

November’s Program
Zoom and in-person
November 9 @ 10:00 a.m.

presented by Sue Balascio, Kathleen Remsa, Marcia Weiss

Our presenters are three textile artists who recently exhibited in the Newark Arts Alliance show ABSTRACT HARMONIES.
This group exhibition celebrated the creative dialogue between Susan Balascio, Kathleen Remsa and Marcia Weiss. The artwork incorporates shifting geometries, ethereal textures and tactile expressions in traditional and non-traditional materials.
Inspired and influenced by one another, these artists “strive to expand the boundaries of conventional weaving in subtle and overt manners. This is highlighted through entwined layers of complexity, sculptural layers of tactility and evocative layers of meaning. This new body of work illustrates the creative dialogue—the abstract harmonies—that exist between us.”
The three artists will share a few examples of their work and discuss their creative process and collaboration. Sue and Kathleen are HWG members.
Please see newsletter for more information about Sue, Kathleen and Marcia.

Learning to design while warping an inkle loom — Zoom and in-person
October 12 @ 10:00 a.m. presented by Pat Field

HWG member Pat Field will present the October program on inkle weaving,
followed by a workshop on how to design while warping an inkle loom.
Pat was exposed to inkle weaving by a photography friend who was taking a
workshop. Intrigued with the idea of creating a warp from a single thread, Pat was hooked.
She bought her first inkle loom (followed later by a rigid heddle loom, a 4-shaft treadle loom, and 8-shaft floor and table looms). She joined HWG in 2014 and kept on learning; straight weaves, pick-up, and pick-up and push down. She likes that inkle weaving is quick and the looms are so portable.

Program participants will have hands-on experience, creating inkle designs on paper. Bring your own colored pencils or water-based markers if you have them. Pat will bring a few colored pencils. Workshop will begin after the business meetings and end at 2 p.m.

Workshop

Pat will provide written and hands-on heddle-making and warping instructions at the workshop.

Workshop participants, please bring:

• a bag lunch and beverage
• colored pencils or markers if you have them.
• yarn to create your warp. 8/2 mercerized cotton works well and 8/2 Tencel even nicer. Don’t use any fuzzy yarns.
• Pick a variety of contrasting colors, including a light and a dark thread.
• Your inkle loom(s), heddles, and belt shuttle(s) (6”-9”)
• Small scissors
• Blunt needle for ending the band.
  Register with Pam Sapko at psapko2@gmail.com by October 7 if you would like to attend the workshop and if you have inkle loom(s) that you can bring (so we know how many looms to provide).