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HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Goderich Signal-Star, 1987-10-21, Page 72Communit J • Entertainment • Feature *Religion •Family .More SECTION soortommoso GODERICH SIGNAL -STAR, WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 21, 1987 4 ,, Despite having to look after her husband and three children, Goderich resident Cathy 'Dykstra manages to find time to work at her loom. Above, she displays' one of her favorite woven items -- a rag rug. (photos by Lou -Ann DeBruyn) From rag rugs to Christmas decorations A variety of spinning and. weaving designs available at annual BY LOU -ANN DE BRUYN Heddles, harnesses, peddles, warp. Do you think these words are related? To many of us, the natural answer would be 'no' but to a select group of individuals, the answer is a definite `yes'. You see, heddles, harnesses, peddles and warp all have something to do with a loom and a loom is used to weave items such as clothes, rugs, placemats, bags and table runners. Until I met Goderich residents Joanne Cicchini and Cathy Dykstra, I had no idea what a heddle or warp was. As for harnesses and peddles well ... harnesses brought images of horses to my mind and peddles I associated with bicycle peddles or a piano. Cicchini and Dykstra belong to the Huron Tract Spinners and Weavers Guild, a group of about 25 members from across Huron County who meet monthly from March through December to discuss the newest techniques in spinning and weaving and to plan their annual sale held in Benmiller. The Guild, established in 1978 by Goderich residents Evelyn Hardy and Ruth Knight, holds an annual sale and ex- hibition of spinning and weaving at The River Mill, Benmiller, each year. This year the sale is scheduled for .Saturday, November 7 (10 ail'''. - 5 p.m.) and Sunday, November 8 (11 a.m. - 3 p.m.). A wide variety of items, such as rag rugs, mug rugs, Christmas decorations, knitted clothing items and placemats, are available at the sale. INTERESTED IN WEAVING Dykstra, who moved to Goderich two years ago with husband Kim and three children, became interested in weaving three years ago. "My husband is a pastor and in his third year at the seminary, he had to go out into a vicarage. • In 1984 we went to Pickerel, Wisconsin, where the supervising pastor's wife had rag rugs which she had made.. She showed me how to make. them and I thought it was just great. One of the ladies in the church had a loom that she didn't use do rather than take the rug to the weaver, she showed me how to work it," Dykstra explained. She became so enthralled with learning how to use the loom that she ended up buy- ing it. "We got a truck, loaded the loom up and within a couple of .lays, I had two or three' rugs done." The loom went into storage when the Dykstra's moved into an apartment for Kim's final year of school but since mov- ing to Goderich, the loom has been taken out of storage and Cathy has been making new items whenever she can find the time. Dykstra learned about the Huron Tract Spinners and Weavers Guild from n a member of her husband's church and then contacted Cicchini, president of the Guild, who took her to her first meeting. "I needed something besides the church and mothering to keep me busy," she said. Dykstra concentrates on catalogne weaving (rag rug weaving )and makes not only rag rugs but also placemats, mug rugs, bags and Christmas decorations. Some of her work can be seen at The Tinker Shop on Hamilton Street as well as at the Benmiller sale. "I just specialize in this area mainly because the cost fits my budget," she said. PREPARATION TAKES TIME Preparing the loom for weaving and preparing the material to use in weaving' both take time whereas the actual weaving process can go by fairly quickly, according to Dykstra and Cicchini. Material for rag rugs does not have to be new, rather older, used material works better. "Drapes and bedspreads work best because they are large pieces of fabric. Old clothing ... wool coats make great rugs. Old bedding ... it's nice to work with natural fibres," Cicchini explained. Dykstra, who finds much of her material at garage sales or from friends, finds knit- ted material hard to work with. Once you have the material,"it has to be cut into strips whose width depends on the weight of the material. It also depends on what you are making as well, Dykstra noted. ( For example, heavier material is cut into thinner strips while material such as cotton is cut into wider 'strips, especially for rugs.) Dykstra also sews her strips together to avoid having to overlay them she begins weaving. "I sew fabric together to avoid bad luck," she said, explaining that most peo- ple just overlay their pieces but if the overlay isn't enough, the woven item may come apart when it is washed. Once she has the fabric ready, she is ready to prepare her loom. Setting up the loom takes time. It involves warping the string and putting each piece through a certain heddle which has a part' in deter- mining the pattern which will be created in sale and exhibition the woven item. Pushing on certain ped- dles in an established order also creates a pattern. Weavers can follow patterns set up in books or they can make their own. "Once you get into a pattern, it's just like walking," Cicchini noted. "You never know what the item is going to look like until you see it done. The uni- que thing with patterned fabricis you get a pattern that repeats itself in the weaving as well," Cicchini said. She spends a cou- ple of hours every day at her loom. Dykstra, on the other hand, weaves when she gets the chance. "I just can't sit down and Floit. I have a lot of interruptions with three kids." Both admit that being interested in the art of weaving does have its advantages, like being able to make something And having people interested n buying the' item. Dykstra sells items through The Tinker Shop, by word of mouth, through the pastor's circuit as well as through