Fall Fibre Works

Everywhere you look these days you will find nature sporting fall colours like these mum's in my garden. Time to get that loom set up or pull out those knitting needles.
Working with fibre is one of those comfortable arts involving activities like baking or woodworking or drinking sherry that just go better with cooler weather. Wheels and looms just seem to call out for more attention as the days get shorter.



Natural fibres like wool, mohair and alpaca are more appealing at this time. They attract us like the handspun yarn attracted the two ladies in this photo. Maybe the crisp nights and dark mornings inspire us to create cozy blankets or that warm scarf or sweater in anticipation of winter. Or maybe it is just too wet and cold to work in the garden so that we can justify playing with fibre without guilt.



For a lot of us, the fall means getting ready for our annual show and sale at the end of November or working on Christmas gifts or both. Tea towels are a favourite item.


The annual show held in Qualicum Beach is our largest show of the year, but this year many of us have enjoyed putting on public displays and demonstrations. Our latest display was in the beautiful recreation centre at Craig Bay. We had a lot of great questions about spinning and weaving and even had some novice weavers working on the guild's loom. The demonstrations included, needle felting, cardweaving, spinning and harness loom weaving. The intricacies of spinning were explored by a number of the attendees.
Jen's helped to add a European flavour to the event with his collection of rugs. One is featured in the 'member's works' photos.


We hope that people who are interested in fibre arts will drop in to our show and sale in this November. Like all artisans, we love complements and questions about our creations and the scarves in this photo look much better in real life.