1st and 3rd Thursdays (September to June)
We have two meeting options:
Day Group: 10:00 am to 4 pm; Evening Group: 7 to 9:30 pm
Blythwood Baptist Church
80 Blythwood Road, Toronto, ON M4N 1A4
See the location on Google Maps
www.tgsweb.ca/
tgspresident@tgsweb.ca
Report – April 2026
submitted by Audrey Chaput, ONN Rep
This very long snowy winter season has been a busy one with both regular TGS and 50th Anniversary Celebration activities.
The first meeting of the month includes an activity created by the Programme Committee such as a guest speaker or a workshop where we can learn a new stitch or two. In January members made small silk ribbon embroidery brooches. In March we learned how to do canvas pattern darning. But in February, members were given excellent insight into the Embroidery Association of Canada’s annual Seminar where several of our members are instructors. Toronto Guild of Stitchery membership includes EAC membership. Although the trip to Seminar is expensive, many of us agree that it is a great way to learn new techniques from excellent instructors, to pique new interests and meet / make new friends across Canada. Some members shared their finished seminar projects which were quite inspiring.
Stitch in Pub: January 10th: We had a great turn out in January at the Duke of York Pub in the Annex! Casual pub fare, perhaps a pint followed by time to stitch. What good way to spend a wintery Saturday.
Annual Stitch Day and Stash Sale: February 21st.
Once a year, members cull their stashes of unfinished, not started, or not going to be used stitching kits and supplies to donate them to TGS’ Annual Stash Sale. Many TGS members volunteer setting up for the sale, greeting guests, floating, managing the cash desk, cleaning up, and directing groups from the stitching room to the sale room. Entry in The Viewer’s Choice Award is offered to all members. They can enter one or more completed pieces that they had purchased at a previous Stash Sale.
This year’s winner is Iris Weverman for her entry: Teatime
Not only is Stitch Day and Stash Sale a much-anticipated fun-filled day, it is also a great fundraiser!
In February, one of our members, Lorna Anderson, presented TGS’s Historical Embroidery panel which was started in 1977 and was completed and presented to the City of Toronto in March 1984. The project was designed by Barbara Gordon, an Ontario College of Art student. Over 140 stitchers took 11,000hrs to complete a 24 foot long, 6 feet high panel frieze depicting the history and growth of Toronto.
We were lucky to have Catherine Duncan, one of the stitchers who participated in creating the piece, join our daytime meeting. If you have not seen it, it is located in the basement at Toronto City Hall.
View more photos here: https://www.flickr.com/photos/7482479@N02/48932757773/in/photostream/
Iryna Varabei, a TGS member originally from Belarus, shared with us her piece that illustrates a story about a poem: The Song of the Zubr that dates back to 1522. Iryna stated that the Zubr is Belarusan name for an animal like American bison, but quite bigger. It has been preserved only in Belarus. She included in her design the solar signs of ancestors and male valor at the left upper corner.
Kinga Senzi shared with us a very meaningful Hungarian Linen embroidery piece from Kalocsa, Hungary. Her parents purchased it for her when she was a teenager. The fabric isn’t easily found today. Kinga said she learned how to do the embroidery on her own. She is using perle cotton.
TGS continues to celebrate 50 years with Speaker and Stitch-in Days:
In January, Katy Emck, Founding Director of Fine Cell Work in the United Kingdom joined us via Zoom for a presentation.
Katie shared how this charity and social enterprise sends volunteers into prisons to provide rehabilitation opportunities by teaching inmates how to embroider. They are transforming the lives of prisoners one stitch at a time.
We heard how so many prisoners have experienced marginalization throughout their lives that puts them in a vicious cycle of reoffending. To break the cycle, the charity provides support by training and paying the prisoners to create beautiful needlework pieces for sale. This creates the opportunity for professional employment and money earned and saved to allow the inmates the dignity and self belief to become a productive and crime free member of society upon release.
Prisoners create exquisite hand made products for sale and are paid for their pieces. Many luxury pieces are custom designed and commissioned. The prisoners benefit from gaining the belief that their lives can be different.
Their website states “Our unique process boosts our stitcher’s self-worth, instills accountability, and fosters hope. Hope that transformation is possible – for our stitchers, for our communities, and for our society as a whole.”
We learned that embroidery provides a meaning for many lives. What an eye opening presentation.
In March, TGS members attended a zoom presentation with British artist; Kristy McLeod, creator of The Red Dress. Kristy shared that what began as an idea sketched on a napkin in 2009, has grown into a world wide collaborative. The dress was completed in 2023.
