About Us

East Grinstead Spinners is a small, enthusiastic group of around 30 members. We meet once a month, in St Mary`s Church Hall, Windmill Lane, East Grinstead, and enjoy sharing ideas, learning new skills, and spinning, weaving or dyeing among friends.

Meetings are on the first Wednesday of each month from 10am - 2.30pm. There may be an optional workshop organized by one of our members.  As they are popular, only members may take part. However, they are optional and some members attending our meetings will be ‘doing their own thing’. So visitors are sure of a warm welcome at any meeting – no matter how experienced or inexperienced a spinner you are.  We have experts in many fibre crafts who are happy to offer help and guidance if you wish.

At our meetings we also enjoy a cuppa and a biscuit, chat a lot and enjoy being together sharing our fibre related interests.

We charge members an annual subscription fee of £30 and ask visitors for a £5 contribution for each meeting attended. If you wish to become a member, please contact our secretary through the Contact page.

Due to the difficulties with the pandemic this year, we would ask potential visitors to contact us first.

A Little History

We began as a group of friends meeting in each other’s homes and when one of us began teaching spinning it was felt a good time to organise ourselves into a more formal group.

We had a preliminary group meeting which was so successful that we hired a hall and had our first meeting in May 1995.

East Grinstead Spinners are now members of the Association of Guilds of Weavers, Spinners and Dyers.

An article by Phyllis:

East Grinstead Spinners - The Early Years

Neale House, East Grinstead

As 2020 would have been the 25th anniversary of East Grinstead Spinners it seems appropriate after 18 months of uncertainty with covid, to reflect on the groups conception and early years!

Before 1995 a group of friends with an interest in spinning met regularly for tea, a good chat and a spinning session. Very similar to our social meeting on the second Wednesday of every month now! Then I taught several spinning courses through East Grinstead Adult Education. I found that many students needed ongoing backup, including a desperate need for TLC with spinning wheels! I realised there was a need for a formal group to address these needs and also give confidence to struggling spinners. After consulting with the head of our local Adult Education a venue was found at Neale House on Moat Road and a plan was underway to start a spinning group affiliated with Adult Education! So with a nucleus of the spinning friends and spinning students, East Grinstead Spinners came into being!

After several informal meetings in 1995 to establish the support needed to start a spinning group, the first formal programmed meeting was held at Neale House in September 1995. We met in a fair sized hall and had access to a large kitchen. Neale House was part of St Margarets Convent and it was not unusual to meet a nun when making tea in the kitchen! I had been a member of the East Sussex Guild of Weavers, Spinners and Dyers for several years and I had support from friends within this guild. Our first talks and workshops were given by these friends and from our own East Grinstead members. It became the norm, which continues today, to use the knowledge and skills of our own members in our monthly programmes. Demonstrating to the public also started in that September when we spun at the local Agricultural and Ploughing match!

Although several of our members had an interest in weaving the group was principally set up for spinning, hence our name East Grinstead Spinners. Also, because our first meeting was in September, our year has always been from September to August. But who knows, this could change in the future years?

To be continued........