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Algoma Fibre to Fabric Festival 2023
From the earliest days, the world of ‘fibre and fabric’ has served as a means of clothing provision, offering opportunities to earn extra income, fostering unity in times of adversity, and serving as a catalyst for fundraising for community initiatives. A small and successful Fibre to Fabric event, co-sponsored by RAIN, was held back in 2013. It was a celebration of the journey from the animal fibre to fabric and the many skills, talents, and creative works along the way. Recently, local fibre producers, processors and enthusiasts joined together with the goal of bringing back the festival as an annual event to celebrate and highlight the local fibre community and spark interest in those new to the world of fibre, yarn, fabric, and crafting.
Join us August 12th, 2023 in Desbarats, ON to celebrate our local fibre to fabric community, with an exciting day of workshops, demonstrations, and vendor booths at the Algoma Fibre to Fabric Festival.
Saturday, August 12 from 9am until 2pm in the Johnston Township Community Centre – map.
The Algoma Fibre to Fabric Festival will feature demonstrations on yarn spinning, knitting, sewing, and even basket weaving, an exciting roster of vendor booths, and friendly alpacas and sheep to visit.
Pre-register for exciting workshops, including:
Needle Felting with Dawn Allard from Willow Creek
Needle felting is using barbed needles to transform wool fibres into a more condensed material. In this case, a felted card. In this class, Dawn will guide you through this process as well as introduce you to blending to create your own little works of art. This is a fantastic medium for any skill level, however children under the age of 12 must be accompanied by an adult. All materials will be provided.
Dawn Allard is the felter behind Willow Creek Farm. Forever inspired by the world around her, Dawn uses her own flock’s wool as a “canvas” to create her felted paintings. Incorporating other local wools, merinos, locks, silks and angelina to create these one-of-a-kind pieces, Dawn loves sharing her knowledge of this traditional art form and enjoys facilitating classes throughout the year.
Date: August 12th
Time: 12:30 pm to 2:30pm – 2ND FLOOR
Cost: $65.00 (materials provided)
email fibretofabricfestival@gmail.com to register (max 12 spots available)
Natural Fibre Dyeing with Elizabeth Creith
You, too, can make tea and put wool in it! Did you know that many of the wild plants in Algoma, as well as garden flowers and kitchen staples, can be used to dye wool? Many natural dyes require only the simplest tools and ingredients – a pot, a heat source, water and plant materials. Join Elizabeth Creith for a demo and workshop on some of the local natural dyes, and perhaps an exotic or two! There will also be demonstration at 11:00 a.m. on the arena floor.
Elizabeth Creith – In 1983 I moved into a house with several other people and discovered a drop spindle. I learned to spin, then got a spinning wheel. Soon after I began to experiment with natural dyes. No plant was safe from me. I’ve used naturally-dyed wool and silk for weaving and knitting. I still have silk embroidery thread I dyed with madder, onion skins, logwood and indigo. I’ve taught several workshops on natural dyes, including one or two on indigo. Currently my focus is on writing and paper engineering, but I still have an eye for a roadside dyeplant.
Date: August 12th
Time: 1:00pm to 3:00pm – 2ND FLOOR
Cost: FREE (materials provided)
email fibretofabricfestival@gmail.com to register
Spinning With Drop Spindles with Mireille Gagnon Moes from Fleur de Fibre
Join Mareille from Fleur de Fibre to learn a variety of techniques used in yarn spinning including carding, drafting, and the basics of using a drop spindle, while experimenting with a variety of fibres including sheeps wool, camel, angora, dog/rabbit, silk and flax.
Originally from “la belle province”, Mireille Gagnon Moes has lived in the Algoma area for most of her creative life. Her interest in working with fibres started as she and her husband moved to a rural setting where local wool was easily obtained from nearby sheep farmers. Ever curious to learn the ways and skills with wool, she soon made contact with a hand spinning guild in Sault Ste Marie who generously showed her the basics of spinning yarn on a borrowed spinning wheel and some clean, carded wool. From 1981 to this day, Mireille’s interests led her to self-teaching of hand weaving, hand dyeing, hand felting while also being involved in a number of Arts & Crafts organisations. She has won many awards, exhibited and sold her work at many events including the Wabi Sabi Fine Crafts exhibition which she originated on St. Joseph Island in 2000.
Date: August 12th
Time: 12:00pm to 2:00pm – MAIN FLOOR
Cost: $20.00 (materials provided)
email fibretofabricfestival@gmail.com to register
Work bee with Miranda Bouchard from Thinking Rock Community Arts
Visit with Thinking Rock Community Arts and get a chance to work on a group project! All levels welcome!
Join the work bee from 1-5pm.
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We have a growing list of local vendors joining us including talented weavers, felters, sewists, crocheters, knitters, quilters, fibre producers, yarn companies, and more!
NORAthern Crochet
Algoma Weavers Guild
Russ Mason Handwovens
Masters Fibre Mill and Alpaca Farm
Muel.goods
mominsault_trade
Willow CreekFarm
Meadowview Alpaca Farm
Shabby Motley Handcraft
Birchgrove Farms
Great Lakes Yarn & Creations
Bee Joyful Sewing
Tisket-a-tasket Heather’s Woven Baskets
Winnie B’s Paper Co.
Elizabeth Creith
Fleur de Fibre
Thinking Rock Community Arts
My Mother’s Stash
Cass’ Crafty Creations
Handcrafted by Amanda
….and more vendors to come!
Fibre Producers, Artists, Artisans, Crafters, homebased Businesses and Commercial Businesses are invited to register to be a vendor!
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for more information, contact Ashleigh Sauve – asauve@ssmic.com