The Red Dress project amplifies and unites women’s voices across the world’s stories; it illustrates the human condition through their universal language of embroidery. Panels were sent by mail to stitchers who created an embroidery that articulated an element of their diverse identities and cultures. Kristy shared she chose the colour blood red specifically because it is a powerful colour associated with anger, rage, love, passion, women’s cycles of blood, and danger. A total of 380 embroiderers from 51 countries stitched on the dress. The dress is in two parts: the bodice is separated from the skirt; it weighs 6.8kg and is not meant to be walked in. It’s more of a sculpture. The only people allowed to wear the dress are the embroiderers. We highly recommend reviewing the website and following: EXHIBITIONS – The Red Dress as there is planning in the works for The Red Dress to come to Canada for future exhibition.
Report – December 2025
submitted by Audrey Chaput, ONN Rep
What an exciting and busy Autumn the Toronto Guild of Stitchery has had this year!
We started with a successful Embroidery Outreach Program at a branch of the Toronto public library. 5 enthusiastic volunteers from TGS organized, presented and guided 19 library patrons in creating a felt needle book. Participants were taught various stitches: beginning back, back, reverse chain, running and stem stitches.
Samples of the needle books were prepared in advance by the volunteers. This allowed them to practice in advance the stitches and the steps involved in creating the books for the program. Detailed written instructions were also provided for patrons.
Feedback from the librarian: “ There was a beautiful vibe in the room, with our library patrons cheerfully learning new skills under the patient and friendly tutelage of your volunteers. … I loved how they shared their unique skills with their table groups and brought some of their small projects to show. It seemed to me that everyone left feeling uplifted and enriched”
On Saturday October 25th, members attended a guided tour of the costume and props shops at The Canadian Opera House. Sandra Corozza, head of costume department, and Wulf Higgins, head of props department, reviewed the creative process of mounting an opera – taking us from sketch to stage.
The tour began in the COC warehouse on Front St. where Sandra and Wulf provided a thorough presentation. Did you know that they allow for a 4” seam allowance to adjust costumes to body size! In April, there will be a new production of Vetere where costumes will be shared between the Montreal, Florida and the Canadian Opera Company. Sandra states “ I hate blood!” …but they have to be prepared to minimize the risk as well as be prepared to deal with it should it land on costumes or sofas! They have found “Fairy Soap” which is an English dish detergent works very well at removing fake blood. Another secret to stain removal: vodka and water helps reduce yellow armpit stains.
Sandra reviewed costumes for a variety of operas by showing both images and actual costumes on display. She shared how they have to work around the director’s vision and their ability to create that vision. For example, the director for the production Much Ado about Nothing did not like hoops. So the designers had to create huge petticoats. Replica era fabric was brought in from Hopkins UK.
Wulf and Sandra took us all on a ride up the freight elevator to the Costume and Props Shops. Every prop needs to be less than 10 feet in order to make it out to the stage. The COC uses buildings around Toronto to store their sets: the scenery shop is located at Christie and Dupont.
We highly recommend booking a tour! This bit of “news” doesn’t give credit to the incredible details we learned.
To finish up the afternoon, our group headed over to the Distillery District which was a short walk or drive away. Service at Mill Street Brewery was excellent. They accommodated our group of 30+ and even gave us free coffee and cake ( to share;)
What a way to set the tone for our 50th Anniversary Celebratory Year.
On November 6th, members met for a Gala Luncheon at the Islington Golf and Country Club for our official start to the 50th Anniversary Year.
We enjoyed a fabulous buffet luncheon and sat with members old and new. It was a wonderful way to connect and share stories. There was a raffle draw as well as we had the opportunity to hear Jennifer Robson, author of The Gown, present the creative process behind her novel. She was such a relaxed speaker who kept us hanging onto her words. If you haven’t read her book – be sure to find a copy, make a cup of tea and enjoy!
Many members attended weekend retreats at Nottawasaga or Crieff. It certainly is a good way to sew all day, build on fellowship and forget about any other distractions.
Despite the excitement surrounding our huge 50th Anniversary milestone, we continue to meet in fellowship, learn, share and practice the timeless art of embroidery in a digital age. As our president Michele Young so eloquently states “engaging in arts and crafts is important to our health and well-being, so not only can we be satisfied that we are creating beautiful things, we are keeping ourselves healthy at the same time.”
Report – October 2025
submitted by Audrey Chaput, ONN Rep
Guild members reunited on September 4th for their first meeting of Our 50th Anniversary Year. Our president Michele Young presented some fun facts, compliments of our archivist, Lorna Anderson.
● TGS’ first meeting was on November 6, 1975 at Rosedale United Church
● The meetings occurred in various locations when the evening group was added. But we finally established one consistent location at Blythwood Road Baptist Church in 2006
● In 1976 there were 67 members. By 1991 TGS “hit its zenith in terms of numbers” with 191 members. Now, in 2025, we are 92 members strong.
