Fabric of Life

Väv Immersion Weaving Intensive
2021-07-12 - 2021-09-03 | Fabric of Life Farmhouse, 80 Bassett Road, Shelburne, MA, 01370
Väv Immersion 2021 is an 8-week weaving intensive co-sponsored by Fabric of Life and Vävstuga Weaving School and taught by Becky Ashenden, Lisa Hill and Eva Gaultney.

This in-depth program reinforces the historic lineage of Scandinavian hand weaving through a range of educational opportunities including: personalized instruction with master weavers, hands-on production of numerous textile projects, attendance at intimately-sized classes that focus on an extensive array of skills, and connection to Immersion alumni from past years to build out your network and for learning how to move into this field as a professional.

You will gain a deep cultural appreciation of the aesthetic and functional way of life within this tradition, and a commitment to enhancing your life and the lives of others with these skills. The knowledge gained from this experience creates a foundation for further professional opportunities such as museum work, production weaving, textile retail, and teaching. Ultimately, the preservation of the tradition, culture, and function of hand weaving for future generations is carried forward through this intensive program.

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Understanding Your Garden - Session 3 of 6
2021-07-08 19:00 - 20:00 (America/New_York) | Live ZOOM Session
Join us for a series of garden sessions as we follow the Fabric of Life garden through the 2021 growing season. This program will foster a sense of community and will teach us all what we can do to help our gardens be more resilient to the effects of pests, disease, compaction, and drought.
This virtual session topic is Garden Updates

Hand Stitching to Repair and Embellish
2021-06-20 09:30 - 12:30 UTC | Fabric of Life Farmhouse, 80 Bassett Road, Shelburne, MA, 01370
In this workshop, Katie Cavacco will introduce students to a variety of simple utility stitches that can be used to repair knits and wovens. Students will complete a labeled stitch sampler to take home for reference, and the workshop will also include time to problem solve as a group on specific items you want to mend.

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Broom Making Workshop B: June 19, 2021, 1:30pm to 4pm
2021-06-19 13:30 - 16:00 UTC | Fabric of Life Farmhouse, 80 Bassett Road, Shelburne, MA, 01370
Eva Gaultney teaches participants the process of creating a broom from broom corn and will weave their own shaker combo broom. Students will take home a cake tester, pot scrubber, and a hand broom at the end of this 2.5 hour afternoon workshop.

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Broom Making Workshop A: June 19, 2021, 9:30am to 12pm
2021-06-19 09:30 - 12:00 (America/New_York) | Fabric of Life Farmhouse, 80 Bassett Road, Shelburne, MA, 01370
Eva Gaultney teaches participants the process of creating a broom from broom corn and will weave their own shaker combo broom. Students will take home a cake tester, pot scrubber, and a hand broom at the end of this 2.5 hour morning workshop.

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Understanding Your Garden - Session 2 of 6
2021-06-02 19:00 - 20:00 (America/New_York) | Live ZOOM Session
Join us for a series of garden sessions as we follow the Fabric of Life garden through the 2021 growing season. This program will foster a sense of community and will teach us all what we can do to help our gardens be more resilient to the effects of pests, disease, compaction, and drought.
This virtual session topic is Planting the Fabric of Life Garden.

Understanding Your Garden - Session 1 of 5
2021-05-01 09:00 - 12:00 UTC | Fabric of Life Farmhouse, 80 Bassett Road, Shelburne, MA, 01370
This series of information sharing sessions will include a visit to the Fabric of Life garden in Shelburne, MA at the beginning and end of the growing season, as well as four 1 hour virtual check-ins during the summer. We will kick the series off with a 3 hour in-person program, where ML Altobelli of ML’s Greenery in Motion will teach us how to prepare our gardens to be more resilient to the effects of pests, disease, compaction, and drought.

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Väv Immersion Weaving Intensive Information Session #2
2021-04-25 19:00 - 20:00 UTC | Live ZOOM Session
Do you want to learn more about our eight-week Scandinavian Weaving Väv Immersion program? While we can talk until we’re blue in the face about the wonderful students that have applied and joined us in past cohorts and about all of the things that we think you will learn, we thought it best to introduce you to the real experts! Join us for one (or both) of the sessions listed below to learn more about their experience of the program, why they chose to apply and what it has meant for their personal or professional life beyond the program.

