Learning to Weave - Days Two and Three

In our Learn to Weave classes there is nothing that lifts the instructor's spirits more than seeing a smile like this one.  Eva has gone through the long process of winding a warp, dressing the loom and is finally making cloth.

 

In the photos below, you see each new weaver at varying stages of the process.  Each of them has their own mentor to keep things progressing in the right direction.  It's this one-on-one attention that makes our classes special and successful.

 

 

 

 

We couldn't resist this last photo of LTW instructor, Jen.  I suspect she is doing tie ups on one of the looms and still manages a cheery smile.  Weavers are a strange lot - they love crawling under looms if it means they can get a new pattern underway.

 

 

A big thank you to all of the instructors/mentors for this year's program.  RFG is looking forward to seeing all of our new student/members in the months to come.

Third Annual Learning to Weave Class

Saturday saw the beginning of a new class of weavers that enrolled in the Learn to Weave program that the Reno Guild offers once a year. The class starts off the new weavers with tutorials in warping on a warping board.   Each student has a mentor from the guild with them during the process.  In a couple of weeks, this same group will be back for further instruction on the fine art of warping and weaving off their sampler.  The class uses Issue 13 of Weaver's Craft which includes instructions for a four shaft sampler (direct tie up) and lots of good information on designing your own towels.  

 
We wish our new weavers the very best of luck in their journey to become proficient at the warping and weaving process.  The skills learned in this class will serve them well in their weaving future.  We also want to thank our volunteers who put together the class structure and are there to give support to their students.

Suzanne and Jen have put many hours into setting up this yearly class. 



And now - something new for many of us.  At the class, Jen introduced what she called the H Knot.  A means of affixing your new warp yarn to the warping board.  Looks interesting and something to try out.  Thanks, Jen!





Annual Chocolate and Dye Day

The Reno Fiber guild has had a long tradition of a chocolate feast on their last meeting of the season.  This is our second year of combining the feast with an indigo vat.  We also had  a couple of acid dye pots, a cochineal pot, and some kakishibui (fermented persimmon dye).  This year it was gently raining most of the day in Reno which didn't seem to deter the group one little bit because we were under cover. Our hosts, (Gayle and her husband Jim) provided the garages for the dye fest. 
Jen had prepared the indigo vat in advance.  Last year she used the fructose vat recipe.   This year we read about using henna as the reducing agent and Jen purchased some and used it.  Wow - what deep blues were coming out of the pot; it seemed to go on and on before it was exhausted and had to be renewed before it was pulled back in to service.  We are thinking that the henna is the secret ingredient.  You can learn more about this from the Maiwa handout and can order henna from Botanical Colors who also gives instructions about using it with indigo.

Since we had been studying Japanese Textiles this year, people brought scarves and pieces of fabric to clamp and resist in various ways.  Some of these went into the acid dye pots (Sabraset Dye) and some got dipped in indigo.  People fooled around with the kakishibui and wished for a bit of sun to darken their work.  The sun peeked out briefly - enough for us to see that it really did darken the fabric dipped in the kakishibui.  We purchased enough for one liter of dye from the North American supplier and worried there might not be enough for everyone to try.  But it really went a long way.

Of course, we kept nibbling at all the delicious chocolate treats shown here on the table.  Nothing makes working in the rain more palatable than chocolate!

It was a lovely day and at the end, plenty of handspun yarns had been dyed, scarves were unbound and admired and we all wound up wondering how we were going to possibly get rid of the leftover chocolate.

March Dyeing Madness with Kathrin Weber of Blazing Shuttles

color sample skeins drying in the sun

 

Kathrin Weber of Blazing Shuttles came west this spring to do several workshops and teach at CNCH2016 in Modesto.  RFG considered themselves quite lucky to be able to book her for a dyeing workshop "Not Your Grandma's Dyepot" while she was in our vicinity. 

 

We donned our funky clothing - brought buckets, cups and measuring spoons and an array of containers along with warp chains and skeins to learn the art of creating fabulous dyed yarns.   Now to the comments about this fabulous class from participants.

 

"I had a great time. I learned a lot. Wish there had been a bit more on mixing the colors, but I think she wanted us to learn by trial and error. Kathrin Weber was fun and engaging. I also liked the cupcakes and samples projects."  - Shelley N.

"I've been steering clear of dyeing. That has changed since Kathrin's workshop. Her technique is easy and fun. My "cupcakes" turned out to be like the variegated yarns I'm always looking for . Now I can make my own. Kathrin was a helpful and patient instructor with humor mixed in." - Lorene S.

"I have already put much of what I learned this week to work. No matter how long I work with yarn, dyes and color, I keep learning more. Would recommend Kathrin's workshop to everyone."

Nancy P.

"The Weber workshop was fantastic! It was well organized, fast paced, and very informative. Kathrin is a good teacher, very lively, and I'd recommend it and her to any others. I learned new ways to dye, and a new regard for colors I wouldn't have thought to try together. I still have a lot to learn about color, and am excited to use the new warps/skeins with materials I already have to see what happens when they cross--hope it isn't mud. Many thanks to Suzanne, et al., for organizing this one, and Igor for acting as angel. "  - Kay F.