● Our library has grown from 9 books in 1978 to 275 books and 124 magazines in 2025
● We launched our first website in 2000 ( Y2K)
The Guild is excited to offer an introductory Outreach embroidery course at a small downtown branch of the Toronto Public Library. This course will be lead by Lorna Anderson at the end of September; there are several other guild members volunteering to help as well. Stay tuned for an update on how the course goes in the next ONN newsletter.
Programme:
September 4th: Members were given a kit to make a pin cushion using an IKEA cork coaster. Members could stitch French knots, satin, seed, chain stitch, etc., to complete the surface embroidery. The original idea was from Meagan Mather of Kimat and she also kindly lent us a stamp for the fabric.
The attached image was taken by Victoria Moorehead.
50th Anniversary Celebrations:
TGS officially celebrates its anniversary on Nov 6th, 2025
The year ahead is exciting! There are lots of plans in process. First up: guild members will showcase their work at the Toronto Civic Hall. Stay tuned for the next ONN newsletter submission for more details.
Mini Workshop: September 18th for both day and evening groups – Lace Circle Needlepoint
Letje Jackovich facilitated a 2 hour free workshop to make a lovely Susan Johnson design. Letje was very patient with new learners and managed to make herself available whenever someone was stuck! (I am referring to myself 😉
Saturday September 27: Saturday Speaker Stitch-In Event
We are honoured to welcome by zoom all the way from Adelaide Australia, Margaret Lee, a distinguished specialist tutor of Asian embroidery, with expertise in Chinese Embroidery, Traditional Japanese Silk Embroidery, and Japanese-Style Bead Embroidery. Her presentation on Technique vs. Stitch explores the key factors that influence both Eastern and Western embroidery traditions, highlighting their differences and examining their relevance for today’s embroiderers.
Saturday October 25: Canadian Opera Company Special presentation of Costumes.
Guild members are invited to join Sandra Corozza, head of the Canadian Opera House costume department, on a guided tour of the costume shop. Sandra will review the creative process of mounting an opera – taking us from sketch to stage. Following the presentation, members will meet for lunch at the Mill Street Brewery in the Distillery District off Front Street in downtown Toronto.
Report – July 2025
submitted by Audrey Chaput, ONN Rep
A group of members travelled in May to the annual EAC Seminar in Calgary where 2 of our members Pat Armour and Diane Scott were facilitating classes! The weather was beautiful and the camaraderie with new and old friends made the trip to western Canada fulfilling. The inspiration of the talented embroiderers across Canada is contagious!
We carried on with our regular TGS meetings in April, May and June with interesting guest speakers and some creative “program” learnings.
Programme:
April: we made collapsible Ort boxes to store some of little bits and bobs when we creating. We also made scissor fobs! What a great way to ensure we take home our own scissors 🙂
May: The Bayeux Stitch used in the Bayeux Tapestry ( 11th Century England) was taught.
Alessandra Abballe, textile artist who completed her MFA in Visual Arts from York University (2025) presented her designs and artistic process.
June: Kits were distributed to members to create their one “Crazy Quilted Mug Carrier” – giving us another project to complete over the summer break.
TGS 50th Anniversary:
We are marking our calendars and saving dates for the busy year ahead. Committee members have planned something for each month to celebrate the occasion.
We are looking forward to the first 50th Anniversary workshop for guild members in September presented by our own Ietje Jackovich. Lace Circle Project, a Susan Johnson Design:
During the summer break, members have the opportunity to gather at one members cottage or at another’s apartment building meeting room. We bring our projects, stitch and have fellowship. It’s a lovely way to stay connected during the sometimes busy or sometimes quiet summer months.
Report – March 2025
submitted by Audrey Chaput, ONN Rep
It was a winter of limited transportation with all those snow storms and crazy weather. So it was good that we had some interesting programmes lined up!
Programme:
● January: Sunshine & Shadow card inserts — blackwork and more. We were given kits to make a greeting card in either blackwork or cross stitch to contribute one to the Sunshine and Shadows Greeting Cards for members celebrating or needing some cheering up.
● February: TGS Book Club- members shared favourite books, patterns and magazines. A list of authors and titles was added to the guild website.
● March: Bayeux stitch pattern: how to make a knot bag using a tea towel.
Several TGS members created leaves for the Reflections of Ourselves Exhibition: 115 leaves celebrating the rich cultural heritage of Canadians. It was on exhibit from January 11 – March 1, 2025 at King Heritage & Cultural Centre, King City. Check our Tracey Lawko’s website for more details and to watch the documentary:
https://www.traceylawko.com/maple-leaf-project/
February Stitch Day and Stash Sale: members stitched, chatted, enjoyed snacks and plundered the treasure trove of items available to take home and add to our “to be worked on” lists. There was a display of completed previous stash sale purchases. Congratulations to Diane Scott on her submission: Winner of the Viewer’s Choice Award!
