A Thread Through Time

For its 75th anniversary, the Weavers Guild of Minnesota plans to publish a book of weaving projects called “A Thread Through Time.” The purpose of this book, which the title is meant to imply, is to take old drafts and interpret them in new ways. You are invited to be a part of this project whether you are a novice or an expert weaver. We would like to generate 40 new projects.

The project committee, consisting of Peggy Baldwin, Lucy Brusic, Kim Burnham, Sue Bye, and Lou French has selected 60 some swatches from the Guild swatch collection. These drafts for swatches range from 2 shafts to 16 shafts and vary in complexity. The committee and the swatches will be at the September 8 meeting, from 6:30 forward. Copies of the swatches and sign up sheets will be available at that time.

Preview the swatches here:

2 Shafts

4 Shafts Straight Draw

4 Shafts Not Straight Draw

*not shown: 2/2 twill variation

4 Shafts Slightly Complicated

More than four but less than eight

Eight Shafts and more

Time line
To simplify things, we have created this time line for you.
On September 8, look over the swatches; select one or two that you would like to explore. (For the sake of fairness and order, we will limit you to two possible choices. If you decide to consider two, we will ask that you make a decision between them within a week–by September 15–so that we can offer popular swatches to other weavers.)

If you see a swatch on this page that you would like to select, please contact Sue Bye suebye@comcast.net

By October 1, let Lucy Brusic lucy@brusic.net, Sue Bye suebye@comcast.net, Peggy Baldwin rbaldwinmn@aol.com, or Lou French louise@loufrench.com know what your project will be. We need this information so that we know how many more weavers we need to recruit to have a full book of forty projects.

Process
To repeat, we are asking

  1. that you choose a draft (preferably one) at the September 8 meeting. Two (but only two) people may use any given draft.
  2. that you decide what you are making (scarf, place mat, tea cozy, etc.) (by October 1)
  3. that you let us know what color and what fibers you will be using (also by October 1)
  4. that you complete the project, with documentation, by June 1, 2012.

The editorial committee is asking for the color and project information (2 and 3 above) in advance so that we can produce a diverse book: for example, not all scarves, not all white, not all wool. The committee will keep track of the overall choices In effect, we are jurying beforehand. Obviously if you make your choice quickly, you stand a better chance of making what you want to make.

Lou French and Peggy Baldwin have agreed to be available as mentors for those who are not sure about the fibers or techniques of what they are proposing. Although we are suggesting that you start with a draft that you feel comfortable with, Peggy and Lou will also be available if you do not understand the old draft.

Guidelines
We want this project to be fun, so instead of making rules, we offer here some guidelines:

- You should use the of the order project exactly as it appears on the swatch, but you may change the tie-up and the treadling. You are also free to reuse the original tie-up and treadling and just change the fibers or color.

- Your project should be an original interpretation; that is, it should not be copied from a published project.
- Your project should be a complete item, not a swatch.

- You will need to provide a full project record sheet including amounts of yarn used, so keep records while you are weaving. We will provide the record sheet at the October meeting.

- We encourage you to use modern fibers such as bamboo and tencel, but we expect you to use fibers that are commercially available and to be able to document your sources.

- An exception is handspun. We encourage the use of handspun yarns, either by spinner/weavers in their own projects or in collaborations between spinners and weavers.

When the committee sat down to plan this book, they tried to come up with a list of projects that might be included. The list here should let you know that we are looking for spritely and unconventional ideas: pillows, scarves, placemats, blankets, afghans, table runners, upholstery, bags, purses, rugs, towels, napkins, curtains, aprons, hats, jackets, wallhangings, tea cozies, stuffed animals, and other creative projects.

We hope to have a daytime meeting about this project for people who cannot make it to night meetings. Please let Kim Burnham Kimberly.Burnham@target.com know it this option would be helpful for you.

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