April Open Day at Strathpeffer About 20 people enjoyed the April Open Day, most spinning either with wheels or spindles. One newish member was being taught to spin by Sue R. Another, taught by Sue V at Dornoch, was doing impressively well with a spindle. Sadie had offered to help anyone with queries about tapestry, and had set up four … Read More
Anna Champeney Talk
Anna’s talk to guild members on Saturday told the story of her weaving life from the year 2000, when aged 30, she and her partner moved to rural Ribiera Sacra in NW Spain, until the present day. “Madness” is how she described this decision, and bold it certainly was… without any weaving skills she set out to revive what was … Read More
Quiz January 2024
Serena started the quiz tradition during lockdown. This year committee members set the questions, giving Serena a chance to take part. As usual we were all made aware of how much we don’t know about spinning, weaving and dyeing! We had historical questions, technical questions, almost impossible anagrams, Latin terms, pictures of animals and weaving and spinning wheels to identify … Read More
Spinning Challenge January 2024
A set of challenges to ward off the gloom of dark cold days. Extra Zoom meetings have been scheduled so that we can be social, and share ideas, questions, inspiration. Each week one of the numbered challenges will be drawn to give us a challenge of the week, and Guild members are encouraged to share photos, patterns etc.
Open Day December 2023
Around 20 people attended our December meeting at Strathpeffer Community Centre, most with spinning wheels. There was a lot of chat as usual, also mince pies and chocolates! Some took advantage of the opportunity to browse the library books and the equipment, now stored in a cupboard in the room we use, and securely locked when we are not there. … Read More
Open Day and Warping Demo October 2023
After an unexpected change of venue, the day got off to a start with Stephanie demonstrating how to wind a warp using a warping mill. The principal is the same as using a warping frame. She explained “the cross” – you wind so that in one direction the thread goes over the second last post, and on the return it … Read More
Open Day September 2023
Highland Guild Open Day, 9th September. Stephanie Hoyle Our first meeting after the summer break was on a lovely sunny day, which enabled us to take advantage of the outside space on the hotel terrace to spin and chat. This was a good thing as we’d been accidentally locked out of our usual large room and only had the small … Read More
Fleece Day at Glachbeg Croft August 2023
Glachbeg is a great venue for this kind of event, many thanks to David Spooner and his assistants who had done everything possible to make the day a success for us, there was plenty of car parking and the weather was kind with lovely sunshine throughout the event. The day was planned by Terry Williams, and she and Alison Munro … Read More
Dye Workshop May 2023
What a wonderful day! The weather was kind, the venue perfect for our needs, and the workshop both fun and inspiring! This was our first time at Glachbeg Croft, where we were made very welcome. We set up for the dyeing in an open sided barn – outside, but undercover, and with an earth floor. We also had use of … Read More
Jaine Mahon, Skye Silks
On 11th February twenty plus Guild members met by zoom to hear Jaine Mahon’s inspirational talk about her journey as a spinner, weaver and dyer. Like many of us she learned to knit and sew as a child – so young she can’t remember learning to knit! After school she did a computing course at university, visited a craft centre … Read More
January 2023 Quiz
For the third year running Serena has tested out knowledge of our crafts with a fun quiz. If you were unable to attend the zoom meeting you can test your knowledge by downloading the pdf: Quiz 2023. None of us did very well with it!! Try not to look at the answers too soon! Quiz 2023 Answers
December 2022 Open Day
We had a small but happy group of spinners at our meeting in December with maybe 12 members in total, mostly from around the Dingwall area since the weather was so poor and the roads so icy, though at least one intrepid spinner made the trek from much farther afield. The threat of heavy snow did not materialise so we … Read More
November 2022 Rigid Heddle Weaving Workshop
It was a pleasure to run this workshop for 13 people, even though everyone was at a different skill level. Beginners progressed from plain weave to simple pick-up, while the more experienced produced a range of patterns, guided by examples on a worksheet. I was able to instruct and help, as needed, aided by Bryony. However, skill-sharing among the group … Read More
October 2022 Art Yarns Workshop
A much anticipated Guild course run by Sue. Ten participants enjoyed an information packed day full of inspiration and expert guidance. There was a fine display of work by Sue with examples of how she had used her art yarns in a variety of ways. Participants brought in their wheels, and in particular wheels with a large orifice and low … Read More
September Open Day 2022
This meeting had a focus on spindles. Sheila had brought along a collection of different types, and started by demonstrating a kick spindle. The spindle is supported in a framework and operated by spinning the ball at the lower end with the foot, giving the spinner a really good workout!! She also demonstrated a Navaho spindle, as well as smaller … Read More