Weaver…unplugged

Well almost. I did bring my laptop on vacation so I could work on the lesson plan for the Handwoven Lace Techniques workshop I’m teaching March 25-27. And I’ve been keeping up with email. But all in all, my spring break in Sanibel, FL, has been quite relaxing.

A couple visits to the spa, daily walks, a few exercise classes and I’m a new woman. I will admit that the restaurants in Asheville are much better than what we’ve found in Fort Myers or Sanibel. But the weather has been clear and sunny with highs in the 70s and 80s since we got here. That won’t be true in Asheville for a few more weeks, at least.

I took in a nice fiber show at Big Arts in Sanibel yesterday. Titled Hanging By a Thread, the contemporary fiber art invitational included a lot of politically themed applique and quilting, some fiber sculpture, hand-made dolls,  and some beautiful tapestry weaving by Terri K. Stewart, which of course was my favorite.

We’ve stayed away from Fort Myers Beach, which is currently besieged by hoards of spring breakers…you know, the young and single who like to mingle crowd. Even the Sanibel beach parking lots are jammed. So we’ve mostly stuck to the quieter resort perched on Sanibel Harbour just before the causeway.

We’ve heard so many nice things about our new website. Thanks to all. We love it too, giving credit to Barb’s very talented daughter Melissa for the concept, design and photography. And we’re settling into our new studio in the Cotton Mill Studios. I’ve already had one student in the classroom, and it’s working famously. Here’s Laurel warping Towel 2.

The next class is the Handwoven Lace workshop, then in April is Kathie Roig’s Warp It! Paint It! Weave It! workshop. Deadline for registering for Kathie’s workshop is the last week of March, as Kathie has to send out pre-wound warps for participants and we need to know there will be enough students to run the workshop. So if you’ve been thinking about Kathie’s workshop, but haven’t committed yet, NOW is the time. We must have your payment in hand by Monday, March 28.

I head back to North Carolina tomorrow and will be in the studio Friday and Saturday. There is even a yarn and fabric swap from 1-4 Saturday at both Sutherland and Cloth Fiber Workshop, our new studio neighbor. Hope to see you there!

Namaste

Karen

Moving along

Just when I thought the New Year would ring in quietly, everything changed. Isn't that the way it always happens-when you least expect it? Karen and I had settled into a lovely routine around her class schedule at Haywood Community College, inventory was at a decent level, and all the 'capital improvements' (ie expenses for upfitting the studio space) were pretty much complete. Thus, I thought the New Year would herald calm and time to be a tad more creative. Not to be.

About to renew my lease at Curve Studios a fellow fiber artist, Barbara Zaretsky (http://www.clothfiberworkshop.com/), called and said there was studio space opening up next to her. Now, if you do not know Barbara's work you need to follow the link. She is not only a surface designer, she is teacher, a seamstress, and so much more! Anyway, I trotted down to The Cotton Mill Studios, less than a tenth of a mile further down Riverside Drive, and rented the space that afternoon.

The space is marvelous. Full of light--seven windows in all, plenty of space for teaching classes and looms to be spread out, room for a large design table on which to work, and more! Best of all we will have a shared door with Barbara and be able to begin textile collaboration. Needless to say Karen and I are almost drooling at the prospect. The move will be at the beginning of March.

As if all this news is not enough, there is more. Our website will go live mid-March, so keep an eye out for this at http://sutherlandhandweaving.com. As it was pointed out to me in all of this social media hoopla, we needed to begin Twittering. We have begun this and you may follow us at http://twitter.com/#!/sutherlandweave.

With all this exciting news, we will try to post pictures often and let you see how things are progressing on our soon to be new home!

More in the Valentine’s mood

Actually the two scarves I just finished got their start last fall when I pulled what was a poorly chosen supplementary warp off my loom. The remaining ground warp became a couple of plain weave scarves, one with ombre blue and turquoise wefts that was featured in our 12 Scarves promo. The other, a short one with stripes on one end, I kept for myself.

Meanwhile, I couldn’t bear to waste the supplementary warp, a wonderful hand-dyed (by our friends at Just Our Yarn) fine, unspun cotton from Habu in gorgeous red violet shades. What can I say. I was seduced by the color. This delicate yarn makes a wonderful weft, but is challenging (to say the least) as warp.  No longer able to be anything but warp, the soft cotton was threaded onto my studio loom in an extended point twill, with a much wider sett and more open reed.

For the first scarf, I wove in a few differ wefts that just weren’t working. Then Barb pulled a cone of red Jaguar, a modal blend, from our stash of Silk City yarns. It was too fine to use singly, so I doubled it and, voila!, there were the lovely concentric diamonds. It washed up soft and cozy but still lightweight.

The second scarf on the warp had to weave faster, as I needed the loom for a class this Friday with a group of girls from a local high school. I rummaged through my stash of sock yarns and found a deep red and a variegated purple with some mohair in it. I blended randomly sized bands of the colors into each other for more ombre effects. It finished up both wider and fuzzier than the first, but I wove it off in 2 1/2 hours.

Next up, when I’m not busy with school or homework, I’ll be sewing up some luscious yardage I wove last month into the long-planned “Akira” jacket, inspired by the work of potter Akira Satake, I’ve been a big fan of Akira since he joined the group of artists at CURVE studios & garden.

