Wednesday, May 11, 2011

April 2011 Minutes

April 2011 Meeting Minutes

The meeting was called to order at 11:00 am at Bartley Ranch. Introductions followed.
Minutes from the last meeting are up. Please check for any errors.
Treasurer Report: Five dues were paid for a total of $125, last month’s raffle netted $37, we paid out $300 as a donation to Nevada State Fair, paid $20 to Pat Ecdall for repair to donated loom, leaving the guild with $2301.50 in account. There are currently 36 paid members.
Also, we are in need of supplies for the spindle kits. Doris is going to work on getting our supplies when members of the local woodworking club order theirs, so that  we may get a discount due to ordering in bulk.
Library: Heidi brought books from our guild library. They were made available for checkout prior to the end of the meeting. She also shared four books that she felt we as a guild needed in our library. She stated that with exception to a couple of new purchases, most of our books are fairly old, and felt we would benefit by adding some books on new techniques and ideas. It was decided that the guild would spend $100 yearly on new books for our library. It was voted and approved.
Old business: There is some donated supplies, tapestry loom, and bobbin winders that will be put up for silent auction at our annual fall retreat.  Research is being made in order to decide what the starting bids should be on each item. Donated items are being stored at Doris’ home.
We will be attending the Cowboy Poetry event at Bartley Ranch in August. The marketplace will be open from about 10 am to 6 pm on Saturday August 20th. Please let Virva know if you can donate some time that day to participate in demos, or just to sit and spin. Upcoming events also include: Farm City Days April 14, 15th Fuji Park in Carson City; Spindle retreat in Dobbins Ca. May 19 - 22; Celtic Fair September 24, 25 at Bartley Ranch Park.
There was a brochure passed around regarding a location in Soda Springs California, that might be used as a location for a retreat or other guild function.
Raffle: Barbara needs more items for the raffle. If you have anything you think would make a nice raffle prize, please let Barbara know. All proceeds from the raffle go to the guild.
New Business: It was decided that in lieu of a hospitality person, those interested may take a place setting from the box, and bring it to each meeting that involves a pot luck lunch. Black Sheep Gathering is coming up June 23 - 26th. Is anyone going to go? May meeting will be held at Doris’ home. It will be brown bag. Plan on bringing a chair, hat, and sunscreen. See the blog for directions. Learning tree - please check with Mim and take a look at the list to see if there is anything you want to see addressed.  Discussion followed regarding what some of the members would like to see for learning tree. Nevada Museum of Art is holding a beginning tapestry weaving workshop. The fee is $75 for materials, or $10 if you provide your own loom. Workshop dates are May 14 -15th and May 24 - 25th. Please check their website for more information.

Show And Tell: Sharon - dual purpose scarf, Doris - 2 week old lamb, Sherrie - felted slippers, Heidi - puppies, birthday book regarding variegated yarn, Janet - mittens with Buddy on them, Sue - lace tatted butterflies, bulletin regarding tatted butterfly info, Jo - wolf fur bracelet, Connie - Black sweater from alpaca challenge fiber mixed with sheep wool from Doris and Wayne, also blanket with multicolored hand painted yarn, Mim - fiber, Barbara - shawl.
Attendance: Toni Strassburg, Janet Drozd, Eileen Jacobs, Jo Van Winkle, Gail Hock, Lois Leeming, Carrie Austin, Connie Vann, Nancy Grundy, (who we hope is recovering from her surgery!) Sue Gottsacker, Mim Bullard, Barbara Greene, Virva Porcelli, Sharon Campbell, Barbara Hunt, Libby Hejny, Doris Woloszyn, Marilynn Clarke, Sharrie Jones, Heidi Ericson

Doris Woloszyn’s in Chilcoot, California.  Hwy. 395 north from Reno, past Bordertown into California.  Exit 395 at Hwy. 70 to Portola/Quincy, turn left on Hwy. 70 going west for about 2 miles.  Turn left on Scott Road after crossing Long Valley Creek, before going up Beckwourth Pass.  Scott Road is dirt, and after 4/10 mile to the railroad crossing you’ll pass 2 homes(stay left on main road, not right up the hill), the railroad tracks and creek will be on your left.
Below is directions for Connie's poncho. I'll work on getting a picture to post with this pattern.

CONNIE'S DISHRAG PONCHO

Using worsted weight yarn and size 4 or 5 needles, cast-on 2 sts.  Knit across.  At beg of e/row, cast-on 1 st and knit across.  Do this until you have 20 sts on the needle.  To make a striped block, tie-on a new color of yarn, and cut-off the old color.  For next row, do NOT make an increase at beginning of row.  Knit across.  For remaining rows, bind-off 1 st at beg of each row until you have 2 sts left of the needle.  Bind-off last 2 sts, and tuck in tails.  Throw finished block into a bag for safekeeping.  To make a solid block, repeat above pattern, omitting the second color tie-on at the halfway point. 

To construct poncho, you will need 4 completed blocks, alternating stripes with solids, start sewing them into a triangular structure.  The first row will contain 1 block, the second row will contain 3 blocks, the third row will contain 5 blocks, etc., etc.  Keep the stripes going in the same direction throughout the piece, if possible.  Make 2 large triangles the same size.  Lay one triangle down on the floor, and lie down on the triangle, centering your body.  Lay arms out flat at a 45 degree angle from the body to see how much "wingspan" your poncho will require.  Mine reaches from the wrist bone to the collar bone on each side.  Next, construct 2 strips of blocks the same size and sew each strip to both the front and back triangles, joining the entire piece together, and leaving a neck opening that is 5 blocks long and 1 block wide at center-top of poncho. 

Knit 4 triangles in the same manner as you would knit one-half a striped block, and sew each triangle into the 4 inner corners of the neck opening, thus creating a more streamlined neckline.  Pick up 4 sts and leave 1 st behind around entire neckline.  If you don't end up with an even number, make one st.  Make a k2, p2 ribbing at neckline that extends for 8" and bind-off.  You may stripe the ribbing with colors from the poncho. 

To finish, tuck in all tails.  Then, slip-stitch an edging around the entire outer edge of poncho using silk ribbon.  Pick out a ribbon that has colors from your poncho.  The edging will give the poncho more stability and a more finished look.

Tip:  Use kid mohair for stitching blocks together. 
Tip:  Either do a color scheme, or your own free-form design.  Number each block the way you want it to appear when you lay it out.
       Decide how you want your rows to look before you sew the blocks together. 

Connie Vann

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