ANCIENT TECHNIQUES, CONTEMPORARY DESIGN

More than 1,200 years ago, the people of the American Southwest perfected the vertical loom and weaving techniques I use today. The finished selvages on all four sides of each piece allow me to pack the weft yarn tightly so the rug will withstand hard wear on the floor.

I dye the wool yarns I use for weft with modern washfast, lightfast “acid” dyes (the acid to fix the dye is ordinary household vinegar). These dyes give me a wide range of rich colors with minimal environmental impacts.

Summer Solstice - Stephanie T Hoppe

Kongthong is a master weaver who together with her sister owns of the  Phaeng Mai Gallery in Vientiane.  Kongthong will describe the history and background of the traditional textiles of Laos and the cultural meaning of the cloth. She will also describe the role of the Phaeng Mai Gallery in efforts to keep alive the weaving skills and cultural  traditions of her region.  Join us to learn more about the place weaving holds in the culture of Laos and the rich symbolism of the designs.

Napa Senior Activity Center,  1500 Jefferson St

Thursday July 8 at 6 pm.

Coffee and cookies

Lecture starts at 7 p.m.

A  $5 contribution is requested.

A trunk showing and sale of these exquisite textiles will follow the presentation.

For more information contact: silveradoguild or call Barbara Stafford at  707.224.3229

Workshop for Weavers:  Tuesday July 6 and/or Wednesday July 7

Kongthong Nanthanvongdouangsy  will hold two days of workshops on Traditional Lao Weaving Techniques. This will be an informal gathering of up to 10 weavers. There will be some flexibility in format and subject matter but will include a presentation describing the traditional Lao weave structures with an emphasis on the supplemental  technique followed by hands-on weave design and practice. Necessary supplies and equipment will be provided. Workshops will be in Barbara Stafford’s back yard and studio using the Harrisville rug loom rigged to carry the Lao loom assembly.

You will not need to bring any supplies but a notebook and camera might be useful.

Tuesday July 6 and/or Wednesday July 7

Time: 10 a.m. – 4 pm or???

Location: 1520 Seminary Street, Napa

Lunch: bring, eat out or take out at local restaurants – several within walking distance.

Fee: $30/day.

Call Susan Greer 510-236-3837, or email <sgreer>edu to register.

We will be dyeing and spinning. There will be a weaving demonstration.

Friday October 22 to Sunday October 24. There is also Saturday only registration.

For more information and the registration form go to the Retreat page of our MotherLode Weavers and Spinners website.

www.mlwsguild.org

LINDA HARTSHORN has created hundreds of yards of beautiful textiles over the last twenty-five years.  Her specialty is incorporating unique dyework into her handwoven fabrics.  She teaches weaving at The Ink People Center for the Arts in Eureka and is a winner of the Victor Thomas Jacoby Award for Weavers, Spinners, and Dyers.
Program description:
Natural Dyes and Handwoven Textiles
Linda Hartshorn will illustrate the uses of natural dyeing in handwoven textiles with samples and slides. Her wide repertoire of techniques includes ikat, woven shibori, paste resist and painted warp, all which can be done with natural dyes.  She will show how these beautiful dyes enhance her work and the textiles of other artists and other cultures.
http://www.lindahartshorn.com

Our guest speaker, Anne Field teacher and author from New Zealand, will be sharing her tips and tricks with Dévoré. Dévoré is a technique we are familiar with when it is applied to velvet cloth. With handwoven and machine or hand knitted cloth made of both cellulose and other yarns, the cellulose content is dissolved in places leaving some transparent areas. Designs are made by stencils. Finished articles will be handled and discussed.

Devore Wrap

COLLAPSE WEAVE — THE MAGIC OF WOOL (2 Day Workshop):   In this workshop students will weave and finish several samples to gain an understanding of the structure of collapse weave. Students will bring their looms already warped. Samples will be woven and discussions on the relative values of active and passive yarns will lead to an understanding of why and when collapse happens. Students will then choose whether to continue sampling, or to weave a scarf.

Contact:  Gloria Miller glorsm

For more information, please check Anne’s website:  http://www.annefield.co.nz/anne.html

Collapse weave dress with wrap

Blacksheep member Ulla de Larios will be sharing her “exploration in cloth” with us.  Initially, her teen-age experiences with Flemish Tapestry set her on a course to find another way to create images on cloth.  Trying different techniques she settled on Warp and Weft Painting as the ultimate process for creating the pure color fields and the exciting borders that are inherent to this process as well as to Ikat*.  Ulla has an MFA in Textile Arts, shows her work widely, and has been published in Väv Magasinet.

Date: March 18, 2010

Time: 7:30 until 8:30 PM

Location: Woodside Village Church, Guild Hall, 3154 Woodside Road, Woodside, CA

*Note:  According to Wikipedia, Ikat, or Ikkat, is a style of weaving that uses a resist dyeing process similar to tie-dye on either the warp or weft before the threads are woven to create a pattern or design. A Double Ikat is when both the warp and the weft are tie-dyed before weaving.

Stacy Speyer will be giving a presentation on her woven art work, dyeing process, and current explorations.  Since 1996, she has been focusing on weaving installations out of fine threads that have been dyed before being woven.  Her technique, known as space dyeing or free dyeing, is a controlled method where she lays out the warp threads on a table and paints them with dye, allowing for a more painterly experience.   For the last two years she has been intensely researching geometric forms.  She has made both traditional shapes and altered forms to further her understanding of how lines can be constructed in three dimensional space.  This has led to an Artist in Residency at the SF Exploratorium in 2009.  Ms. Speyer¹s work has been exhibited nationally and is represented in private collections. BFA, Kansas City Art Institute; MFA, CCA.  To explore more, please visit http://www.stacyspeyer.net/

Wind, Stacy Speyer