NEWS gallery information

The Gallery and Fashion Shows at NEWS have always been a favorite of weavers. As you probably know, the NEWS Trustees have decided not to hold an in-person NEWS in 2021. The Trustees debated how to replicate the opportunity to see and be inspired by the work of other weavers, and decided that as a substitute there will be a photo gallery on the NEWS 2021 website showing woven items submitted by any guild member who would like to participate. Entries will not be juried, and any weaver who is a member of your guild is eligible to participate. Weavers may submit a photo of one item (one per weaver no matter how many guilds they belong to). Photos will be visible to anyone who visits the NEWS website, not just NEWS members.

Ordinarily items that have been woven since the previous NEWS (that is, in the previous 2 years) are permitted to be entered in the juried shows. Because of the special circumstances this year, that rule will be waived for 2023, and items woven since 2019 will be allowed in the juried shows in 2023. However, any item included in the 2021 photo gallery will not be allowed to be entered in the juried shows in 2023. Weavers should be aware of this as they may want to save their “best” item for 2023.

If you are interested in entering an item, please email

Judy Schaefer (jschaefer11@gmail.com) or
Michele O’Donnell (mmo.ladybug@gmail.com)

with the stipulation of either GALLERY, or FASHION SHOW; (this matters as the numbers to catalog items are a different series) We will email you with an “entry number”. This number must be included with your photo and description. Once you have your entry #, take a photo of your item
- the photo must be in JPEG format and no larger than 2MB.
Include a description as follows:
Your First and Last Name
Type of Item (rug, towel, dress, etc)
Fiber used Weave structure Remember!

This photo will be on the NEWS website for all the world to see!
All photos should be submitted by April 30th

PDF file

Announce the formation of
The Rhode Island Weaving Center (RIWC)

We are excited to announce the formation of The Rhode Island Weaving Center (RIWC), a non-profit educational center dedicated to handweaving. After years of long waitlists and an elevated interest in handweaving, Norma Smayda of the Saunderstown Weaving School and a board of local, talented weavers will open a weaving center with looms for classes, studio spaces, and a weaving library. The initial space will be smaller with hopes of expanding within a decade to have more looms, larger rooms, lectures and workshops, and possibly a meeting room for The Weavers Guild of Rhode Island. The RIWC will aim to provide the same individualized, specialized instruction Norma has provided for the last 45 years. The RIWC and the SWS will operate concurrently with the center eventually acquiring the school's extensive weaving library, supplies, and looms. The RIWC will celebrate Norma’s dedication to handweaving and continue Rhode Island’s rich history of textile arts. 


Carolyn Goodrich, President of RIWC 
Norma Smayda, Vice President
Cathy English, Secretary
Judy Schaefer, Treasurer
Elizabeth Hill
Lynne Hale
Polly Alfonso, Fund Raising Chair

WGRI Celebrating

Bertha Gray Hayes Birthday

October 19, 1878-December 10, 1947

2020 update about Weaving Designs by Bertha Gray Hayes, or Bertha as we fondly call her: It has impressed the four authors with how popular this book has been, and continues to be.  Partly this is witnessed by the royalties from sales that the Weavers Guild of RI receives biannually.  

Even more interesting has been the number of letters we receive from weavers across the US and beyond. Often the weaver will include a sample of her weaving, and once a kitchen towel, as thanks for writing this book. Also we frequently see the book referenced in articles in the weaving journals.

 The most surprising occurrence happened a year ago. I received an email from a woman in Maine who had a used table loom I might want. She had tried to give it away in Maine, but no one was interested. My first impulse was to say thank you but I had no room in the school for another loom. Then I read her email more closely.  She is the great granddaughter of Mrs. MacAllister, who was a good friend of Bertha’s. We quoted Mrs. MacAllister several times in our book.

 So we set a date for her to deliver the loom. She and her sister arrived with the loom and a few boxes of assorted weaving stuff, and we spent the better part of the morning sharing stories. They had a photograph we did not have, and we had one to give them.  I have a sample book of weaving by Mrs. MacAllister, and they could point to some of the plaids and remember an uncle with a jacket made of that cloth woven by Mrs. MacAllister, etc.  

 The table loom was dressed with a linen warp, with enough woven to make into a small runner.  It has been woven off, washed and pressed and will go to the sisters as a remembrance from their great grandmother.

 Bertha’s legacy goes on ….

                                                      Norma Smayda      October 2020

Weaving Designs by Bertha Gray Hayes: Miniature Overshot PatternsAt the March 23, 2009 WGRI Meeting, the authors introduced their new book.WGRI Authors (left to right) Katie Schelleng, Gretchen White, Jody Brown, and Norma Smayda

Weaving Designs by Bertha Gray Hayes: Miniature Overshot Patterns

At the March 23, 2009 WGRI Meeting, the authors introduced their new book.

WGRI Authors (left to right) Katie Schelleng, Gretchen White, Jody Brown, and Norma Smayda

 "Fall Reflections" Jacket 

Convergence 2020 AWARD

second place in Fashion Show Exhibit

Virginia Harvey Award for Color"on behalf of Handweavers Guild of America, Inc. (HGA) and the Seattle Weavers Guild

Commercial silk accent fabric, China silk piping and lining

Weaving by: Inge Dam, Hand dyed silk with tablet woven accents

Sewing by:  Manon Pelletier

IMG_0693.jpg
IMG_0688.jpg

A Note from Heather Myer

Isn’t it amazing the things one can learn stuck at home?!
So, here’s my latest.
I recently wove a small rag rug using leftover bits of 8/4 cotton rug warp. I estimated how much I had of each color. I had a vision of stripes in a certain balance of widths.
Well, that didn’t quite work out. But, my brain got active as I looked at it.
I realized if I knew how much the core in the tube weighed I could figure the yardage.
Happily, I have an ounce scale, a key ingredient in making chocolate cake with a grandson.
So, using my ball winder, I emptied my smallest tube of 8/4 cotton.
The tube weighs .35 ounces. Now, the math .
My green 8/4 weighs 3.92 ounces(I’ve already taken off the core weight). 3.92 is to 8(because the original tube weight) as x is to 800(yds in original tube). 3.92/8 needs to become a percent....8 into 100 = 12.5 now multiple 3.92 = 49% is what I have left on my green tube. Change 49% to a decimal, .49 x 800 = 392 yds green cotton. So, now I can plan my stripes accordingly.
This process will work with any leftover yarn as long as you know the weight of the center cone. However, your denominator number will vary depending upon your specific yarn.
Oh, and by the way, the chocolate cake was fabulous, not the frosting so much. But, thanks go to Ina Garten!

Heather Meyer wove this colorful rag rug “while stuck at home.”

Heather Meyer wove this colorful rag rug “while stuck at home.”

Artists Accepted into Small Expressions

Reported in Shuttle, Spindle, and Dyepot: Spring 2020

WGRI member, Kate Barber’s work: Fractal. Free machine embroidery. Linen, cotton, Pellon, acrylic paint, thread.