Back to Business Again

Clusters of mushrooms is a sure sign of fall here on the wet coast and that means back to school or back to business.  After a very busy summer the Qualicum Weavers and Spinners have resumed our normal schedule.
We have finally finished with yarn and garage sales and have cleared enough space in our studio so that we can resume studio activities.  Our project committee is anxious to start using  our new studio looms while the workshop group are gearing up for a variety of lessons.  You can check the side bar under workshop series to see if there is something you'd be interested in attending.

It is always interesting to see and hear what members have been doing during the summer months.  Its not unlike the first week of school in the fall when you had to write that essay on "what I did on my summer vacation".  But for us it is what I made during my summer vacation.

twill blocks in fine yarns

towels from knitting cotton

Some of our members took advantage of our recent yarn bonanza to try weaving with knitting yarns as illustrated in the photo above.  The lacy scarf below shows an unusual use of linen which we usually think of in terms of a stiff cloth fine cloth.  The scarf on the right is a combination of very fine mercerized cotton and fine bamboo rayon.  It has a lovely drape and feels like silk.

lacy scarf in linen blend

   

twill bag with card weaving

     






Several of our members have an interest in card or tablet weaving.  The strap on the wool bag lifts the design to a higher plane.  The bag itself has a subtle diamond pattern that gives it a textured look.

 This towel illustrates a number of colour interactions to make an overall pleasing colour design while the shawl below resembles the current colour scheme that Mother Nature has on display.

knitted shawl in autumn colours

ACTIVE AGEING

 
This coming week we will be holding an open studio (now that it has been cleaned up) as part of a region wide event called Active Ageing.  It is an opportunity for the community to try out different recreational activities and learn about groups they may want to join.  Guests will have a chance try various fibre related crafts and see demonstrations.  The event takes place on October 2nd from 10 am to 4 pm.  There are a number of other free activities taking place at the Commons where our studio is located.

After that we will be busy working towards our annual fall sale ELEGANT THREADS.

QWSG at the Fair

blue ribbon pickles

The Qualicum Weavers and Spinners went to the Lighthouse Country Fall Fair and brought home ribbons, visited with old friends and made some new ones.  We also ate pie, bought yarn, watched the kloggers dance and pretended to be kids at Fred Penner's concert.

We always put on a large display as well as demonstrations at this event.  This year our theme was "starting with wool".  The items displayed all involved wool in some form. 







We are often asked how long it takes to produce a skein of yarn and of course the answer varies depending on where you start in the process.  The beautiful hand dyed roving in the photograph started life as something less appealing and there is considerable time and effort involved long before the wool arrives at the wheel (or spindle).

from raw wool to finished textile

We decided to tell the background story in our display which includes fleece "in the grease", washed fleece, dyed fleece, roving and hand spun yarns.  Hopefully visitors came away with a better understand of the back story to a beautiful skein of yarn.  Our demonstrations including carding and blending of wool fibres.

blending silk and wool fibres

We also wanted to illustrated various ways of using wool to create a textile so we included examples of weaving, knitting and felting.  We are lucky to have some creative felters among our members.  The examples included knitted and felted items, wet felted items and needle felted items. 

wool felting examples

lace scarf wool/silk

handspinning category

The Lighthouse Country Fall Fair includes competitions for various handicrafts including a textile category.  This year our members participated in some of the competitions and came home with ribbons.  Check the Member's Works section to see more prize winners.

handwoven clothing

Now we are focused on getting ready for our GIGANTIC YARNS & MORE SALE.  We hope to see you at Qualicum Commons, 744 Primrose St in downtown Qualicum Beach on  September 20 and 21st doors open at 10 am.  We have a huge selection of knitting & weaving yarns, weaving equipment and books and we are what they call "motivated sellers".  We want to get back to working in our studio and so these items MUST GO!!!!