Craft a Guild

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by Nancy Smith Kilkenny

eBook (PDF format), 19 pages
Copyright 2010
Self published, with online support.

One of the joys of practicing the fiber arts is sharing knowledge and enthusiasm about the craft with others.  And one of the best ways to find like-minded individuals is to join a weaving guild.

But what if there isn’t a guild in your area?  What if you want to get one started?  Where would you begin?

Nancy Smith Kilkenny’s book, Craft a Guild, walks you through the various aspects of starting or repurposing a fiber guild.  It reads a lot like a business-planning workbook, because in many ways, establishing a fiber guild is similar to starting a business: You need to have a mission and a plan, put the right people in place, figure out the logistics of what you’ll do and how, and spread the word through marketing.  Craft a Guild takes you through this process step-by-step, bringing order to what could otherwise be a chaotic and organic endeavor.

Kilkenny uses examples from existing guilds to demonstrate that there are many ways to make things work, whether your proposed guild is large or small.

Some of the topics covered include: how to choose great leaders, structuring meetings, promoting the guild, and how to keep a guild vital and growing.

This book would be of great value to anyone considering starting up a guild, re-configuring a older guild, or simply learning more about how guilds function and the various roles officers and volunteers play in them.