Speaking of CURVE, Barb and I have some exciting news that we’ll be  announcing soon. Big changes are ahead!

Karen

Another pic of that Valentine’s giveaway scarf on our Facebook Page

Barb’s work is so fine, that when she weaves patterns, it’s often hard for the camera to capture them. I managed to get this closeup Sunday of the scarf we’re giving away as a prize in our latest Facebook page promotion. Be sure to click on it for a better look.

Keep suggesting our page to your friends and have them mention you when they visit and become fans.

I really can’t believe she’s giving this one away.

Win this scarf in our Facebook Valentine’s Giveaway

Calling all sutherland fans! Karen and Barb are excited to announce their Valentine's Giveaway on our Facebook page. From January 17 through the 31st you'll have the chance to win a scarf handwoven by Barb valued at $195! We will draw for the winner on February 1. All you have to do to enter is: 1) suggest the sutherland fb page to your friends, 2) once they become a fan, they must post on our wall that you suggested they become a fan, and both of you get entered - it's that easy! There are no limits as to how many times you enter, so suggest away!

Good luck!

Been there, done that.

I've never done this before. Actually, there are two things here I have never done. The first is be a part of a Weaving Study Group. I will get to the second thing I haven't done in a bit.

Karen, always looking to extend our reach to the weaving community, suggested we at sutherland begin a Study Group using Jane Patrick's new book "The Weaver's Idea Book". Now this book is written for those who have a rigid heddle loom. Karen, ever looking to stretch things for us, suggested we use this book as a guide for our new group. I admit it, I agreed, but was quietly skeptical.

Our first meeting was back in the middle of the Fall. We have a steady number of group members; some long-term weavers, others who have only been weaving for several months. Some have looms with 16+ shafts, others with rigid heddle looms. It is a nice diversity. Our first meeting was to get acquainted and set guidelines as well as goals. Now, here is where Karen is better at keeping minutes, but I am winging it with y'all. As I recall our general goal is for each member to take a chapter or portion of a chapter and present it, preferably with visual woven pieces.

I volunteered to take the presentation for January. I thumbed through the book several times, looking for just the right idea to present. My main criteria was to present an idea which was totally new to me as well. This would be my 'stretch' or second thing I have never done before. As a self professed Queen of Tedium (QOT), I lit on Double Spanish Medallions. Yep, that's me, all about tedium and detail. Well, at least with regards to weaving. Once the idea was in my mind I had to decide how I wanted to present the weaving presentation. I decided place mats would work well. A friend was cleaning out her "library" (see earlier post regarding this alternative word for "stash") and gave me two huge cones of linen so I thought this would be a good use for it. The thread I chose to use to weave the medallions is a linen I had used back in the summer for commissioned place mats.

I started dressing the loom and was able to weave my first two rows of medallions in the first mat right before I went on holiday break. Good thing I had written down directions as I am pretty sure I would not have remembered a thing. I sure had to reacquaint myself with how to weave the medallions when I got back to my studio loom this week. They are not difficult, but they do take some figuring from the photos and descriptions Jane has given.

I have learned several things through this process, with one of six mats left to weave. I quickly learned I needed to alter how I wove the medallions compared to the directions given. I found using my large weaving needle, given to me by my first weaving instructor Deborah Chandler, rather than a crochet hook, was much easier and far more efficient. Now that is not to say someone else wouldn't like to use the crochet hook, I just was unable to get a nice rhythm going with it. And there is one thing necessary for a nicely woven project--a rhythm. When learning anything new in weaving the initial throwing of the shuttle for me means I want to weave at least 6 to 12 inches to get that rhythm going before I put my shuttle down.

I have always wanted to learn to weave the medallions to see if and how I might incorporate them into my weavings. They seemed like they would be a fun tedious, sort of like why I enjoy hemstitching. Well, these are the epitome of tedium. And that is saying something coming from the QOT! Suffice it to say you will never see these in any future weaving projects of mine.

I will say I am happy I tried weaving these and think they do have a nice visual appeal, but they are not for me. There is also the question of the direction of the medallions on the mat. The mats will be off in a few days and I will post the final photo and let you see what you think.

I can now say I have done this, but won't do it again. Sort of the weaving version of 'been there, done that'.

We have a winner!!

What fun we had with our 12 Scarves of Christmas promotion on our Facebook page. For those who missed it, we posted a picture of one of the scarves we have for sale each day for the 12 days before Christmas. We then invited folks to comment on them, and every day someone liked or commented on the post we entered their name in a drawing to win a 50% discount on one of Barb’s or Karen’s creations.

Even better, we sold three of the scarves before the promotion ended! And we made a whole lot of new fans and friends. Our weekly views skyrocketed! One goal for 2011 is to really get a handle on social networking and make this Facebook thing work even  better for us.

So, congratulations to Debra Davis of Brevard, NC, just south of Asheville, whose name we chose in a very scientific method. I’ll be happy to explain it to anyone curious. We have not met Debra in person yet, but look forward to her visit to sutherland. It seems Debra collects yarn, lots of it. Already we’re kindred spirits. And she’s taking a few small weaving classes in January from a local group. The chemistry is palpable.

