Legend has it that around 2700 B.C. Empress Hsi Ling Shi was sitting under a mulberry tree when a  silkworm cocoon fell into her tea and unraveled. The Empress noticed that the delicate thread was soft and strong so she figured out how to spin and weave it into luxurious fabric. The Chinese then kept the raising of silkworms and the…

Start with an assortment of papers including the instructor’s handmade paper and then use pigmented pastes, wax resist, photocopying, and other techniques to create unique decorative papers. Then, use your papers as a foundation for collage and stitching and complete your choice of a Japanese triangle bag, wall art, or artist book. Claudia Lee is a…

Blue is more than just one of the colors of a rainbow: We are surrounded by blue sky and blue water; blue calms and relaxes us, and blue is, by many accounts, the most popular color in the world. There aren’t many sources of natural blue dye, though. Indigo, a pigment derived from indigo plants,…

Explore an incredibly beautiful way to dye cellulose (plant-based) fabrics without mixing or weighing any dyes at all. You’ll learn about the two different ice dye methods (“on the rack” and “in the muck”) and you’ll learn several ways to manipulate your fabric and garments before applying dye. You’ll also receive in-depth information about the chemistry of…

You can create batik fabrics and garments more beautiful and unique than you can imagine using beeswax and fiber reactive dyes! In this introductory class, you’ll learn several techniques for applying wax resist to fabric – with paint brushes, Indonesian tjanting tools, hand carved Indian wood blocks made specially for batik, and metal Malaysian stamps.…

Explore three-dimensional wet felting while creating a seamless vessel or bowl! Starting with dry wool fiber, you’ll learn how to shingle your layout and then how to insert a resist – the magic that allows you to create dimension from a flat pattern. Then you’ll use wet felting techniques to transform the wool into prefelt,…

Celebrate your creativity by making a Winter Fiber Goddess to nurture your spirit, grace your projects, and protect your workspace. We’ll provide a sewn goddess body, so you’ll be able to focus on the fun part – making your Winter Goddess unique and special to you. In homage to the snow and ice of winter, your doll body will be an…

Explore three-dimensional wet felting while creating a seamless vessel or bowl! Starting with dry wool fiber, you’ll learn how to shingle your layout and then how to insert a resist – the magic that allows you to create dimension from a flat pattern. Then you’ll use wet felting techniques to transform the wool into prefelt,…

Loosen up and explore new territory with line and stitch in this workshop devoted to free-motion stitching, collage, and composition. You’ll learn to focus on the character of line and personal symbols through simple drawing, composition, and stitching exercises. And you’ll learn to think in thread – translating visual stimuli into pathways by stitching in…

Try your hand at two different silk painting techniques in this two-session class for beginners! You’ll start session 1 with an overview of silk dyes and a quick painting demonstration. Then you’ll use a resist to draw or trace a design onto a small piece of silk, heat set it with an iron, and add glorious…

Nuno or laminated felt offers endless possibilities for creating unusual lightweight fabrics by taking advantage of the different shrinkage properties of wool and silk. The “tools” are simple – bubble wrap, hot water, and soap – and the technique is as close to instant gratification you can get in the fiber world. Start exploring this limitless technique by…

Beautiful, coordinating fleece and yarn can be dyed in one pot. The process is easy: Just layer multiple natural dyestuffs with the materials to be dyed, add a bit of water, cook, cool, and then reveal your one-of-a-kind colorway. It’s the easy way to create unique, natural color combinations! In this hands-on class. you’ll explore the process…

Why mend? For many reasons: To care for your textiles, the people you love, and our planet. To express yourself creatively. To use what you have, to embrace imperfections, and to repair rather than replace. And, just as there are many reasons to mend, there are many ways to mend. In this class, you’ll explore a variety of…

What better way to find the perfect border for your next crochet or knit project than to design your own? Mix and match a variety of crocheted elements, or choose an element from your fabric and expand on it. Learn how borders can enhance a project, how to deal with corners and curves, and how…

Explore the exciting possibilities of natural dye print pastes in this part demo, part hands-on class. Day 1 will include observing dye extraction and paste production followed by using pre-mixed pastes made from traditional natural dye substances to screen and/or block print, paint, and stencil on a variety of cloth samples. Day 2 will focus on processing…

