Newsletter from the Rhode Island Weaving Center
Volume 6, April 2023

Terese Ridgeway Exhibit

The Rhode Island Weaving Center is honored to present the Retrospective Exhibit of Terese Ridgeway. Terese and her husband Hal settled in Chaplin, Connecticut and bought an 1820s farmhouse where Terese found a barn loom in the attic which started her weaving journey.  This retrospective exhibit of her work will showcase woven rugs, table linens, jackets, lampshades as well as woven tapestries and bound weave wall hangings. Her work can be found at the Homer Babbage Library at the University of Connecticut; at Saint Mary's Church in Westfield, Massachusetts; and at the University of Montana at Missoula.  She exhibited widely and won numerous awards.

Come be inspired by the amazing breadth of techniques of one weaver who tried everything and loved it all.

GRAND OPENING - SATURDAY MAY 6, 10AM - 2PM

GENERAL HOURS:

Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Saturdays 10-2PM

May 6 to June 10

Legislative Grants

Thank you to our state legislators for their support of the RIWC. We received legislative grants from Representative Carol McEntee and Senator Susan Sosnowski.

Our Late Spring Class Offerings

We have two classes beginning in the upcoming 6 weeks:

One-Week Beginning Weaving Class - Our one-week intensive Beginning Weaving Class will be offered this June (6/12-6/16). Have you ever wanted to learn to weave, but do not have the opportunity to take our 7-week or 14-week classes? This class is for you! In one week, Monday to Friday from 9-4PM, you will learn how to weave. Once you have learned the basics, there are so many directions that you can go!

Four-Week Rigid Heddle Weaving Class, Evening Offering - Learn to weave using a rigid heddle loom. You will make a scarf during the class. The class meets three hours each week for 4 weeks, Thursday evenings from 6-9PM, and you may take the loom home between classes to practice. This is a great way to learn the basics of weaving and is very popular today.

Made in Our Classes and the Studio!

Summer Workshops

We are busy organizing our summer workshops. With the New England Weaving Seminar in Worcester, MA in July, we will likely schedule our workshops for later this summer. Please keep an eye on our workshop page on the website for updated information!

Navajo Weaving Workshop

The Navajo Weaving Workshop filled to capacity (12 students) within 3 hours after the publication of our last newsletter! We are working on dates for a presentation and/or informal gathering to meet Lynda and see her work. More details to come.

The Navajo Weaving Workshop will be offered by Lynda Teller Pete. Lynda and her sister Barbara Teller Ornelas are award-winning fifth generation Navajo weavers. Together they have written 3 books and currently have a beautiful exhibit on display at the Bard Graduate Center in NYC. They have taught Navajo weaving workshops nationwide for the past 20 years. Lynda will be teaching a 3 1/2 day beginning Navajo weaving workshop in September (9/7-9/10) at the RIWC.

Our Studio

The RIWC has studio space where you can rent a loom for your personal use.  In addition to using our looms, you can weave with other weavers, sharing ideas and solving problems together. The space is bright and open as we expanded into the whole top floor of the Kenyon Building.

Our Library

Thanks to your donations and the help of several volunteers, the Library is ready for use.  If you would like to borrow a specific book or journal, please send us an email and we are happy to share it with you if we have it.

Donate to the RIWC

You can donate to the Rhode Island Weaving Center at any time - electronically using the DONATE button below, or send a check to:
The Rhode Island Weaving Center
344 Main Street, Suite 200
Wakefield, RI 02879

The Rhode Island Weaving Center is a 501(c)(3) organization and thus your donation may be tax deductible. We THANK YOU for your support.

Would you like to declutter your weaving space?

If so, we have a wish list! We are currently seeking these items for donation.

• 3/2 and 5/2 Mercerized Cotton Yarn

• Harrisville weaving yarn. End of cones are great

• 12/6 or 12/9 seine warp

• Swedish Bobbin Winder

• Tapestry bobbins

• 36” 8 shaft looms

• 24” 4 shaft Harrisville or Dorset looms

• A Handweaver’s Pattern Book - Marguerite Davison

• Handweaver’s Pattern Directory - Anne Dixon

• Tapestry Weaving - Kirsten Glasbrook

• Tapestry Weaving - Nancy Harvey

• The Art of Tapestry Weaving - Rebecca Mezoff

Please contact the RIWC if you can help. Thank You.

Please feel free to forward this newsletter to anyone who might be interested. We expect to send out newsletters every other month. If you would like to subscribe to this newsletter, please click here.

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