So, once Debra gets totally hooked on weaving, we’re looking forward to getting her in some of our classes. Following is Karen’s new class list for 2011. We’re going rogue with the scheduling, as we could never stick to the calendar anyway. If you see a class you’d like to take, call or email and Karen will schedule it based on time and loom availability.

AND don’t forget to sign up for Kathie Roig’s Warp it! Paint it! Weave it! class at sutherland Feb. 18-20. See the Dec. 16 post!  This is going to be lots of fun. Kathie paints warps with fabric paints instead of dyes – a lot less mess. Please call if you have any questions.

Barb and Karen feel very blessed to have spent the last year doing what makes them happy and sharing it with friends old and new. Here’s to finding your creative passion in 2011…and doing something about it!

Hardy Holland took Karen’s Weaving I class last January and several others in 2010. This fall he stopped by to show off the overshot baby blanket he wove for a friend and stitched together by hand! Well done, Hardy!

sutherland Weaving Classes

© Karen Donde

For Beginners

Just Weave $95 This class invites students to weave a complete scarf in one day on a loom already warped in rayon chenille. They will learn the basics of loom operation, how to wind bobbins and efficient weaving and finishing techniques. It is perfect for beginners who want to try weaving before committing to an in-depth class, lapsed weavers who need a reminder of how much fun weaving is or experienced weavers with no time to warp who simply want to spend a day throwing the shuttle or weaving a quick gift.

Weaving I-Three Warps, Three Towels $310 + yarn  Warping the loom can be the most intimidating part of learning to weave. The only way to become comfortable with warping is frequent repetition. This in-depth introduction to weaving guides students through planning, warping and weaving three separate projects on three different short warps in eight 4-hour classes. Dish or hand towels are perfect short projects. The first will be a plain weave towel with a solid colored warp and contrasting color weft. The second will introduce twill. The third will feature threading and color variations. Along the way, students will learn about choosing fibers and colors, how looms and other weaving equipment work, efficient warping tips, proper weaving techniques and how to finish handwoven textiles.

Beyond Beginners

Weave a Twill Gamp $215 + yarn  Students who have completed Weaving I, or have basic weaving experience, can explore four different twill patterns by weaving a gamp or sampler. We will review good warping and weaving techniques, and students will learn how to thread different patterns and vary treadling to weave different but related fabrics. Six 3-hour classes.

More Twills and a Taste of Overshot $215 + yarn  A follow up to either Weaving I or Weave a Twill Gamp, this class introduces students to two additional twill patterns and an overshot threading to make a cotton table runner. Students may choose one threading, or use them in the same warp. Lessons include a first look at overshot theory and design, and examples of twill variations. Six 3-hour classes.

Handwoven Lace Techniques $215 + yarn  Students who have taken Weaving I, or who are familiar with warping and plain weave, will be introduced to three different threadings for weaving lacy, open fabrics using fine cotton or fine wool. Choosing from Huck Lace, Swedish Lace or Atwater-Bronson Lace, weavers will create a scarf or series of napkins experimenting with various pattern effects possible with treadling variations.

Drafting & Design $215  For students who are comfortable warping, working from an existing draft and weaving tabby, twill or other basic weave structures, this class helps them learn how to design their own projects and draft their own patterns. Students will be asked to come to the first class with a general idea of a project they want to weave. We will work through decisions about appropriate fiber, yarn size, color and structure for the desired textile, practice planning yarn needs and pattern drafting and weave a project sample. Students will be introduced to computer drafting programs. Students may supply their own yarn or we will order for you from one of our suppliers. Six 3-hour classes.

Color and Weave $215 + yarn  This class introduces some of the many color-and-weave effects possible when color order in warp and weft interacts with weave structure in a gamp or sampler. Students may choose three different color orders and will weave them in both plain weave and twill. With the remaining warp, students may experiment with other weft color orders. Six 3-hour classes.

Introduction to Designing & Weaving Warp Rep $215 + yarn  Warp Rep is a warp-faced (or warp-dominant) block weave in which a thick weft alternating with a thin weft produces color patterns and horizontal (weft-wise) ribs. In this introduction, students will learn Karen’s building-block technique for rep design. They will then thread studio looms with their own designs and weave a variety of treadling variations into a series of mug rugs or coasters. Six 3-hour classes.  Minimum Experience Level: Advanced beginner. Students must be able to read a draft and warp a precise color pattern independently.

Warp it! Paint it! Weave it! with Kathie Roig

A sutherland Handweaving Guest Teacher Workshop

Feb. 18-20, 2011

sutherland Handweaving Gallery & Teaching Studio is pleased to welcome guest teacher Kathie Roig to the studio to teach her popular and unique method of warp painting in a workshop Feb. 18-20, 2011. The class explores two different methods of painting a warp using fabric paints instead of dye. This spontaneous method of applying color to yarn can be used in either functional or non-functional pieces. Students will learn to paint the warp once it’s already on the loom and prior to dressing the loom, and will be encouraged to experiment with color, texture, and weave structure. Students must have basic warping and weaving experience. They will need to bring a loom pre-warped according to Kathie’s instructions with a warp she will provide in advance. sutherland classroom looms will be available for rental. Contact us as soon as possible for fee and availability.

The class runs 1 pm-5 pm on Friday, Feb. 18; and 9 am-4 pm Saturday and Sunday, Feb. 19 & 20, 2011. Workshop fee is $250, plus a $20 supply fee. Class is limited to 10 students, and full payment in advance is required to hold your space. If the class must be cancelled for any reason, fees will be refunded.

