What Resources and Programs Does the Arizona Federation of Weavers and Spinners Guilds Offer?

The Arizona Federation of Weavers and Spinners Guilds (AZFed) offers four main member-facing resources and programs: a Fiber Arts Teacher Registry, guild and individual grant applications, a Traveling Teacher Program, and Special Event Planning Guides. It also hosts the Arizona Fiber Arts Festival. These benefits are tied to membership, which is open to any person who belongs to a participating guild in Arizona. If you are not yet in a member guild, the guild directory is the place to start.

Fiber Arts Teacher Registry

The Federation maintains a registry of fiber arts teachers. This is the resource to check when you need to find someone who can teach weaving, spinning, dyeing, basketry, or a related skill — whether for a guild workshop, a community class, or a private group.

The registry is listed under the site's Resources section alongside the other programs below.

Grants and Scholarships

AZFed awards grants and scholarships to guilds and to individuals, as funds permit. The application path is the "Guild & Individual Grant Applications" page under Resources.

Two things worth noting from the Federation's own description:

• Awards are contingent on available funds, so timing and budget cycle matter.
• Both guilds and individuals can apply — a guild seeking support for a program and an individual seeking scholarship support are both within scope.

Traveling Teacher Program

The Traveling Teacher Program is a Federation-run initiative under Resources. It is designed to bring teaching to member guilds around the state, which is consistent with the Federation's stated focus: supporting member guilds and encouraging joint guild activities by coordinating educational opportunities across Arizona.

If your guild is outside the Phoenix or Tucson metro areas, this is the program to look at first, since it addresses the distance problem directly.

Special Event Planning Guides

The Federation publishes Special Event Planning Guides, also under Resources. These are reference documents for organizing fiber arts events. They are useful if your guild is planning a show, a workshop weekend, or a public demonstration and wants a starting framework rather than building one from scratch.

Arizona Fiber Arts Festival

The Federation hosts the Arizona Fiber Arts Festival, listed under Events. This is the organization's public-facing event and a natural entry point if you want to see the member guilds' work in one place before deciding which guild to join.

Member Guilds by Region

Membership in the Federation runs through a participating guild. The site organizes member guilds into three regions:

Note that the guild list on the site's home page also names Verde Valley Fiber Artisans (Greater Verde Valley) and lists Telarana as "Telarana Weavers and Spinners Guild (East Maricopa County)" in one place and "Telarana Fiber Arts Guild" in another. If you are contacting a specific guild, verify the current name and contact details through the guild's own website rather than relying on the directory alone.

Forum Listserv Access

As a Federation member, you can post fiber-related business to the Federation's Forum listserv, which reaches members across Arizona. This is a member benefit rather than a public resource — it is one of the concrete returns on joining through a guild.

How to Use These Resources

1. Identify your region using the table above and find a guild near you.
2. Join that guild, since Federation membership requires membership in a participating guild.
3. Once a member, use the Teacher Registry to find instructors, the grant applications for funding, the Traveling Teacher Program for guild-level instruction, and the Special Event Planning Guides for event organization.
4. Check the Events section for the Arizona Fiber Arts Festival.

For questions about any of these programs, the site lists a contact address: [email protected].