2026 HGB Show & Sale Showcase
VIVID A Celebration of Color
The Juror’s Choice award announced at the Member Reception – November 3, 2026
The People’s Choice Award announced at the Show & Sale – November 8, 2026
- 2026 Showcase Theme: VIVID A Celebration of Color
Color is used in art to evoke mood and shape perceptions. It creates depth, light and shadow. Use of color strategically involves mixing, combining, and arranging color to create harmony or contrast.This year’s Showcase focus will be the use of intensity, the vividness of color, to evoke an emotional response in the viewer.
Low intensity colors may be calming or serene. These are exemplified by cool blues, purples and greens often associated with water, sky, mountains, earth and ice.
High intensity colors may be energetic, happy and bright. They are associated with the reds, oranges and yellows of heat, sun, and fire.
In your artist statement, explain how your use of color helped define the feelings that you wish to convey with your fiber art.
Juror: Sara Rockinger
Showcase Co-Managers: Jane Hill and Jennifer Hill
Juror’s Choice Award
Announced
November 3, 2026
Artist Statement
Materials and Techniques used:
m” x m” x m”
People’s Choice Award
Announced
November 8, 2026
Artist Statement:
Materials and Techniques used:
m” x m”
Participating Artists
Jeanne Abel | Ruth Briggs | Al Canner | Lili Christensen | Debra Coccoli | Rachel Courtney | Cleo Digirolamo | Sondra Finch | Joanne George | Linda Grey | Barbara Herrli | Jane Hill | Kaye Iverson | Lena Kahn | Karen Krause | Kaitrin Kuchera | Kitty Migaki | Amy Mundinger | Star Rader | Cindy Sales | Jane Sutter | Linda Toomre | Sue Torfin | Susan Wilson
Jeanne Abel
A Polyptych; Vivid! Aspens
Collaboration
Cathy Bickell | Allison O’Neall | Deb Tewell | Jeanne Abel | Star Rader | Sue Torfin | Tsy Schupack
Artists Statement: Some felting friends in Kansas City shared an idea … create a collaborative piece of felted art based on a photo; a Polyptych (from Wikipedia: a work of art, usually a panel painting, which is divided into 4 or more sections, or panels).
Seven HGB member artists came together and chose a photo very near and dear to each of us; Aspen Yellow! Each worked independently with only a copy of their part of the image and the final dimensions of their piece as reference … and with no restrictions on colors, technique, fiber or style.
The photo we chose (with permission) was taken by Taylor Chonis in September of 2025 while biking above Powderhorn in the Grand Mesa Uncompahgre and Gunnison National Forests, Mesa, Colorado.
This was an incredible experience for all of us … And we’re ready to do it again!
Materials: Each piece contains various fibers of the individual artist’s choosing (wool, silk, rayon, etc). Each piece was individually hand sewn onto commercial black felt and the entire piece is backed with the same. The supporting wooden dowel is secured in sleeves on the back and there is a wire loop for hanging.
Techniques: Felting/Fusion
The felting techniques were left up to the individual artists and include wet felting and needle felting, with silk, rayon and other fiber embellishment.
48″ x 48″
Ruth Briggs
Abstract Landscape
Artist Statement: Fabric dyes spread like a watercolor painting when applied to wet cloth. I have used a resist technique to apply color around water resist areas. Letting the paint run and bleed into each other is exciting and barely controllable.
Materials: White cotton, fabric dyes, Elmers Glue, and cotton thread.
Techniques: Quilting – Painting/Dyeing
Watercolor on white cotton fabric, using fabric dyes. Batik. Whole cloth. Quilted.
16″ x 29″
Al Canner
Septapod
Artist Statement: “Septapod” is another in my many-year series of multi-podded forms. It begins at the perimeter, onto which the cords are mounted, and makes it way toward the center in successive courses of knotting, similar to coiling in basketry. Each “pod” demands its own treatment for filling in its form so that the successive courses can bring the form together to end at a midpoint.
Color plays a central role in all my work. In this piece, the use of vibrant and sometimes contrasting/clashing colors heightens the work’s dramatic quality and helps to move the viewer’s eye through the various visual shapes and the piece’s own, pronounced topography.
Rather than rely on an infrastructure for support or shape, like most of my pieces “Septapod” depends solely on the robust strength of the knots themselves, almost always the humble double half-hitch.
Materials: Cords of cotton, nylon, and polyester
Techniques: Lace/Knotting
Macrame (repetitive use of the double half-hitch)
20″ x 20″
Lili Christensen
The Lost Words Shawl Series : #4 Kingfisher
Based on The Lost Words by Robert Macfarlane and Jackie Morris
Artist Statement: In 2022 I discovered The Book of Lost Words, which grieves the replacement of words of the natural world with words of technology in the Oxford Children’s Dictionary.
