Santa Cruz Handweavers Guild

Barbara Stafford is a bay area spinner and rug weaver working in a wide variety of wools. There is an extensive gallery of her work on her website.

Joy May Hilden has been doing field research on Beduin weaving since 1982. With her husband, who taught in the Eastern Province of Saudi Arabia, she traveled near and far in search of weavers whose knowledge of this fast-disappearing craft she wants to preserve. She has authored several articles on the subject. Her book about bedouin weaving and the life of the weavers is just published and can be ordered on her website. where you can learn more about her research and view a slideshow of pictures of Beduins, their lifestyle and weavings.

The distinctive dress and fabrics of the once-nomadic Sami people of Northwestern Eurasia share methods and materials with other Subarctic groups and with the settled farming communities. The weaving techniques include the use of the ancient warp-weighted loom, extinct elsewhere in the world, as well as elaborate braided and warp-patterned bands. During the 20th century, the Sami encountered a shrinking environment for their old ways of life and work, while at the same time many found new opportunities and roles in mainstream society. At the same time, the Sami became engaged in the need to document and strengthen their cultural identity. Today, makers and artists steeped in tradition experiment with new and exciting forms of expression.

This lecture will take place at 1 pm on Saturday, January 15 at the Musuem of Art and History, 705 Front Street, Santa Cruz, CA. Phone: 831.429.1964

This special program is supported by the Heritage Fund of the Santa Cruz Handweavers Guild

In her work, George-Ann Bowers enlarges small landscapes or "micro-terrains" which she finds in close-up exploration of natural subjects such as tree bark, rock or plant formations. Patterns of light and shadow, color and texture are her focus and inspiration. She is not seeking recognizable images, but is interested in the structures and movement revealed in the intimate details of a larger form, and enjoys the resulting ambiguity present in the completed work. She uses multi-layer pick-up weaving as her basic structure and incorporates tapestry techniques, inlay, variable warp tensioning and warp painting, with a range of fiber materials.

In some pieces she combines weaving with painting on canvas to explore the visual and tactile contrasts between the colors and texture of woven fiber and those of paint on a smoother (though still textile) background. Using weaving as the central focus of a piece and paint on canvas as the extension of the composition, Bowers intent is for both the pattern of the piece and the eye of the viewer to move back and forth between flat, painted space and the more dimensional woven surface.

Have sticks, will travel here, there and everywhere! Laverne Waddington is passionate about backstop weaving. Born in India, raised in Australia she now live in South America. In 1998, she moved to land locked Santa Cruz in Bolivia- a large city with a small town feel. Life in Santa Cruz, Bolivia is simple and laid back despite the crazy traffic and the blaring tropical rhythms. It is a perfect base from which Waddington travels and continues learning to weave, braid and spin as it shares borders with Brazil, Paraguay, Argentina, Chile and Peru. Since moving here, she has continued to travel and learn to weave beyond the neighboring countries in Ecuador and even further afield in Guatemala.

Waddington keeps journals in which she has meticulously documented all the techniques she has learned here over the years with diagrams and step-by-step photos and it is only recently that she have found a forum in which to share all this with other weavers around the world. Visit her blog and let her tell you about her life in Santa Cruz and her weaving and learning experiences.

The Guild will be offering a multiday workshop with Laverne Waddington in conduction with her program on April 13, 2011. Details of dates and cost for this workshop will be available later.

Take the State Park Drive exit off Highway 1 (the same one we have been taking for years to go to the Aptos Library). Instead of turning left at the intersection with Soquel Drive, turn right. Drive past the shopping area and over the bridge. Make a left turn in front of the Aptos Village Garage. Watch out for approaching traffic as the road curves slightly here. Turn left again IMMEDIATELY, after you cross the railroad tracks. Follow the road until you come to the parking area and club house.

Shuttle Throwers, Wednesday the week following Guild meeting; meet at Fresh Choice in Capitola at 11:45 am. Contact Shuttle Throwers for information. This group shares ongoing projects, mostly those woven on a harness loom. New members are welcome.

Rug Weavers Study Group meets periodically at members' homes. Contact Martha Stanley or Janette Gross for information.

Braiders Study Group meets once a month, usually the fourth Wednesday. All weavers of narrow ware, at any level of experience, are welcome. Contact Nora Rogers for Study Group information. New members are welcome.

Dyers Study Group meets periodically at members' homes. Contact Dyers for information.

Spinners, At present we do not have a spinning Study Group. We recommend Anne's Web which meets in Salinas monthly. Members meet the second Saturday of each month from 10am til 2pm at the Buena Vista Grange Hall, 518 River Road. Each meeting includes a pot luck lunch, a show-and-tell opportunity, any announcements anyone cares to make, and the rest of the time is spent doing whatever each member cares to do. There are no officers, and no rules, other than courtesy. Dues are $12 a year. Members receive a monthly newsletter and a roster. Visitors and newcomers are welcome. Contact: Gerry Wade, Newsletter Editor.
Directions: From Hwy 1 and Hwy 101, take Hwy 68 to Reservation/River Rd., Salinas. Turn east on River Rd., proceed 5 miles to old gray church on right, 518 River Rd.

If you wish a copy of our current Newsletter, contact our editor.

If you wish information about joining the Handweavers Guild, click on "Who We Are"

Weaving Supplies in Santa Cruz

Golden Fleece at 317 Potrero Street, Santa Cruz, 831-426-1425.

Mostly knitting yarns, but wonderful variety. The Swift Stitch , 402 Ingalls St. #12, Santa Cruz, 831-427-9276. 10% discount to Guild members.

Thank you Cruzio for sponsoring this web site.