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  • TGSW September meeting
    19:00 -21:00
    2021/09/08

    A Virtual Tour of Wellington Fibres, with owner Donna Hancock

    Donna grew up on a beef and dairy farm near Oshawa. After graduating from the University of Guelph with a BSc. Agr., she started working in the Department of Plant Agriculture as a forage research technician and still does today. In 1989, she purchased a small farm, starting with a flock of six Angora goats which soon grew to 50. This led to sending mohair out for processing into yarn and dyeing it upon return, then selling the yarn. She attended the spinning certificate program offered by the Ontario Handweavers and Spinners and graduated in 2000.

    In 1997 Donna married Lorne Thomson and they decided to expand the business of Wellington Fibres. In 2006 they opened up a mill with the intent to process their own mohair and do some custom processing on the side. Soon the demand for custom processing grew to more than a side business. They now process fibre from all across Canada, from Nova Scotia to BC. In 2012, Lorne died from cancer and Donna decided to continue with the business. She has three great employees that have allowed her to continue with her work at the university four days a week and one day to focus on Wellington Fibres. Soon she will be retiring to Wellington Fibres fulltime.

    We look forward to Donna’s virtual tour of the goats and the mill at Wellington Fibres.

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REGULAR MEETINGS

MONTHLY GUILD MEETINGS Beginning April 2023 we will resume holding  in-person meetings at Riverdale Farm. We will continue to hold some meetings virtually. Our Member’s Meetings are held from September-June, with a break for the summer. Check out the Calendar for up-to-date information.
If you are interested in spinning or weaving, you are welcome to join us as a guest at one of our monthly meetings.
When: 2nd Wednesday of the month, 7:30 – 9:00 pm for in-person meetings; 7:00 – 8:30 pm for virtual meetings
Where: In-person meetings are held in the Meeting House at Riverdale Farm- come in the gate and keep going past the sheep.

TEXTILE/SPINNING DROP-IN 
Guild members join Riverdale Farm staff to host textile drop-ins at the Farm once a week in the afternoons. All are welcome to watch, chat, learn, or bring a project to work on– it’s totally free! Occasionally we have themes, such as a regular Spinning Clinic. At some of the drop-ins, the Farm provides some equipment, including Lendrum spinning wheels, for visitors to use. If you want to take your yarn home, bring a Lendrum bobbin. Equipment is not available to borrow at all drop-ins.
When: Summer 2023: Tuesday afternoons, 1 – 3 pm (through September 2023) at the Simpson House Porch.
Where: Riverdale Farm, 201 Winchester St., Toronto, M4X 1B8

IN THE COMMUNITY

The Guild generally participates in the following Riverdale Farm events , demonstrating fibre processing, spinning, weaving, and other textile skills to the public. After a hiatus during the pandemic, we look forward to resuming these events this Spring.

FAMILY DAY
Riverdale Farm is a great place to spend Family Day, with lots of fun activities taking place, including weaving and spinning demonstrations and activities that the whole family can enjoy.

SHEEP CELEBRATION
Riverdale Farm opens its doors with the farm’s popular Spring Festival at which Guild members use the fleece shorn from the farm sheep to demonstrate the skills needed to wash the wool, prepare it for spinning, make yarn, dye it, and weave it into cloth. Come and watch the process, from sheep shearing on!

FALL FESTIVALS
See the Guild in action on the second weekend in September at the Riverdale Farm Fall Festival, and at the Cabbagetown Festival too!

More information on Riverdale Farm.