Presenting the Demonstrating Guilds of the 4th Annual
Midwest Fiber & Folk Art Fair:

The Crochet Guild of America-Northern Illinois Chapter’s current activities include demonstrations at Joann's Fabrics in Arlington Heights on the 3rd Saturday of every month. In May they held their annual Crochet Buffet highlighting many different crochet techniques. The chapter holds a yarn swap, pattern exchange and chapter challenge every year. Members also crochet squares to assemble into afghans to be donated locally.

The Northern Illinois Chapter includes crochet study groups dedicated to pushing the boundaries of crochet by working in small groups. Each group chooses a project that is challenging to members and expands their base of crochet knowledge. Study groups meet once a month and are open to Northern Illinois Chapter members only.

During each day of the Fair they will display/demonstrate several different types of techniques and be ready to answer any questions attendees may ask.

Guild meetings are held on the 4th Saturday of every month (exception for July, November & December) at the Rolling Meadows Library, 3110 Martin Lane, Rolling Meadows, IL from 1:30 to 4:30. Yearly dues are $15.00. Their meetings begin with guild business and announcements of interest and then a fun “Show & Tell” of new creations. There’s also a chance to ask questions and get help with problems.

Contact Amy Steinmetz at ammetz@live.com for more information. The chapter's website is: www.Nicrochet.com

The Foxy Lady Rug Hooking Guild, affiliated with the Association of Traditional Hooking Artists (ATHA), draws hooking artists from the greater Chicago area. The guild provides a place for rug hookers to meet and hook together, exchange ideas, learn new techniques, and give and receive encouragement. Because rug hooking materials and hands-on teaching advice are not easy to find in the Chicago area, the guild provides a pleasant and relaxed meeting place for new and experiences rug hookers.

The guild holds an annual members’ workshop designed to enhance hooking skills. The guild is also happy to provide demonstrations and displays for area historic and artistic events, including, annually, Lisle Depot Days held in September.

During each day of the Fair guild members will display rugs in a variety of styles, demonstrate rug hooking to the public, and provide one-hour getting started instructions to Fair visitors wanting to learn basic rug hook techniques.

Guild meetings are held the second Saturday of every month (except Dec.) from 10:00 am - 3:00 pm at the historic Beaubien Tavern at Lisle Station Park, 921 School St., Lisle, Il. 60532. Members pay dues of $20.00/year, plus ATHA dues of $26.00/yr.

Contact Beth Morris at cahbam@sbcglobal.net for more information. Note: Access to the Foxy Lady website, located on Yahoogroups.com, is limited to guild members only. However their group homepage is: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/FoxyLadyRugGuild/.

Halos of Hope has a simple mission - to comfort individuals living through the excruciating side effects of chemotherapy, painful hair loss due to radiation or permanent alopecia from burns, medication and other medical side effects. Halos’ goal is to provide a comforting embrace in the form of a handcrafted cap, hat or headscarf. While many individuals purchase head coverings at a price of $15-$20 each, they believe that just surviving cancer is tough enough so all caps are given free of charge.

As of May 2010, Halos of Hope handcrafted hats found their way to over 210 centers in all 50 states, and requests continue to pour in. Some hats have found their way to Canada, Latin America and India. While no cap request is ever denied, Halos tries to ensure the centers in the most-challenged communities regularly receive hats. Each hat goes to its center with a tag attached “Caps created by a Halos of Hope Volunteer”. Clients from Clearbrook’s Developmental Training (DT) Services Program (www.clearbrook.org) tag, pack and ship hats. Thanks to their help, the number of hats they’ve shipped year over year has increased 300%. Halos is thrilled to have this partnership.

During the Fair, they will have sample hats made by volunteers, suggested patterns and more information about donating to Halos of Hope. They will also be accepting cap donations all three days of the Fair. They will also have a few caps ‘started’ – simple knitted and crocheted patterns – so that attendees can sit for a bit, relax and add to a cap in progress.

Halos of Hope is a national not-for-profit and relies on the kindness of grants and donations to fund their efforts. They regularly participate in fiber events and Knit/Crochet-In-Public events throughout the year.

Contact: Pamela Haschke, President, or Kathi Brown-Wright, VP of Marketing, at info@halosofhope.org. For more information: www.halosofhope.org.

