TO REGISTER:
Workshop is now full (7/26/24).
Please email Jenny Heard for additional information.

“Tactile Sensibility in Woven Tapestry,” (three day in-person workshop)

The overriding gain of this course is to hone the eye, hand, and intellect in the intricate interplay of structure, material, and design in woven tapestry. The tutor’s own quiet, minimal, and abstract works are strongly informed by the material of their construction. Whether working in linen, hemp, raffia, or paper, she talks of the ‘integrity of mark-making intrinsic to a particular thread or structure’ and her focus is to ‘make work that speaks its own vocabulary.’ These ideas will form the focus for this workshop. Participants will generate several carefully considered samples, each examining a distinct facet in the creation of woven tapestry cloth

2nd Session: May 28, June 1 & 4 - CLOSED/FULL
Please email the Workshops Chair with questions.

An Exploration of Double Huck” (three day Zoom workshop)

During the 3-session virtual workshop, students will weave a variety of samples in double huck, including layer and block exchange, stitched layers, mixed structures and color-and-weave effects. The program includes three talks to introduce different aspects of the material, as well as supporting video demonstrations which participants can access at any time. In the final session, we consider extending the structure to more than 8 shafts. This is not a round robin. Participants will need to have access to an 8-shaft loom and will receive full instructions enabling them to set up their looms ahead of time. Note that countermarche looms are not suitable for this workshop..

TO REGISTER: 2 sessions
Session #1: March 30-31, 2024 - Session is FULL
Session #2: May 4-5, 2024 - Session is FULL
Please email the Workshops Chair with questions.

“Oval Willow Basket Workshop” (two day in-person workshop)

This two-day workshop will cover construction of a slender oval willow basket, which is great for shopping, going on picnics, carrying paperwork or maybe your current needlework project. The basket begins with a base woven on a frame, and stakes attached using a method called scalloming. The base is fun to weave, and learning to cut scalloms and attach stakes in this way will let you see how to design baskets of all shapes and sizes. Students must be comfortable using a knife for this class and hand strength is necessary when weaving with willow. The basket will be woven from willow grown on the instructors Skagit Valley farm. Colors of willow will vary. Leather will be provided for two shorter handles or one longer shoulder strap.

TO REGISTER: 2 sessions
Session #1: April 26-28, 2024 - Session is FULL
Session #2: April 29 - May 1, 2024 - Session is FULL
Please email the Workshops Chair with questions.

“The Shifted Ikat Scarf” (three day in-person workshop)

Ikat is the centuries-old art and technique of resist-dying pattern into individual threads before weaving. It is a complex and revered fiber process resulting in graphically elaborate and compellingly beautiful woven cloth. Ikat wrapped yarns, when dipped in vats of dye, ihttps://www.seattleweaversguild.com/workshop-registrationnstantly become timeless, immersed in an ancient partnership between intention, design, and color.

Participants in this three-day workshop will design, wrap, dye, and weave a blue/white ikat scarf while learning the basic techniques of the warp ikat process. Each student will stretch a warp for an ikat scarf using warp yarns and a warping board they have brought to class. Several ikat warp wrapping methods will be demonstrated. The first day’s session will culminate in students dyeing their ikat wrapped warps using Procion Mx fiber reactive synthetic dye and then unwrapping the ikat resist warp bundles. Yarns will be hung to dry overnight.

TO REGISTER: Workshop is Full
Please email the Workshops Chair with questions.

“Willow Bark Windmill Weave Basket” (one day in-person workshop)

During this one-day workshop, students will use prepared ¼” strips of willow bark to play with windmill weave to form this unique basket. Several examples of shape and design will be shown, and students will then decide to either work to an exact plan or make it up as they go along. After creating some samples of the weave to save as reminders, students will weave a simple over under base, and then commence the windmill weave sides. Once you’ve mastered the “stitch” the weaving is enjoyable and repetitive.

TO REGISTER: 2 sessions
Session #1: Feb 22-23, 2024 - Session is FULL
Session #2: April 13-14, 2024 - OPEN / NOT FULL
registration for Session #2 opens Feb 3, 2024 @ noon, go to:
https://www.seattleweaversguild.com/workshop-registration
Please email the Workshops Chair with questions.

“Garment Construction and Finishing Techniques for Handweavers and Other Fiber Artists” (two day Zoom workshop)

A crash course in garment construction, embellishment, piecing, fit, finishing, and all-around fun! For weavers or anyone interested in learning to construct great looking and great fitting garments. Learn to be creative with your seam finishes, buttonholes, closures, linings, and embellishment. This is a terrific class for those wanting to learn to sew clothing from their hand-woven or other special fabric, as well as for those more experienced wanting polished and professional results. This class is both PowerPoint lecture and hands on!

TO REGISTER: Workshop is full (10/15/23).
Please email the Workshops Chair with questions or to be placed on a wait list.

“Zig Zag Rag Rug Techniques” (two day in-person workshop)

Students will weave a table runner or placemats during this 2-day workshop. The techniques they learn through these smaller projects can be applied to larger rugs on bigger looms. They will learn the techniques and tricks unique to zig zag rag rugs, including additional information on selvedge edges and finishing techniques that are unlike other rug finishes they may have been exposed to.

Sold out! Please contact the Workshops Chair to be put on a waitlist.

Using fewer than four threads per tablet, a technique dating back to the Hallstatt culture (c. 1500BCE), allows the weaver more flexibility in design, produces a less bulky band, and requires that the weaver have a good working knowledge of how tablet weaving works. In this workshop we will survey the range of vacant-hole techniques historically available to the weaver, examine the variables which control tablet weaving, and weave both a three-thread and a two-thread sample band. We will also discuss and practice both warping and drafting for the two techniques. Students will receive an extensive handout, including information on many of the techniques surveyed.

TO REGISTER: FULL (updated 4/15/23):
Please email the Workshops Chair with questions.

Deflected Double Weave (DDW) is a weave structure that has been “around” for a long time—at least as far back as the Ancient Colonial Shawl draft published in Mary Meigs Atwater’s Recipe Book, 1957. It has been called many things by many weavers and whether it is truly “double weave” is still debated. Traditionally, double weave is a single cloth in which there are two weaves. One warp interlaces with one weft and another warp interlaces with a second weft.

Sold out! Please contact the Workshops Chair to be put on a waitlist.

[VIRTUAL WORKSHOP] The structure of Huck Lace provides a treasure trove of pattern for weavers. It is a shaft-efficient weave structure where an 8-shaft loom produces 6-block patterns; and a 4-shaft loom produces sixteen different ways to combine textures of warp & weft floats with plain weave.

Shadow Weave is a subset of color-and-weave; and it is related to many techniques, other structures, and contrivances in weaving. This sometimes makes it feel unattainable. If we take it one characteristic or method at a time we are able to traverse the many pathways it offers. This workshop will be a round robin style exploration of the method developed by Marian Powell for weaving Shadow Weave. You will be weaving brand new drafts developed by your instructor. Each loom will have a different draft. Participants will be given all the drafts in a multiple page binder filled with colorful handouts.

Sold out! Please contact the Workshops Chair to be put on a waitlist.

[VIRTUAL WORKSHOP] This zoom workshop will focus on Decorative Stitched Double Cloth, an unusual structure that does not get much attention. To learn and understand the structure, students will weave a sample blanket (gamp). They can either weave the sample from Janet’s book or design their own.