the Guild. "If you do crafts of any kind, you ap- preciate the work that goes into weaving," Cicchini said. If you are interested in learning more about the Huron Tract Spinners and Weavers Guild, members can be contacted at the sale. Demonstrations in spinning and weaving will also be given by members of the Huron Tract Spinners and Weavers Guild at the Sale and Exhibition of Spinning and Weaving on the weekend of November 7-8 in Benmiller. The Huron Tract Spinners and Weavers Guild will be holding their annual Sale and Exhibition November 7-8 at The River Mill, Benmiller. A variety of items will be available for sale, as pictured at left and above, and demonstrations will also be given. (photos by Lou -Ann DeBruynI Premier will not support free trade deal OMNI QUEEN'S PARK By Jack Riddell Member of Ontario Legislature For Huron Following discussions on the free trade agreement in Ottawa recently, Premier David Peterson said Ontario could not sup- port the deal. "I don't believe it's in our long term na- tional interest to go for this deal," said Mr. Peterson. "It just isn't good enough." Premier Peterson announced that a sub- committee of Ontario Cabinet Ministers is holding public hearings on the free trade agreement throughout the province. They began in Toronto on October 13. The Premier has asked me to sit on the commit- tee as Minister of Agriculture and Food. Premier Peterson said this initiative will put before the public the consequences of the draft Canada - US free trade agreement and will explain the reasons for Ontario's objections to the proposed pact. "The proposed free trade will significant- ly affect the future of all Ontarians," Mr. Peterson said. "We have said we would give people an opportunity to express their views. on this vital issue. Furthermore, we have an obligation to put forward our own views, and the reasons for our opposition. The people deserve a chance to assess the proposed agreement, and all of its consequences —.in- tended and unintended." The Cabinet Sub -committee on Free Trade is providing an open forum on the pro- posed deal. Individuals and organizations still have the opportunity to make written submissions or oral presentations to the ministers, Mr. Peterson said. The sub -committee, chaired by Industry, Trade and Technology Minister Monte Kwinter, also includes Greg Sorbara, Minister of Labor and Minister Responsible for Women's Issues, Energy Minister Bob: Wong, Culture and Communications Minister Lily Munro and Consumer and: Commercial Relations Minister Bill Wrye. Other Ministers will participate on an ad hoc basis. The sub -committee will report its findings by mid-December and the report will be tabled in the Legislature for full debate. Mr. Peterson also announced that a number of industry impact studies, previously prepared by the Ministry of In- dustry, Trade and Technology, will be reviewed and reassessed in the light of thei proposed free trade deal. They will be published and released as soon as possible. Mr. Peterson said the deal does not mee four of the six conditions necessary for On tario's approval which he set out during the recent election campaign. The six conditions are: protection of th. Auto Pact, an effective dispute-settlemen mechanism, protection of agriculture, con tinued screening of foreign investment, pr u `, tection of cultural industries, and the maintenance of regionalsubsidy programs. Mr. Peterson said the most serious con cern is the new hi -national tribunal set up a a final arbiter of trade disputes between th two countries. He said the tribunal does no provide a sufficient mechanism to avoid th protectionist trade laws of the US Congress. As well, removal of the Canadian tariffs from the Auto Pact, effectively takes away any enforcement that the pact's provisions are followed. The deal could hurtour auto parts business in the future, Premier Peter son said. Ontario's wine industry could be hurt and other potential losers could be the grain in- dustry. While red meat producers would, gain, on balance, the proposed deal is hard on agriculture. Premier Peterson also said opening up, Canada's investment market to the Americans is "a serious concern". Mr. Peterson said the Cabinet Su committee will give Ontario citizens the o portunity to put forward their views of th kind of couhtry we'll have in the dext five, 1 or 20 years from now, as a result of the pr posed free trade deal. Inspection is part of business SHIPWATCHER�� By Dick With If you have ever wondered what is in- volved when a ship is given its five-year in- spection, a recent item in the CSL newspaper "The World" should enlighten you. It describes the five-year Classification Society inspection, as it is officially called, of the ro-ro ( roll-on, roll -off) package freighter Woodland at CSL's drydock, Portship, in Thunder Bay. This 'vessel was launched in 1961 for CSL at Collingwood as the motor vessel French River. She is 381 feet long with a beam of 60 feet, shorter by more than 50 feet than other CSL package freighters of her day but a few feet wider. In 1981 CSL sold her and she was renam- ed Jenson Star. Last year she was given her present name by owners Woodlands Marine Inc. of Thunder Bay, of which she is the only vessel. At present, she is operated by Arvida Shipping Ltd., Mon- treal, and seems to he carrying cargoes for the major paper companies. On April 6, the Woodland entered the Portship drydock and inspection began on what are considered normal "five-year" parts of the ship: seacocks, seagrids, zinc anodes, draft marks, loadline, anchors, chains and freeboard marks. Other work was found necessary while the 26 -year-old vessel was 'high and dry. The underwater hull was sandblasted and given three coats of paint, the last an an- tifouling type. A hundred feet of her original bilge keel was replaced. Hose testing was carried out, watertight doors were checked and rewelding of shell butts and seams were completed as necessary. Turn to page 4 .