The guild was formed to promote handspinning and weaving in our valley. Our Membership fee is $10 per year, and includes membership in the Fernie Arts Council. We meet the second and fourth Mondays of each month.

For more information, contact:

Rose Watson
5237 Hwy 3 West
Fernie, BC
V0B 1M1

On November 29th, 1982, four weavers met to discuss founding a Guild. They were: Teresa Hwang, Ida McAleer, Gayle Vallance, and Rose Watson. The first meeting, called for December 15, 1982 at the East Kootenay College, attracted 12 people. These 12 brought weaving experiences or just enthusiasm to our new Guild. Since that meeting we have met each month for the past eighteen years.

Our membership varies from a core of seven to a baker's dozen as folks move into our area and then move on - each leaving some special legacy behind. One of our members, Gayle Vallance, has the distinction of being a master spinner on the Canadian level and on the American (International) level. She provides an invaluable source of information for us all in wool preparation, spinning, and dyeing. One of our members, Susan Sim, grows dye plants and, with Gayle, has experimented widely in Nature Dyeing. Beth Gregg has reached the Senior Level (4) of the 5 part Master Weaving Program and with the other members given workshops and presentations to neophyte spinners, dyers, and weavers. As a Guild we organized a weekend Retreat for Kootenay Weavers and Quilters in 1986 and later hosted the Kootenay Weavers on two occasions. We presently provide the program for the annual gathering of Kootenay Weavers at Creston. Our members have Presented demonstrations and "sheep to shawl" events in Fort Steele as well as in our community.

As members of both the Association of Northwest Weavers' Guilds, The Handweavers' Guild of America, and The Handweavers, Spinners and Dyers of Alberta, we attend conferences and participate in juried shows when these are not too far afield. Members of our guild have achieved recognition in juried shows on the regional level and provincial level.

Our Guild focus this past year was on the various possibilities of "Double Weave" and we dedicate one section of this show to this theme. A recent Guild endeavour has been Baskets - grass, willow and pine needle - which, as a weaving technique, rounds out our "Weave, Weaves and Double-Weave" Presentation.