In our Studio

Members and visitors

 

 

 

Open Studio Times

"Open Studio"   describes times when we ensure we have some members available to answer questions.

You will see Guild members working on a variety of personal projects and sharing knowledge, information and encouragement.  We welcome visitors during these times.  We are happy to share our enthusiasm for fibre creations and provide information about our Guild, workshops and membership benefits.

Confirm times by checking our calendar.

Generally, we have Open Studio on Thursdays (between 10am and 2 pm).  We are also offering Open Studio on some Sunday afternoons (when there is no workshop scheduled) - see our calendar to confirm

When there are workshops or study groups taking place, we ask that you plan your visit for another time.

What is happening in our studio?

our sample dye garden

At the front entrance to the Tett Centre we have some perennials, and we also plant some annuals (often grown from seed). Thanks to the soil, sun, rain (with the help of many buckets of water!) and the pollinators we share a bright and colourful welcome to our creative spaces.

 

KHWS members use these plants (along with others foraged from home gardens and wild spaces for dyeing and botanical printing.

 

 

Recently some members experimented with using soya milk as a mordant to sye cotton and locally sourced Lincoln wool.  Other members used alum and cream of tartar.

 

What is happening beyond our studio?

We enjoyed meeting many curious visitors at Grass Creek Park as part of the annual  Kingston Sheep Dog Trials.  We will be back next year!  Two shawls were completed, judged and auctioned.  One shawl is staying in the Kingston area, the other is headed to Arizona (where the evenings are cool)!

Our Threads of History Online Exhibition is now available

 

 

 

 

 

KHWS is pleased to announce the launch of its virtual Threads of History display.

Generously supported by a grant from the City of Kingston Heritage Fund, the Threads of History project brings together oral
histories, objects, and images to tell the story of KHWS, from its founding in 1948 to the present.

Interviews with twenty KHWS members were conducted by two graduate student research
assistants from Queen’s University during the summer of 2021, using a variety of technologies
to accommodate Covid-19 safety measures. The resulting interviews were paired with images of
fibres and friendships forged—gleaned from the Guild’s archives as well as members’
collections—to create five digital exhibitions. These exhibitions explore the formation and early
days of the Guild, KHWS’s involvement with the Kingston community, its commitment to fibre
arts education and its social importance, as well as the personal stories of the Guild’s members.

Together, they highlight the continued importance of the fibre arts to individuals and the
Kingston community, and the deep connections between KHWS’s members.