February: some members went to the ROM to view the Quilt Exhibit https://www.rom.on.ca/whats-on/exhibitions/quilts-made-canada
which has inspired more of us to attend the Etobicoke Quilter’s Guild – Quilt Fever 2025, March 28 & 29. see: www.etobicokequiltersguild.com for details
March 15th: Another successful Saturday afternoon Stitch in Pub was held at the Duke of York in Toronto, preceded by a tour to the Bata Museum on Bloor Street.
March 22nd – TGS member Dianna Thorne hosted an EAC speaker series featuring: Japan Textiles and Craft Tour Presentation.
Upcoming Textile Artist Speaker at May meeting: Alessandra Abballe, Bachelor Fine Arts, TMU is an image based artist and arts educator, and currently a Masters of Fine Arts, Visual Arts candidate at York University (2025)
EAC Seminar May 12 -18th: Stitching Under the Arch
Two of TGS’s members are facilitating 2 – 2 Day Classes and several members travelling to Calgary May 13 – 18th.
TGS is celebrating 50 years!! Lots of interesting activities are in the works. We are starting the celebrations with a 50th Anniversary Sampler Round Robin. Groups of 10 stitchers will choose a theme and create a unique piece of embroidery in the form of a sampler, using either surface embroidery or counted thread. Groups will start in the summer 2025 to be completed by May 2026. We will post the final projects in 2026.
Report – December 2024
submitted by Audrey Chaput, ONN Rep
The Toronto Guild of Stitchery has had an active Fall season!
Online members are enjoying the meetings even more now that zoom has been updated with an integrated central microphone and camera. This means everyone has the same view of the speaker as well as “Show and Share” where members share their finished projects. It’s a much more satisfying experience for everyone.
In September, TGS kick started the new “year” with a 2 day Elizabethan Cherry Tree workshop with Mike Parr, a textile artist and teacher with a lifelong passion for embroidery and history. Mike is known for designs in stump work, gold work and white work. He is a contributor to Embroidery Canada, Needlearts and Inspirations magazines, and he teaches frequently throughout North America.
We had 12 in the class and we all had a fabulous experience learning surface embroidery and historic goldwork techniques recovered from the 16th century. The techniques are taken from an Elizabethan Guild Crown that doesn’t exist on any other surviving piece of embroidery. Mike said it would be the last time he was able to teach this class because the supplies are so difficult to source.
Members enjoy learning new techniques at our monthly meetings. In September, members made embellished wool felt polar bears designed by TGS member Pat Armour.
October – members of the Ecclesiastical Needlework Committee from the Anglican Church of Canada, Diocese of Toronto shared what they do to preserve or repair ecclesiastical vestments and textiles.
November – TGS member Rosemary Marchand presented “shadow work” technique. At the 2nd November meeting, “FIFI” ( Find It Finish It) registered members learned how to hand finish a pillow.
December – we made Christmas ornaments! It was a happy holiday celebration with sweet treats shared by all.
Stitch in Pub happened twice this fall. Interested members meet up at the Duke of York in downtown Toronto on Prince Arthur St.. What a blast! It’s a great way for us to meet up outside of the Guild atmosphere. The pub is on the TTC route, we have our “own” waiter who makes sure everyone has their choice of food and drink. People often stop by and ask about our creations. We ensure that we have confirmed numbers before making a reservation but it is open to everyone. We often will share stash too. Only drawback is that the Duke of York isn’t accessible.
Wishing everyone a Happy Holiday Season. Here are some examples of December’s Show and Share!
Penny Milton – Cone Flower with Monarch
Anne Connie – String Art for a card insert
Diane Scott – ornaments
Report – September 2024
Submitted by Audrey Chaput, ONN Rep
The Toronto Guild of Stitchery TGS resumed regular in person meetings on September 5th after a 2 month long summer break. TGS has Regular Business Meetings the first Thursday of the month, and FIFI (“Find it, Finish it”) is the third Thursday of each month at both 10am and 7PM – all hybrid (in person and on zoom)
Check out our website above for events. Effort is being made to integrate zoom more seamlessly so that our members from home are able to see the speaker and participate more easily.
On September 21st we enjoyed a Stitch in Public Event at the Duke of York Pub near Bloor St & Avenue Rd.. Several members enjoyed sharing a meal, drinks and then stayed a while to stitch! It was a great way to get everyone back stitching after a summer break.
There is a lot of planning underway for the TGS 50th Anniversary as a guild in 2025. We are super excited that Jennifer Robson, the author of The Gown will be coming November 15th, 2025 for the TGS gala luncheon at the Islington Gold and Country Club.
TGS offers Programme after the monthly business meetings. This September we embellished wool felt polar bears. In October we will be learning about Ecclesiastical Stitching; November – Rosemary Marchard is presenting shadow work; December – we will be making Christmas ornaments. These programme meetings are always a great way to work with our other guild members and continue learning together.
