Returning to Canada after having committed to a natural dye workshop in Assam, we had to unpack our samples of silks and see if they could be dyed successfully. When we were in Assam we tried our best to gather local knowledge about silk dyeing. Popular opinion is...
Testing the SilksThe Day Before the WorkshopDay OneDay TwoDay ThreeIn the autumn of 2008 we travelled to Assam, India to research wild silk fibers: Tussar, Eri, and the rare and prised golden Muga. The story of that trip is due to appear in the Fall 2009 issue of...
Handloom enthusiasts are starting to get very excited about the arrival of Bappaditya Biswas for the 2009 Symposium. "Bappa" as he is known, has now risen to become one of India's top young textile designers. His innovations are sought by bollywood stars and the likes of Sonia Gandhi....
Some of you may already be familiar with cellist Yo Yo Ma's Silk Road Project. "Inspired by the cultural traditions of the historical Silk Road, the Silk Road Project is a catalyst, promoting innovation and learning through the arts. Our vision is to connect the world’s neighborhoods by...
We have just had a great letter from Veronica Soul. Veronica was instrumental in bringing the Maiwa Foundation to Morocco. That might be an understatment. She was the force behind connecting the needs of the Moroccan women with our resources and desire to help. She coordinated registration; sourced...
Our latest video podcast just went up.Part 2 - PresentationRosemary CrillRosemary Crill explores "the cotton road", sibling to the well known silk road but largely dominated by India's traffic in cotton textiles. This episode presents the second part of Rosemary's lecture in which she explores India's cotton trade...
In our last post we mentioned that we had received some of Nicole Chazaud's student materials for her fall workshop. We have since discovered that in July Nicole started a blog. Feltmakers or those looking to start feltmaking will find it a great source of inspiration. For anyone...
It is about this time of year that we start to get a head start on the creation of the student booklets for the fall workshops. Some of the materials that arrive are, quite simply, amazing.For example, we received the above photos from Nicole Chazaud who teaches the...
When we put together the 2009 Symposium course calendar, we are limited to one or two photos of instructor works. Its a real shame because so much of the instructor work is breaking new ground or taking a technique to a high level of refinement. And, even though...
It is the last day of the Natural dye workshop. Students receive their certificates - which they love. We review procedures, answer questions, divide up any unused dyes and mordants and consider the future. With the workshop clean and tidy the class makes a field trip to the...
On the fourth day, with the fun work of dyeing complete the real work begins. Students separate the hanks out into bundles of threads so that each student will complete the course with a full range of colours on wool. These must each be labeled with the dyes...
The third day. Once again the previous days dyeing is thoroughly washed out in the morning and hung to dry. With colours now coming from combinations of dyes it is very important to label the hanks. The key to consistent colour is often careful note-taking. We record the...