Learn to spin cotton like a Cajun in this one-day class! You’ll start by carding cotton to prepare for spinning and then you’ll learn to spin cotton singles like the Acadians of Southern Louisiana – sitting alongside your wheel (instead of facing it) and spinning off the point of a quill. With some practice, you’ll…

Convert old silk kimonos, silk ties, or silk/rayon skirts into woven items that honor the Japanese tradition of weaving with repurposed materials. Known as sakiori, from the word saku (to tear) and oru (to weave), this technique takes recycling to a new artistic level! Warp your rigid heddle or 4-harness loom prior to the workshop (using…

Taking photographs of your work and the world around you records what is important to you. Good photographs do even more. They share and communicate, conveying your work and your memories exactly as you intend. In this class, commercial photographer and lifelong maker, Gale Zucker, will lead you through producing and editing good images using…

Shibori techniques create resist patterns that are revealed only after dyeing. There are many different styles of Shibori, but tie-dyeing is one of the simpler, faster ways to produce an amazing variety of Shibori patterns. In this class, you’ll clamp, bind, fold, or wrap your plant-based fabrics before immersion dyeing them with fiber reactive dyes. Experiment with…

Explore an incredibly beautiful way to dye cellulose (plant-based) fabrics without mixing or weighing any dyes at all. You’ll use two different ice dye methods (“on the rack” and “in the muck”) and learn dozens of ways to manipulate your fabric and garments before applying dye. You’ll also receive in-depth information about the chemistry of the dyes,…

Every single work of art you see is a composition of various elements – texture, shape, line, color, and value – arranged according to principles – balance, unity, and focal point to name just a few. Whether you think about them consciously or design intuitively, these are your tools. Using them will help you create work you love, help you…

Honor your creativity by making a Spring Fiber Goddess to celebrate renewal, nurture your spirit, grace your projects, and protect your workspace. Session 1 (from 11 am to 12 pm on Saturday, May 22nd) will cover design and headdress suggestions plus embroidery stitch practice. Session 2 (from 11 am to 12 pm on Saturday, May…

Learn how to wet felt a beautiful flower in this fun online class. Then, wear your flowers in your hair, pin them to your outfit, or create an everlasting bouquet. The possibilities are endless! Start by laying out your wool roving and embellishment materials. Then use water, soap, and a bit of agitation to turn your roving…

Hitomezashi or one-stitch sashiko was tradtionally used to reinforce Japanese garments. Today, we can all enjoy these densely-stitched decorative patterns created with the humble running stitch! What makes it Hitomezashi rather than simply sashiko?  Well, simple sashiko designs make large overall designs on the fabric while Hitomezashi designs create small denser designs that look like weaving patterns. In this…

Explore the exciting possibilities of natural dye print pastes in this part demo, part hands-on class. Day 1 at the SEFAA Center will include observing dye extraction and paste production and using pre-mixed pastes for screen and/or block printing, painting and stenciling. Rinse and dry your work overnight and then on Day 2, we’ll gather virtually to review…

If you’ve ever made a cabled scarf or blanket, you know it is only partly satisfying: One side is an array of beautiful cables, and the other side is obviously the wrong side. What if there was a way to make both sides look good without resorting to double-knitting? There is! In this class you’ll cover…

Motifs are back! Crochet a few for embellishment or crochet many and join them together to make larger projects, including shawls, clothing, blankets, hats, and mitts. Join Paula to learn basic motif patterns and how to use them. You’ll practice some motif patterns and leave with countless ideas on how to use them. This will be…

Learn to hand embroider the three stitches textile artist Gabriela Martinez Ortiz uses most in her work – rice stitch, fan stitch, and backstitch. You’ll learn how to create different surface patterns with these basic stitches and how the stitches can be used to manipulate fabric. Through examples of her work, Gabriella will share what inspires…

If you want to up your sock-knitting skills by learning to knit toe-up socks that actually fit, this 2-session virtual class is for you! Finish at least one child-size sock in class while you learn cast-on and bind-off techniques, fitting to foot size, and options for adding in just the right heel. You’ll also learn how to assess and obtain…

Celebrate your creativity by making a Fiber Goddess to nurture your spirit, grace your projects, and protect your workspace. Session 1 (from 11 am to 12 pm on Saturday, December 5th) will cover design and headdress suggestions plus embroidery stitch practice. Session 2 (from 11 am to 12 pm on Saturday, December 12th) will focus on adding…