Info Session #1: Wednesday, March 31st from 7 PM – 8 PM EDT we will have Kiri Fagen-Ulmscheider, Michael Jennrich and Kira Keck.

Info Session #2: Sunday, April 25th from 7 PM – 8 PM EDT we will have Kiri Fagen-Ulmscheider, Eva Gaultney, and Christine Tsai.

If you wish to attend this information session please email us at office@fabric-of-life.org to register. If you are unable to attend but have questions, please contact us – we are happy to speak with you individually!

In the meantime, enjoy following some of our Immersion alumni on Instagram!
Kiri Fagen-Ulmscheider, Kira Keck, Eva Gaultney, Christine Tsai, Danielle Garber, Hannah King

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Building and Maintaining a Raised Bed Garden
2021-04-20 19:00 - 20:30 UTC | Live ZOOM Session
During this 90 minute Zoom session, ML Altobelli will teach participants how to build a raised bed garden that will continue to be productive for years. ML is a professional fine garden landscaper with 40+ years of experience creating healthy sustainable soils.

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Väv Immersion Weaving Intensive Information Session #1
2021-03-31 19:00 - 20:00 UTC | Live ZOOM Session
Do you want to learn more about our eight-week Scandinavian Weaving Väv Immersion program? While we can talk until we’re blue in the face about the wonderful students that have applied and joined us in past cohorts and about all of the things that we think you will learn, we thought it best to introduce you to the real experts! Join us for one (or both) of the sessions listed below to learn more about their experience of the program, why they chose to apply and what it has meant for their personal or professional life beyond the program.

Info Session #1: Wednesday, March 31st from 7 PM – 8 PM EDT we will have Kiri Fagen-Ulmscheider, Michael Jennrich and Kira Keck.

Info Session #2: Sunday, April 25th from 7 PM – 8 PM EDT we will have Kiri Fagen-Ulmscheider, Eva Gaultney, and Christine Tsai.

If you wish to attend one of these sessions please email us at office@fabric-of-life.org to register. If you are unable to attend but have questions, please contact us – we are happy to speak with you individually!

In the meantime, enjoy following some of our Immersion alumni on Instagram!
Kiri Fagen-Ulmscheider, Kira Keck, Eva Gaultney, Christine Tsai, Danielle Garber, Hannah King

REGISTER NOW

Paper Folding: Paper in Motion Virtual Workshop
2021-03-20 11:00 - 12:30 UTC | Live ZOOM Session
Discover how to easily transform paper into movable and sculptural objects, which can be used for greeting cards, invitations, and art projects. All you need is paper, a few other supplies you’re likely to have on hand (including scissors, glue, pencils, and markers), and your own enthusiasm and curiosity for paper folding. During the workshop, you’ll make a card that opens like a flower, a “magic” wallet, a pop-out map, and a flexagon. Participants will receive a supplies list and detailed illustrated instructions so that they can complete each paper folding project again on their own.
Students will be responsible for providing their own supplies for this program and a list will be provided before the program.

Date: March 20, 2021
Duration: 90 minutes
Class Time: 11:00 AM to 12:30 PM

Course Delivery: LIVE ZOOM Session
Cost: sliding scale of $15 – $25

# of Students: 10 (This program has been filled)
Instructor: Barbara Blumenthal

Barbara B. Blumenthal came to book arts through a love of books and reading. A graduate of Smith College, she also apprenticed with master bookbinder Arno Werner. She has been a professional bookbinder since 1976 and was rare book specialist in the Smith College Mortimer Rare Book Room for 35 years between 1976 and 2017. She has taught bookbinding and book history at both Hampshire and Smith Colleges, and elsewhere. She is interested in local history, notably that of Northampton, MA, where she has lived for the past 46 years. Other passions are culinary history and cooking, gardening, and playing mandolin and Bulgarian tambura. Barbara also has enjoyed weaving at Vävstuga for many years and is a member of Orkestar Banitsa, a Balkan folk dance band led by Becky Ashenden.
Please contact us with any questions at office@fabric-of-life.org.