For more information or to register, email sutherlandstudios@gmail.com  or call Barb Butler: 803-513-1814.

sutherland’s “12 Scarves of Christmas” on Facebook!

In celebration of sutherland’s first anniversary, we invite our friends and followers to enjoy a little contest feature we call, “The 12 Scarves of Christmas.” Starting today on our Facebook page through Dec. 24, we’ll post a picture of a different scarf or pashmina available for sale at sutherland. Think of it as a little inspiration for your own or your true love’s holiday gift giving.

Every day you leave a comment (a nice one we hope) we’ll enter your name in a drawing on Dec. 26 for a coupon worth 50% off one of Karen’s or Barb’s creations. One entry per day, please.

Featured items may be purchased in the studio or over the phone at any time, so if you have your heart set on one, best not wait! Call or email for prices.

Enjoy the pictures and good luck!

Karen and Barb

PS: Each day we’ll also offer another gift idea available at sutherland. Feel free to share them with anyone you think might be interested.

And here’s a peek at the 1st Day’s scarf.

Happy Accidents

The latest things off my loom are the results of other plans gone awry. But sometimes you succeed despite yarn and color challenges. I am still experimenting with beiderwand and how to turn the draft for faster weaving and more drape. While at the Southeast Animal Fiber Fair last month, I stopped in to see our friends at Just Our Yarn, looking for some pattern threads to go with some of their hand-dyed tencel skeins I had on hand. We pulled out this gorgeous deep red violet color of a very soft cotton from Habu that I’ve used before. It would make a beautiful pattern weft for the next beiderwand scarf. I snapped it up, without another thought.

Back at the studio that afternoon I couldn’t wait to wind the warp. It dawned on me briefly that when turning this draft, the pattern weft would now be in the warp, alternated 1 on 1 with the tencel. I gave it the old “Is this strong enough for warp?” test, before winding the two yarns together. Mistake Number 1. What was glorious on the warping board turned into a nightmare when trying to wind it on the beam. The cotton was just too fluffy, the double-weave sett too dense. I persevered (stubbornness mixed with the thought of wasting this hand-dyed beauty) and once on the beam, it threaded fine. I started weaving the beiderwand pattern and it was beautiful. But about 8 inches into the scarf, the cotton fluff started clogging up my 15-dent reed and those devilish little cotton warps started breaking. One, then another. I fixed them and kept weaving. Then a few more, and finally two snapped in the space of a quarter inch. I gave up on the turned beiderwand for now, but was determined not to waste either the cotton or tencel.

I lifted the pattern shafts, put a cross in all that cotton and pulled it away from the tencel, winding it on a kite stick on the floor under the warp beam. Then I decided to just weave the remaining tencel in plain weave. Probably would have enough for two scarves. I used the remaining cotton on the ball for weft and started weaving (very fast I might add). After about 48 inches of scarf, I ran out of the cotton. I toyed with the idea of using some of the warp ends I’d been saving, then thought better of it. Who says a scarf has to look the same on both ends? I used some stripes of the warp yarn and a little bamboo I had on the shelf to weave another foot or so. It’s a bit short, but I liked it so much I decided to keep it for myself.

The fun thing about those JOY colorways is that you can weave almost any color into them and they look good. I pulled out some turquoise and blue silk I’ve had for a while and decided to weave them together in an ombre pattern. Here is the result. Happy accident number 1.

The remaining cotton warp is now on my studio loom being threaded into a point twill, at a much more open sett and in an 8 dent  reed. We’ll hope that ends in happy accident number 3.

Happy accident number 2 was the result of not wanting to move heddles around on my teaching looms at the studio to accommodate that beiderwand project. (I wove that at home.) With an empty studio loom and time, I decided to stop planning and figuring and just wind a warp out of leftover bobbins. Because they came from Barb’s stash (thanks, Barb) they were mostly silk and bamboo. I gave only minor thought to the order and started winding stripes. As soon as one bobbin emptied, I started another. Here’s a pic of the warp on the warping board. I thought it reflected Meagan Chaney’s tiles pretty nicely.

Barb dubbed it the ugliest warp she’d ever seen. You can’t see the audacious pink stripe in this pic. Again, I persevered. After our first sutherland Weaver’s Study Group meeting last month, I decided to weave some honeycomb in this scarf which I threaded into twill blocks. That looked nice but was a bit heavy, so I wove the center portion in 1/3-3/1 twill to make pleats. Then I finished off the other end in honeycomb. Barb still wasn’t convinced. So I washed the thing, which made both the honeycomb and the twill pleats do their thing. Then I decided to stitch the honeycomb ends into tubes to more closely match the width of the twill pleats. Ta da! Happy Accident number 2.

As for the short scarf, I haven’t photographed it yet. It’s around my neck today.  

Karen

Weaving His Way Back into Notoriety

I’m not really a Conan O’Brien fan, and was only half paying attention when I first caught his new American Express ad. Here he was walking into a shop in India, picking up a cone of silk and tasting it. Then he’s winding it, presumably a warp, weaving it on a loom with a fly shuttle (well, we see only one pick), crushing berries for dye and standing waist deep in red water either dyeing or rinsing.