We hope to share some samples of members’ projects from the Mike Parr: Elizabethan Cherry Tree workshop happening on September 28 – 29th in the next ONN Newsletter.
Report – July 2024
submitted by Audrey Chaput, ONN Rep
Hello ONN Members, Toronto Guild of Stitchery typically takes a break from meeting over summer months. However, this summer one member has offered to host casual “FIFI” ( Find it Finish it) days on the 1st and 3rd Thursdays at her apartment’s meeting room. Members were excited that we could continue to socialize and stitch together as fellow learners. TGS is always welcoming new members.
The first official meeting date back is in September on Thursday Sept 5th. We have a day time meeting at 10am and an evening meeting at 7pm. We also run both these meetings by Zoom for members who cannot travel into the 80 Blythwood Rd location. Please look at https://www.tgsweb.ca and on Facebook: Toronto Guild of Stitchery – TGS to find out more about our guild. We now have 100 members, that’s 5 new members since March/2024.
Take a peek inside the EAC Spring 2024 Issue Volume 51, Number 2. Three TGS members have their work featured: Catherine Leeson’s formal Hawaiian embroidered suit, pg 23; Victoria Moorshead’s mini embroidery hoop earrings, pg.36; Michele Young: Smocking -Timeless Wearable Embroidery, pg 57.
Tracey Lawko, TGS member, has an exhibit at the SAQA (Studio Art Quilt Associates) Canada exhibition “Renewal” at Homer Watson House & Gallery in Kitchener, July 5 – Sept 8, 2024. She has created a stitched nature study “Harbingers” that captures a honeybee she found in her snowdrops this past March.
Please be sure to check back for the Fall ONN Newsletter where we will be sharing upcoming TGS 50th Anniversary news. There is a lot of planning in progress for a very busy 2025 as we celebrate the 50 years of TGS creativity.
Report – March 2024
submitted by Lorna Anderson
Greetings ONN Members,
Toronto Guild of Stitchery holds two day and evening meetings a month. The first Thursday of the month is a regular meeting which includes business, program and show & share. The third Thursday is a relaxing day of stitching and socializing called FIFI (“Find it, Finish it”). There are always members helping each other with their stitching. The times for both days are 10am and 7pm and Zoom is available too. Check out our website at https://www.tgsweb.ca and Facebook at Toronto Guild of Stitchery – TGS. To date we have 95 members with 3 new members in March.
The January to March programmes were full of exciting activities. Thanks to Diane Scott for giving an overview of the creative TGS 50th Anniversary Biscornu project. There are so many possible variations. Julia Paris taught us how to create lovely Yorkshire buttons that can be used for buttons, making needle minders, scissor fobs and more. We are excited to see everyone’s projects. Another successful Stitch and Stash Sale was held in February. The registration for the Mike Parr workshop closed on April 1st.
We look forward to seeing everyone at the ONN Fair on May 4th. Some of the images shown here will be on display at the fair. In the meantime, Stay Calm and Stitch On.
Report – December 2023
submitted by Lorna Anderson, ONN Rep
Happy New Year ONN members
Toronto Guild of Stitchery (TGS) wishes everyone a healthy and safe new year. TGS meets continues to meet in person and virtually for all meetings. At present we have 89 members including three new members in December.
Once again, two retreats were held in the fall. One at Nottawasaga Inn and another at Crieff Hills Retreat with 21 and 17 members attending respectively. There are a few spots remaining for the upcoming retreat at BMO/IFL on March 22 -24, 2024. Registration is open to all stitchers, not only TGS members. Please contact Heather James at 1975TGSretreat@gmail.com for details. BMO/IFL is located at 3550 Pharmacy Avenue, Toronto.
Mavis Brown gave an exciting and novel talk at both morning and evening meetings on 2nd November, about her life in the Arctic for 9 years in the 1970’s. It was an eye opening and tactile event as Mavis brought many of the items she stitched including mittens, mukluks, pieced fur blankets and pillows, along with fur samples and a plethora of carved objects such as miniscule birds of shell sitting on a cliff of whalebone, the bow and string and stick used for starting a fire, many soapstone, bone and ivory carvings of life in the Arctic and tufted Caribou-(neck)-fur pictures. It was an exhilarating presentation as Mavis told us stories of the polar bear who jumped onto her living room window, ice fishing, the advantage of being able to reach other educational/medical personnel and help a child get braces to walk and play, the mind-stretching planning of how much toilet paper to order for a year (or butter, or flour, or?). She had numerous stories of her experiences: A slide show gave us the images of summer versus winter parkas, the storage of meat, the bathroom facilities, the school and other tidbits of life from her three locales. For all those that attended, including some church staff, the talk was thoroughly enjoyed.