Inspired by the illustrations in this book, I began spinning yarn using the colors of specific words. In May, 2026 (at age 79) I taught myself to weave using a rigid heddle loom, with the goal of making shawls using these yarns.
The series includes shawls inspired by Jackie Morris’s illustrations of the lost words: Gold Finch with Dandelions; Ferns; Heather; and Kingfisher (my submission) . I plan to weave additional shawls.
I chose Kingfisher because its complementary colors are most vivid, and they express my awe of and reverence for the beauty of nature’s palette. A bird of these colors actually exists! That excites me.
The yarn was spun as a gradient progression of colors, turquoise through coral/orange. I also chose to weave the shawl using the same sequence. The result stunned me.
I am an artist of cloth, thread, dyed fiber, hand spun yarn, knitted items, and now handwoven cloth. I also do/have done oil, acrylic and water color painting, printmaking, paper making, basketry, clay sculpture, art quilts, painted/printed cloth, non-tradional bed quilts, and embroidery.
Color, texture and line have been my primary expressive language since childhood. Bright, bold colors have been my signature. I have interpreted music/words into art quilts, but making my yarn into woven cloth inspired by paintings is new to me.
My goal in The Lost Word series is to capture the beauty and splendor of nature’s colors, and perhaps to awaken others to the loss of appreciation of nature our culture is experiencing as a result of our technological obsession.
Materials: My hand spun yarns of wool, silk, and other fibers.(95%)
Small amounts of commercially manufactured yarns of various fibers. (5%)
Techniques: Handspinning | Weaving/Tapestry/Interlacement
Most of the yarns were hand spun by me, some of them were also dyed by me (as roving) before spinning.
Woven on a rigid heddle loom.
12.5″ x 70″
Deborah Coccoli
Sheep in the Meadow
Artist Statement: The colors for this piece were chosen for their emotional impact. The purples impart a dreamy and mysterious quality. The gold used on the hills are meant to be warm and up-lifting. And the greens in the foreground are strongly tied to growth, renewal, and harmony. And, greens also help the eye to relax and promote a sense of balance and calm .
The goal was to combine these colors to create a layered emotional experience that courages contemplation and emotional connection with the landscape.
Materials: wool, cotton and rayon thread
Techniques: Embroidery/Stitching | Felting/Fusion
Needle & Wet felted with free motion stitching
19″ x 24″
Rachel Courtney
Electric Sunflower
Artist Statement: Vivid is a great word. At first it invoked in me the idea of making something bright and vibrant, so I ordered neon lights as my starting point. Later, I began to explore the idea of having a vivid imagination and being able to look at something and pivot because getting stuck wasn’t an option.
Using the Kinusaiga method, I created a sunflower. I added neon lights into the creases in order to make the project even more vivid. When I realized Kinusaiga was not an approved Show & Sale technique, I added a fabric frame with decorative stitching that lines up with the original piece and applique petals to give the piece more detail. The finished piece is not what I expected when I began the project but allowed me to use my (vivid) imagination.
Materials: fabric, sewing machine, neon lights, USB splitter, shadow box with matting, 1-inch foam, 3M Double Sided Adhesive Transfer Tape
Techniques: Appliqué
Using the Kinusaiga method, I created a sunflower. I added neon lights into the creases in order to make the project even more vivid. When I realized Kinusaiga was not an approved Show & Sale technique, I added a fabric frame with decorative stitching that lines up with the original piece and applique petals to give the piece more detail. The finished piece is not what I expected when I began the project but allowed me to use my (vivid) imagination.
12″ x 12 x 1″
Cleo Digirolamo
Majestic Redwoods Humboldt County, 2026
Artist Statement: In contemplating this wool painting, I found myself in awe of Mother Nature’s talent in creating these majestic Redwoods. I was studying particularly how light and shadow in the forest allows for such Vivid Color in my interpretation of the forest. My intention with this painting is to invite in you a sense of peace and wonder.
Materials: Wool, Silk, Wool nepps, Angelina
Techniques: Embroidery/Stitching | Felting/Fusion
I began this painting by photographing the image I wanted to use as a reference. Then I wet felted the pieced wools and silks, much of which I mixed myself by hand using wooden carding paddles. Once dry, I then proceeded to needle felt all of the shading, uplighting and downlighting. Lastly, I added some free form hand embroidery to increase a feeling of texture. I purposefully leave my wool paintings open, without glass covers, to invite a more intimate experience with the painting.
