Loom Photo - Credit: Casa San Ysidro Whenever we bring workshop instructors here from other parts of the country, they always tell us Las Aranas is known for being a large, active guild. The events this past May certainly confirm this.
During two weekends in May, Las Aranas provided outreach demonstrations to three events in the Albuquerque area. On May 16, we demonstrated spinning at Casa San Ysidro as part of Heritage Day celebration in Corrales. In two shifts, spinners worked their magic in the weaving room of the Casa San Ysidro historic home on Old Church Road in Corrales. The spinners shared the space with a 1775 Spanish Colonial loom originally collected from the Santa Cruz Valley near Espanola, NM.
On May 16 and 17, we manned a booth at the Celtic Festival where volunteers spun wool using drop spindles, knitted traditional Shetland lace patterns, wove a tartan, and exposed people to the fine art of using the lucet to create cording. Some of our members dressed the part and wore their finest knitted lace.
The first day a gusty storm swirled the air over Balloon Fiesta Park, the setting for the festival, demolishing some tents. The atmosphere created by the lowering thick gray clouds reminded all of Scotland. As we explained our craft to fascinated visitors, it was clear the pounding beat of Celtic drums and bagpipes, the parades of men and women in kilts, surrounded by Celtic breeds of dogs and horses, and the delicious aroma of Scottish foods transported you to a different time and place where our skills were crucial to the survival of villages in the Scottish Highlands.
On May 22, 23 and 24, Las Aranas set up a booth at the Albuquerque Fiber Arts Fiesta. Talented members created a lovely display of entries from the various contests. Blue ribbon winners held prominent positions on the walls or in display cases, and people who toured our booth were duly impressed by the craftsmanship of our guild. The festival requires an enormous amount of work throughout the year, but all the people who participated under the leadership of Sandy Gale do it for the love of fiber. It is a pleasure to sit and spin or weave at the loom and share the passion we feel for the beauty we create.
Now on to the New Mexico State Fair in September where we set up a complete Sheep to Shawl experience so attendees, in particular, children, can view the complete process from shearing to finished piece and learn a greater appreciation of fiber and its role in our lives.
During two weekends in May, Las Aranas provided outreach demonstrations to three events in the Albuquerque area. On May 16, we demonstrated spinning at Casa San Ysidro as part of Heritage Day celebration in Corrales. In two shifts, spinners worked their magic in the weaving room of the Casa San Ysidro historic home on Old Church Road in Corrales. The spinners shared the space with a 1775 Spanish Colonial loom originally collected from the Santa Cruz Valley near Espanola, NM.
On May 16 and 17, we manned a booth at the Celtic Festival where volunteers spun wool using drop spindles, knitted traditional Shetland lace patterns, wove a tartan, and exposed people to the fine art of using the lucet to create cording. Some of our members dressed the part and wore their finest knitted lace.
The first day a gusty storm swirled the air over Balloon Fiesta Park, the setting for the festival, demolishing some tents. The atmosphere created by the lowering thick gray clouds reminded all of Scotland. As we explained our craft to fascinated visitors, it was clear the pounding beat of Celtic drums and bagpipes, the parades of men and women in kilts, surrounded by Celtic breeds of dogs and horses, and the delicious aroma of Scottish foods transported you to a different time and place where our skills were crucial to the survival of villages in the Scottish Highlands.
On May 22, 23 and 24, Las Aranas set up a booth at the Albuquerque Fiber Arts Fiesta. Talented members created a lovely display of entries from the various contests. Blue ribbon winners held prominent positions on the walls or in display cases, and people who toured our booth were duly impressed by the craftsmanship of our guild. The festival requires an enormous amount of work throughout the year, but all the people who participated under the leadership of Sandy Gale do it for the love of fiber. It is a pleasure to sit and spin or weave at the loom and share the passion we feel for the beauty we create.
Now on to the New Mexico State Fair in September where we set up a complete Sheep to Shawl experience so attendees, in particular, children, can view the complete process from shearing to finished piece and learn a greater appreciation of fiber and its role in our lives.
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