I. Workshop #1: Focus on the Warp (Controlling Creative Chaos) – 1 Space left
Dates: Tuesday – Thursday, April 17 – 19
Location: Amazing Yarns, Redwood City
Cost: $205 + $72 materials fees —4.5 yard warps. 300 threads. (Choice of Hand-dyed and Contrasting Companion Warps)
Description: Students learn non-traditional techniques that allow them to work effectively and efficiently with multiple warps and diverse warp elements while designing at the loom. They will use instructor provided hand-painted warps in which the colors flow and change creating designs in the woven fabric that appear complex in planning, but actually spring from making flexible and intuitive decisions as they are setup and woven. Students will work with multiple warp chains in a variety of ways: They might choose to flip sections of the warp from end to end which creates color flow in opposite directions. They might choose to shift the warps to create patterns that flow in the weaving lengthwise as well as horizontally. They might choose to add other warps of different weights, textures and fiber content to create stripes within the space-dyed design. They will learn to cleanly split warps which allows them to use threads that their current project requires while saving extra warp threads for a future project. Students will work with color and weave effect in several plain weave configurations, then weave twills, repp and turned taquete on the same warp. No two warps or designs will be alike so class members learn from their own projects as well as from the others. Weavers with more experience will be able to take their designs to more complex levels.
In this workshop we start the designing process tying on to a dummy warp that students have threaded before class. Tying on can be a time saver, an eye saver and, especially, a method to approach design techniques at the loom as opposed to on a computer or pen and paper. This workshop is not suitable for rigid heddle looms.
II. Workshop #2: Not Your Grandma’s Dye-Pot! – 2 Spaces left
Dates: Saturday & Sunday, April 21 & 22
Location: Amazing Yarns, Redwood City (Andrea’s)
Cost: $130 + $35 materials (dye kit, handouts, plus yarn provided by instructor for a set of dye samples that workshop members will create to take home.)
Description: The goal for this dyeing workshop is to learn the basics of dyeing cellulose (plant based yarn): dyeing safely, traditional as well as non-traditional application of dyes, and processes needed to set the dyes for color fastness. Students will learn fundamentals for dye application to produce one of a kind, technically sound and color-fast hand-dyed cotton yarn and fabric.
We will discuss and explore a wide variety of ways to layout warps to be dyed – each layout giving a different result for what will turn into woven fabric. This is not a “recipe” class. Using 7 hues of Fiber Reactive MX dyes students will begin to develop insight into the essence of color that allows them to blend, shade and produce a full spectrum of color. Students will learn techniques for space-dyeing skeins and warps, resist dyeing yarn, and how to set up a basic dye kitchen. And, beyond that, to learn to dye with personal fearlessness and intention.
If you would like to see samples of Kathrin’s work &/or her workshops & student work, the best place is the Blazing Shuttles Chatter group on Facebook. If you are not on Facebook, you can also see Kathrin’s website: https://blazingshuttles.com/
Please contact Jodi Paley at: jodi@chezpaley.com for more information!