We will have another great collection of classes and teachers in 2008, suitable for all levels of experience and all types of fiber skills. If you have any suggestions regarding classes you'd like to take, or a teacher (including yourself!) you'd like to recommend, contact Holly Shaltz at holly@shaltzfarm.com or call her at (231) 582 3206.

Introduction to Bobbin Lacemaking

Beginning lacemakers will have the opportunity to learn about this early and very beautiful lacemaking technique. The class will cover a brief history of lacemaking with an introduction to a variety of lacemaking tools and their uses. Then, step-by-step, the students will make a small sample of lace and try their hands at a simple lace edging.

Beginning Peg Knitting

Explore the possibilities of knitting without needles using a peg knitter loom. Learn to warp a loom, how to do flat, double, chunky braid, pearl, and popcorn stitches. How to turn the cuff or brim on hats, and how to knit a flat item on a round loom. You’ll learn all the basics needed to follow simple patterns.

Plying Balanced Yarns

Consistent and even plying is as important to a high-quality, hand-spun yarn as is the spinning of the singles. Matching the twist in plying to the twist in the spun singles is the key. In this workshop, we will cover issues related to controlling tension on the singles while plying and the amount of twist in both spinning and plying. We will practice techniques for plying from one source (Andean plying, Navajo plying), and from two or more sources.

Beginning Knitting

In this class you will learn knit and purl stitches, how to cast on and cast off your project, increase and decrease, how to read a simple pattern, and how to pick up dropped stitches. Following this class you will be in fine shape to being knitting easy projects and join the knitting community. You can also visit Ruth at her vendor booth (Alpaca Heaven) to get a little more help if needed as you continue through the day with your new-found skill.

Beyond Scarves and Shawls: Sweing with Handwoven Cloth

Does your hand tremble as you cut a piece of your handwoven fabric? Take this class to overcome “scissors anxiety” so you can confidently use your handwoven fabric to create garments with functionality and timeless style. Few weavers have “loom-shaped” bodies, so we will focus on body-shaped garments that fit and flatter many figure types and sizes. The class will cover basic principles in project planning, including selection of suitable patterns, weave structures, and yarns, as well as adapting patterns designed for commercial fabrics. Techniques particularly useful when sewing with handwovens will be described, and samples of fabrics and finishes will be provided as part of class materials. Garments sewn of handwoven fabrics will be available for study.

Make-It, Take-It Braided Roving Mug Rug

In this class we will braid roving then sew the braids together into a spiral-shaped mug rug or coaster. Techniques learned can later be used to make your very own braided rug from your own roving. We will talk about the history of rug braiding, wool types, felting properties, color usage, and rug construction and design.

Spinning Lopi-Style Singles Yarn

“Lopi-style” yarns are thick and soft singles yarns with very little twist. They are perfect for knitting warm hats and sweaters, or for use in fulled or felted knitting. In this workshop, participants will practice spinning techniques for creating this quick-to-spin yarn. We will also cover what fibers, fiber preparations, and finishing techniques worth best.

Learn to Crochet

The purpose of this course is to have participants learn basic crochet stitches such as: chain stitch, single crochet, double crochet and others as time allows. These stitches will be practiced in a take home project of washcloth or pot holder.

Handpainted Yarn

Using provided yarn (you can also bring your own protein-fiber yarn) and dyes, we will use paint brushes to apply paint to the yarn, then set the dye in the microwave so you can take your creation home with you. Colors can be bright and beautiful, or subtle and satisfying—your choice!

Color Ray

A workshop designed to stimulate and encourage experimentation with color through spinning. Through the presentation of ideas, sampling, processes, and hands-on projects, participants will be encouraged to move outside the boundaries of “safe” color usage into creating truly vibrant yarns. Participants will work with multi-color dyed top using several techniques including blending on the drumcarder, specialty layouts including making your own Noro Kureyon-style yarn, and plying techniques including singles, two-ply, and Navajo plying. A short discussion regarding dyeing and color usage is included.

Wet-Felted Flowers

In this hands-on workshop, students will be introduced to making wonderfully colorful flowers using a roving which blends dyed wool with llama and alpaca. These flowers are wet-felted as a unit and require no assembly. Each item can be used in an unlimited number of ways to embellish your woven and knitted wearables by either directly attaching them to the garment or adding a removable pin. Each student will make two or more flowers during class. Multiple flower design techniques will be discussed and demonstrated while students are creating their blossoms.

Beginning Spinning on the Wheel

Learn the basics of the age-old craft of handspinning. Participants will be taught the fundamentals of using a spinning wheel to create handspun singles from wool roving, and then how to ply those singles into a satisfying two-ply yarn. You will leave with a completed skein of your own handspun yarn!

Learn to Knit a Raglan-Sleeved Sweater

Learn how to design and make your own raglan sweaters. We will look at what makes a good raglan and how to convert that to incorporate your favorite designs into your own raglan sweaters and jackets. At class we will work on a tiny garment, teddy-bear sized, so that we can complete all aspects of a raglan sweater.

Finishing Techniques for Knitters

Learn to give a hand-made, not home-made, finish to your knit projects. You will learn seam techniques for shoulders, sides, ribbing, and sleeves, in stockinette, garter, or pattern stitches. Picking up stitches for neck finishing and knitting sleeves from the top down, several techniques for casting on and off for a more professional edge, buttonholes, edge finishing, weaving stitches together, joining new yarns in, finishing off yarn ends, blocking do’s, don’ts, and maybes, and much more. We may be able to help individuals with their particular finishing issues if time permits.

Techniques of Philosopher's Wool

The Philosopher’s Wool knitting kits use a unique method of stranding that can be applied to knitting anything you like. The stitches are woven as they are knit, with two colors being used in any one row. The result is a multi-colored item with an all-over Fair Isle pattern on the outside and a woven appearance on the inside—no long floats. It’s fast, and best of all—no ends to finish off when you’re done knitting! In addition, steeks for armholes, neckline and cardigan front, three-needle bind off to connect the shoulder seams, mattress stitch, pick up and knit using the ladder of the stitch, and correcting mistakes will be covered. Using the PW techniques it is easy to design and knit your own Fair Isle sweaters.

Mechanics of Your Wheel

Spinning wheels are marvelous machines! In this workshop, we will cover the ways spinning wheels work. There will be spinning exercises to help participants make sense of drive mechanisms, drive ratios, take-up tension, and wheel maintenance. Along the way, participants will be introduced to concepts of mechanics (such as force, torque, angular momentum, friction), in a non-mathematical way.

Intro to Entrelac Knitting

Knit entrelac and add some color and excitement to your knitting! Entrelac is a simple technique that creates small squares of knitting, automatically joined to previous squares as you knit. When finished, it looks a lot like it’s woven strips of knitting. You will learn the basics of entrelac and how it can be included in your favorite knitted designs. You will produce a small square of entrelac which will whet your enthusiasm to go and get crafty on your next knitting project.