Resources
| Research and Reference |
| Arts Organizations |
| Regional Fiber Guilds |
| Museums and Arts Centers |
| On-line Galleries and Registries |
| Shows, Conferences and Festivals |
| Equipment and Supplies |
Research and Reference
| Fiber Arts: Technical Articles Originally published by the Association of Northwest Weavers’ Guilds, these are "articles which address a subject in a detailed manner, with more technical information than a hint or tip." Master weaver Peter Collingwood is a contributor. |
| Batik: Traditional Indonesian Textile Sponsored by an Indonesian batik design firm, the site provides an overview of the history of batik and explains the steps in its production. Some interesting photos of textiles and textile workers. |
| The Blackwork Embroidery Archives "… counted-thread embroidery worked in geometric designs with black silk on even-weave linen." Site includes on-line patterns inspired by historical examples. Illustrated instructions for double-running and Holbein stitch. Historical blackwork bibliography. |
| Brief History of Samplers Origins of the term, and the European Renaissance roots of samplers. |
| William Morris Internet Archive Essays written by William Morris (1834-96), the British craftsman, designer, writer, and Socialist. Subjects include textile design, the history of weaving, and the art of dyeing. Morris was a leader of the Arts and Crafts Movement. |
Arts Organizations
| American Craft Council "… a national, nonprofit educational organization organization … to promote understanding and appreciation of contemporary American craft … programs include the bimonthly magazine American Craft, annual juried shows … Awards honoring those who enrich the craft field … a specialized library, [and] various workshops, seminars and conferences …" |
| Handweavers Guild of America "HGA is dedicated to encouraging excellence, inspiring creativity, and preserving fiber traditions through education." This organization publishes Shuttle Spindle & Dyepot, a quarterly magazine, and hosts Convergence (see below), a biennial meeting of fiber artists. |
| National Association of Independent Artists The group’s purpose is to "strengthen, improve and promote the artistic, professional and economic success of artists who exhibit in art shows." |
| Surface Design Association "… a professional organization dedicated to the promotion of the practice of, and to education and critical thinking about, surface design. Surface Design is the coloring, patterning, designing and transformation of fabrics, fibers and other materials directed toward art and design." |
| Cuyahoga Weavers’ Guild is open to all weavers, spinners, and others interested in the fiber arts. They meet September through June, usually on the third Thursday of each month. Most meetings include a presentation or workshop, and plenty of spinning and socialization. Yearly dues. |
| Medina Spinning and Weaving Guild meets September to May on the third Tuesday of the month at Medina Presbyterian Church. They also present programs, workshops, outside demos, spinning sessions, and an annual Roc Day in January. |
| American Textile History Museum Located in Lowell, MA, this museum "tells America’s story through the art, history, and science of textiles." |
| Beck Center for the Arts Located in Lakewood, Ohio, the Beck Center offers performing arts, gallery exhibits, and arts education. Schedule of classes on website. |
| Cleveland Institute of Art "… produces graduates competitive as studio artists, designers, photographers, contemporary craftsmen, and educators." Website includes the Institute’s schedule of continuing education courses. These are open to anyone (no formal admission required) and usually cost $300-400. |
| Kent State University Museum Collections of fashion and decorative arts in 8 galleries on the KSU campus. Online gallery of costume with photos of the collection. |
| The Museum for Textiles Located in Toronto, its permanent collection includes "more than 12,000 artifacts [from] almost 2,000 years and 200 world regions." About half of them are viewable and searchable from their website. |
| Textile Center of Minnesota Goals: "Inspire and support fiber artists, increase public access to and education about fiber art, foster and promote diversity in all areas of fiber art, preserve fiber art skills and traditions, and provide a central networking and resource facility for fiber artists." They offer summer camps and an annual "textile garage sale." |
| The Textile Museum The Textile Museum, located in Washington, DC., is "expand[ing] public knowledge and appreciation — locally, nationally, and internationally — of the artistic merits and cultural importance of the world’s textiles through scholarship, exhibitions, and educational programs." |
On-line Galleries and Registries
