Natural Dye Retreat

We have 2 amazing new natural dye workshops "back to back "

May 18th -20th

Come and stay for both workshops in Surprise Valley, Cedarville, N.E. California



The Surprise Valley is nestled between the high desert of the Great Basin and the snow-covered peaks of the Warner Mountain Wilderness. Desert pastels mingle with the sweet smell of sage, creeks in the pine forest fill the lakes, providing green pastures for sheep and cattle to graze.

Exploring Northern California Fungi for Natural Dyes

Saturday May 20th 10am-4pm. $100

Materials fee $12.50 includes yarn and Climate Beneficial Wool fabric.

Elissa Callen

8 student minimum /15 maximim

Explore natural dyes using Northern California fungi! During this workshop taught by Elissa Callen, we will go over how to hunt for local dye mushrooms, ethical harvesting, prepping your fibers for dyeing, and how to achieve a variable range of color even with just one species through different common natural dyeing techniques. One of the many gifts of living in Northern California is the wealth of local dye fungi!

All dye mushrooms will be provided, but if you’re curious to test mushrooms of your own, students are welcome to bring their own mushroom samples and we can all examine them together and assess for viability. (If your mushroom is not fresh, please bring several photos of where it was collected and how it looked fresh in order to help with identification. You can also upload to iNaturalist ahead of class to help with ID, which is recommended.) 

Students will leave with fabric samples of the different dyes illustrating the breadth of color attainable from the fungi species selected for the workshop. Students are additionally welcome to bring modest fabric pieces of their own to dye in one of the provided larger dye pots (natural fibers only, wool and silk recommended for best results). 

The class will also briefly touch on an array of other mushroom uses to consider when you’re collecting out in the forest, including making pigments for paint and spotting common edibles in the same areas as your dye mushrooms. 

Please bring your own lunches! Small bites made from hand foraged mushrooms will be shared by Elissa. 

Instructor Bio:

Elissa Callen is an artist working with local plants and fungi to make natural pigments, inks, and dyes that she further uses as the staple materials in her art practice. She holds a degree in fine art, has a professional background in horticulture, and nearly ten years of experience researching and practicing sustainably using natural materials for color. She is passionate about California ecology and believes in using her work with natural materials as a means of increasing community interest in environmentalism and connectedness to the native landscape. 

https://www.instagram.com/slateandrust/ 

Indigo and Rust: Botanical Printing Techniques

May 18 & 19, 2023 

$160/class plus $40 materials fee

Limit 10 students



Featuring Instructors:  Louisa Hunter, Jeanne Kaiser and Lani Estill



Join us for two days of eco-printing combining Indigo – Rust – and Botanical Printing.  Come with a white cotton or linen T-shirt that you love to wear and fits well.  We will recreate it into a masterpiece of wearable art using Indigo, rusty pipes, and plants.  Once we have the basics down on day one, we will spend the second day creating one or two more pieces using botanical prints on Climate Beneficial Wool fabric.  You will be making eco printed fabric that can be made into a pillow, wall-hanging, handbag, or a scarf.  The third piece is optional, and we will have project blanks available for purchase.  

Plants make beautiful prints and you will be astonished at the results you can achieve from the local flora and fauna. 

Instructor Bios:

Louisa Hunter and Jeanne Kaiser:

Jeannie and Louisa, each with their own background in textiles and fiber arts, met at a workshop in 2019 forming a fast friendship. Currently they share a studio and focus on botanical printing, testing and trying out different techniques. In their practice they use all natural fibers along with natural dyes, tannins and plants. With Jeannie's love of plants and gardening and Louisa's infinite curiosity, the possibilities are endless and experimentation is at the heart of their work.

Lani Estill:

Lani is the founder of Lani’s Lana ~ Fine Rambouillet Wool.  A commercial wool business and small yarn line, Lani offers yarn that is heaven to knit and a joy to dye.  She has a transparent supply chain and is certified Climate Beneficial TM.  Her yarns are mostly naturally colored (blending creates the different natural colors) or naturally dyed with botanicals.  Lani is a natural dyer and loves to teach others what she is learning herself.  Some of her past classes are – Indigo, Madder, simple Shibori, natural dyes using powders, extracts and bugs, fleece washing, preparation and how to get your wool processed at a mill.

Drop By Knitting

Adrienne Johnson

Saturday March 4th and 25th. 1-3pm.

Free!

If you want to LEARN TO KNIT, are stuck on a project or if you just want to come and knit or crochet. Join us!



Hello! I am really looking forward to meeting everyone around the knitting table! Like most of us, I spend most of my time knitting alone, so this will be a new adventure.

I learned knitting back in the 1970's from my English Mom (who learned from both of her parents in the 40's and 50's), using "Five and Dime" acrylic and plastic needles. Didn't we all? Knitting has changed a lot from those days, and there are so many options for fibre and style. There is no way to know them all, and that is where the knitting circle comes in. Being with other crafters means having living, breathing knitting manuals, usually with a cup of coffee and some tasty cookies, right there to ask advice from! The best way to learn is to share what we know, and puzzle out what we don't together. I will bring my knitting, crochet, and weaving skills (and maybe some home baked cookies) to share, and I can't wait to learn what YOU bring to the knitting table.

See you soon! Adrienne

Spinners without Rules

Free!



Saturday March 11th 1-3pm

Dust off that spinning wheel or borrow one of the shop's wheels and join us for an afternoon of spinning and sharing projects, ideas and techniques.

SWOR will meet on the 2nd Saturday 

of each month. Save the date!

Crochet Classes

March 18th and 25th

10am-12noon

$35

Barbara Spears will teach both single and double crochet, how to read patterns and help with ongoing projects.

This class is for beginning crocheters and a good refresher for those who want to pick up their crochet hooks again.

Beginning Spinning

Saturday April 1st 10am-1pm

Melissa Harris

$48 plus $10 materials fee

Limit: 10

Learn to spin, using one of our spinning wheels and local wool. You will learn how to spin, as well as basic wheel mechanics and an introduction to turning fiber into your own handspun yarn.