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If you’ve been wanting to spin your own sock yarn but you aren’t quite sure of where to start, this is the (virtual!) class for you. We’ll start with a combination of lecture and demonstration, during which Debbie will cover the properties behind spinning a durable sock yarn: fiber selection and fabric, twist and its analysis,…

So, you’ve learned to spin, but trying a new fiber makes your hands sweat and your body shudder. In this virtual class, you’ll learn to control your thread and wheel instead of letting them control you! You already have a method of holding the fiber and drafting it into a thread – your “draw”. Now, expand…

Explore new territory in making contemporary quilts! You’ll start with simple traditional quilt blocks and then blow them up, repeat them, and distort them to create fabulous new compositions. Along the way, you’ll explore design elements including line, shape, texture, pattern, space, motion, value, and color. This workshop is for you whether you want to hone your construction skills or your design chops…

Learn to crochet and make something with your new skills! This three-session class will teach you basic crochet stitches, how to increase and decrease stitches, and how to change colors. Along the way, you’ll learn a bit about crochet history, choosing yarn and crochet hooks, stitch gauge, how to count stitches, and how to read…

Sashiko is an old Japanese form of functional embroidery. It is based on the simple running stitch and was used to repair clothing by reinforcing points of wear or patching worn places. Elegant, timeless designs that invoke clouds, mountains, bamboo, and more were traditionally stitched with white thread on indigo cotton fabric. Today, though, sashiko…

Eco Printing is a form of natural dyeing where impressions from plant material are transferred to fabric. Fresh and/or dried leaves, stems, flowers, buds, seeds, bark, and roots from garden and locally foraged plants can all be used. The resulting eco prints can be clearly defined or diffuse and are unique to the materials used,…

If you love your spindles but find yourself wondering “Now what?” once your cop is full, wonder no more! This class will take the mystery out of how to ply from your spindles and will help you create hefty, full-sized skeins of your spindled yarn. You’ll learn at least five different methods for efficiently winding…

Learn to dye with food coloring and Easter egg dyes and create beautiful hand-dyed yarns with minimum fuss and maximum fun! You’ll dye a skein of sprinkle yarn with crushed Easter egg dyes and then you’ll dye several smaller solid-color skeins that coordinate. We’ll send you the dyes and the yarn and guide you through the…

Learn to dye with food coloring and Easter egg dyes and create beautiful hand-dyed yarns with minimum fuss and maximum fun! You’ll dye a skein of sprinkle yarn with crushed Easter egg dyes and then you’ll dye several smaller solid-color skeins that coordinate. We’ll send you the dyes and the yarn and guide you through the…

Create a flock of cute birds while learning new wool applique’ embellishment stitches – bullion rose, cast on bullion knots, couching, detached chain stitch, double cast on stitch, drizzle stitch, open buttonhole filler stitch, Pekinese stitch, Tete de Boeuf stitch, threaded backstitch, and woven picot. You’ll learn a few stitches in each of the four…

Sashiko is an old Japanese form of functional embroidery. It is based on the simple running stitch and was used to repair clothing by reinforcing points of wear or patching worn places. Elegant, timeless designs that invoke clouds, mountains, bamboo, and more were traditionally stitched with white thread on indigo cotton fabric. Today, though, sashiko…

Enter the wonderful world of crochet by learning the basic and essential chain stitch. Then, just repeat this simple stitch until you’ve reached the length you want, join your ends to create a large loop, and arrange into multiple smaller loops. Wear your necklace as it is or (optionally) corral the strands with a tab to keep them tidy. It’s that…

Enter the wonderful world of crochet by learning the basic and essential chain stitch. Then, just repeat this simple stitch until you’ve reached the length you want, join your ends to create a large loop, and arrange into multiple smaller loops. Wear your necklace as it is or (optionally) corral the strands with a tab to keep them tidy. It’s that…

Wool applique’ is fun whether your design is modern or primitive! Give this portable and easy textile technique a try in Diana Quinn’s 4-session (1 hr on June 13, 14, 20, and 21) beginner class. You’ll practice several embellishment stitches – backstitch, bullion knot, chain stitch, fly and closed fly stitch, french knot, wheel stitch,…

Need a perfect last-minute gift for Mom? Want to make masks for your family and friends? Then, join Chrissy for an hour of real-time help to get you sewing masks like a pro (instead of like Kay!). This online class is free but is limited to 10 participants so that everyone completes a mask and…