TGS members, Pia and Diane attended the World Needlework Convention October 5-11, 2023. They gave an exciting, well organized and informative presentation to members on December 7th. Please enjoy the brief summary of their trip.
This convention held in southern England was a trip of a lifetime!
It was exciting, well organized and very informative both from a historical and an embroidery perspective. In an all-inclusive adventure, we were treated to great accommodations and cuisine in London and at Luton Hoo. Over the span of the event, registrants chose three two-day classes from a lineup of 28 tutors with 18 techniques and over 82 projects. We had admission to excursions to the Knitting and Stitching Show, The Crown to Couture exhibit at Kensington Palace, Parham House, and the City of London Guildhall Art Gallery. There were keynote speakers and talks by RSN tutors almost daily. The conference hosted 140 participants from the USA, Australia, Canada, New Zealand, France, and India. We ranged in age from 39 to 86.
We decided to treat ourselves to some sightseeing. The day we arrived we took a Big Bus Hop On Hop Off tour through the centre of London. Sitting atop a double decker bus and entertained with our personal audio we saw great views — Piccadilly Circus, St Paul’s Cathedral, Trafalgar Square (the true centre of London), the Court of Justice, the Parliament Buildings, the Tower Bridge and the Tower of London. On our last day in London, we took a walking tour of significant places — Westminster Abbey, the changing of the guards at Buckingham and St James Palaces, a walk down the Mall, past the Admiralty Arch and on to Trafalgar Square. After lunch we were guided down Whitehall past 10 Downing Street to the Thames River where we boarded a cruise. There were many sights to see along the Thames including the London Eye and Tower Bridge where the cruise ended. Here we strode off to the Tower of London and had an excellent tour of all the nooks and crannies including the Crown Jewels.
Details below on the workshop TGS is hosting in September:
At the annual holiday party meeting in December, an optional holiday ornament exchange was replaced by members being invited to support Blythwood Church with an optional donation for the Out of the Cold program. Plans continue to celebrate the 50th anniversary of TGS. The actual date is November 6, 2025. A grateful thank you to the members who contributed beautifully written articles and photos for this newsletter.
Report – September 2023
submitted by Lorna Anderson, ONN Rep
Greetings ONN Members,
We are back meeting in person and ZOOM. At the day and evening September meetings, Dianna instructed members how to needle weave a beautiful bouquet. TGS members have been busy the past few months. We are delighted to show pictures of their work.
Several years ago, at a TGS evening meeting, Pat, Judy and Christy presented a programme to make cute polar bears. The pattern was featured in a 2009 issue of Embroidery Canada. At the EAC/ACB seminar in June this year, Winnipeg Embroiders’ Guild won second place for their entry in the seminar group project ‘A Celebration of Bears’. Congratulations to Winnipeg members; they made 193 bears. Congratulations to Pat, Judy and Christy for being recognized as designers of the pattern.
Congratulations to Diana Thorne for winning the Original Design Award-An Education Award with EAC/ACB with her beautiful entry ‘Fall Floor’.
Reflections of Ourselves”, a collaborative art project which celebrates the rich cultural heritage of Canadians, will be on exhibit at Wellington Heritage Museum, 290 Main Street, Wellington, Prince Edward County, ON, September 16 – December 18, 2023. The tree continues to grow! Currently, 112 Indigenous, settler and immigrant Canadians from across the country have created a leaf in honour of their heritage. The leaves are as varied as their creators, each telling an individual story through different materials, techniques and imagery. For more information visit these websites. https://www.thecounty.ca/residents/services/museums/wellington-heritage-museum/ www.traceylawko.com
Please enjoy images of embroidery by members. Happy Stitching.
Respectfully submitted,
Lorna Anderson
Report – July 2023
submitted by Lorna Anderson, ONN Rep
Greetings ONN Members,
Summer is here and I hope you are enjoying it.
Here are a few updates from the Toronto Guild of Stitchery (TGS). Our members enrich the guild activities with members who so willingly help other members. Presentations are made and workshops are organized. This includes members who make presentations and organize workshops. Recently these activities included Barbara Kershaw helping members with pulled thread stitches and Rosemary Marchant making a presentation on raised and 3D stitches. Catherine Monahan presented photos and gave a talk on the history of Royal School of Needlework and its anniversary exhibit. Dianna Thorne along with Diane Scott organized a workshop titled “Trees”. Our membership is stable at 90 members. Last year members appreciated a fee free year. This year we are back up running and running at full speed with executive and committee positions filled.
Diane Scott won the Leonida Leatherdale Award for an original design or adaptation at the EAC/ACB seminar, The Stitch Goes On, held in Winnipeg in June for her piece titled “What I learnt at Seminar”.