Next time I paid more attention. Still kind of missed the point of the Amex ad, but enjoyed all the weaving references. Maybe we should show this in a loop when explaining how much work goes into our fine handwoven cloth. The slogan: “When every detail counts.”

Even if you’ve seen the ad, here’s a longer online version, which is even better.

Enjoy.

Karen

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/11/08/conan-american-express-india_n_780364.html

Slow Weaving in North Georgia

I’m an occasional tapestry weaver. I learned enough from my wonderful tapestry teachers Rita Landau and Betsy Snope (both members of Archie Brennan’s and Susan Martin Maffei’s Wednesday Group) to finish the three tapestries I needed for HGA’s Certificate of Excellence in Handweaving Level I. I even managed to write a tapestry primer for Handwoven Magazine in spring of 2009, with careful editing by my tapestry mentors.

A few other tapestries have come off my loom since, including a puffin tapestry that’s currently exhibited in the Blue Ridge Fiber Show. The puffin had been on the loom almost two years. In the course of finishing it, I realized my tapestry skills had become a bit rusty. A new member of Tapestry Weavers South, I headed off to a mountain camp/conference center just north of Toccoa, GA, last weekend to take a refresher workshop sponsored by TWS with Tommye Scanlin and Pat Williams.

The weekend was filled with excellent instruction, beautiful inspiration, entertaining conversation and even a visit from master tapestry bobbin maker John Moss, who brought a whole box full of the brass-tipped beauties for us to try and buy. What a treat, as I’ve always had to order these and wait for my order to reach the top of his list. I added three more to my collection, and only about five remained by the end of the weekend.

Though Tommye and Pat are good friends, this is the first time they have taught a workshop together, and they complement each other nicely. With no TV and limited cell-phone coverage, the 15 of us, about half of whom were from Atlanta, enjoyed an intensive 2 1/2 day study of tapestry and design, interrupted only for meals and sleep. Our evening sessions gave us insight into Tommye’s and Pat’s design processes, a slide show of their work and influences and an amazing show and tell by some of the students. My roommate wove the piece above in sewing thread. (Note the pen for scale.) Conversations continued into the late night. Here are the finished samples most of us cut off the loom on Sunday. Mine is third from the right.

On the drive home, I was visualizing a tapestry design I’ve been thinking about for a while. I’ll need to do some photography to put the pieces in place, but am now excited to get the next warp on my tapestry loom. Yes, it’s very slow weaving, but it’s also addictive, especially with the support of my new weaving friends pictured here. That’s Tommye and Pat in the center of the second row. Between weaving for sutherland, teaching and going to school, I’ll do my best to keep the tapestry skills tuned.

Karen    

A CRAZY Three Weeks!

September is always a busy time as people return from vacation, get the kids back in school and get back to work, refreshed and energized. Here at sutherland, the pace is usually a little more relaxed. We weave a while, teach a while, chat with visitors and pack up customer purchases.
Then, suddenly, it was Sept. 23, and Daryl Lancaster was arriving on a late afternoon plane to teach workshops at Haywood Community College and at sutherland, and to judge the Blue Ridge Fiber Show produced by the Western North Carolina Fibers/Handweavers Guild. That show opened, by the way, Oct. 2 at the NC Arboretum. Barb and I were Daryl’s hostesses for the six-day visit, and we had a blast showing her great places to eat and fun things to see in Asheville. Barb already posted a picture taken from our Play with Color! class at sutherland. We had a seat available so I was lucky enough to sit in. Who knew you could make so many different yarn wrappings in one day.
Speaking of the Blue Ridge Fiber Show, I’m proud to say that one of my entries, a beiderwand scarf in the thinnest yarns I’ve ever used shared the People’s Choice Award with another entry. While Daryl selected the other handweaving prize winners, the People’s Choice Award is voted on by guild members who attend the opening reception. Recognizing the talent gathered for the reception, I was honored. I titled the scarf New Mexico sunset, recalling my trip to Las Cruces and Albuquerque last summer for Convergence. Here’s a photo I took of it at the Haywood Community College photo studio, where I’m completing the lab for my Studio Craft Photography class. I was rather pleased and am grateful to the teacher for suggesting a different angle on the shot.
While Daryl was touring the fun textile places in Asheville with Barb on Wednesday before her departure, I was busy with students in the classroom. I also was preparing for two days of my Just Weave: Weave a Scarf in a Day class at the Arboretum. I had offered to teach two sessions of the one-day class in conjunction with the BRFS, which involved hauling three warped looms and a big bucket of yarn and supplies out to the Arboretum. I had two students on Saturday and three more on Sunday, just one short of a full house. All five wove lovely scarves and, I believe, caught the weaving bug so I’m hoping to see them in the sutherland classroom soon. Here are a few pics from those classes.

