Waterford Weavers Guild

Founded in 1973 in Waterford for the purpose of sharing and teaching fiber arts such as weaving, spinning and dyeing, the Waterford Weavers Guild includes a roster of 40 active members with skills ranging from beginner to master weaver. Other members are experts in the arts of knitting, crocheting, tatting and felting. Items produced run the gamut from hats, ponchos, jackets, scarves, towels, blankets and table linens to wall hangings, tapestries, ties, tartans, baskets and bell pulls. The enormous success of the Guild has inspired its members to design and produce ever more delightful and original items each year.

Demonstrating the use of a spinning wheel at the Waerford Fair

The Waterford Homes Tour & Crafts Exhibit, more familiarly known as the Waterford Fair, is the primary event celebrated by the Guild each year. Presented by The Waterford Foundation the first weekend in October in the quaint, 18th-century community of Waterford, the fair attracts about 10,000 daily visitors. The emphasis at the fair is on the quality of the crafters.

The Guild has been an active participant at the Waterford fair for over 30 years. All Guild members don period clothing as they deliver captivating demonstrations in the crafts of weaving, spinning and dyeing. They offer a cornucopia of one-of-a-kind, kaleidoscopic items for sale, some made of handspun yarns in radiant shades.

In keeping with the Guild founders' original intent to share knowledge, the Guild presents two $500 grants annually, from earned profits made at the Waterford fair. The grants, which support programs in Loudoun and Fairfax County public schools, are awarded to teachers who present winning proposals for educational programs in fiber arts. Upon special request, the Guild also supports local elementary schools by giving private weaving demonstrations.

There is always more to learn as a weaver, and because of the ravenous appetite for growth within the art, the Guild also holds workshops throughout the year to enhance member skills. These workshops, arranged by Guild vice-president Colleen Madigan, are also open to the public if space allows. A schedule of these workshops can be found at the Mid-Atlantic Fiber Association Web site, www.mafafiber.org. Of particular interest is the dyeing workshop, where members are taught how to paint warps and can learn such specialties as indigo dyeing. Mini-workshops are also offered each month during the regular Guild meetings.

As the Guild celebrates its 33rd year, the members are grateful for the friendships they have created, the children and adults they have taught and the ageless craft of weaving. This unusual group of artisans seems to live by the creed that if you begin to weave, God will give you the thread.

In addition to participating in this fall's Waterford fair, Guild members will have a presence at the Potomac Celtic Festival, at Morven Park in Leesburg. Visitors will be able to study the weavers at work as they magically coerce yarn and dyes into fabrics of varying tex­tures.

Press to enlarge

Waterford Weavers 2005

This article was written by Lillis Werder for Elan magazine

Contact Us

or
write us at:
    Waterford Weavers Guild
    PO Box 111
    Waterford, VA 20197