April 6th Guild Meeting – Stitchery

April 6, 2024

9:30 meet and greet social time

10 AM meeting at our new location: Goleta Valley Community Center, Classroom 7, 5679 Hollister Avenue, Goleta. Big parking lot behind the center, small parking lots in front. Driveway on the left side of the building goes to rear lot.

We’ll have our usual Show and Tell time plus an Un-Raffle, so bring anything you’d like to show off or give away, plus a little business and announcements, and then the Program!

Program: Please plan to join us at for an exciting hands-on collaborative project. This will be our kick-off to a new year of programing. We will supply a sheet of handmade paper to each member who is present. Each person should bring an embroidery needle and small scissors. In addition, bring a personal kit or bring enough to share/trade with others – your kit can include but is not limited to the following: Embroidery thread or fine yarn, beads, buttons, sequins or any small items from your studio’s treasure trove, drawing or mark making implements. Come prepared to create, to play and to collaborate and through this opportunity, let’s make new friends, deepen existing friendships and get to know members of the guild you may not yet know.

March Guild Meeting – It’s a Fiber Frenzy -March 9th

March 9, 2024 FIBER FRENZY

Time: 9 am to 10 am EARLY BIRD ENTRY

10 am to 2 pm OPEN TO THE PUBLIC, no early entry fee

Location: St. Andrews Presbyterian Church
4575 Auhay Dr, Santa Barbara, CA 93110

This bi-annual sale is a fundraiser to benefit our Guild’s Scholarship Fund.
What’s for sale…
Yarn, fiber, fabric, books, tools and equipment for fiber related arts such as spinning, weaving, knitting, crochet, quilting, needlework, and basketry. In addition, we have embroidery and needlepoint kits, sewing trims and accessories.

Frenzy Schedule
MARCH 8th Friday intake & setup at St. Andrews 9 am – 6 pm (Members)
MARCH 9th Saturday Guild members & early bird pre-sale 9 am – 10 am
Open to the Public 10 am – 2 pm

NEW this time: Early bird entry for non-members (Public) is $10 paid at the door. Members are free entry as is all entry after 10am.

February Guild Meeting – Saturday the 3rd, 2024

Weaving Data (and Transforming Rigid Heddle Looms into a Multi-Shaft Looms in the Process) 

Lisa Jevbratt will talk about her data driven fiber arts projects. She will demonstrate and discuss the innovative heddle system for rigid heddle looms she has been working on for several years, and the weaving software she is writing to accompany the special heddles. With this easy to use system the rigid heddle loom is transformed into to a multi-shaft loom, capable of weaving twills, overshot, crackle weave and most other four-shaft weaving patterns. The modifications came to her as she was developing simple ways to visualize mitochondrial DNA using weaving, and the software will allow the user to turn data into weaving patterns. 

(Audience members are encouraged to bring laptops to try the weaving software.) 

Please note that this meeting will be held at the Live Oak Unitarian Universalist Church, 820 North Fairview, Goleta, Ca 93117. The meeting will start with a social time at 9:30, short business meeting to follow and the presentation starts at 10am! See you there!

January 6th 2024 Guild Meeting

Lift the SKY with Julie Weaverling

Julie will present the history and development of the global art project, Lift the Sky. She will also share an artistic range of completed pieces as well as how members can contribute to the project. 

Julie is a Southern California artist working in painting, book arts, fiber art and conceptual art. Her art has been exhibited nationally and internationally.
With a unique artistic voice and evocative exploration of our shared human
workings, Julie strives to uplift by creating artworks to illicit feeling and thought. Her desire is to create beauty in her work without it having to be pretty.

This will be an in person meeting at the Multipurpose Room, Church of Christ, 677 N. Turnpike Road. 9:30 meet and greet 10:00 call to order 10:15 presentation.

November at the Guild, Members’ Show at the Faulkner Gallery in the Santa Barbara Public Library, 40 East Anapamu

The Show runs from November 2nd through November 29th, 2023

Opening Reception is November 2nd from 4-7 pm.

This exhibition by the Santa Barbara Fiber Arts Guild features diverse artistic works that center environment and change as our driving creative forces. Fiber Arts’ practices are always changing, we’ve learned, grown, and adapted to the world around us over our 70 years of Guild membership.

October 7th Guild Meeting

It’s a Field Trip! Let’s head south for some inspiration and a fun, artsy morning!  

We will meet at the Studio Channel Islands Art Center ( 2222 E. Ventura Blvd, Camarillo, CA 93010) to visit the studio of contemporary rug weaver, Regina Vorgang, and enjoy the First Saturday Open House of all of the artists at the Art Center. Regina’s exquisite one of a kind rugs are a treat and Regina is an experienced weaver with much to share.  We will meet at the Art Center at 10:30 am in the parking lot by the classrooms to share announcements then go to Regina’s studio for a demo. She will share her source for organic rug wool and we can see her 12 foot long loom. Be inspired and infused with creative energy.

Regina’s website is reginadesign.com if you wish to get a preview of her work.

There will be time to visit other art studios to drink in the color, texture and creativity from many different mediums.  

The Studio Channel Islands Art Center is a 40 minute drive from Santa Barbara. Call another member to carpool and share the ride!  2222 E Ventura Blvd, Camarillo, CA 93010 

 Directions:  go south on 101. Take exit 54 to Ventura Blvd and turn left onto Ventura Blvd.   

The art center is housed in an old elementary school site on the right side of the road.  Follow the drive around to the parking area across from the classrooms.        https://studiochannelislands.org/visit/ 

September 2nd Guild Meeting

September 2, 2023 Show and Tell from Dye Day and CNCH
Location: Church of Christ Multipurpose Room, 677 N Turnpike Rd

Time: 9:30 social time 10:00 brief business and then our program of show and tell!

Dye Day 2023 at Tucker’s Grove Park was another wonderful experience. Please come to our meeting ready to share what you created on Dye Day. For those that went to CNCH in San Luis Obispo please share what you learned there!

June 3rd Guild Meeting – in person!

Myco-color: Mushrooms for Dye and Pigment

Anna Bower and Hallie Silva

Members Anna and Hallie report back from Julie Beeler’s workshop: Mushroom Color Atlas. Their presentation will include South Coast area mushroom identification for dye, methods for successful mushroom dye baths, and using exhaust dye baths for pigment making.  

Anna Bio:

Anna is the Assistant Curator of Living Collections at Ganna Walska Lotusland. She enjoys propagating and harvesting dye plants, knitting, and making plant-based pigments for paint. 

Hallie Bio:

Hallie teaches art at La Colina Junior High. She loves the experimental process of dyeing with natural materials. She forages for mushrooms and lichens in the Santa Barbara foothills and backcountry to create dyes for fabric and yarn. 

This will be our second IN-PERSON meeting at the multipurpose room at the Church of Christ, 677 N. Turnpike Rd, Santa Barbara 93111. Please join us at 9:30 for socializing, short business announcements at 10, followed by the program.

May 6th Guild Meeting w/ John Novak

Our in-person speaker is John Novak, co-proprietor of the Village Spinning and Weaving Shop formerly in Solvang and now an on-line only presence (www.villagespinweave.com).

The title of his talk is “A Conversation with John”.

Please join us as we resume in-person meetings at our new meeting space: the multipurpose room at the Church of Christ at 677 N. Turnpike, Goleta.

We return to our former format, a meet and greet social period from 9:30 to 10:00, call to order at 10:00, and  the speaker program from 10:15 to 11:30.