Learning Center Purpose & Vision
Fibershed has felt the need for some time to create a grounding force that serves in our effort to enliven our community’s connection to regional and regenerative fiber and dyes. We are grateful to have an opportunity to hold space for activities and community resources. The Learning Center will:
- Serve key hands-on textile education opportunities for the public
- Support a demonstration farm for growing materials and showcasing how earth pigments can be grown and processed, along with food and medicine
- Host public presentations and intentionally designed gatherings that focus on bringing people together to learn and discuss the greatest and most concerning issues of our time
- Offer direct opportunities to engage in climate and cultural solutions that we can work together to activate at the local level
- House a natural dye and fiber seed library and a living library of our bioregional textile culture that will exist as a feature for students, designers, and makers
- Provide a multi-use space for core organizational functions, including our staff and board meetings and strategic planning
(Photos: Agus Ismoyo of Brahma Tirta Sari Studio (Yogyakarta, Indonesia) teaching batik; Judi Pettite of BioHue teaching paint making from natural pigments in the Learning Center studio/classroom.)
In-person workshops for 2022 have begun. The list below will be updated with links to register as they become available.
Proceeds from each event support the class instructor and contribute to Fibershed for educational programming.
Fibershed is offering two scholarships to most workshops; one scholarship if it’s a small class. If you would not otherwise be able to attend, and would like to be considered as a scholarship recipient, please answer a few brief questions on this Google Form. Responses will be reviewed by Learning Center staff and kept strictly confidential.
If you would like to join the Learning Center mailing list to be notified of upcoming events—or any of the other Fibershed mailing lists—scroll down to the form at the bottom of the page.
(Educator and artist, Redbird, with native regalia he created; photo by Paige Green.)
2022 Fibershed Learning Center In-Person Workshops
ENROLLMENT OPEN:
Making a Coiled Straw Basket with Charlie Kennard (waitlist)
1-day workshop: May 21
Enroll here: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/251489912097
Papermaking with Flax with Michelle Wilson
1-day workshop: June 4
Enroll here: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/291110458217
Natural Palettes of Summer Color in West Marin with Sasha Duerr (waitlist)
1-day workshop: June 5
Enroll here: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/310188089927
Art and the Landscape: Colors of the Northern California Fibershed with Judi Pettite (making inks, lake pigments & watercolor paints)
1-day workshop: June 11
Enroll here: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/324488783687
Fibershed-grown Indigo Vats with Judi Pettite
1-day workshop: June 12
Enroll here: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/325448062917
Indigo Pigment Extraction with Judi Pettite
1-day workshop: July 23
Enroll here: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/326968059267
Indigo Pastels and Watercolor Paint with Judi Pettite
1-day workshop: July 24
Enroll here: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/328556048987
Sourcing fabric and pattern ideas from your closet with Gynna Clemes. Turn oversized or unloved clothing into something you would actually wear!
1-day workshop: August 14 (New Date)
Enroll here: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/291068051377
Cochineal dyeing in the Zapotec tradition with Porfirio Gutiérrez
2-day workshop: August 20-21
Enroll here: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/339654233957
Indigo Pigment Extraction with Judi Pettite
1-day workshop: September 10
Enroll here: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/329405750467
Earth and Sky: Indigo and Tannin Dyes with Judi Pettite
1-day workshop: September 11
Enroll here: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/329415950977
ENROLLMENT COMING SOON:
Weaving with Linen and other Bast Fibers with Sandy Fisher
1-day workshop: July 30
Designs from Nature, printing with natural plant pigments on fabric with Karen Hampton
2-day workshop: October 29-30
More workshops to be scheduled. The list will be updated with links to register as they become available.
Past Workshops & Demonstrations – Videos on Demand
During 2020, when it was not feasible to offer in-person events, we began offering a series of online demonstrations and classes via Zoom, taught by Northern California Fibershed Producer Network members. Videos of these events are available on Fibershed’s Vimeo On Demand channel, and links to each video can be found below.
Farming & Processing Pigment & Fiber:
- Growing & Processing Flax with Sandy Fisher of Chico Flax
(California Indian Basketweavers’ Association selected as the recipient of a donation from class proceeds) - Japanese Indigo, Seed to Seed, with Craig Wilkinson of Craig’s Indigo
(Daily Acts selected as the recipient of a donation from class proceeds) - The Beauty & Strength of Native Plant Fibers with Redbird
(Buckeye Gathering Native Youth Scholarship Fund selected as the recipient of a donation from class proceeds)
Knitting & Weaving:
- Knitting with Farm Yarns with Gayle Ravenscroft
(Sisters United selected as the recipient of a donation from class proceeds) - Learn How to Weave on a Rigid Heddle Loom with Robin Lynde
(Stebbins Cold Canyon Preserve at UC Davis selected as the recipient of a donation from class proceeds)
Sewing:
- Tips for Sewing Jeans with Dan DiSanto
(Urban Tilth selected as the recipient of a donation from class proceeds) - Tips for Sewing Shirts with Dan DiSanto
(Urban Tilth selected as the recipient of a donation from class proceeds)
Pigments & Dyes:
- Dyeing with Summer Flowers with Deepa Natarajan
(Urban Tilth selected as the recipient of a donation from class proceeds) - Japanese Indigo Extraction with Judi Pettite of BioHue
(Museum of the American Indian selected as the recipient of a donation from class proceeds) - Paints, Inks and Stains Using Indigo with Judi Pettite of BioHue
(Museum of the American Indian selected as the recipient of a donation from class proceeds) - Making a Lake Pigment: the alchemy of solid pigments from natural dyes with Judi Pettite
(Sogorea Te’ Land Trust selected as the recipient of a donation from class proceeds) - Natural Paints and Pigments with Judi Pettite
(Urban Tilth selected as the recipient of a donation from class proceeds) - Wild Inks from Natural Pigments with Judi Pettite
(Acres of Ancestry Initiative/Black Agrarian Fund selected as the recipient of a donation from class proceeds) - Direct Application Design: hand painting with natural pigments on fabric with Judi Pettite
(Acres of Ancestry Initiative/Black Agrarian Fund selected as the recipient of a donation from class proceeds) - Natural Palettes: inspiration from plant-based color with Sasha Duerr
(Urban Tilth selected as the recipient of a donation from class proceeds)
Shoe Making:
- SHOES: components, repair, and making your own from scratch with Rachel Corry
(Social Justice Sewing Academy selected as the recipient of a donation from class proceeds)
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