Knit and crochet strips are being assembled into lap afghans for the guild's community service project (left). Beautiful silk painted pieces were presented (right). Show and Tell included hand spun beaded yarn and an exquisite needlepoint piece (below).
What fiber art project is on your loom, needles or hooks?
The EarthLoom—a metaphor for life and community—provided an apropos setting for the annual picnic of the Riverbend Fiber Arts Guild.
Using the smaller, portable, 7-piece "Journey loom" for illustration, the meaning of the loom's structure was described: being, doing, feeling, thinking, creating, and teacher [the batten]. The red warp thread at the center of the loom symbolizes life's core. Surrounding the core are the warp threads which symbolize human values.
Members tagged each part of the Journey loom with a label to document the symbolism.
Traditional weaving materials such as yarn and thread, as well as organic materials such as flowers, plants and twigs were woven into the warp. Guild members could simultaneously interlace various findings into different areas of the weaving. With its symbolic references to various aspects of the human spirit and our daily journey through life, the EarthLoom serves as an artistic illustration in which each one's contribution is vital to the design as a whole.
A colored stick, marked with an individual's name, was inserted beside each person's contribution. The connections to our craft, to art, and to each other is what weaves the fabrics of our lives.
The thunderstorms passed north of our area and cool, mild weather prevailed for the annual alpaca shearing. Under slightly overcast skies, Riverbend Fiber Arts Guild members were on hand for demonstrations at the event where 55-60 alpacas were scheduled for their "annual clipping" at My Little Darlings Alpaca Farm in Chickamauga, Georgia.
The animals were quite friendly and not "camera shy" in the least.
When spun into yarn or used in other applications, alpaca fibers are soft and durable with a silky quality. Alpaca is naturally water-repellent and resistant to solar radiation. These characteristics offer protection against fluctuations in temperature for both the animals and for humans wearing clothes made from the fiber. Unlike wool from sheep, alpaca has no lanolin which also makes it hypoallergenic.
Throughout the day, visitors enjoyed demonstrations on needle felting...
while Riverbend Fiber Arts guild members took to their spinning wheels, crochet hooks and knitting needles to demonstrate other fiber and needle arts techniques.
Members of the Riverbend Fiber Arts Guild were on hand at Memorial Hospital's Earth Day celebration on April 22 to demonstrate spinning, weaving and machine quilting. Hospital employees and visitors enjoyed the midday demonstrations on these fiber arts techniques and the other displays featuring earth-friendly products and energy conservation. 
At the Fiber Arts table, people had the opportunity to see samples of alpaca fibers, a present-day spinning wheel, hand-spun alpaca yarn, a table-top inkle loom, inkle woven straps and bands, and free-motion machine quilted quilts up close. 
Many who stopped at the table shared their personal experiences with knitting, crochet, quilting and other needle arts or reminisced about watching family members—mothers, grandmothers, and aunts—doing needlecrafts. A few visitors were fascinated to see present-day applications of time-honored crafts and how both manual processes (hand spinning and hand weaving) and machine processes (free-motion machine quilting) are used to create contemporary pieces.
Many of the visitors expressed appreciation for the skill, talent and time required to create the spun, quilted and woven pieces. Some individuals were even inspired to go home and dust off their needles or sewing machines to get back into yarn and fabric creations.
Other companies, organizations and hospital employees will also be showcasing ecological, recycling and environmentally-friendly items and projects. The public is invited to this lunch-time event. Come out on April 22 and Go Green with Fiber Arts!
Using the needle felting technique, a variety of items can be created including two-dimensional appliqués and surface design elements to 3-dimensional pins, buttons, beads, refrigerator magnets and figurines. You could even create a whole farmyard of needle-felted critters and pets!
The guild program started with a discussion on safety precautions regarding the barbed needles that are used for needle felting. Cookie cutters served as the molds for creating the initial shape.
A demonstration was given on how the cutters were layered with alpaca fibers over a foam base. Using the barbed needles, the fibers were punched and felted together. Additional layers of fibers were added and needled to build and strengthen the base figure. Smaller wisps of fibers in contrasting colored were added to create the details.
These colorful needle-felted pieces using alpaca fibers were fun and easy to make. Oooh, the felting, sculpting and embellishing possibilities!
Doggies, and kitties, and alpacas... oh my!
