Class Descriptions
This is our current selection of classes being offered at Kawartha Weaving. Visit "Weaving Classes" to see available dates.
1
Beginner I
This course covers everything you need to know to weave confidently on your own. It is specially designed for beginners - no experience necessary! With approximately 30 hours of instruction we will cover warping, dressing the loom, weaving plain weave and twill structures, draft/pattern reading, warp and weft calculations as well as general discussion about materials used, loom types and local resources available. During this class each student will prepare and weave a set of 3 - 4 samplers to take home.
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Everything will be provided - use of 4-shaft looms, equipment, supplies, and detailed student notes. We reserve the right to cancel and refund for this class if there is minimal enrolment.
2
Beginner II
This course is designed to build on what students have learned in Beginner I, by exploring the fascination of 4-shaft twills. In this course you will make a warp, completely dress a loom, weave a twill gamp (sampler) to take home, study the theory of twills and how they work, as well as build on the weaving skills taught in Beginner I. It is recommended that students take Beginner I before Beginner II or have had previous floor loom weaving experience.
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Everything will be provided - use of 4-shaft looms, equipment, supplies, and detailed student notes. We reserve the right to cancel and refund for this class if there is minimal enrolment.
3
Double Weave (4-Shaft)
Students will learn the basics of creating a 4-shaft double weave cloth in person class. Each student will weave their own sampler to keep. Techniques covered will be: two separate layers, folded cloth, tubular weave, colour & weave, double weave pick-up and more! Double weave theory will also be discussed - students will leave with a thorough understanding of how double weave works and how to design and create their own future double weave projects.
This workshop is designed for beginner and intermediate weavers who have already taken our Beginner I & II classes OR individuals that already have a solid weaving education and previous experience. Students must already know how to confidently wind a warp and dress a loom. There will not be any instruction on these elements and it is assumed the student can already complete this independently.
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Everything will be provided - use of 4-shaft looms, equipment, supplies, and detailed student notes. We reserve the right to cancel and refund for this class if there is minimal enrolment.
4
Overshot (4-Shaft)
Learn how to weave & design 4-shaft overshot in our intensive 5 day course.
Is this course right for you?
Eligible students for this course are those that have completed our Beginners I & II or can prove previous multi-shaft floor loom experience. This class is suited for adventurous beginners or higher. It is assumed that students have basic experience warping, dressing a loom and weaving.
Students will be selecting a draft, warping and dressing one of our studio looms. We will be weaving multiple overshot samples on one warp to take home. Our workshop will cover the technique of weaving overshot on 4-shaft, many different treadling options, thread & fibre choices, overshot theory, drafting, basic block and profile theory, and how to design your own overshot draft.
Everything will be provided - use of 4-shaft looms, equipment, supplies, and detailed student notes. We reserve the right to cancel and refund for this class if there is minimal enrolment.
5
Rep Weave (4 or 8 Shaft)
Learn how to weave Rep in our intensive 5 day in-person course.
Is this course right for you?
Eligible students for this course are those that have completed our Beginners I & II or has previous multi-shaft floor loom experience. This class is suited for adventurous beginners or higher. It is assumed that students have basic experience warping, dressing a loom and weaving.
Students will be selecting a draft, warping, dressing a loom "front to back" one of our studio looms. If you've never warped "front to back" don't worry - we will be here to help! Various rep weave samples will be woven on one warp. This course will cover weaving rep, in depth study of how rep works, designing your own drafts, introduction to profile drafts and block weave principals, as well as suitable threads and resources.
Everything will be provided - use of 4-shaft looms, equipment, supplies, and detailed student notes. We reserve the right to cancel and refund for this class if there is minimal enrolment.
6
Inkle Weaving
Weaving bands on an Inkle Loom is a fun and simple portable weaving art! Learn how to make bands that can be used for bracelets, key chain fobs, zipper pulls, shoelaces, straps for bags and more!
This is a half day class designed to give you all the knowledge you need to comfortably weave on an Inkle Loom. We will learn how to make heddles, warp your loom and weave the band. Our class will also cover designing your own bands, many resources and different thread options.
Students have the choice to bring their own Inkle Loom, or purchase an Ashford Inkle Loom and have it supplied by our studio for an additional fee. We will supply all the thread. We reserve the right to cancel and refund for this class if there is minimal enrolment.
7
Tablet Weaving
Advance your Inkle weaving tool box by learning how to tablet weave! Also known as card weaving, tablet weaving is a fun way to weave diverse patterns into your bands.
You must have taken our Intro to Inkle Loom Weaving class, or have previous experience with weaving bands on a Inkle.
This is a half day class designed to give you all the knowledge you need to comfortably weave with tablets (or cards) on an Inkle Loom. We will cover warping, weaving and additional resources.
Students will need to bring their own Inkle Loom and shuttles. Cards and thread will be provided. We reserve the right to cancel and refund for this class if there is minimal enrolment.
8
Intro to Drafting
Drafting can be easy and FUN ... all you need to do is follow a few simple rules and you will learn all you need to be able to confidently draft ANY weaving draft! Follow Kawartha Weaving's basic and simple approach to learning drafting.
Specially designed for beginners, this 2 hour hands on drafting class will cover the basics of drafting - applying it to structure, colour and YOUR specific loom. We will go over rising sheds, sinking sheds and direct tie/table looms to ensure your understanding of interpreting drafts in on point.
You will need: graph paper, ruler, eraser, pencil and coloured pencils. Student notes will be emailed prior to workshop.