View Full Album

The following Tuesday was the BRFS opening reception, which also meant the drawings for the seven BRFS raffle prizes that were in residence at sutherland all summer. We raised more than $1,000 to support the prize fund and the artists whose work won awards. I shipped off two of the raffle prizes to good friends in New Jersey who had ordered tickets by mail. Honestly, I stirred the tickets and had other people pick the winners. The tapestry donated by Tommye Scanlin was won by Kathe Todd-Hooker, from Albany, OR, whose own tapestry won Best of Show at the BRFS. The handwoven shirt by Liz Spear was won by a guild member who needed a different size. As Liz had generously offered from the beginning to give the prize winner something that fit, I jumped at the chance to purchase the shirt that Liz had on display. I had determined (about five minutes after the shirt arrived in the studio last spring) that it fit me perfectly.
The day after the reception, we welcomed Wence and Sandra Martinez to Asheville. They were here for the opening of sutherland’s special exhibit of Wence’s contemporary tapestry rugs. Friday morning they spent a little time at the Arboretum for a BRFS demo showing their rugs and talking with visitors. That night Wence, a Zapotec Indian, regaled guests at our opening reception with stories and pictures from his home village in Oaxaca, Mexico, where he learned to weave from his father and grandfather at age 9. We also learned how Wence and Sandra, a painter from the US Midwest, met, married and opened a studio in Door County, WI. That studio is where Barb first met them. Now they winter in Mexico at a B&B they recently opened, so the 11 rugs they brought with them will be on exhibit at sutherland through the winter. Here are some snapshots of several of them now hanging in the studio. (Sorry had to pull the album. An images-for-sale service hijacked them. Please know these are copyright protected images.) If you’re in the area, you have to come in and see the ACTUAL RUGS.

Wence and Sandra spent a few hours Saturday and Sunday in the studio talking with more visitors, then did a little touring in Western North Carolina before continuing on with their journey. What fun they are! We decided a field trip to their Oaxaca B&B should be in our plans.

So we’re now in mid-October, prime leaf-peeper season, and back to the day-to-day. The mountains and hillsides are looking beautiful and truly inspirational. Our next event is the start of the new sutherland Weavers’ Study Group on Oct. 24 from 2-4. We already have a nice participant list, but there’s room for more! If you’d like more information about what we’re studying or how it all works, just email me. Or just show up on the 24th.
Then it’s only three short weeks until the River Arts District Studio Stroll on Nov. 13-14. It’s almost more excitement than we can stand, but we’re loving it!
Karen

Technorati Tags: weaving classes,weaving,rugs,tapestry,Wence Martinez,Blue Ridge Fiber Show,sutherland,beiderwand,Haywood Community College,weavers' study group,handwoven scarf,Tommye Scanlin,Liz Spear,Kathe Todd-Hooker

Never in Our Wildest Dreams

I love Fall. Everything about this time of year makes me happy. I especially love the way the sun falls through the woods and makes long shadows of even short trees.

Last year this time Karen and I were experiencing a few sleepless nights planning the opening of sutherland. Never in our wildest dreams did we think ten months after opening we would be hosting Daryl Lancaster for a workshop.

This past week Daryl not only taught a color class at sutherland, she also taught a garment construction class at Haywood Community College, and was a judge at The Blue Ridge Fiber Show opening next week at the NC Arboretum.

I had taken a half day class color class taught by Daryl at Midwest Weaver's Conference 2009 at Grinnell College, so this time I sat out and manned the studio. I admit I did sneak in from time to time to see what the students were doing. I also listened to Daryl's lecture, inspirational in her instruction as always.

It was fun to see how each student was progressing through Daryl's assigned color exercises. The last exercise requires each student to use a photo as inspiration for a color wrap which could be used as a warp. The photos show some of the students work(for some reason I am unable to load them all), but really do not adequately depict just how beautiful their work was. One of the members of the class expressed her true dislike for the color orange at the very beginning of class. And, yes, hers is the one with the rock striations and blue sky. Just goes to show you the magic Daryl has in making everyone recognize proportion and balance int he scope of color.

The Daryl story continues in the next blog installment....

Cathy’s New Baby Wolf Loom

Cathy has been taking weaving classes at sutherland since last spring. As soon as she finished her first scarf in the Just Weave class, she was hooked. While working her way through warping and weaving three towels in the Weaving I class, she started asking about buying a loom.
As Schacht Spindle Co. dealers, we offered to order her a Baby Wolf loom, which is what she’d been weaving on at the studio. She shopped a while, thought a while, and finally decided to treat herself to a brand new 8 shaft Baby Wolf. We ordered it and it arrived this week. Cathy was in this morning and I helped her with the final assembly. Then her wonderful husband came over and helped her swaddle the new baby in a blanket before loading into the back of his truck for the ride home. He also made it her birthday gift!
Cathy was so excited to get this loom that I gave her the tracking number so she could follow it during shipment from Colorado. We both puzzled over why it went from Atlanta to Winston-Salem before coming back to Asheville. She emailed me when she learned it had been unloaded in Asheville.
Tomorrow she returns to continue her Twill Gamp class and talk about plans for her first 8-shaft project, a 1/3, 3/1 twill block threading woven to make long vertical pleats. She had been eyeing a similar one I have hanging in the studio.
How nice to send a new weaver home with her first loom. I feel like a delivery room nurse.
Thanks again, Cathy.
Also we hope to see friendly faces tonight at the CURVE studios & garden Open House Twilight Party from 5-8 pm. There will be snacks, wine, Wedge beer, soft drinks and lots of lively conversation while you’re enjoying all the new work by CURVE artists.
PLUS, Daryl Lancaster is in this weekend for workshops at Haywood Community College, sutherland and for judging the handweaving entries at the Blue Ridge Fiber Show. She will be at sutherland tonight selling and autographing copies of her various monographs. You will find the titles at her website.
And, she brought enough materials for a few more people to attend the Play with Color! workshop at sutherland on Monday, from 10am-4. So there are still a couple of seats available. But call ASAP.
Happy Fall!
Karen

Yes, we are mentioned by Daryl!

