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Holiday shopping made easy with Whonnock Weavers show and sale

The 40th annual event will feature, knitted, woven, felted, and basketry items
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The Whonnock Weavers and Spinners Guild will be holding their 40th annual Juried Exhibit and Sale on Saturday Nov. 27. (Whonnock Weavers and Spinners Guild/Special to The News)

Those hoping to find the perfect gift for a person on their holiday wish list can look no farther.

The Whonnock Weavers and Spinners Guild will be holding their 40th annual Juried Exhibit and Sale at the end of November – back after a one year hiatus because of the COVID-19 pandemic.

In the past the juried exhibit and sale would see more than 300 people come through the doors.

This year, though, the event has been changed somewhat to abide by ongoing provincial health restrictions.

The show and sale will be held at St. John the Devine this year instead of at the Whonnock Lake Centre – one reason being they can have a separate entry and exit for guests. And people are being encouraged to pre-book their free entry tickets online, although they will still be available for purchase at the door.

Guild member Gloria Stanley expects that when the room reaches capacity, they will have to hold people back. But, she said, they just don’t know how many people are going to show up.

However, Stanley noted, so far 265 tickets have already been pre-booked.

“People are anxious to come back,” she said.

Guests at the show will be able to purchase skeins of hand-spun yarn, woven items ranging from clothing to blankets and housewares like place mats and napkins. There will also be knitted items and felted items and basketry.

Stanley herself has submitted her basketry items, made from locally collected vines like morning glory or branches of wisteria, to be juried for the show.

“So, a lot of invasive plants,” chuckled Stanley, adding that when out for drives with her husband she often finds herself yelling stop the car so she can get out and collect more materials for her work.

She always carries “snippers” in the car, she remarked.

Stanley also knits and will also be submitting her kitted pieces made from hand-spun wool she made herself.

There will also be items for sale like handmade jewellery and note-cards.

READ MORE: Whonnock Lake backdrop for highly anticipated fibre arts show and sale in 2019

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This year there will be no guest artists at the show, all entries will be made by the more than 30 members of the guild.

“Not everybody submits work. But a lot do,” said Stanley.

The event is always well-attended, added Stanley, with people coming from all over the province and Vancouver Island.

The Whonnock Weavers and Spinners Guild Juried Exhibit and Sale takes place from 10-5 p.m. on Saturday, Nov. 27, at St. John the Devine Church Hall, 21299 River Road in Maple Ridge.

Free tickets are available ticketleap.com.

Masks, proof of vaccination, photo identification, and a ticket is required for entry.

Whonnock Weavers and Spinners Guild was formed in 1974 and has a long tradition of encouraging a renewed interest in the age old crafts of weaving and spinning. However the guild is open to all fibre artists and those interested in fibre arts – like felters, knitters, basket makers, and dyers – to join their group.

They meet from September to June at St. John the Divine Anglican Church in Maple Ridge

For more information on the guild go to wwsg.ca.


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Colleen Flanagan

About the Author: Colleen Flanagan

I got my start with Black Press Media in 2003 as a photojournalist.
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