Jeanne and Karen, and their set up crew, transformed the Seven Stars Gallery in Nevada City, into a fiber arts fantasyland. There is something for sale for everyone from colorful kitchen towels to graphic shawls to fiber prepped for hand spinning. 

The gallery is open November 1st - 24th,  Fridays, Saturdays, and Sundays from 11 am to 5 pm. Guild members will be demonstrating various fiber arts on the weekends. This event is a local favorite, so we hope you’ll visit us at the gallery. Everyone is invited to join us for an artist’s reception on Saturday, Nov. 9th from 6 to 8 pm. 

Visitors can view and shop a range of beautiful, hand-made items including knit, crocheted, woven, felted, and spun pieces, all crafted by local artists. Come find that one-of-a-kind gift for your friends and family.

Check out the photos here!

The FFG Natural Dye Day held on October 19th was very successful. Louisa graciously served as our dye coordinator and was busy from setup to takedown, setting up pots and monitoring their temperature. Cyndi, our host, with her husband, made sure that there was a separate circuit for each electric burner and plenty of water. Meredith managed communications and brought beverages. Inani shared her knowledge of Shibori and brought samples to inspire. Carol made sure that everyone had lovely samples of wool yarn, fabric, and roving to take home, as well as a silk scarf to dye. Others brought tables, pots, and other equipment for all to use. Many thanks to everyone. We have such a generous community!

The day started with learning about mordants and actually measuring out the chemicals. The first dye pot had wolf moss, or more correctly wolf lichen, which produced a lovely bright yellow. The pot with red onion skins produced a yellow-orange. The fresh rosemary produced a pale yellow with 10% alum. When modified logwood was added the wool turned a lovely blue-gray. When ferrous sulfate was added, the color darkened. The logwood produced lilac with a quick dip and a deeper purple with more time in the pot. 

Louisa and Carol shared their process for surface dyeing the wonderful shirts they wore. We were inthralled with how the various leaves and plants left their imprint on silk scarves, as well. Maybe they would consider teaching a workshop for the guild in the future!

Inani spoke about the various techniques used in Shibori, a more sophisticated tie-dye process. Participants folded, twisted, and clamped silk scarves, then dropped them in the various dye pots. By the end of the day everyone had a unique creation to take home.

Photos

The September 24th meeting of the Foothill Fibers Guild was well attended. Twenty-eight members gathered in person at the library and Sue Zoomed in to join us. New members were welcomed and Margaret filled us in about the CNCH 2025 Conference April 24-27th at Asilomar. Save the date and follow the link for more information.

Meredith, our new program coordinator, introduced this year's theme:  Natural Origins. Then members brainstormed this year's guild challenge. "Use a natural fiber in your challenge project" was selected. Once again, challenge projects will be shared at the FFG June Picnic. 

Carol presented the 2024-2025 budget and it was approved as presented. Mary told us about the Board's idea to hold a silent auction (or two) to meet this year's budget deficit. We had a soft start with a few items at this meeting that had already been donated, with more to come soon. Bidding will close for all items at the holiday party in December. To see photos, item descriptions, and rules, check out the Silent Auction 2024 webpage. 

Representatives of our interest groups told us about what was happening. Spinners are meeting on second Wednesdays at the library, 2:00 - 4:00 PM, with a "Carding Party" on a Saturday to be scheduled for later in the year. Jane announced the next meeting of the Tablet Weaving Study Group would be on Monday, October 28th. Jane will continue to bring Kumihimo supplies and assistance to Second Saturday meetings at the library, 1:00 - 3:00 PM. The Weaving Group is still meeting via Zoom on Second Saturdays at 10:00 AM. It was decided to change the knitting group's name to "Knit and Crochet Group" to better describe the projects worked on when they meet on the first Thursday of every month, 3:00 - 5:00 PM at the Communal Cafe in Nevada City.

After a few more announcements, members brought lovely finished projects to share during Show & Tell time. See photos here. 

The meeting ended with a door prize drawing of a $25 gift certificate to Auburn Needleworks, donated by Donna Seaman.  The lucky winner was Sue V. She will have fun spending that gift certificate at Auburn Needleworks, 13344 Lincoln Way, Auburn, CA  95603. Thank you, Donna!

The Second Saturday gathering on July 13th was very well attended, with over 20 members braving the heat to gather in the library's community room. In addition to the regular members that brought their handwork to the circle, a large group came out for Jane's complimentary Intro to Kumihimo workshop and first meeting of the new  Kumihimo Study Group. 

Jane brought a her samples, inventory of Sinfonia yarn, kumihimo disks, plastic bobbins, and patterns to get everyone started. She also passed out an informational handout with online resources. Folks selected contrasting yarn to braid and set up their disks. After a short demo, everyone was happily braiding.

