The Goderich Signal-Star, 1984-10-31, Page 3suis FEATURE isgiailiaRsiawiagosa
Goderich woman finds ideal job with
spinning and weaving publication
13Y JOANNE BUCHANAN
Not many people are lucky enough to find
a job which combines both their work skills
and the love of a specific craft. But Joanne
Cicchini of Godecich has found that ideal
combination in the title of production co-
ordinator for Heddle, a Signal -Star publica-
tion for spinners and weavers.
For Joanne, who only moved to Goderich
in July of 1983, it was just a matter of being
in the right place at the right time. A novice
weaver for nine years, she had joined the
Huron Tract Spinners and Weavers Guild in
the fall after moving to town. When Signal -
Star contacted the Guild early this year
looking for a person with both a knowledge
of weaving and secretarial skills for their
new publication, Joanne fit the bill perfect-
ly.
Ever since she was a small child, Joanne
has been interested in crafts of all types. She
remembers being amazed at the things her
paternal grandmother could do—knit, sew,
preserve—she wanted to learn all those
things too. She got a little sewing machine
when she was six years old and soon learned
the basics of that craft. Later, she taught
herself to knit. While her classmates in
home economics were all making small
knitted squares, the first project she tackled
was a sweater with a poodle pattern on it.
But mastering the crafts of knitting, sew-
ing, crocheting and embroidering weren't
enough for Joanne. Nine years ago, she won
some money through a radio contest and
decided to use her windfall to purchase a 36 -
inch rising shed floor loom and take a begin-
ner's course in weaving. The first course she
took at Fanshawe College confused her with
too much knowledge.
"We learned basic to advanced weaving
in a ten week course. It was just too much.
You couldn't concentrate on the basic
weaves," she explains.
Another course she took while living in
British Columbia was more helpful because
it concentrated on just the basics. She had
taken this course through the Victoria Guild
of Spinners and Weavers of which she had
become a member—one of 280 members.
After Joanne's son Taylor was born, she
found herself busy with the priorities of be-
ing a mother and didn't concentrate on
weaving too much. Now that her son is
eight, she finds she has more time to devote
to weaving again. And landing -the job on
Heddle has really inspired her to learn even
more about her craft.
When Joanne talks about Heddle, she can
barely contain her enthusiasm. "It's ex-
citing being involved in the birth of a new
magazine. It's growing fast and furious and
we've received so much support from spin-
ners and weavers all across Canada," she
says.
Heddle is the only publication for spinners
and weavers in this country. There are
many such American publications available
but a survey revealed that a Canadian
publication was much needed because of
hassles involving duty; customs and post of-
fice delays for those subscribing to publica-
tions and responding to advertising outside
the country.
The proto-type of Heddle came out in
November of 1983 and the response to it was
overwhelming. At long last, spinners and
weavers were being linked from east to west
instead of from just north to south. Joanne
was hired in May of 1984 to help handle the
ecstatic response. Although her job is only
part-time, she handles the duties of
answering huge piles of correspondence,
following up leads for stories and new
advertising business, editing copy and
pasting up each edition. Through Heddle, '
she is also in the unique position of acting as
a contact for fibre artists in outlying areas
•
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Jo\anne Cicchini sets up her loom by putting threads through the reeds and then through dn.
heddles. This is done in a certain order, depending on one',s pattern. Joanne sill participate
in the Huron Tract Spinners and Weavers Guild Sale and Exhibition tn be held at tlic i% 4.r
NW in Remitter on Nov ember 3 and 4. i Photo 1) Joanne Buchanan
"It's exciting being involved in the birth of a new magazine. It's growing
fast and furious and we've received so much support from spinners and
weavers all across Canada."
of the country. People who are too isolated
to belong to a Guild or have contact with
other spinners and weavers, can keep in
touch through Heddle and Joanne is their
communications link.
At present, Heddle is in newspaper format
and comes out four times a year. It features
patterns and craft ideas, stoires on spinners
and weavers, letters to the editor and names
of suppliers. It also has an advisory board
consisting of experts from all across
Canada.
As well as her duties on Heddle, Joanne is
secretary for the Huron Tract Spinners and
Weavers Guild. But with all this secretarial
work attached to her craft, she has not lost
sight of the actual craft itself. She will par-
ticipate in the Guild's annual Sale and Ex-
hibition to be held November 3 and 4 at the
River Mill in Benmiller. Each member of
the 28 -member Guild is expected to have at
least three items for sale at this event.
Joanne has already made a plant hanger us-
ing a bicycle wheel and an off -loom weaving
technique and she hopes to have some
woven rugs for sale as well.
At present, Joanne considers herself a
functional weaver. She likes making
clothing as well as practical items for the
home like towells, bathmats,. rugs and
placemats.
If she wanted to, Joanpe says she could
keep learning about the art of wealth -1g the
rest of her life because there are always new
techniques and areas of specialization.
However, she is also interested in learning
about spinning and maybe even pottery
making. She says that colleges are offering
more courses and workshops for craftsmen
these days and she is interested in getting a
Fine Arts degree in textiles sometime in the
future.
For now, she enjoys being a member of
the Huron Guild where she learns new ideas
from other members. And she continues to
be excited about her job with Heddle. The
publication's future is filled with promise as
more and more people take up the hobbies of
spinning and weaving with the same en-
thusiasm Joanne has.
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