A Problem

I attended my EGA chapter meeting today and we had our Region Director as a guest. She just came back from a National Board Meeting in KY and had several things to discuss. The primary problem EGA (The Embroiderer's Guild of America, Inc.) as well as other stitching guilds - ANG, among others seems to have is an aging and declining membership. We all want to know where are the younger stitchers? Why aren't they joining the guilds? When I joined my chapter, the membership was around 130 members and there were waiting lists for Workshop Classes. Today, our membership has dwindled to 28 by last count and Workshops and Professional Teachers are a thing of the past, mostly due to the fact that related expenses shared by so few members become quite costly per person.

I know there is so much here on the internet...teachers, patterns, forums, blogs and message boards for communicating ideas, but there is one huge thing that is missing! The actual face to face interaction available at a guild meeting. I can look at what Jane of Chilly Hollow or Anne from the Cape, or Coni in IN is stitching, and comment on it, but I am really only seeing an image of the piece. When you actually attend a meeting, and have the show and tell of other stitchers, it is the real deal you are seeing, and oftentimes, the colors and intricasies of the stitching are even more awe inspiring in person.

Those of you who are relatively near a chapter...EGA, ANG, FCT, or any other stitching group, try attending a meeting and see what I mean. All these organizations depend on their members and they need YOU!
Off my Soapbox for now!
Grandma

Home from Seminar

And what a fabulous Seminar week it was! Louisville is lovely, altho it was very hot. I took two classes...a one day class in beginning Rozashi and a two-day canvas and stump work design.

Rozashi is kind of like bargello in that it is composed of vertical stitches, but that is where the likeness ends. The art form gets its name from two Japanese words..."ro" is the silk fabric ground and "zashi" means stitches. The ro is strong yet delicate at the same time and the stitches are done with silk and metal threads. Margaret Kinsey, my instructor, is almost a master of the art and is one of the only people authorized to teach traditional Rozashi in the US.

On Monday and Tuesday I took a class from Lois Kershner. It is a canvas piece (on congress cloth) that has many different canvas stitches including french knots which I learned how to do easily (and no longer have to use beads instead of the knots) and which I actually enjoy doing now - thank ou Lois. The main reason I took this class is that it also includes some stump work (raised embroidery) which I also wanted to learn how to do. The stump work section is a small bunch of grapes - not intimidating at all. Again, thank you Lois.

Wednesday was a day of rest culminating with a paddle wheel boat ride on the Ohio River. The only problem with is was the excessive heat and humidity! Whew!

Thursday and Friday I saved for "consultation class" or studio time where you work on your own pieces with occasional help from a teacher -- In this case it was Marion Scoular, a lovely lady and teacher! In this class I spent the time trying to complete

a project for my eldest granddaughter -- and it is nearly done! I DO INTEND to have it for her tenth birthday next month!

I signed up at preregistration to attend next year's Seminar in Pittsburgh. This time tho I will get my hotel reservations early so there is no chance of having to stay at an "overflow" hotel that might be 6 or 7 blocks away from the main hotel and classroom facility. This year the main hotel (The Hyatt) sold out before regular registration was open...as a result I had to stay at The Brown Hotel which was nice, but 6-7 blocks away and a pain when it was raining Friday morning or after the banquets and auction in the evenings after dark!

I rested yesterday after my drive home but today I had better get to the needle so I can keep my promises as a grandma!

Time to pack up for the National EGA Seminar in Louisville, KY.

The stitching stuff is just about ready, but what about clothes? Well for starters, it will be 90+ degrees in Louisville this weekend and my hotel is about six or seven blocks away from both the official Seminar hotel and the Ky. Conv. Center where my classes and the banquets, receptions, etc are being held....do I go back and forth, or do I bring a change of clothes or what?

And what about the fact that I've gained some weight again this summer - dh and his bread maker! and practically nothing that I planned to wear still fits!

As Charlie Brown says...."AAAGGGGHHHH!

Oh well, better suck it up and throw some things in the suitcase if I want to leave by tomorrow. I know that Seminar will be a blast no matter what I wear, and no one will pay any attention to my wardrobe anyway.

Off to Louisville!

Grandma