Jane also demonstrated how to make a beaded braid using bead cord, seed beads and an extra thick disk. Many with bead stashes were especially interested in trying out this technique.

Many, many thanks go to Jane once again, for her generosity of time and materials. Hopefully the new Kumihimo Study Group will meet again soon!

Link to photos.

Our June 18th guild meeting was a potluck picnic hosted by Sue F. at her lovely Grass Valley home. We had 30 members and a few guests in attendance. Sue had tables set up in her courtyard for members selling or giving away fiber-related items. Inside, there was a table to drop off Guild Challenge 2024 items. What talented members!

The kitchen island was filled with delicious food, including chicken hot off the grill, tended by Simona. Chinook made sure to guard the goodies. There were cozy conversation groupings inside and out, leading to many lively discussions. 

Many, many thanks to Sue for hosting. It was the perfect venue for a delightful evening with fiber friends!

Check out the Potluck Picnic photos here.

Holly and Josh dropped in briefly at Second Saturday to return a couple of guild library books. (Mary has them, Sue.) It was good to see them.

Simona and our Beginning Crochet Group are having so much fun that Jeanette, Lynda, and Kathy joined us. Now we all know how to correctly make a slip knot, work a nice foundation row, and single crochet. Ginger moved on to lesson three skills and beyond. Way to go, Ginger! Many thanks, again, to Simona for donating her time and expertise.

Thanks also go to Kathy for hosting this month. 

We need a host for July's Second Saturday. This only involves getting the key at the library desk, unlocking the doors, and turning on the lights for the 1:00 p.m. opening. Then making sure the chairs are stacked, the floor is clean, the lights are off, the doors locked, and the key returned. Please contact Gretchen if you are available. 

Sharlet Elms' Walk Thru History looking at the development of fibers, dyeing and how civilizations influenced cloth was indeed fascinating. As experts find more evidence of  our use and dependence on fibers, they find that weaving, nalbinding, and knitting developed much earlier in our history than was previously thought. Thank you for the interesting presentation, Sharlet! Check out her books of interest if you would like to learn more.

Ginger did a wonderful job presiding over the business meeting. Officers of the 2024-2025 Foothill Fibers Guild Board were elected. Your officers are:

President:  Gretchen 
Vice President:  Ginger 
Secretary:  Kathy H
Treasurer:  Carol P-K
Membership/CNCH Liaison:  Margaret
Program Coordinator:  Meredith
Website Manager:  Mary P
Librarian:  Susan R
Outreach Coordinator:  Mardi
Publicity/Social Media Coordinator:  Andrea

Many thanks went to Andrea for volunteering to take on the new role of Publicity/Social Media Coordinator. Also, a big round of applause for Brenda Atchison who is stepping down as program coordinator. Thank you, Brenda, for two years of excellent programs.

The proposed bylaws changes were approved, including an increase in guild dues for the coming year:

The membership also authorized the Foothill Fibers Guild CNCH Liaison or President to vote as our representative on the current matter of CNCH By-laws and Standing Rules approval.

And Ginger won the door prize:  a tote from the Handweavers Guild of America (HGA) filled with yarn sample cards from the Yarn Barn of Kansas, copies of Shuttle, Spindle and Dyepot, dyed locks, yarn, woven key chain, and a variety of stitch markers. Congratulations, Ginger!

Second Saturday, May 11, 2024

We had a free Learn to Crochet class as part of our Second Saturday activities in May. Simona let the group with Julie and Mary as support. Our goal is to learn the skills needed to crochet a cotton face cloth using a pattern designed by Simona.

We first all learned how to make a proper slip knot. Do you know how? It is a very important first step to keep your beginning edge neat and tidy. Then we learned how chain, single crochet, and crochet a nice foundation row. Everyone was so engaged that those that came to spin and do other handwork joined the group! There will be a follow-up session in two weeks at the library. We all left with homework and a desire to learn more about crochet.

Check out the photos.

Members of the Foothill Fibers Guild braved the rain and cold to demonstrate various fiber arts at the KVMR Celtic Festival at the Nevada County Fairgrounds. Demonstrations included the picking and carding of fiber, spindle spinning, spinning wheel spinning, knitting, and weaving on triangle, rigid heddle and floor looms. It was great fun sharing our skills and chatting with attendees while listing to wonderful Celtic music.

Check out the photos!

Beth Leydon - Working Upside Down:  intuitive felting with wool and silk

Beth described her process in creating beautiful “Nuno" Felted wearable art. Utilizing paper fibers in place of roving and silk, Beth guided over 20 members in an experiential exercise in working upside down, experimenting with color, form, and layout. Many experienced a feeling of uncertainty when we were not able to see the final product until completion. Everyone had fun playing with paper shapes and visiting with other guild members. We all left with an even greater appreciation for Beth's outstanding work.

Members, to see photos of the evening, click [HERE]