hartford artisans
weaving center
2024 Summer Weaving Workshops
Registration is Open!
Floor Loom Fundamentals:
A 3 Day Workshop with Sally Mullen
Sakiori: Japanese Rag Weaving and Contemporary Variations: A 3 Day Workshop with Janney Simpson
Beginner Tapestry Weaving:
A 3 Day Workshop with Brenda Osborn
Weave a Rag Rug: A 2 Day Workshop with Sophia DeJesus-Sabella
We are excited to share our 2024 Summer Workshop opportunities with you! From beginner to advanced, our weaving workshops are fantastic ways to learn something new or increase your skills in a creative, friendly environment with talented instructors. All registration is through this website, we do not accept mailed in registrations or registration in advance. Proceeds from our classes support our artisan program which teaches weaving to people who are visually impaired or blind as well as people 55 years and older.
July 2024
Floor Loom Fundamentals: A 3 Day Workshop with Sally Mullen
This workshop is an introduction to floor loom weaving. Bring your curiosity and questions, leave with new skills and a unique, 10" wide table runner! Students learn to wind a warp, dress the loom and weave a first project, all within a busy three days! Weaving vocabulary, loom structure and function, and basic pattern drafting are covered, as are selecting yarns and designing a project.
Skill Level: This is an introductory, entry level class, appropriate for those brand new to weaving, or those seeking a refresher course. No prior weaving experience is necessary.
Supplies needed: Scissors, sewing tape measure and notebook.
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About the Instructor: Sally Mullen has been weaving for over 35 years. She is the Studio Manager of the Hartford Artisans Weaving Center, and has been working with blind and senior weavers since 1995. Sally teaches floor loom and rigid heddle classes, and is a woodturner and tapestry weaver. Much of Sally’s weaving experience was gained working for 25 years as a weaver of hand-dyed silks for Randall Darwall.
Floor Loom Fundamentals
Instructor: Sally Mullen
Location: Hartford Artisans Weaving Center, 42 Woodland Street Hartford
Fee: $315 (includes all supplies except those listed above), payable by check or credit
Date: July 26, 27 and 28
Time: 10:00am-4:00pm with a break for lunch
August 2024
Beginner Tapestry Weaving: A 3 Day Workshop with Brenda Osborn
During this three-day workshop, Brenda will teach basic tapestry techniques in the traditional Gobelins weaving style, which was used throughout northern Europe from the Middle Ages to current times. These techniques enable the weaver to achieve highly visual tapestries, from portraits and landscapes to abstract images. The techniques covered will include:
1. Weaving in opposing sheds.
2. The tension differences between weaving small shapes and larger shapes
3. Hitching on and off for beginning and ending wefts.
4. Weaving angles of varying degrees
5. Weaving a circle
6. Inking on the warp for details
7. And if time permits--Making use of these techniques to “take a line for a walk” by weaving a sketch made by the student.
Additionally, the instructor would like to help each student develop an idea for a tapestry to be woven after the workshop ends. Brenda will work to help you gain enough knowledge to pursue some of these techniques on your own and give information on where to take these ideas further.
Skill Level: It is helpful if students are cloth weavers who have a basic understanding of weaving, but it is not necessary for them to have woven a tapestry before this class.
Supplies needed: Scissors, measuring tape, tapestry bobbins, wefts for weaving (any kind of wool appropriate for fabric weaving). All other workshop materials including the frame loom, are provided.
About the Instructor: Brenda devoted herself to tapestry weaving in 2000, when she began to study with Archie Brennan and Susan Martin Maffei. Brenda spent over 12 years studying with Archie Brennan, and worked with him to produce his autobiography/memoir.
Beginner Tapestry Weaving
Instructor: Brenda Osborn
Location: Hartford Artisans Weaving Center, 42 Woodland Street Hartford
Fee: $335 (includes all supplies except those listed above), payable by check or credit
Date: August 13, 14, 15
Time: 10:00am-4:00pm with a break for lunch
Weave a Rag Rug: A 2 Day Workshop with Sophia DeJesus-Sabella
Rag rugs are woven out of strips of fabric and are functional and beautiful. This two day workshop is an introduction to rag rug weaving. Warps will be pre-wound, and students will wind on, dress their looms, and weave their own rag rug. While prior weaving experience is helpful, it is not necessary, as we will be moving through every step together. Students will walk away with their own finished rag rug approximately 22” x 28.”
Skill Level: Perfect for beginners through advanced floor loom weavers.
Supplies needed: Bring old t-shirts, sheets, or other fabrics to cut up and use as your weft.
About the Instructor: Sophia DeJesus-Sabella is an artist, weaver, and educator based in Hartford CT. She teaches weaving at Hartford Artisans Weaving Center and mending workshops around the Northeast. Her work is inspired by her upbringing and relationship to materials and labor.