Girls’ Day Out…

I’ve mentioned before in previous blogs how much I love living very near NYC. I wish for time to see everything, read everything, experience everything, and eat everything I’d like to try in this world, alas, there are way too many things to do, see, experience than anyone can possibly hope to fit in in one life time! But I keep trying…

I’ve also mentioned in previous blogs that I have lunch once a week, during the “school” year, with a handful of assorted teachers from the local school district. It started when I was diagnosed with cancer, and has continued for nine years, and now, almost all of the teachers are now retired and able to do things during the week they could never have done before during the school year. So four of us headed into NYC on Wednesday, we all met at the Museum of Art and Design on Columbus Circle.

I timed everything just right on my own commute in, and arrived a good 45 minutes ahead of schedule. I wandered through the Time Warner building, looking at all the windows of the shops, they weren’t open yet, taking notes on a couple of design details I’d like to try, and I wandered through Borders, which was open also taking some notes of books to add to my wish list. I went out and sat on a bench along Columbus Circle, near the museum, to wait for my friends. The weather was glorious, the traffic around the circle entertaining, the vendors hawking their tours, bike rentals and handsome cab rides were all out in force. The horse driven cabs were of course gorgeous, I was fascinated watching how the drivers deftly managed to weave in and out of traffic alongside cabs and buses and crazy commuters, while the horses, in all their ribboned finery, just clip clopped along paying no mind… (Did I think to get a picture?)

I love the Museum of Art and Design, their themed exhibits are alway interesting and thought provoking, great to see with a group of women friends, especially this group, a retired art teacher, music teacher and the Gifted and Talented program teacher. The discussions are fun, and meaningful, and provide great lunch talk. This exhibit in particular. The exhibit was called Dead or Alive, and all of the artworks were created using something that was once alive, but is now dead. Dead bugs, animal bones, Dandelion seed pods (I’m still trying to figure that one out, they are so fragile), dried sardines, silk cocoons, lots and lots of feathers, lots of social commentary, lots of decorative works, and my favorite, was a loom, sitting in the middle of the floor, in one of the side galleries, near it a pile of mouse skeletons, and on the loom, a beautiful grey cloth, upon close inspection (and after reading the wall description) turns out to have been made from mouse fur. OK, I know that’s weird, but seeing a loom in an art exhibition is actually quite an anomaly, and seeing beautiful competent, usable cloth made from something so odd and revolting drew me in, in a way I can’t quite describe. Of course I wasn’t allowed to take a picture, the guard was standing three feet from the loom, but many of the works are in a virtual tour of the museum on their website, and the link for this image is wonderful. The thumbnail from the site appears here.

We all went to lunch in a sort of average uninspired trattoria calledRINO, (we are always trying new restaurants), my salad was good, avocado and shrimp, you can’t go wrong with that combination, and we headed off to the theater. Brief Encounters just opened, I believe it is still in previews, fresh from “sold-out” performances in London, and I can say it was a lovely way to spend a Wednesday afternoon, the show is an interesting concept, and full of British humor and timing, and though the show overall seemed a bit silly, I’m glad I saw it and again, it made for interesting dialog afterwards.

The premise of the show is a stage recreation of an iconic black and white masterpiece from 1945 of two strangers who meet at a train station, fall madly in love, and realize that they can’t continue their passionate affair, as they are both married, with children. So clips of the film, seamlessly woven into the stage production, and some clever special effects, and some occasionally hilarious choreography and flawless British timing, made for an original piece of theatre, though in this day and age, the passions of two lovers captured in a period black and white film, are pretty lost on a contemporary audience. I am thinking the cast, many from the London show, mostly British, was thinking maybe their audience was mostly dead. The director Emma Rice claims that the 1945 David Lean’s masterpiece film “Brief Encounter” is “almost part of their DNA in Britain”. Since I doubt most Americans have ever seen the film, (or at least I hadn’t), the premise of the show was sort of lost and came across as silly.

We all headed downtown after the show, and stopped at Thalia, a lounge on 8th Avenue around 50th. We had wine and cheese, and Warm Molten Chocolate Cake for dessert, with a scoop of salted caramel ice cream and a scoop of pistachio. Can I say I died and went to food heaven? I highly recommend this restaurant, it is definitely on my “need to return” list. (My new favorite cheese is called Humboldt Fog!)

The day got even better. I walked my friends to Port Authority, where they all headed back to NJ, and I headed over to 35th and Park to the September meeting of the Textile Study Group of New York. I rarely am able to get in to the meetings, but I had to attend this one. The speaker was Iris Apfel, one of my fashion heroes, who calls herself a “geriatric starlet”. Iris is 89 years old, and is considered a world class shopper, who spent her life collecting and mixing items, both high and low end, current and vintage, and has a collection of garments and accessories that has the MET salivating at her doorstep. A retrospective of her closet was mounted at the MET in 2005, titled Iris Apfel, Rare Bird of Fashion (I own the book of course), which then traveled to museums around the country, where I finally got to view it at the Nassau County Museum of Art. She and her husband Carl founded a legendary textile design company, Old World Weavers, which they ran until they retired in 1992. Old World Weavers restored many of the fabrics in the White House during the administration of several presidents. Can I say that Iris Apfel is probably the most interesting person I’ve ever heard speak, and I am so glad I was home long enough to be able to catch her lecture and I’m really really grateful to the Textile Study Group of NY for making her appearance possible.

