Gwendolyn Wakefield, local fiber artist and new member of the Spring Creek Artisans, said her lifelong passion for crocheting began over 50 years ago on the other side of the world.
“I started in 1971. I taught myself out of a book. My husband was in the army at the time; he was in the army for the first 14 months of our marriage. We lived in Asmara, Ethiopia. Being that remote, there was one radio station and one TV station. During the day, there was not much to do. So, while he was at work, I decided I needed a hobby, so I bought a book at the PX, and learned to crochet,” said Wakefield.
Wakefield has been improving her craft ever since.
“It’s so relaxing; It’s so neat to just sit down, and from one piece of thread, move your hands and make something so beautiful,” she said, gesturing to an array of her intricately detailed doilies displayed on a table at the Creative Arts Center. “Each of these items here were done with one continuous piece of thread.”
“The yarns have really improved since I started in ’71. Back then, they were more stiff and scratchy, and now they’re just so soft and nice to have against your skin for scarves and things like that,” said Wakefield.
Though the materials have changed, Wakefield says the relaxation is what has kept her coming back to the art form for a half century.
“It’s just relaxation. It’s something I can sit down and do anywhere. I’ve been known to take my crocheting to doctor’s offices, in the waiting room. Any place I have to wait, it makes the time much more endurable. It’s just fun, I really enjoy it.”
Along with crocheted doilies, Wakefield also makes coasters, “mug rugs”, scarves, and other forms of fiber art.
“Counted cross stitch, embroidery, anything I can sit and work on with my hands, I’m just tickled pink,” she said.
Wakefield and the other members of the Spring Creek Artisans are preparing to hold their yearly SpringFest event on May 13 from 9:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. at the Creative Arts Center behind the ONCRC in Salem. SpringFest is a craft show that allows guests to peruse the offerings of the local artists as they demonstrate their crafts live. Organizers said shoppers will be offered one-of-a-kind handmade gifts just in time for Mother’s Day.
“The Spring Creek Artisans are a group of artists with varying types of art. We have anything from crocheting that I do, we have a woodworker, we have painters, we have pottery, more things than I can even think of,” said Wakefield. “We have a wheat-weaver, she does things with wheat. She’s got a class coming up, I think. Different kinds of wheat, she does beautiful work; it’s really neat.”
The event will feature a Mother’s Day gift, a craft event for kids, and a door prize, which Wakefield says will include work from the artists present at the festival.
“This year we’ll be doing a Mother’s Day gift, just a small token of thank you for the mothers who come in. And of course, there’s always a drawing for everybody who wants to enter. There will be many of the artisans will contribute an item to the basket, so you kind of get a sampling of things that were sold that day.”
The event will also feature live music by dulcimer player Carol Spurlock, as well as an artwork display by Salem Elementary School art students. Shoppers will be offered free cookies, coffee, and tea at the event, according to organizers.
“We do it partly as a fundraiser for the artisans, and then we do different functions. We have three sales a year, SpringFest, Pumpkin Day in October, and then Christmas Fest in December,” said Wakefield. “This is my first Springfest. I joined back in August, so I’m a fairly new member. It’s been fun.”
SpringFest differs from many other craft shows, she said, because the Spring Creek Artisans show as a group.
“It’s different than a lot of craft shows, where each crafter would have their own table and their own goods in front of them. With the Spring Creek Artisans, we display things as a group. Everything is intermingled. We’ll have pottery with doilies, and soaps, everything is just kind of spread out throughout the area. It’s different, we sell as a group, not as individuals. That’s just very unique, I think, in the way everything is presented,” said Wakefield. “(Joining Spring Creek Artisans) has been really pleasurable, usually our meetings are mainly to organize an event, and then we set up the event, and we have a ball working together and getting it set up, and viewing each other’s art.”
“The people are wonderful to work with, and everybody is just friendly. It’s like Salem, you know? You just get connected, and it’s a really nice experience,” she said.
Wakefield will be at SpringFest on May 13, selling her work and demonstrating her art along with the other artisans.
“I will be crocheting on-site and will be happy to answer any questions. I have done classes in the past, and I’ll kind of do a survey next Saturday to see if anybody is interested in maybe joining our beginner’s class,” she said. “So many times, people will walk by and they’ll say ‘oh, my grandmother used to do that’, and if we’re not careful it’s going to get to the point where nobody is going to be able to say that anymore, because people just don’t take it up like they used to. It used to be much more popular than it is now.”
Wakefield anticipates a fun event and a good turnout.
“This is just a small portion of the doilies I already made,” said Wakefield. “We have a good flow of people, and a lot of people coming by. Some just come just to browse, it’s a fun thing.”
