[2014 Symposium registration opens June 23 at 10am.]

2014 Maiwa Textile Symposium

Workshop Needle Felting - A New Adventure

Briony Jean Foy

$295 includes 50 lab fee

October 6,7,8 - Class Limit 14

Maiwa Loft: Above the Net Loft, Granville Is. Vancouver BC

Learn a needle-felting process that is as simple and spontaneous as fingerpainting or drawing with a pencil. It’s even erasable until “set” by washing. Anyone who usually works with technical or material constraints will love the freedom and playfulness of this process.

Through hands-on exercises and illustrated lectures, students will learn about basic design elements, colour theory, and the nature and properties of fibres as they relate to needle-felting techniques. 

Students will combine yarns and roving with handwoven, wet-felted, or purchased cloth. They will learn how to choose and combine materials to create complex fibre works with colour, depth, and texture. The class will not only experiment with techniques and materials to create samples but also complete finished independent work.

Participants also discuss ways of adding this process to their existing work: painting, jewellery, ceramics, woodworking, quilting, collage, or any other medium. This workshop is designed for everyone from professional artists to novices who just want to explore their creative side. 

Needle felting does not require expensive equipment or facilities. The process is portable, and the cost is entirely up to the artisan. Materials are readily accessible, and needle felting is a great way to use found and recycled materials. It is also a great way to experiment with small amounts of more expensive fabrics. Whether you are interested in form or function, concept or aesthetic, process or result, needle felting is addictive.

Instructor Bio

Briony Jean Foy  designs and creates one-of-a-kind woven and felted pieces in her studio in Madison, WI. She teaches weaving and gives workshops and private lessons across the USA and Canada. She has exhibited nationally and internationally and is the recipient of a Wisconsin Arts Board Fellowship Award in recognition of her work in the visual arts.