One fabulous weekend in September!

21 August 2015
Fibrefest Marks 20 Years

Mark the weekend of September 12th and 13th, 2015 on your calendars because you won’t want to miss the Mississippi Valley Textile Museum’s 20th annual Fibrefest. At two locations—the Museum and the Almonte Arena—visitors will find demonstrations, vendors, and exhibits—a full two-day festival of fibre arts! Local guilds will demonstrate spinning, knitting, weaving, rug hooking, lacemaking, smocking and quilting. Many guilds will be rising to the challenge of exhibiting special works celebrating 20 years of Fibrefest. Vendors include spinners, weavers, and fibre artists from across the province, as well as quilt shops and alpaca farms. “That’s My Style,” vintage clothing show and sale will include a large number of vintage clothing and jewelry dealers, allowing patrons to enjoy and purchase a huge variety of vintage fashions in one location.
The Friends of the Mississippi Valley Textile Museum will offer their popular tea room services, featuring homemade goodies, beverages and sandwiches at very reasonable prices.
While visiting the Museum, explore the permanent history exhibit “Fabric of a Small Town,” which interprets how a piece of wool becomes a piece of finished cloth and includes industrial machines used throughout the process.
Featured Artist Frank James Cripwell (1925-2014)
The Ottawa Valley Guild of Stitchery will present a special exhibit of amazing cross-stitched works by this talented artist. Cripwell and his wife Jill discovered counted cross-stitch while he was on assignment in The Hague and filled their walls with scenes and themes from Holland and Europe. Upon retirement they naturally took up stitching. Being a scientist, Jim attacked the problem of patterns and colours. Unsatisfied with simple patterns created by others, he created his own designs using scanned pictures and pattern-making software. His outstanding work was well-known across the country and this exhibit is not to be missed.
Don’t miss the Lamb Race!
At 4 pm on September 13th, hundreds of wooden lambs will be thrown over the main falls in downtown Almonte, and the owners of the first three lambs to reach the finish line will win fabulous prizes. Tickets for the race will be on sale at the Museum well ahead of the event.
Whether you are interested in art, history, clothing, or textiles or are just looking for a great day out and about, Fibrefest will have something for you.
Admission to Fibrefest is $5.00 per day, which includes access to all sites.

Kingston Fibre Artists Dazzle at the MVTM

On July 28 the exhibition Timeless Textiles opens at the Mississippi Valley Textile Museum. This stunning exhibit will take you on a journey through the collections of award-winning art created by the Kingston Fibre Artists Group. Formed in 1996 by Kingston area fibre artist, Hilary Scanlon, this 18 member group has exhibited in galleries across Ontario, and the MVTM is thrilled that they have chosen us to present a retrospective exhibition of their work. The artists will be present to share a ‘Walk and Talk’ with visitors after their opening vernissage and reception at the Museum on August 1, 2015.
Having amassed an inventory of dazzling art with fibre as their medium, the members of the group will share their favourite pieces from past shows, as well as an impressive collection of new work. A wide variety of talent in the membership means that their art covers a huge array of techniques, designs and personal styles. From painted fibre pieces with added airbrushed text by artist Wilma Kenny, to the stunning hand-embroidered and machine-stitched cityscapes and urban landscapes/hideaways created by Phillida Hargreaves, you are sure to find a piece that sparks your interest. Contemporary art created with hand-dyed and painted cloth is the foundation for works by Bethany Garner, while Frankie Lemonde shares the joy of designing with crochet and yarns in brilliant colour. Hilary Scanlon’s beautiful works include important pieces in the inventory of this renowned Ontario artist. Sylvia Naylor brings her well-known, machine stitched landscapes and new art assemblages to the show, and Robin Field shares pieces from her Pavement series—a stunning collection inspired by photos taken around the globe.
Artists Janet Elliott, Susan Farber, Sandra Garner, Mary Ev Wyatt, Christina Barnes, Margaret Morris, Hana Sramek and Elinor Rush, bring a myriad of their exciting designs using techniques ranging from handmade felt and chenille to woven ribbon and 8-inch squares made weekly over a year.
This stunning exhibition will delight and inspire. Don’t miss a chance to visit between July 28 and September 5, 2015 in the Norah Rosamond Hughes Gallery at the Mississippi Valley Textile Museum, 3 Rosamond St. in Almonte.

TWIST festival, the weekend of 22-23 August, its a great event! There are lots of workshops scheduled for Thursday and Friday - check it out!

http://www.festivaltwist.org/en/workshops-2015

Mark your Calendars!

http://mvtm.ca/mvtm/?page_id=2675

Mark the weekend of September 12th and 13th, 2015 on your calendars because you won’t want to miss the Mississippi Valley Textile Museum’s 20th annual Fibrefest. At two locations—the Museum and the Almonte Arena—visitors will find demonstrations, vendors, and exhibits—a full two-day festival of fibre arts! Local guilds will demonstrate spinning, knitting, weaving, rug hooking, lacemaking, smocking and quilting. Vendors include spinners, weavers, and fibre artists from across the province, as well as quilt shops and alpaca farms. “That’s My Style,” vintage clothing show and sale will have a large number of vintage clothing dealers, giving patrons the opportunity to enjoy and purchase a huge variety of vintage fashions in one location.

