02/20/2024
Please join us for our meeting this coming Sunday, February 25. This month’s meeting will be a hybrid, meaning that it will be in-person as well as on Zoom. If you are member of the guild, the link will be sent to you prior to the meeting. If you are not a member but would like to check us out, please drop an email request to spindlesandflyers(at)gmail.com and the link will be provided on a one-time basis. But coming in person is way more fun so please join us face-to-face if you can!
The meeting usually runs from 11:00am to 3:00pm, with doors opening at about 10:30am to allow visiting and settling in. The business meeting begins at 11:00am, followed by Show and Tell and lunch, which may overlap.
The meeting will be held at The Finnish Hall at 1970 Chestnut Street in Berkeley. We are in the Ski Club Room. If you stand on the sidewalk on Chestnut Street facing the building, walk along its right side and the door to the room is the last one. There are 3 or 4 stairs going down into the space. The Hall is near the North Berkeley BART station, is in a neighborhood with limited street parking, and has bathrooms.
Bring some lunch (there are very few food purveyors in the immediate area), your show and tell project(s), a mug for tea (we have a water kettle and selection of teas) and a quiet hand project. That last is important toavoid the Zoom mic not defaulting to a squeaky spinning wheel or a side conversation during the presentation!
This month our speakers, Emily Robinson and Sarah Keiser, will be presenting a program on their new initiative, Grazed and Woven, which they explain thusly:
“Our fiber comes from Sonoma County Community Grazing Cooperatives. The wool provides income and supports the cooperative’s long term success. Led by Sarah Keiser of Wild Oat Hollow, Community Grazing Cooperatives are a method for rural residents, ranchers and public land managers to empower themselves in their own land stewardship while building community resiliency. The shared grazing sheep support the reduction of dangerous wildfire fuel loads and help develop healthy fire ecosystems, all while strengthening relationships.
Weaving
We provide opportunities for creative work that is flexible and accommodating. Weaving is a meditative and soothing art that not only creates a beautiful result, but also provides a tangible
connection to the land and animals that grow the fiber. The artisans behind Grazed & Woven are supported by Emily Robinson in learning new skills and exploring their creativity with wool as the medium. By providing looms and training to budding artisans, Grazed & Woven products come to life.
Grazed and Woven Products
We are committed to creating products that fairly support the creators at each step of production. With our use of entirely ethically-raised, local wools and natural dyes, our products are created with materials that don't pollute land, air, or waterways.”
Emily Robinson is a fiber artist and educator who lives and works in Sebastopol, CA. She is currently teaching classes, building small batch fiber tools, providing clothing repair services at local venues, and developing a fiber arts accessibility device called the Knitter's Helping Hand. You can find out more about Emily’s work here: https://emilyrobinsonfiberarts.com. She is on instagram at whateveremilyisdoing.
Sarah Keiser is a community organizer and grazing advocate, combining grazing ruminants and her experience to do regenerative land stewardship & vegetation management in Sonoma County, CA. She is an innovative community builder facilitating the development of community grazing cooperatives and collaborative land stewardship projects through her consulting service, The Holistic Herder. You can see more of her work at wildoathollow.com.
Please join us for what promises to be a most interesting and enjoyable presentation.