43″ x 28″
Sondra Finch
Western Sky Dance
Artist Statement: Our Guild theme this year is vivid. I like the definitions of the word: producing strong or clear impression on the senses and producing distinct mental images. Also: having the appearance of vigorous life or freshness. In this art piece, the sky holds the impact of how our western sunsets often display such powerful color, light and forms. I cut and collage, and used oil pastels, combining the elements together before quilting, to attain the brilliance and vastness of the scene, using textural fabrics. The landscape is reminiscent of many dreamy skyscapes and landscapes here in beautiful Colorado, with shadows falling beneath the setting sun . I mount it on to stretcher bars and back it with a coordinating fabric. I then name it, and sign it. Each piece is an original designed by Sondra Finch in Boulder, Colorado. Enjoy!
Materials: cotton quilting fabric, cotton poly thread, oil pastels
Techniques: Quilting | Painting/Dyeing
I fussy cut images to arrange a collage of my landscape, design it, paint or draw on it, quilt it and frame it.
20″ x 46″
Joanne George
Rigoles Shawl
Artist Statement: This shawl creates a feeling of movement. There is a flow and sense of waves created by the variations in color and intensity between the vibrant pinks, bright purples and dark tones of the long-color-change variegated yarn, set against the calm low-intensity lavender with a bit of sparkle.
Materials:yarn 1: Poems Socks by Wisdom Yarns – 75% wool, 25% nylon
yarn 2: Zephyr by JaggerSpun – 50% wool, 50% silk
yarn 3: Silk Mohair Lux by Lana Gatto – 78% mohair, 14% silk, 4% nylon, 4% polyester
yarns 2 and 3 were held together and knitted as one
total fiber content – wool 50%, mohair 19.5%, silk 16%, nylon 13.5%, polyester 1%
Techniques: Hand Knit/Crochet
knitted using short row technique pattern: Rigoles by Tri’Coterie Designs
44″ x 28″
Linda Grey
Vi-Brant
The Color Road Less Travelled (for me!)
Artist Statement:
The colors that I normally choose
Are subtle and earthy hues
So with this entry I explore
Vivid colors galore
A cacophony of brightness will effuse
This manikin is named Vi-Brant
Her body is sexy and scant
The saturation is bold
The contrast – uncontrolled
She shimmers and tries to enchant
I hope you will come to agree
And your eyes will successfully see
That her dress does express
Kinetic effervesce
And a yearning to dance and be free!
Materials: Glass beads of various sizes and shapes, One G thread
Techniques: Bead/Wire Weaving and Wrapping
Bead weaving: Peyote stitch, Brick Stitch and fringe technique
5.5″ x 16.5″ x 4.5″
Barbara Herrli
Moody Blues
Artist Statement: This dress’ simple silhouette appealed to me. It allows for the color complexity to speak. The majority of the dress utilizes a gently shifting yarn that varies between light and dark shades of blues, heather grey, and muted slate. The colors remind me of the sky changing on an overcast day. Placed intentionally around the yoke and mirrored delicately at the hem, the Fair-Isle pattern pops with ordered soft pinks, warm corals, cream, and vibrant teal hinting at fields of flowers and pasture. Wearing it, my very first dress creation, grounds me.
Materials: Wool & Nylon Light Fingering & Fingering Weight Sock Yarn;
utilized 2.75mm and 3.25mm needles
Techniques: Hand Knit/Crochet
Incorporates Fair-Isle color work that uses stranded knitting; carrying of yarns between stitches and row changes. Ribbing at collar, sleeve and hem.
25″ x 36″
Jane Hill
Desert Spring
Artist Statement: Open Spaces have always been beautiful to me.
Deserts are the earth in its stark but vivid colors.
This ‘desert-in-spring’ idea is reminiscent of the southwest areas of the USA I have enjoyed in my travels. The land has many changes – the color of the grasses, sands, rocks and flowers. The distance is vast and impressive as the colors continually change in the traveler’s view.
Within the tapestry are seventy-five different yarns of various content and weight. All are remainders of balls, cones and skeins from my stash.
“Desert Spring” is my first tapestry
Materials: Yarns of assorted fiber content.
Techniques: Weaving/Tapestry/Interlacement
23.5″ x 22.5″
Kaye Iverson
Sunset on the English Channel Shawl
Artist Statement: While walking back to our cabin on the deck of our cruise ship, we were gradually surrounded by a spectacular coral sunset with colors of amber and orange and fringed in slivers of gold. The outdoor temperature did not change however the sunset felt as though we were wrapped in a blanket of beautiful warm light. The reflection of the sunset on the calm and shimmering blue water was stunning. I could not help but smile and say, “thank you.”