"Kathrin made this class educational, informative and fun. She generously shared her expertise and tricks and encouraged us to take risks. What a gift! For someone who thought I would NEVER need to dye, I can't wait to do some more!" -  Nancy S.

"For some time, I’ve been watching the wonderful projects coming forth from Kathrin’s workshops and wanted to get in on the action. I have quite a bit of previous dyeing experience, but this workshop  had a ton of techniques and interesting directions that I hadn’t tried before. It was an exciting couple of days and I heartily recommend Kathrin’s workshop for anyone who wants to make projects that explode with color and visual interest."      
 Beryl M.

"Must say this was one of the best and possibly the best workshop I have attended. The presentation was top-notch, smooth, professional and not confining. I think those in attendance probably took more information with them than they expected.  Kathrin is a very good instructor; very much a promoter of learning by doing and this means getting in and playing with the colors. Very enjoyable, highly recommended." - Igor R.

"We had a wonderful 2 days of learning Kathrin's method of space dying skeins and warps.  What a fun couple of days!  Lots of techniques for both weavers and knitters...This is a "must have" class for weavers.  It was amazing to see what had been woven on the warps that she had dyed...simply gorgeous!  Knitters will enjoy her class as you learn to blend the colors on the skeins." -  Jane M.

 

 

Linen and Kumihimo!

Linen runner woven by Nancy B.: Pattern is Spot Bronson

If you are following this blog, it almost looks like the Reno Fiber Guild has been resting on their laurels since Christmas.  Let me assure you, this has not been the case.

You may remember that the guild had a linen workshop with Sara von Tresckow in late October.  She had a bundle of tricks and many of her favorites are now standard practice with our weavers. (starched warps, beveled lease sticks, leaving the lease sticks in the warp after it is wound on the back beam)

Over the past months, linen towels and runners have been shown at Sage Weavers' meetings. 

Linen towels woven by Shelley N. using A German Bird's Eye from Davison (pg. 20)

 

Then, in early February, the guild had a Kumihimo workshop taught by members.  Kits were ordered from "What a Braid!" and we gathered on a Saturday to learn how to braid with beads. 

 



With several instructors that learned braiding with a disc at a workshop a couple of years ago, the group was in very good hands. 

And look at this lovely necklace made by Shelley on her very first attempt at Kumihimo (with beads, no less!)

What's upcoming for the guild?  A dye workshop with Kathrin Weber in late March.  Still a couple of spaces open, if you are interested.  And, of course, CNCH will be in Modesto the first part of April. 

Christmas Party with a Pacific Rim Theme

The Reno Fiber Guild annual Christmas party was held yesterday at Jen's home.  The weather was overcast - just a little nippy but not too cold and we all enjoyed a fantastic view of Mt. Rose with snow on its ski runs from Jen's sunroom. 

Each year the guild tradition is to bring a gift for a raffle basket.  This year, the theme was Pacific Rim (which it turns out covers a pretty big area).  All the gifts are stowed away in the basket (see photo above) waiting for the lucky winner to take everything home.  But before the raffle drawing, we all lined up for a fantastic feast from pot luck dishes (again the theme was Pacific Rim).  There was a glorious array of different foods from all sorts of exotic places.  I didn't get the camera into the kitchen until after the crowd had descended on it and the other side had the deserts - yum!

 



 After we had eaten all we could hold, the raffle ticket was drawn and Nancy S. was this year's winner.

Nancy's basket was filled to the brim and overflowing with Pacific Rim gifts.  Of course there were origami kits, sashiko embroidery kits, and a kumihimo disk in the basket, but also unique handmade items, showing off the skills of this creative group. 


handmade coin purse



kimono pin

Handwoven dévoré by Anne Field

tote bag with Japanese style motifs



As you might imagine, Nancy was having a terrific time opening all the gifts in her treasure basket.  In the photo below, she holds up one of a pair of knitted bath mitts (Pacific Oceanic fishes we must presume). 

Nancy is now the holder of the basket for the coming year and she will decide the theme for next year's raffle basket.  



 Happy Holidays from the Reno Fiber Guild!





Linen Workshop with Sara von Tresckow

Sara von Tresckow, of the Wool Gatherers, presented a three day workshop in warping and weaving with linen.  The evening before the three day workshop, Sara and her husband, Hans, brought lots of examples of linen and hemp cloth to help illustrate Sara's lecture about the qualities of both linen and hemp.

On Friday, workshop participants learned Sara's approach to warping their looms with previously wound warps that had been sized with starch.  After warps had been beamed on and threaded, everyone settled down to weave a structure that they had chosen to be their project for this workshop.

You can tell from the little slide show below,(best watched from U-Tube)  that everyone was enjoying their linen experience.  I'm sure everyone went away with valuable new knowledge about the quirks and advantages of this fabulous fiber.