SHERIDAN — Georgiann Lee counted the women as they arrived at the Big Horn Woman's Club Tuesday morning. She assigned them each a number, one through 23, and placed the gifts they brought beneath the Christmas tree.
It was time for the Sheridan County Creative Fiber Guild’s annual gift exchange. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, it was the first exchange the women of the guild have hosted since 2019.
A nonprofit organization dedicated to promoting the fiber arts, the Creative Fiber Guild began in the late 1960s when five Sheridan County women gathered to learn fiber arts, Lee said, who is currently guild president. First, the women wanted to learn to spin. Then to dye wool. And then to knit, weave and quilt.
As the five founding members invited their friends to join, the group amassed new members and, in 1975, officially incorporated into a guild, Lee said. Lee’s mother, Victoria Bales, was among the first five organizers of the group.
Today, the guild boasts 140 active members — including Bales, the last living member of its original five founders. They meet each Tuesday, from 10 a.m. to 12 p.m.
The women spend about the first half of their meetings working on projects. Knitting needles, crochet hooks, pairs of scissors, half-stitched quilts and skeins and skeins of yarn emerge from bags at the beginning of the meeting, and the women set to work.
“Anything to do with fiber,” Lee said, “one of us has done it and can probably show you how to do it.”
The women swap stories and artistic advice, sometimes even helping each other learn new forms of fiber art. Those whose fiber artform isn’t movable — like Lisa Charles, who creates hyper-realistic thread paintings on a sewing machine — come to enjoy the conversation and socialize with a group of like-minded folks.
Most members have two to three fiber arts specialties. As she embroidered a festive table runner at Tuesday’s meeting, Linda Hall explained she’s tried cross-stitch, crochet, knitting, leatherwork, needlepoint, embroidery and machine sewing among other types of fiber arts. Hall said she comes to the meetings for fellowship, tips and inspiration for her next project, whichever type of fiber art it may be. Lee, too, is a professional-level knitter and crocheter, but she said there’s very few fiber arts she hasn’t tried.
For a few members of the guild, fiber arts crafting is also their day job. Janet Hoxie, one member of the guild, sells yarn at The Fiber House in Sheridan and knits, sews, quilts and needle felts in her off hours. After adding stitches to a pair of knitted baby booties, Hoxie explained her love for the fiber arts began when she was four years old and wanted to embellish a red sweater. The guild, which Hoxie has been a member of for 25 years, offers a community for thread-enthusiasts across the county.
During the second half of their meetings, the women gather to eat a salad lunch. Back when the guild met at people’s houses, the hostess, Lee explained, was supposed to provide the lettuce and salad dressing while her guests brought toppings. These days, members still bring items to contribute to the salad potluck and stock a card table with desserts.
At Tuesday’s meeting, however, the guild gift exchange added festive surprises. Organizers passed out gifts, and guild members carefully unwrapped them, making sure to salvage the wrapping.
Many members of the guild, Lee said, use the gift exchange as an opportunity to give away their wares to others in the group. As the women unwrapped their gifts, knitted hats, embroidered tea towels, hand-crafted napkins and table runners, homemade jams and butters and Christmas ornaments of all kinds emerged from boxes and bags. Choruses of thank-yous resounded in the room.
“This community,” Hoxie said, beckoning to the women around her, “is what makes this a great place.”
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Creative Fiber Guild meets for annual gift exchange - The Sheridan Press
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