Materials : Manos de Uruguay yarn (60% alpaca 40% pima cotton), handspun yarn, and silk bouclè.
Techniques: Weaving/Tapestry/Interlacement
I wove this piece on a floor loom using the “hatching” technique used in tapestry work. This technique enabled me to blend the colors gradually for shading and also to merge the colors together to create more depth and texture.
15″ x 70″
Lena Kahn
Autumn Crescendo
Artist Statement: Long, long time ago in a country far away, there lived a little girl who couldn’t wait for autumn to come and transform the drab gray and brown streets of her city into a magical place where everything was possible. The girl learned early on that if she wanted to be surrounded by vivid colors all the time, she was the one who needed to make it happen. She painted her room sunny yellow, learned how to knit and sew her own clothes, and spent long hours in museums lost in history and beauty. Many years passed, the girl grew up and moved to a country where everything is possible. But her love for autumn and for art stayed with her…
I’m happy to share this love with you today.
This painting was created in nuno-felting technique when wool fibers and silk are hand manipulated with water, soap and various tools to create a textured fabric. After felting, the painting was completed with machine stitching.
Materials: Wool, silk, embroidery floss
Techniques: Felting/Fusion
Nuno felting, machine stitching
36″ x 24″
Karen Krause
Vivid Colorado
Artist Statement: I was inspired by the theme of color and especially in Colorado. I chose colors for each section representing: Meandering Roads; Deep Purple Sunsets; Blue Skies; Wild Fires; Burn Scars; Red Rocks; Dark Blue Waters’ Growing Crops; Yellow Sunshine; Fallow Fields.
This piece can be used as a wall hanging, or it can be carefully removed from the Velcro and be worn as a shawl.
Materials: All wool sock yarns.
Techniques: Hand Knit/Crochet
12″ x5 8″
Kaitrin Kuchera
Pseudoflorus Scarabaeidae Impostor
Artist Statement: I created my beetle this summer as I watched the Japanese beetles devour my garden. The shimmer of their bodies is beautiful yet they are so destructive! The scientific name given by me to this beetle means “fake flower scarab imposter”. He is mounted in his box for one to study him…
Materials: Merino wool, silk hankies nylon embroidery threads, glass beads, plastic buttons, wire
Techniques: Embroidery/Stitching | Felting/Fusion
Wet felt body made on a resist, hand embroidery and beading. Wire wrapping with sari silk threads for the legs.
8″ x 10″ x 3″
Kitty Migaki
Celebration Jacket
Artist Statement: For my first foray into garment making I wanted to make something bright and festive for the holiday season. I love color and home the the swirl of color and sparkle capture the excitement of the season. Cheers!
Materials: Wool and silk, cotton, lace, sequins, and rayon
Techniques: Felting/Fusion | Use of Upcycled Materials
nuno (wet) felting. The selected fabric pieces are “glued” together using the wool placed in between.
24″ x 27″
Amy Mundinger
Woven Purse of Many Colors
Artist Statement: The exterior of this purse was woven in 100% Harrisville Designs Highland wool on a tapestry loom. This high-tension loom allows a tightly packed weft producing an extremely durable fabric. The weaving technique used is “Pick-and-pick” which creates vertical lines of alternating colors that vibrate, letting the colors play. The interior of the purse is lined with cotton denim and the handle is bridle leather.
Materials: Wool weft, cotton/linen warp, cotton denim, bridle leather
Techniques: Weaving/Tapestry/Interlacement
10″ x 19″
Star Rader
Not Just a Tree
Artist Statement: Nature is my basic resource of visual inspiration. But nature viewed through a lens of vivid colors can transform and expand our visual inspiration and make us rethink our perception of nature’s shapes and movements.
In this piece, rendered in vivid, unexpected colors and textures, we feel the brightness and charm of the tree shapes; we feel the movements of the branches. The vivid colors evoke a deeper response and bring us a feeling of delight.
Set on a background of goldenrod, the pure white of the tree contour provides a focus for the vivid colors that weave in and out. Tree branches and leaf forms burst out in a celebration of color and interplay of patterns. A tree is not just a tree anymore but an expressive “feeling” of nature.
