Our January meeting will be Jan 12th at Bartley Ranch School House Dec minutes coming soon!
The November 10, 2012 meeting of Carson Sierra Spinners and Weavers was to have been held at Bartley Ranch in Reno but the facility was locked so the meeting was moved to Vice President Connie Vann’s house. Thank you Connie! Connie also ran the meeting as President Virva Porcelli was attending a workshop.
Minutes of last meeting: adopted with no changes.
Treasurer’s Report: Treasurer Doris Woloszyn reported the guild’s bank balance is $3339.40 with 48 members.
Library Report: Librarian Heidi Ericson has put all the guild’s books and media on a website, librarything.org, where members can read descriptions and then email Heidi with items they’d like to check out at the next meeting. Further details coming soon. There are two new DVDs in the library: “Color in the Kitchen” and “Spinning on a Top Whorl”.
Old Business: Connie reported President Virva has nominated Sharie Jones and Max Harlow to be co-presidents next year. Connie asked if anyone else was interested. Nancy Pryor expressed interest. Marilyn Pearson nominated her and Doris Woloszyn seconded. Members voted to accept both nominations.
New Business: Heifer International: President Virva suggests the guild donate $370 to Heifer International ($120 for sheep, $150 for llamas, and $100 for Women’s Empowerment). Nancy Pryor so moved, Susan Palwick seconded, and the members voted to approve the motion. Llama Fleece: Sharie Jones has received 3 bags of llama fleece from a fellow who would like the guild to evaluate it for use in spinning and weaving. Sharie says they are a little dirty and she suggests combing them first and then carding. She’d like someone with experience with llama fleece to evaluation them. Please contact Sharie if you can help.
Show and Tell: Linda Lindsay is moving to Medford Oregon and this was her last meeting. She will miss everyone but will have an open house for Black Sheep next summer. Leslie Godbe brought a bag of Spin Off magazines donated by her guest from LA. Susan Palwick showed her first yarn spun on a Jenkins and plied on a wheel. She also brought a box of acrylic yarn to give away. Heidi Ericson showed her technique for “unspinning” silk scarves and knitting them into an interlock stole. Jo Van Winkle showed a scarf her daughter made from Mimi Bullard’s hand dyed BFL wool and silk blend. Mimi Bullard brought lots of fiber and some Fire Star to sell. Sharie Jones showed her new spindle, gifted to her by Virva, and recommended the book “The Natural Knitter” which is great for dyeing and knitting. Kendra Iwahashi showed the yarn she spun on a spindle but needs help plying without entangling her cat. Nancy Pryor showed different yarns/preps from the same fleece. She also discussed and later demonstrated seaming versus washing yarn. Yellow Wool Mill makes woolen yarn. Marilyn Pearson showed the alpaca yarn she spun and dyed with KoolAid to make her granddaughter a stocking cap. Doris Woloszyn showed the Reserve Champion Natural Colored banner her Merino sheep, Yola, won at a recent event in Monterey along with several ribbons. Members asked if they could buy that fleece but Doris reports they sell at shows for quite a hefty price.
Learning Tree: After lunch, Heidi Ericson gave a presentation on her 7-day SOAR (Spin Off Autumn Retreat) experience at Granlibakken Conference Center in Tahoe City recently. She attended a 3-day workshop, “Color Works”, given by Deb Mentz. Heidi showed the various solid color fibers and what happens to them when blended with a drum carder. Several members discussed the possibility of purchasing a bulk order of solid color wool from the Ashland Bay company. Heidi also took Judith Mackenzie’s “Wild Downs” workshop and showed various fibers from that class including bison undercoat, yak down, a yak-merino-silk blend, and cashmere fiber. Her third class was an Andean Spinning class where she learned about a women’s coop of spinners and weavers who work to ensure the survival of Incan/Peruvian textiles. More at www.textilescusco.org. Lastly, Heidi attended a class on spinning cotton where she learned techniques to spin yarn fine enough for 6100 yds per pound!
Attendance: Marilyn Pearson, Mariann LaMonte, Doris Woloszyn, Connie Vann, Elaine and Dale Magnin, Linda and Mark Lindsay, Leslie Godbe, Susan Palwick, Mimi Bullard, Jo Van Winkle, Margery McConaghy, Sharie L. Jones, Heidi Ericson, Gina Iwahashi, Kendra Iwahashi, Marilynn Clarke, and Nancy Pryor.
December 8th Meeting: will be held at Bartley Ranch and includes a potluck and ornament exchange. If you’d like to participate, please bring a wrapped ornament and your favorite dish to pass. Bartley Ranch: Drive .8 mile west from the intersection of McCarran Blvd and Hwy 395. Turn left (south) on Lakeside Drive and continue .4 mile. Bartley Ranch is at the north base of Windy Hill. Turn left on Bartley Ranch Road and continue several hundred feet to the main parking lot. Cross the covered bridge and turn right into the parking lot for the School House.
