Foothill Fibers Guild

Tuesday, November 28, 2023

Jane Milner - Make It and Take It - Dragon Boats

Jane will finally be teaching us how to make lovely Dragon Boats!

What are Dragon Boats?  On a hot, muggy 5th day of the 5th month of the lunar calendar, the Chinese hold their Dragon Boat Races. They make up these charming decorations filled with insect repelling herbs to hang around the festivities.

Dragon Boats are lots of fun to make with inexpensive materials. All materials will be provided for our hands on meeting:  the cardboard blanks, lavender to fill the Dragon Boats (or dried black eyed peas if you don't like the smell of lavender), hanging cord, some tassels, pins for the corners, and 1/8" satin ribbon in many colors, a pattern, regular Scotch tape, double sticky tape, fabric glue.

Supply fee is $5.00 for materials needed to make two boats, to be collected at the meeting.
Please bring a pair of sharp scissors. We will be cutting 1/8" ribbon.

  

~ Tuesday, January 23, 2024
Katy Atchison - Metacognitive Skills for Artists: Gain Insight & Inspiration

Metacognition is simply the awareness and understanding of one's own thought processes. For artists, dancers and writers we are much more clued into our dreams, ambitions and our ability to see beyond the way things appear to be. However, we let our inner critic take over when tackling big projects and looking for inspiration in new places.

~ Tuesday, February 27, 2024
Barbara Shapiro - Art in the Time of COVID

NOTE:  The Zoom Room opens at 6:15 PM, meeting starts at 6:45 PM
 via Zoom only. No in-person meeting at the library this month.

Barbara Shapiro will share the productive burst of artistic output inspired by moving her studio in January 2020 and by current personal and political events. The sequestration that Covid forced upon us all brought forth lots of new work in several series. Unfinished and abandoned projects from years ago were seen with new eyes and finally finished. Newly discovered materials inspired different ways of working. And as always, Indigo colored her materials. Barbara hopes to inspire you to look at your own work in new ways as you enjoy this saga of 2020-2023 in her studio in the time of Covid.

Bio:  Barbara Shapiro

Barbara Shapiro has been creating textile art for decades. She combines a rich knowledge of historical and ethnic textiles with broad technical experience in weaving, dyeing and basketry. Indigo is her specialty. After being involved in the San Francisco Art to Wear movement in the '70s and '80s, Barbara shifted her focus to textile art often. In woven silk with surface design. She has devoted much of her art practice to basketry for the past 19 years, working in both coiling and plaiting often with indigo dyed elements. She teaches frequent workshops and has taught at San Francisco State University and Osher Lifelong Learning through SFSU. A past Board Member of the Textile Society of America, she also serves as an Advisor on the Textile Arts Council of the Fine Arts Museums of SF. She was a docent at the Museum of Craft and Folk Art and guest curated Three Left Coast Artists at the San Jose Museum of Quilts and Textiles. She is a frequent contributor to textile publications and her award-winning wall pieces and baskets have been widely published and exhibited throughout the USA and in Canada, France, England, Ireland, Japan, Korea, China, and Israel.

~ Tuesday, March 26, 2024 

Linda Dean – Designs from Nowhere, Everywhere, and Everything in Between

Doors open at 6:15 PM, meeting starts at 6:45 PM
Hybrid meeting: In-person and via Zoom.

There are many different ways to find inspiration. Within the mundane of life, inspiration can live, and if the flame is nurtured, can bloom. However, it doesn’t happen without a little work. Skills for fanning this flame, for looking at the everyday world through a new lens, to be inspired to create will be discussed. Gain insight into how you see the world and what makes your sense of design special to you.

I am a self-taught crocheter that enjoys creating and designing new ways to put stitches together. I enjoy crocheting, finding it as my relaxation and rejuvenation time. I believe that the work through of a piece is just as important as the finished product; if you don’t enjoy the journey the destination isn’t as wonderful as it could be (and it may never get finished!). I have been teaching since passing the CGOA Master’s Program in 2010, and designing for publishing since 2012, and have been active with the Crochet Guild of America and a Past President. I am a Craft Yarn Council Certified Instructor and teach regularly at various local yarn shop in the foothills of the Sierra Nevada Mountains in California and Nevada, while restoring the home that my great-grandfather built with my husband and kids. Check out my journey at http://www.lindadeancrochet.com/blog/ 

~ Tuesday, April 23, 2024
Beth Leydon - Working Upside Down:  intuitive felting with wool and silk

Doors open at 6:15 PM, meeting starts at 6:45 PM
Hybrid meeting: In-person and via Zoom.

Beth will describe her process in creating “Nuno" Felted wearable art. Utilizing paper fibers in place of roving and silk, she will guild participants in an experiential exercise in working upside down, experimenting with color form and layout. We’ll have fun being surprised by what emerges when we are not able to see the final product until completion.

 

Since childhood, I have been a maker and creator. Guided by my mother, I learned a range of “old school” fiber handicrafts. At school, I took every art class I could fit into my schedule.  In 2011, I was exposed to a simple felting technique and dove headlong into this ancient and ever evolving textile art form. I craft one-of-a-kind pieces utilizing wet and “nuno” felting processes. Wool, yarn, silk and other fibers are transformed into functional and wearable art. Scarves, hats, slippers, vests, purses and decorative vessels are among the items that I create.  I enjoy experimenting with hand dyeing and hunting thrift stores for garments to be repurposed. Locally sourced materials are utilized whenever possible. I offer classes and workshops at my home studio as well as community maker spaces.

Upcoming events:  I just joined ASIF Studios as a resident artist and am offering felting classes about once a month. For most current offerings check out: https://www.asifstudios.com/felting-wearableart.

I will also be participating in Open Studios Tour this year in October. https://thecenterforthearts.org/open-studios/

My work is also available at Art Works Co-op Gallery on Mill St. in Grass Valley and has been featured at the Asian Art Museum Gift Boutique in San Francisco.

~ Tuesday, May 28, 2024
Sharlet Elms - A Walk Thru History with Fiber as Our Guide

Doors open at 6:15 PM, meeting starts at 6:45 PM
Hybrid meeting: In-person and via Zoom.

Have you ever wondered where cloth comes from, why is it important, and for how long have we had cloth? If so, join me in a Walk Thru History looking at the development of fibers, dyeing and how civilizations influenced cloth. It is a fascinating walk through the annals of time and our use and dependence on fibers.

Bio:  Sharlet Elms

I am a Public Health Microbiologist by profession and a weaver, dyer and knitter by advocation. My mother taught me to knit as a child but I taught myself to weave and dye and I'm still learning to this day. I love being a teacher and I work with private students, teach at Rumpelstiltskin's in Sacramento, and lecture and teach at guilds. I am also a judge throughout California. I am currently still working for the state of California as the Manager of the Public Health Microbiology Training Program in Richmond. What little spare time I have is spent with my husband camping along with our 2 boxers, Milo and Willow.