Crochet Summer Workshops with Lynda Forgues at the Mississippi Valley Textile Museum
Tunisian Entrelac Crochet~



Saturday, 4 July 2015
1:00 – 3:00 pm
$30.00
Instructor: Lynda Forgues

Know how to crochet the Tunisian Simple Stitch? Want to put it to good use? Then, why not learn the secrets of Tunisian Entrelac? Just like its knitted cousin, this entrelac technique is made of squares constructed tip to tip. That means very few yarn tails to weave in! (Yea!!!) Fill in the “triangles” around the edge to make it smooth or leave its natural zig-zag as is—your choice. Add a border. Or not. We’ll cover it all in the workshop!

Basic Tunisian Crochet skills required.

Please bring two or three colours of contrasting yarn—light colours are easiest to learn with—and appropriate-sized hook to class. (A Tunisian crochet hook is not required as there will be very few stitches to work at a time.)




Tunisian Crochet 101 ~
Saturday, 29 August 2015
1:00 – 3:00 pm
$45.00
Instructor: Lynda Forgues

Kinda like knitting with a very long crochet hook. Kinda. Tunisian Crochet (aka Afghan Crochet) is often described as a hybrid of knitting and crochet. But however you choose to describe it, it sure is fun! And relaxing. And unique.

Learn the basics of this unusual and increasingly popular technique as well as a few tips and tricks and you’ll be sure to mystify and delight the uninitiated with the beautifully distinctive results. (No doubt, you’ll enjoy them too!)

No previous crochet or knitting experience required although basic crochet would be advantageous.

All materials included in the cost.




Basic Crochet ~
Saturday, 11 & 18 July 2015
1:00 – 3:00 pm
$55.00
Instructor: Lynda Forgues

A two-week course designed for the beginner with no previous crochet experience or as a refresher for those whose hooks are a bit “rusty”. Learn all the basic stitches plus how to read a yarn label and choose an appropriate hook and yarn. Also covered will be how to start, finish, wash, and block your work. Several handouts and tips & tricks will be sprinkled throughout the journey.

No previous crochet experience required.

All materials included in the cost.

Building on the Basics ~
Saturday, 25 July & 1 August 2015
1:00 – 3:00 pm
$50.00
Instructor: Lynda Forgues

In these two sessions, learn to follow written instructions and diagrams (read a pattern), change colours, and crochet some stitch combinations and variations. Perhaps add a border or two.

Basic crochet skills required.

Please bring a light-coloured yarn and appropriate-sized hook to class.

Building Higher ~
Saturday, 8 & 15 August 2015
1:00 – 3:00 pm
$50.00
Instructor: Lynda Forgues

More stitches, more handouts, more edgings, more complicated patterns to read. Learn to crochet in the round (think hats, baskets, tablecloths, doilies, motifs, and medallions) and join motifs.

Instructor Bio ~ Lynda Forgues, also known as “The Snowflake Lady”, has been crocheting for more decades than she’d care to admit to—ever since, as a teenager, her mother passed on the skills learned in a crochet class at night school. From that point on Lynda was, as you might say, “hooked”.

For information on any of these workshops, please contact Lynda at 613.256.9381 or at lynda.forgues@gmail.com

To register for any of these workshops, please contact the Mississippi Valley Textile Museum at 613-256-3754 or info@mvtm.ca.

Easy Breezy Broomstick Lace Beach Bag Workshop at the Mississippi Valley Textile Museum

Easy Breezy Broomstick Lace Beach Bag
Tote your sunscreen, shades, and favourite paperback in style with this easy, breezy broomstick lace beach bag! (Try saying that 10 times, fast!!!)

Made of satiny-soft and oh-so-shimmery pima cotton, you may be tempted to keep it by your side all summer long to show it off (and to stroke it!). And, in case you’re curious … Yes, you do use a broomstick—or reasonable facsimile thereof—to make it.

Never made broomstick lace? Not to worry. All you need is rudimentary crochet skills (chain, single crochet, slip stitch) and you’ll catch on in no time.

Please bring approximately 220 yards of the yarn of your choice, a small amount of yarn in a contrasting colour for the drawstring/strap, and a crochet hook 1-1.5 sizes larger than you’d normally use for your choice of yarn. I’ll bring the broomstick!

(Sample is worked using 1 skein of Cascade Ultra Pima Cotton yarn and a 5.50 mm hook.)

Not interested in a beach bag? Use it for lunch. Or buy extra yarn and make a summer scarf instead. It’s up to you!

Registration: Please call the Museum at 613.256.3754 or email info@mvtm.ca by 17 June to register.

Questions? Lynda would be happy to help. Call her at 613.256.9381 or email her at lynda.forgues@gmail.com.

Saturday, 20 June 2015
1:00 – 3:00 pm
$35.00
Instructor: Lynda Forgues

Instructor Bio ~ Lynda Forgues, also known as “The Snowflake Lady”, has been crocheting for more decades than she’d care to admit to—ever since, as a teenager, her mother passed on the skills learned in a crochet class at night school. From that point on Lynda was, as you might say, “hooked”.


Our mailing address is:
Mississippi Valley Textile Museum · 3 Rosamond Street E. · Almonte, On K0A 1A0 · Canada

Fabric Sale at Textile Museum

Calling all quilters, crafters and seamstresses for an event that you won’t want to miss. On Saturday, June 6 the Friends of the Mississippi Valley Textile Museum are holding a fabric sale fundraiser. Fabric donations from countless sources will load the tables. Most pieces are measured and tagged, making it easy to sort through for your own fabulous fibre finds. Prices are unbeatable, and the selection is amazing. Come out, have fun and support the museum.



The sale runs from 10 am to 2 pm at the Mississippi Valley Textile Museum, 3 Rosamond St. in Almonte. For more information call 613 256-3754.