The Hollow Tree Spinners Guild welcomes spinners, would-be spinners, and people who don't even understand centrifugal force. It's all about the fiber. If you want to run your fingers through fiber, come play with them. They offer workshops, open spinning, and each fall, a judged and juried show in Woodstock. The show is co-sponsored by the Woodstock Weavers Guild.

During each day of the Fair you are invited to spin with guild members! They'll even teach you how to use drop spindle, supported spindle, Turkish spindle or even a spinning wheel.

Guild Meetings: Join us at our regular meetings, every second Saturday, from 10:00 am until about 3:00 pm at The Fold in Marengo, IL. Yearly dues are $25.00. Curious non-members are always welcomed.

Contact: Barbara Bundick: barbrev@earthlink.net; or Toni Neill: thefold@mc.net.

Windy City Knitting Guild is a membership organization that encourages and fosters knitting in the Chicago area. They currently have over 300 members.

During the Fair the Windy City Knitting Guild will be offering free ‘learn to knit’ lessons and assistance with knitting projects every day at the Fair.  “Polly” (dress form) will also be there with her garment made by fiber enthusiasts who through the work of their hands have added their special touch to “Polly’s” skirt.

Guild meetings are the third Tuesday of each month from 6:45 pm- 8:55 pm. Meetings are held at Sulzer Regional Library, 4455 North Lincoln Avenue, Chicago, IL 60625. Membership meetings usually include: refreshments, meeting and greeting, Guild Business, a program/mini class, and Show & Share.

Windy City Guild membership entitles you to receive the monthly Windy City Knitting Guild Newsletter. It is loaded with announcements about knitting events, book reviews, knitting website reviews, yarn store reviews from all over the United States, class and teacher reviews, knitting patterns, tips, hints facts and fun. Many knit shops in the Chicago area give a 10% discount to Guild members. Members also pay a reduced price for the fantastic workshops the guild sponsors. Dues are $25 per calendar year. You are invited to attend one of their monthly meetings if you would like more information about the guild before joining.

Contact: Membership chairman, Worna Haywood at worna@ameritech.net. Web site: www.windycityknittingguild.com

The Woodstock Weavers Guild is an active fiber arts guild that promotes hand weaving in Northern Illinois and Southern Wisconsin. Members of the guild share hand-woven projects ranging from household linens, to rugs and draperies, to "art to wear" clothing. They encourage the development of artistic and technical skills in hand weaving, and promote public knowledge and appreciation of hand weaving as both a craft and as an art with tangible market value. Through guild activities artist/weavers are provided opportunities to explore the historical development of hand weaving as well as the many forms and techniques of hand weaving employed throughout the world. Opportunities for the general public to view the work of local, national and international hand weavers are also created.

During the Fair various kinds of hand weaving will be demonstrated such as inkle weaving, which is great for creating camera straps, holiday bookmarks and belts.

Guild meetings are from September through December, on the first Wednesday of the month at McHenry County Farm Bureau, 1102 McConnell Road. January through June meetings are held at the Woodstock Library on Judd Street. You can visit their website http://www.woodstockweaversguild.org for meeting details as well as find their membership form and information on their yearly dues. They sponsor several hand weaving workshops each year and publish an informative monthly newsletter. They'll be presenting their 13th annual Fiber Arts Show this October at the Old Courthouse Arts Center on the square in Woodstock. The Show is free and everyone is invited. They also have special interest groups including a Tapestry Group, an Inkle Weaving Group and a Color Study Group.

Contact mayd2weave@hotmail.com for general information about the Weavers guild and its activities. Website: www.woodstockweaversguild.org

 

Fiber arts, fiber art fairs, women, and activism have a long history in the United States. Sayings, including the one above were embroidered into quilts and other household goods and sold at Great Fairs in the North to raise money to support the abolitionists prior to the Civil War. In the South, women sold Gunboat quilts to raise money for the army. Groups like the Woman's Relief Corp that existed right here in Crystal Lake, IL, all got into the prewar effort.

Further back in American History, we all remember and learned about the Boston Tea Party, but tea wasn't the only or the first sticking point between the Colonies and the British government. More festering still was the bitter battle over the colony's efforts to begin and sustain textile production. In 1699 the British passed "The Wool Act" which basically prohibited the colonies from selling textiles to anyone but the British government, who in turn sold it back to the colonies. In protest of this act, the ladies of Boston marched out on the Commons and spun yarn in defiance and...in public!!

Other interesting fibery facts:

Do you know...

 

Come Celebrate the Work of our Hands!