01/02/2026
Join us for our annual St Distaff’s Day Celebration on Saturday January 3, 2026 from 10 am to 2pm. Bring along your fibre projects to work on, it does not have to be spinning! Knitting, weaving, felting, or hemming those tea towels that still need to be finished. If you have never spun, maybe try your hand on one of the guild’s spinning wheels or use a drop spindle.
Location: Main Hall of the Austrian Canadian Cultural Centre
3112 11 Street NE Calgary AB
This event is open to everyone. So, if you have a friend, neighbour or family member, bring them along. The Austrian Canadian Cultural Centre will be open for lunch, and you can make it a day! Of course, you can bring your own lunch, but we ask that you consume your lunch in our Guild Studio.
No cost to participate, free parking and fully accessible. Lunch at the restaurant is separate and optional.
What is St. Distaff’s Day?
Saint Distaff’s Day—also known as Distaff Day or Rock Day—falls on January 7, the day after Epiphany. Traditionally, it marked the time when women returned to spinning after the Christmas season. The distaff, or “rock,” used in hand-spinning, served throughout the medieval period as a symbol of women’s work.
Across much of Europe, women resumed their household tasks when the Twelve Days of Christmas came to an end. Women of all social classes typically spent their evenings spinning at the wheel, while during the day they would carry a drop spindle with them. Spinning was essential labour: it was the only way to transform raw wool, cotton, or flax into thread, which could then be woven into cloth.
Questions? Email [email protected]
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