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Weave a Rag Rug: A 2 Day Workshop
Instructor: Sophia DeJesus-Sabella
Location: Manchester Historical Society, 175 Pine Street, Manchester
Fee: $185 (includes warp fiber and all equipment), payable by check or credit
Date: August 17 and 18
Time: 10:00am-3:00pm with a break for lunch
Sakiori: Japanese Rag Weaving and Contemporary Variations with Janney Simpson
Saku: “To tear or rip” Oru: “To weave”
Sakiori clothing was first woven in about 1750 in Japan from recycled indigo dyed cotton rags usually on a bast fiber warp. This form of Japanese rag weaving continued up until about 40-100 years ago. It differs from traditional rag weaving in that all the recycled rag is used in the process…. the cloth and the loose threads from the warp or weft. Nothing is wasted.
Contemporary variations for rag weaving using recycled kimono, sari silk, silk ties, or cloth include structures such as canvas weave, crackle, honeycomb, and double bind. In this workshop you will weave fabric yardage in structures that allow the recycled weft material to be seen on the surface yet also have integrity within the finished cloth. You'll experiment and enjoy the feel of these old materials that can be transformed into contemporary cloth for today’s use.
Skill Level: Perfect for advanced beginners through advanced floor loom weavers.
Supplies needed: Light cottons, silk ties, sari silk or similar interesting fabrics. Please do not pre-cut your weft strips before class. You may prefer to wash, dry, and press your weft ahead prior to the workshop to pre-shrink it, particularly if you are using new material goods. There will also be a supply of materials to select from at the workshop.
About the Instructor: Janney Simpson began weaving in the early 1980’s. While living in Connecticut, she taught weaving at Wesleyan Potters for many years. Janney is a past President, Apprentice, Weaver of Distinction, and Lifetime Member of the Handweavers’ Guild of CT. Now in Michigan full-time, she is currently teaching weaving at her studio in “The Barn” in Gaylord, MI. She relishes the "ah-ha" moment when new weavers throw a shuttle for the first time and return to learn more. She is newly appointed VP/Program Chair of Michigan League of Handweavers. Privileged to be a student of many outstanding teachers, Janney strives to create one-of-a-kind pieces using a variety of yarns and weave structures on many types of looms. Visit www.janneysimpson.com
Sakiori: Japanese Rag Weaving and Contemporary Variations
Instructor: Janney Simpson
Location: Hartford Artisans Weaving Center, 42 Woodland Street Hartford
Date: August 23, 24 and 25
Time: 9:30am-4:30pm with a break for lunch
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Registration and Fee options: Please choose from one of the options below
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Option 1: Provide your own loom
You will be responsible for your warp fiber/colors, warp winding and dressing of your own 4 or 8 shaft loom which you will transport and weave on during the 3 day workshop. Threading options and instructions will be emailed to you by July 15, 2024.
Skill Level: Intermediate/ Advanced weaver owning a functional and portable 4 or 8 shaft loom
Price: $345 payable by check or credit
Option 2: Rent and Prepare Loom at the Weaving Center
In this option you will be assigned a floor loom at the Weaving Center. You will be responsible for your warp fiber/color and independently winding your warp and dressing your assigned loom. Threading options and instructions will be emailed to you by July 15, 2024. The classroom studio and your assigned loom will be available from August 12-22 during normal Weaving Center hours for warp winding, threading and preparation. In addition, bench time will be available until September 1.
Skill Level: Intermediate/ Advanced weaver. Must be comfortable dressing a loom independently. Price: $370 payable by check or credit ​
Option 3: Loom preparation by Weaving Center
Register for this option and leave the loom preparation to us! Students who choose this option will use the warp fiber/color provided by the Weaving Center. The warp will be 5 yards long, 16” wide.
Skill Level: Advanced Beginner, Intermediate or Advanced weaver.
Price: $420 payable by check or credit
Additional Registration Information as of February 2024
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Check payment is due within 2 weeks of your registration to secure your spot.
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Students should be aware: Good manual dexterity is a necessity. Shoulder, elbow, and wrist movement are needed to wind a warp and dress a loom; floor loom weaving requires hip, knee, and foot movement. Weaving does involve repetitive motion; students may take breaks as needed.
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Our classrooms and studios are currently only accessible by a flight of stairs.
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Refunds and Class Cancellations:
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The Weaving Center reserves the right to cancel a class at any time. Should we do so, students will receive a full refund.
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Registered Students: Please notify the Weaving Center as soon as possible if there is a need to cancel your registration.
- If there is a waiting list and the spot can be filled, a 3% processing fee will be deducted from the total refund if you have paid by credit. If you have paid by check and the spot can be filled, you will receive a full refund.
- If a spot cannot be filled, no refund will be offered.
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No-shows forfeit any refund.
Please review our current COVID updates at https://www.weavingcenter.org/covidupdate