It is not down on any map;

true places never are.

—Herman Melville

Dear Friends,

We write to you with heavy hearts and the news that the Marshfield School of Weaving is looking for a new home. The trust which owns the old converted barn where the school began nearly fifty years ago has decided not to renew our lease, and after September 30, 2024, we will no longer be able to welcome you there. This news came as a surprise to us, and while we’re deeply saddened by the situation, we remain as hopeful for the future now as we’ve ever been.

The Marshfield School of Weaving IS NOT CLOSING.

The Marshfield School of Weaving isn’t closing because the Marshfield School of Weaving isn’t a building. The weaving school is centuries of knowledge preserved in every hand that practices these skills. It exists at our looms and it exists at yours. It extends beyond our doors and across the globe, and nothing as trivial as a lease can change that. According to the ancient Hebrew proverbs,

By wisdom a house is built, and through understanding it is established;

through knowledge its rooms are filled with rare and beautiful treasures.

The Marshfield School of Weaving is a rare and beautiful treasure and though its heart can’t be contained by four walls, we are searching for a new roof to shelter it.

This turn of events will, unfortunately, impact our upcoming program schedule. All classes scheduled after September have been suspended for the time being while we relocate our collections and operations. If you know of a location in northern Orange or southern Caledonia Counties in Vermont that you think might be suitable, please contact us. Our resilience comes from the strength of this community and together we will establish a new home filled with the wisdom of this craft for many years to come. In saying farewell to this building we bid the world a resounding welcome. Please join us on the journey.

On behalf of our Board, we hope you'll accept our invitation and take a little trip with us. Don't forget to pack your toothbrush.

Justin Squizzero

Director

Looking Back

Our March Foundations cohort was the first to get their hands on our new yarn produced by the Western Massachusetts Fibershed. This yarn is spun by Green Mountain Spinnery just like the custom yarns we've had available in the past, but this batch included a run in natural sheep's gray that is frankly irresistible. The end of the month closed out with a week of weaving Double Cloth which Sara used for weaving seamless bags.

Above: March Foundations students hard at work. Below: The Western Massachusetts Fibershed yarn in natural gray with indigo stripes, and a section of Kate's floatwork coverlet.

Below: Sara proudly displaying her double cloth bags woven in a free-form check. The web is primarily two separate layers of cloth with each bag beginning in a strip woven with both layers unified. After washing they may be cut apart from one another and the top raw edges of each bag turned and hemmed down.

Looking Ahead

Supplemental Warps: Spots, Figures, and Pile

with Anne Low & Perry Lewis

This class will explore the creative possibilities of working with a supplemental warp, where two warps combine to produce structures such as pile, warp facing dots, dashes and simple figures on a plain weave ground. We will learn simple methods to work with supplemental warps with the goal of students leaving with the ability to apply their learning to their looms at home without the need for specialized equipment. Due to short lead time we're waiving our usual requirement for prior weaving experience at Marshfield and space is still available. Register here!

Shades of Red, the Myriad Natural Red Dyes

with Joann Darling

From cochineal to madder and all sorts of fermentation processes, the humankind quest for extracting luscious reds, pinks, and scarlets is boundless. In this workshop we’ll explore the many processes (soaks, pH adjustments, fermentation, and boiling) for obtaining “shades of red” from a variety of plant parts, the cochineal beetle, and even mushrooms. Register here!

A full listing of our programs may be accessed here. We hope you can join us!

Meet our Board of Directors

Denise LeBlanc, Board Vice President

Denise LeBlanc is an arts, nonprofit, and museum professional who specializes in team leadership, operations management, innovative programming, creative strategy, and is an active member of the arts and culture communities. Denise has held management and leadership roles in the museum and nonprofit fields for over 30 years, including Mass Audubon Society, Plimoth Patuxet museum, and as Executive Director for Fuller Craft Museum, spanning the areas of exhibit design, historic textile conservation and reproduction, and arts administration. Denise has lectured internationally and served as a juror for the League of New Hampshire Craftsmen, Plymouth Center for the Arts, and the Guildford Art Center’s Annual Craft Expo. With a Studio Arts background, Denise is also a maker, textile artist, and watercolor painter.

Look for this feature in upcoming newsletters as we introduce the hardworking team guiding the Marshfield School of Weaving, and learn more about each board member here.

A Quill Wheel Yields a Secret

Often the best place to hide something is right in plain sight. The quill wheel from Montgomery, Vermont we featured in our February newsletter had a secret we discovered recently. What appeared to be a simple washer at the end of the handle turns out to be a "Bun Penny" minted between 1861–1865 for use in Canada. Impaled by the iron handle is the mostly worn off portrait of Queen Victoria. Whether this coin is original to the wheel and whether its use suggests the wheel was made in Canada or south of the border remain unanswered. Who knows what other clues are still waiting to be discovered? Will YOU be the one to find them?

A Correction

We were informed by Jean Hosford that the markings on the Boxford loom were not compass made, but more likely formed with a race knife, a woodworking tool we were unfamiliar with. Google them, they're pretty darn neat. Don't hesitate to send in those corrections—we're smarter together! Thanks Jean!

As always, we can only do what we do with your generous support. Gifts of all sizes make a tremendous impact. Thank you.

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