Brinkley Loom

Raj India

Brinkley Loom

Workshop Dates 2011/2012

2012

April 13/14/15 (at The Hatch, Tenbury Wells)

Traditional Indian block printing with mud resist. Shibori with Indigo (see below).

June 2/3/4 (at The Hatch, Tenbury Wells.)

From sheared fleece to finished item; choosing good quality fleece and washing it. Spinning yarn on a wheel. Also plying and Navajo plying. Felting many different sheeps fleeces. On the third day weaving on a Brinkley Loom.

June 23/24 (at The Forge, Byford)

'The Story of Blue': Indigo Dyeing, stories and needle felting figures with Skye Meredith.

July 7/8/9 (at The Forge, Byford)

Plant dyeing, peg loom weaving, Brinkley loom weaving and feltmaking.

July 14/15 (at The Forge, Byford)

'The Story of Blue': Indigo Dyeing, stories and needle felting figures with Skye Meredith.

July 27/28/29/30 (at The Forge, Byford)

Summer School (see below).

August 17/18/19/20 (at The Forge, Byford)

Summer School (see below).

September 1/2/3 (at The Forge, Byford)

Plant dyeing, peg loom weaving, Brinkley loom weaving and feltmaking.

PRICES

Mud resist workshops: £250 for the 3 days inclusive of materials and lunch.

Wool workshops: £78 for 1 day, £145 for 2 days, £210 for 3 days, £270 for 4 days inclusive of materials and lunch. 10% off if booked before end of Aprill.

Concessions possible.

3 day spinning workshop at The Hatch: £210 including materials and lunch.

Skye's workshops: £65 for 1 day, £120 for 2 days, inclusive of materials and lunch.

Contact Jane re deposit to confirm your place. Cheques to be made out to Jane Meredith.

For workshops at The Hatch, contact Jane for course bookings.

For accommodation at The Hatch please visit www.thehatchworkshop.co.uk

Dabu, Indigo and plant dyes on fabric

I have recently been in India and learnt some new skills which I am looking forward to passing onto course participants. This method of working on fabric uses the age old technique of block printing. We will be making and using a mud resist, block printing this onto calico and silk then dyeing with indigo. We can also use shibori (tie dye) methods and build up an interesting layer of design using tannic acid and iron.

Dabu Workshop

3 Day Workshops Saturday

3 Day Workshops Sunday

3 Day Workshops Monday

3 Day Workshops

Plant Dyeing, Peg Looming, Weaving and Felting

Saturday

Day One is plant dyeing day. I supply fleece, some of which I have pre-mordanted. I will tell you about chemical and natural mordanting, then you will gather dye plants from my garden and begin the dyeing process. If the woad is ready we will do a woad bath. During the day I will also show you different fleeces and how to sort and wash one. If there is time we will begin to learn hand carding, so that you have some wool prepared for the next day. We can use the indigo and rust bath for tie dyeing fabric, usually linen, cotton or silk, which people should provide for themselves.

Sunday

Day Two This is the day when you will use the wool that has been dyed the day before to weave a peg loom mat or hanging. You can hand and drum card the wool first. Peg loom weaving is a simple and effective way of using wool. You will have a choice of naturally coloured fleece to work with, and will be able to weave in many colours. I have peg looms made from different woods, and this is a chance to design and make something beautiful to take home with you. There is also time to sit and watch the river go by.

Monday

Day Three On this day I will show you how to use a Brinkley loom and also how to make a sculptural piece of felt, a bag or a bowl as well as flat felt. There will be a chance to do some spinning on a hand spindle, and I will demonstrate spinning on a spinning wheel. You should have two or three samples to take home with you, and if you do all three days you will have a very good over all knowledge of the process of using wool from the sheared fleece to the finished products.

Summer School

The Summer School at the end of July and in August will extend and enlarge on details of choosing fleeces and their preparation. I will have a range of fleeces from different types of sheep, including Soay, Cotswold, Wensleydale, Castlemilk Moorit, Shetland, and others. We will carefully go through the whole process of how to wash and dry fleece, and which fleeces might be best used for all the different skills to be learnt.

More time will be available to spend on feltmaking and weaving, as well as the plant dyeing day, and the two course holders will take groups of 2 or 3 to teach spinning on a wheel. Please be aware that this will be a starter, and practise is needed to become proficient.

From the blue skies of Africa to the savage, woad-covered Picts in Scotland, stories abound about blue. Skye Meredith, a storyteller, teacher and felt maker invites you to join her on a journey of exploration into the practice, history, science and magic of dyeing to achieve this most mysterious of colours.

Needle Felting, Indigo and Story Workshops

The Story of Blue: Humanity’s quest to mirror the colour of water and sky in their fabrics is brought to life by learning the ancient art of dyeing with Indigo and Woad, interspersed with story, poetry and song, with Skye Meredith. You will also needle felt a figure in blue on the second day.

Activities

We will look at many kinds of sheep fleece discovering and noting their different qualities and how these may be used.

Hands on experience in how to choose the right fleece for the job and how to wash and dry it.

Carding fleece, by hand and with a drum carder, and hand spindle spinning it.

Experimenting with how quickly and how easily (or not) the different fleeces felt.

Needle felting (sometimes called dry felting) an animal or a figure.

Cultivation of a dye garden – what plants thrive where, and tips on growing.

Plant dyeing, making a wonderful assortment of colours - all the rainbow and more!

Tie dyeing on fabric with indigo and rust.

Learning to spin on a wheel.

Weaving a peg loom mat or wall hanging from the wool that you have dyed the previous day.

Weaving on a Brinkley loom, a simple loom on which you can make a scarf, belt, wall hanging.

Making a sculptural piece of felt, a bowl, or a bag possibly.

Accommodation

There are three bedrooms available for B & B in our stone cottage. Accommodation is comfortable though not luxurious, and will cost £25 per person per night. All meals are home made, often home grown and vegetarian. We provide wine with supper which costs £8.50.

It is also possible to camp quite near the house for £4 per night.