Sunday, July 24, 2011

Notes from June Meeting ...

The Hoosier Hills Rug Hooking Guild met at the Carnegie Public Library in Washington, Indiana, Saturday, June 11. Twelve members were present.

Of course the first topic of discussion during the business meeting was the Wool Fiber Arts Fair which was just held in May. The food vending, which the guild handled for the first time themselves, was a great addition to the Fair and Julia B. was especially honored for the job she did organizing it and working there, too, along with her sister. This was done on short notice, so great job Julia!

The vendor discussion dealt mainly with the four no-shows. Three of the four called with reasons for not coming, but one vendor did not even notify the vendor coordinator.

In the welcome & registration table area, Chrystal stated that most people signed in upon arrival and that 164 people signed up this year as opposed to 135 in 2010. This does not include guild members and most vendors. The door prize of a Curry handmade oak basket with a hooked mat by Judy Foster was won by Laura Lathrop.


In the classroom, everyone liked the way the building was set up and appreciated the classes being by windows where there was lots of good light. Eleven people were in the beginning rug hooking class which was taught by Guild members. In the afternoon needle punch class, taught by Stitches from the Heart, there were eight registrants. The SFTH vendors stated that they want to come back next year and that they have had follow-up customers in their shop since the Fair.

Our Guild market place booth was in a good location and members were well satisfied with the sales. They also thought the way the rugs were displayed this year was great.

On the negative side, advertising this year was a little slack and there was discussion on ways to improve this important area next year. It was definitely decided to advertise in the Country Register (which we have done in the past) and to put the bookmark ads out beginning the first of April. Other means of advertising discussed included Indiana Welcome Centers and on a local Christian radio station. The post card ads sent to registrants who give their address is working well, and of course word of mouth is important.

The raffle rug was won by a Guild member, Betty M., and we did well financially on the ticket sales. This is an important area because it generates almost all of our money to cover the expenses of the Fair!

In new business, the raffle rug for 2012 Wool Fiber Arts Fair has been started and it is called George's Cabin. It is a log cabin design with red "fire lights" in each square. All members are encouraged to work a little on this rug. The color families to be used will be browns, blues and greens, with a light side and a dark side to each square.

The Guild will have a basket making class sometime in the future and this will be discussed again at the July meeting. Shirley Casebolt will be the teacher.

After the business meeting was adjourned, a social time was enjoyed by everyone present.