This fall two (2) retreats are offered to TGS members, one at Nottawasaga Inn Resort & Conference Centre and the second at Crieff Hills-Inn and Conference Centre.
TGS member Lisa Carlin created a beautiful and unique beaded mask during Covid. Congratulations to Lisa, her mask is included in the exhibit title “Breathe”. The exhibit continues to October 1st, 2023, at the Textile Museum of Canada, 55 Centre Street, Toronto. This exhibition was organized by Natalie Bertin and Lisa Shepherd to showcase traditionally crafted masks demonstrating resiliency through 21st Century pandemic. This exhibition has travelled across Canada for the past two years and the Textile Museum is the final showing. For details and tickets go to: https://textilemuseum.ca
Many of our members attended a recent stitch day hosted by Kimat Designs. Another stitch day is on offer on August 18, 2023 in Lemonville. For details and registration go to: https://www.kimatdesigns.com
Please enjoy images of embroidery by members. Happy Stitching.
Report – March 2023
submitted by Lorna Anderson, ONN Rep
Greetings ONN Members
The new year is off to a good start. TGS member Barb Crowther invited members to join her in a Stitch-a-Long (SAL). “One Stitch At a Time” was generously shared from Seminar by the authors. Barb shares her notes, resources, instructions, updates and includes her own journey with SAL. Many members are enthusiastically participating. A couple of images of SAL in progress are included below.
TGS has a regular business, programme and show & share meeting on the first Thursday of the month. FIFI (“Find it, Finish it”) is a relaxing stitching day the third Thursday of each month. The times for both days are 10am and 7pm and hybrid is available too. Check out our website: https://www.tgsweb.ca and our new Facebook page Toronto Guild of Stitchery – TGS
The following message is from Tracey Lawko. If you have an opportunity, visit her spectacular show, “Reflections of Ourselves”.
“Reflections of Ourselves”, a collaborative art project which celebrates the rich cultural heritage of Canadians, is now exhibited at Homer Watson House & Gallery, 1754 Old Mill Rd., Kitchener, Ontario until June 25, 2023. https://www.homerwatson.on.ca/exhibitions/reflections-of-ourselves/ New cultural leaves have been added and this genealogical maple tree continues to grow! It looks wonderful under the clerestory windows of the Watson Gallery. Reception: Sunday, April 30th from 2 – 4 pm.
A FREE online Textile Talk webinar on April 5th at 2pm will feature a talk by lead artist, Tracey Lawko, about growing this grass-roots collaborative art project, and will air the documentary video of “Reflections of Ourselves” funded by the Ontario Arts Council. All welcome. Registration required https://us02web.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_ePcWwX1CR7asnbgPwS60ng
Take care and happy spring.
Report – December 2022
submitted by Lorna Anderson, ONN Rep
Greetings ONN members,
Toronto Guild of Stitchery wishes everyone a happy holiday season and best wishes for a healthy and safe new year. TGS meets in person and virtually for all meetings. Attendance at both is lower than early 2020 but we are meeting and stitching. Our membership is stable at 87 members.
Two retreats were held in the fall, one at Nottawasaga Inn and the second at Crieff Hills Retreat with 27 and 12 members attending respectively. March 24-26, 2023, are the dates for an upcoming retreat at BMO/IFl at 3550 Pharmacy Avenue, Toronto. Registration is open to all stitchers, not only TGS members. Please contact Heather James at 1975TGSretreat@gmail.com for details.
TGS adopted the Greek Cross Filling Stitch for the Royal School of Needlework’s stitch bank. As part of their 150-year anniversary, the RSN decided to create a stitch bank to electronically preserve stitches from all over the world. https://rsnstitchbank.org/stitch/greek-cross-filling-stitch.
With grateful thanks to Barb Crowther for preparing the images.
Please enjoy images of our members’ work:
Report – September 2022
Greetings ONN Members,
The best way to describe what is going on right now is a rebuilding phase. TGS’s main accomplishment over the past few years has been to organize and host the highly successful EAC-ACB Seminar 2022 “Hues in Harmony” while confronting and managing the many hurdles and challenges of the pandemic. We are and should be very proud of the result. The organizing committee was stellar and the event was seamless.
Despite not being able to meet in person for more than two years TGS has kept going with meetings being held on Zoom. We not only had the opportunity to see each other virtually but also were able to host a guest speakers at almost every meeting. Because there are members who weren’t able, or were not interested in online engagement we also had a number of mailed updates “Notes and Links” and gifts go to all members. Regular emails kept us connected as well. As we go forward we will attempt to keep a hybrid meeting model through the use of Zoom.
Surprisingly we have managed to keep our membership numbers reasonably stable. New members have joined and are on the younger side of our average age.