So I’m home now, preparing for the next trip, to Asheville, NC the end of next week. All the handouts, pattern paper, interfacings, and monographs have been cut, printed and shipped ( a big thank you to my son Eric for lending a hand), and the house is quiet, it is a lovely Saturday and I’m onto the next scarf warp on my loom. I’ve gathered the colors, using a more neutral palette, again drawing from one of my forecast palettes from Handwoven Magazine, and I finished the warp wrap, and will have lunch and start winding the warp.

Tomorrow I will be giving the keynote address at the North Jersey Chapter of the American Sewing Guild’s Birthday Bash at the Barn in Clifton, which should be lots of fun, and I get to dress up in my handwoven clothes, and put on some make-up, and get out of the house for a few hours. I have the tendency to not get out of my pajamas on days where I don’t have to go anywhere… :-)

Stay tuned…

Going, Going, GONE!

Hi everyone,

Daryl Lancaster is printing out handouts and materials today for her Play with Color! workshop at sutherland Handweaving Gallery & Teaching Studio on Monday Sept. 27. She needs a final headcount, so if there are any of you who were thinking about attending, but haven’t contacted us yet, please let us know right away. The materials she ships for this class are substantial, so we don’t want her to ship more than necessary. However, neither do we want anyone who planned to attend to be left out. In addition I just placed a listing for the class in this week’s Mountain Express, so please sign up quickly.

Here’s another description of the workshop. If you’ve never taken a class with Daryl before, I promise you’ll get more than your money’s worth and will leave energized and inspired—whether you’re weaving, knitting, crocheting, sewing, quilting, felting, printing, dyeing, painting or doing whatever it is you do with color.

Karen and Barb

PS: To be removed from this email list just hit reply and let us know!

Daryl Lancaster

A one-day, hands-on workshop

Monday, September 27, 2010

Play With Color!

Through a series of creative exercises, participants will learn to confidently place yarns of different colors and textures together to make beautiful warp combinations. This is a fun, hands-on class, and participants will be asked to bring a bag of assorted odds and ends of yarns to use and share. Based on the Color/Fabric Forecast Column from Handwoven Magazine, participants will experiment with palettes based on mood using photos for inspiration, and see illustrations of how to translate them into handwoven fabrics and ultimately a garment. For more information about Daryl Lancaster, visit www.daryllancaster.com

10 am-4 pm Limit 10 participants Pre-registration required $120 + supply fee

Educational & fun for:

Weavers

Knitters

Sewers

Quilters

Fabric Printers

Daryl Lancaster received her BA cum laude degree in Fine Arts in 1977 from Montclair State College, Montclair, NJ and has been actively working since then as a weaver/fiber artist. Comfortable with the sewing machine for more than forty years, she spent 10 years as a production craftswoman, selling her handwoven clothing in craft markets and galleries throughout the United States. She teaches garment construction and related topics to weavers and other fiber enthusiasts across North America. She was the Contributing Features Editor for six years, for Handwoven Magazine and wrote the Fashion and Color Forecast Column. She currently writes a monthly column for the online Weavezine Magazine.

New Mexico Sunset and Northern Lights

So, we have been very busy.

Karen has been working on two very detailed pieces; each for entry into The Blue Ridge Fiber Show later this month. The piece Karen is holding in her left hand(on the right in the photo) is the one to be juried; it is quite fine yarn for her and is woven in Beiderwand. If you put those two things together you get a lot of picks per inch, hence lots of time at the loom. I love anything orange, so you know this makes me most happy. The other piece Karen is holding is what she wove with the extra warp. I love the window pane effect with the various colored weft colors used. Fellow studio mate, Pattiy Torno, has already placed dibs on it.

The second piece Karen will be entering into the BRFS is a tapestry of a puffin. I will post a photo as soon as I have one. For now you must take my word it is amazing. Karen really doesn't like to admit it, but she is a tapestry weaver. Just ask Madelyn Vanderhoogt if you don't believe me.

As for me I have been working on a rather large commission piece for installation on a client's dining room table. As inspiration I used the couple's painting in that room as well as a recently commissioned painting by fellow CURVE studio and garden's artist Constance Williams installed in the area adjoining the dining room. The warp is 60/2 silk and the weft is 60/2 hand dyed silk in a multitude of colors mirroring the colors in the home and paintings. It measures 19.5" x 120". I must say when I took it off the loom yesterday it was a delight to see how it turned out. When I placed it on the couple's table today it was magical. Will make final installation Monday when I have hemmed it and finished the corners with beads. Photos to follow.

And speaking of photos-I need to work on how to make the photos in the blog work with my writings. I am failing in this aspect miserably. Think I will ask my daughter.

And for anyone interested the rug hanging on the wall behind us in the photos is woven by Wence Martinez. He is from Mexico and will be having an Exhibition opening at sutherland October 8. We would love for you to join us for this event. More on that later.