Materials: Fine Merino wool, chiffon and Habotai silks
Techniques: Felting/Fusion
Wet felted wool fibers, hand dyed silks, hand and machine stitched, woven fibers
25″ x 21″
Cindy Sales
Romantic Color
Artist Statement: I had three inspirations for this Vibrant Colors entry. First was the Marimekko wall paper in my bedroom growing up! It was Orange, Yellow and Magenta. Then, after a visit to the Museum of Modern Art in New York and seeing Matisse’s “Circus”, I couldn’t help but add the blue and the squiggles. Finally, last winter’s Olympic Games. There was an ice skater from the country of Georgia who had a beautiful pair of faces on her back. I loved the idea to fill in the spaces on this work with faces on top. An unattainable romantic love!
Materials: Cotton warp thread and 75% wool and 25% nylon weave and cross stitch.
Techniques: Weaving/Tapestry/Interlacement
Sumac knot weaving with cross stitch faces on top.
14″ x 15″
Jane Sutter
Girls’ Celebration Day
Artist Statement: I lived in Japan nine years and created this mixed media wall art inspired by Girls’ Day. It is an annual festival on March 3rd called ‘Hinamatsuri’, celebrating health and happiness of young girls and women. Many young girls wear bright, colorful kimono as they celebrate their special, happy day.
Starting by wet felting a bright multi-colored fabric and cords, next a vintage Japanese girl’s kimono fabric and an obijime (woven obi cord) were added by hand and machine sewing. The wet felted background and cords were inspired by the cheerful design of the girl’s kimono fabric. After finding and adding the two white vintage floral buttons I knew this celebration piece was complete.
Materials: Merino wool, viscose, firestar (synthetic nylon fiber); upcycled materials: vintage silk fabric, vintage woven cord, vintage buttons, wooden hanging stick; and thread.
Techniques: Felting/Fusion | Use of Upcycle Materials
Wet felted background fabric, wet felted cut-out pieces for the top and bottom, and three braided felted cords toward the scalloped bottom with multiple colors of Merino wool, viscose, and firestar. Hand and machine sewn vintage silk fabric, woven silk cord, felted cords, and buttons.
14.5″ x 43″
Linda Toomre
A Vivacious Gathering
Artist Statement: The vivid colors and joyful creativity of Laurel Birch inspired me to frame and enhance her design with trapunto , exaggerating the delightful creatures, along with stitchery and beads, to further bring out the unique character of the animals
Materials: Cotton fabrics, cotton and polyester batting, threads (cotton, rayon, metallic), beads. Felt backing.
Techniques: Quilting | Piecing | Bead/Wire Weaving and Wrapping | Embroidery/Stitching
Machine piecing and quilting, trapunto, embroidery, beading
32.5″ x 15″
Sue Torfin
Rich Beyond Measure
Artist Statement: The animal kingdom, amply represented by the 20 creatures in this animal collage, is rich in diversity. Among the possible variations are the range of colors that capture every hue in the rainbow spectrum. The coloration of a creature can serve to camouflage the animal for its safety and stealth or can advertise its presence in bright and intense tones.
In constructing this felt menagerie, I tried to show this variety of colors from start black and white or brown through all the yellows, oranges, greens, and blues that entertain the eye. From the smallest turtle to the mighty elephant and giraffe, we’re drawn into their environs and welcome their vivid presence in our lives. A variety of color was also used to indicate their habitats, from blue water and sky to the tan and green surroundings and the sunset clouds. I hoped to create a whimsical feeling as well as a deep appreciation for our earth’s spectacular inhabitants.
Materials: Wool roving, synthetic felt for backing, dowel and wire for hanging.
Techniques: Felting/Fusion
This piece is needle felted, using dyed wool roving, needled into a synthetic felt backing. It was then backed by another piece of synthetic felt and prepared for hanging.
20″ x 28″
Susan Wilson
Deep Glory
Artist Statement: Life bursting out of darkness, Deep Glory uses vivid color to express energy, joy and renewal and conveys a dramatic contrast between darkness and light. Layers of felt, stitching, and rich color create a sense of movement and renewal.
Materials: Wool, silk, bamboo fibers. Cotton/polyester thread
Techniques: Felting/Fusion
Wet felting, needle felting, applique, machine embroidery/stitching.
22″ x 22″
HGB Fiber Art Show & Sale Juried Showcase
Each year, during the HGB Fiber Art Show & Sale at the Boulder County Fairgrounds, Handweavers Guild of Boulder members show their best work in the juried Showcase. According to the theme chosen for that year, members of the Guild interpret their reflections in a wide variety of media including weaving, quilting, knitting, crochet, basketry and felting which may be hung on the wall or stand as sculpture.
The Showcase brings visitors the opportunity to see creativity and skilled artisanship up close and personal, and the chance to vote on the People’s Choice Award for their favorite work.