One of the biggest struggles is getting members to step into the leadership roles. For the time being we will be following a more casual meeting plan to make the guild more manageable for the existing smaller executive. Even so, plans are moving ahead for some themed meetings, retreats, an interesting workshop, and our annual stash sale.
The guild is always on the lookout for skilled teachers and interesting program ideas. Any way that ONN can help with this would be appreciated.
Respectfully submitted and with grateful thanks from TGS members Julia Paris and Karen Doak,
Lorna Anderson
Report – July 2022
submitted by Lorna Anderson, ONN Rep
Greetings ONN members,
Hope you are enjoying the summer and finding time to relax and do some stitching. The guild continues to have a variety of programmes and regular project challenges. The plan is to return to in person meetings in September with a hybrid model offered as well.
TGS member, Tracey Lawko invites you to see “Reflections of Ourselves”, a collaborative art project that celebrates the rich cultural heritage of Canadians. Over 100 Indigenous, settler and immigrant Canadians have created a leaf in honour of their heritage. The leaves are as varied as their creators, each telling an individual story through different materials, techniques and imagery. Several TGS members have each contributed an embroidered leaf. The leaves hang from a textile tree. The tree is a metaphor for our human community where distinctions in human culture are like the variations of individual leaves on a tree. The exhibition continues until Sept 3, 2022 at Orillia Museum of Art & History, 30 Peter St. S., Orillia, ON. Tues – Sat: 10 – 4 pm.
In April, TGS member Diana Thorne made an interesting and well researched presentation on 3D embroidery.
In May, Carolyn Mitchell shared her Stitching Story. Carolyn has been designing, teaching and inspiring stitchers for years.
In June, the Annual Meeting was held with the slate of officers being voted into their respective roles. The June programme included stitching themed games. The monthly Countdown to Christmas 2022 (CTC2022) continues with patterns being offered every month. We are looking forward to a parade of ornaments in December. There will also be a surprise programme mailout to members at the beginning of summer.
TGS hosted the EAC seminar Hues in Harmony in May. Co-Chairs Pia Kallas-Harvey and Heather James send this report.
Hues in Harmony Seminar 2022 A Great Success
Thank you!
On behalf of our committee, we would like to thank everyone who participated in Seminar 2022. It was an exhilarating roller coaster ride to the finish line but from the feedback you gave us, it was a tremendous success. All the efforts we put into making it one of the best Seminars ever was well worth it. This could not have been done without the support of a very dedicated committee and members of the Toronto Guild of Stitchery – a real team effort. We also extend our gratitude to the BMO Institute for Learning for assisting us to make the event such an enjoyable accomplishment!
At the Hues in Harmony seminar in May, TGS was awarded 3rd place for their display of embroidered palettes. Here they are and please enjoy.
Report – March 2022
submitted by Lorna Anderson, ONN Rep
Greetings ONN members,
First a report from the seminar co-chairs, Heather and Pia.
Hues in Harmony Report March 2022
Seminar 2022 Hues in Harmony is only 8 weeks away! May 16-21, 2022! We are still accepting registrations! We do have classes that are not filled, so take a look at our website www.eac-acb.ca/seminar! We are welcoming all like-minded stitchers to this in real life event! COVID protocols are relaxing but we are asking that all participants are fully vaccinated to keep everyone safe! At this time the BMO IFL is requiring masks, but the times are ever changing so we do not know what the rules will be at the time of Seminar. We are looking forward to a fabulous exhibition in the Forum displaying stitching from the 2020 Seminar, the 2021 Seminar and the 2022 Seminar! We have a marvellous stitching boutique – KIMAT Designs that is open every day 8:30 am – 5:30 pm except on May 18th when it will be open 8:30 am – 8:30 pm! We encourage a visit to our Market Mall night May 18th which is open in The Bow at the BMO/IFL from 5:00 pm until 8:30 pm, located at 3550 Pharmacy Avenue, Toronto with free parking. We hope to see you there!
Along with the many members organizing the seminar, the guild continues to have a variety of programmes and regular project challenges.
In January Anne Armstrong, a docent from ROM gave an informative talk on Chintz titled ‘The Cloth That Changed The World: India’s Painted and Printed Cottons’.
Rosemary Marchant, TGS member presented an interesting program on Appliqué.
Pat Armour, TGS Member, discussed how she begins a design and progresses to the final pattern. Members were given the pattern with detailed instructions for an 18th century shoe project. Pat had previously taught the shoe project at the Bata Shoe Museum.
Please enjoy images of members’ work that have been shown at Find It Finish It (FIFI) meetings.
Karen
Janice
Two pieces by Sylvia
Iris
Four pieces by Judy
Five pieces by Barbara
Two pieces by Michele
Heather
3 pieces by Suzzanne
Four pieces by Cathy
Three pieces from Julia
Four images from Catherine
Four pieces by Dianna
Ontario Network of Needleworkers 