| Carolyn Mazloomi: Quilter, Author, Lecturer, Curator Includes a quilt gallery and artist’s biography. Dr. Mazloomi is founder of the Women of Color Quilters Network, devoted to "fostering the fiber art works of African American people." |
| Kaffee Fassett Studio Fabric, knitting, needlepoint, patchwork, painting and mosaic. Includes a gallery and offers Fassett’s books for sale. |
| Ohio Online Visual Artist Registry (Ohio Arts Council and Columbus Metropolitan Library) "View the works of over 1,300 artists … from Ohio and around the world, representing all kinds of art." This is a database of artist biographical info and slides. Free registration is required. Search feature works OK for searches on location and artist info by name. For searches on media, try using very general terms (ie, enter "fiber" instead of "quilting"). |
| Turtle Moon Studios "Susan (Lucky) Shie and James Acord, Artists at Large … Working with painting and sewing on quilted fabric, but not in a ‘quilterly’ way …" Includes on-line galleries. |
Shows, Conferences and Festivals
| National |
| Convergence Convergence, the biennial, international conference is sponsored and organized by the Handweavers Guild of America. (If the above link doesn’t work, click here.) |
| Maryland Sheep and Wool Festival Sheep, wool, and a wealth of fiber art tools and supplies for sale; food, auctions, education, and entertainment. Held the first full weekend in May. |
| Midwest Weavers Conference This annual conference includes workshops, classes, members and guild exhibits, a fashion show, and commercial vendors. |
| International Congress on Medieval Studies An annual gathering of more than 3,000 Medieval Studies scholars, with over 550 sessions of papers, panel discussions, roundtables, workshops, and performances. Also includes an exhibit hall with publishers, used book dealers, and purveyors of medieval sundries. |
| Quilt National Biennial juried exhibition of "contemporary innovative quilts" at The Dairy Barn in Athens, Ohio. About 75 of the quilts exhibited then embark on a two-year tour to galleries and museums throughout the country. |
| Regional |
| Great Lakes Fiber Show This annual free Memorial Day weekend (Saturday and Sunday) event at the fairgrounds in Wooster, Ohio is a chance to attend classes, watch demonstrations, enter your works in competitions, shop for tools and raw materials, and meet new fiber arts friends. |
| Wool Gathering Young’s Jersey Dairy, on US route 68 north of the colorful college town of Yellow Springs, hosts an impressive roster of participants for this 2-day September event. Watch spinning, weaving, and sheepshearing demonstrations. View sheep, goats, alpacas, llamas, and angora rabbits. Check out fiber and handmade items. Vendors often number 100 or more. Admission and parking are free. |
| Autumn Fiber Festival For two days in October, this event takes place in Mozelle Hall at the Ashland (Ohio) County Fairgrounds. Area fiber producers, crafters, and artists demonstrate their skills and offer their wares. You’ll see spinning, weaving, felting, crochet, knitting, and rug hooking. |
Equipment and Supplies
| Ashford Handicrafts: Spin, Weave, Knit, Felt, Dye On-line catalogue of spinning wheels, looms, replacement parts, supplies, books and videos, and accessories. Free on-line patterns for knitted sweaters. Note: Ashford does not accept online orders but can connect you with a local distributor. |
| Batik Oetoro Located in Australia, offering materials, tools, and equipment for fabric decoration, including dyes, resists, and fabric paints. "… established in 1972 by Bambang Oetoro, renowned Indonesian batik artist … now owned and operated by Lynne Britten, well known textile artist and master dyer." On-line product catalogue. |
| Earth Guild Tools, materials & books for handcrafts, including spinning, weaving, dyeing, felting, knitting, kumihimo, and basketry. Orders are shipped promptly. |
| Fiber Arts Classified Ads A place to buy and sell fiber and equipment. |
| Leclerc Looms "We make and sell the widest range of handweaving looms & looms accessories in North America." Downloadable catalogues. |
| Maiwi Handprints Ltd. Offers dyes, fabric paints, artistic tools, fabrics, textiles books, and other related products. Catalogue online. Hard-to-find tools and supplies. |
| RJR Fashion Fabrics Fabrics for quilters: original designs and reproductions of 19th century and early 20th century printed fabrics. On-line catalogue can be searched by keyword (i.e., "blue floral" or "brown background"). |
| Crystal Palace Yarns Yarn wholesaler offering free knitting patterns to download. |
| Thai Silks "Over 1400 Silk Fabrics from China, Korea, Thailand, and India." White silk scarves for artists in various sizes and weaves (plain weave, charmeuse, chiffon, satin, crepe, jacquard); silk fabrics by the yard. |
Originally compiled by Branwen ca 2003. Updated by Rabbit in November 2009, May 2012, April 2015, November 2018, March 2021, and June 2021.