More on the local alpacas

Teri got back with me about all the fun things Fireweed Alpacas is involved with in the near future. Here is a list of some of the upcoming fun:

State Fair of Virginia
Saturday, September 27 9 am – 9 pm

National Alpaca OPEN HOUSE
Sunday, September 28, 12 pm – 5 pm
2280 Camelback Road
Maidens, VA 23012
(804) 556-2526
fireweed@boone.net
www.fireweed-alpacas.com

4th Annual Taste of Goochland
Tuesday, October 14
5 – 8 pm
Boy Scouts of America
1723 Maidens Road (this is actually on our property! See you there)

Teri is having the open house in Maidens, and it’s a great opportunity to see the alpacas in their home environment. The “Taste of Goochland” is an opportunity to come out and see what Goochland County has to offer. It’s a large # of Goochland businesses reaching out to the community to introduce themselves. It was great last year. Fireweed Alpacas did participate and drew a great deal of attention with their crias and adult alpacas. There is much more information coming from Fireweed, and an opportunity that my local fiber friends will LOVE! We can participate with shearing day, and earn fiber to boot.

Stay tuned.

Cherri

What are the kids classes I'm offering?

This is for those of you who have asked what classes I'm offering for youth this summer.

The Visual Art Center of Richmond got theirs up on the website early, so some of them are already full, but here they are:
July 14-18
9 am - noon Weaving (this is on the floor loom) for ages 9-12
12:45 - 3:45 Tie-dye ages 9-12

July 21 - 25
9 am - noon Felting (making felt from wool; not knit and shrink) ages 9-12
12:45 - 3:45 Weaving (floor loom class) ages 10-13

Aug 4 - 8
9 am - noon Felting (making felt from wool, not knit and shrink) ages
12:45 - 3:45 Weaving (floor loom class) ages 10-13
If you would like to contact the Visual Arts Center about registering for a class, please call 804.353.0094

At the Cultural Arts Center at Glen Allen, the classes have just gone onto the web, so you may find openings here. The class offerings and dates are different also.

July 28 - Aug 1
9 am - noon Tie-dye ages: 9-12
1 pm - 4 pm Felting (making felt from wool; not knit and shrink) 9-12 years

Aug 11 - 15
9 am - noon Tapestry weaving with a twist ( students will learn tapestry weaving)9-12
1 - 4 pm Gettin’ Stitchy We will sew and embroider projects the kids choose 9-12

If you want to register for classes at The Cultural Arts Center at Glen Allen, call 804.261-2782

Glen Allen work and Felting workshop

Here are pics of some of the work going on at Glen Allen. The multi-color, highly textured piece is a set of place mats that I am weaving. The taupe and burgundy is Nancy's. She has done 2 or 3 scarves out of that, and these pics are just to show how pretty the weave and fiber are. She is weaving off the loom waste. The fiber is tencel.
The chenille piece is also taupe, and has beads woven in. This is Julie's work.
She is truly a 'natural' fiber artist.



Tomorrow I have a hatfelting workshop at The Visual Art Center of Richmond. I'll try to remember to take the camera and upload pics afterward. It's a busy weekend, so I may not get it done until sometime during the week.
Take care.

Cherri

make a hat with a friend as a holiday gift!

Did you know you can buy a 3-4 person hat or rug felting workshop as a holiday gift? Here is how it works. You buy 3 or 4 gift hatfelting certificates for the amount of the workshop ($85.00 ea) and I print them out. You then confer with the recipients of the gifts, and book a date to take the class together. It's loads of fun. You lay out your design, and felt up your hat. Then you block and shape the hats as we all try different shapes and styles, laughing and playing together in this fun workshop. It's always a great time!
These workshops are from 10 am - 4 pm. Can be booked on a Saturday or weekday.
Dates are currently open for Dec. and Jan., for friends to gather and make hats. We do these in Goochland at my home, where we have access to all of my materials and supplies, instead of the limited supply I can bring to traveling workshops. Join me!
Here are a couple of fun hats from my workshops.

felting at Bay school - christmas tree

Here is an image of the type of felt rug we will be making at Bay school of the arts in Nov. The class was requested by some of my felting students who wanted to make a similar rug.
Hope you like it, and feel inspired to take the class. I will be leaving Richmond at 8 am, if anyone needs a ride,e-mail me.
Cherri

upcoming classes

I've got a very busy schedule for the end of Oct and through Nov. If you are interested in taking a class to learn to make felt hats, I have several hatfelting classes in Virginia. There is one Oct. 27, in Mathews, Va. We will be wetfelting hats from wool roving. Students will have the opportunity to make either berets, or broad brimmed hats. I am also offering that class at Crossroads Art Center on Staples Mill Rd, in Richmond In Nov. 12. Thats a Monday. We will be there from 10 am - 4 pm. The following Monday, I will be teaching rug felting at Crossroads Art Center. For either of the Crossroads classes, you need to contact me for registration. that's maidensweaver@earthlink.net

I'm teaching hatfelting at the Visual Art center of Richmond on 11/3, but that class is full, although the Cultural Art Center at Glen Allen has my hatfelting class on 11/10. It is not full yet.

Rug felting on 11/17 at Visual art center of Richmond and the last time I checked, there were 2 openings for that class if you can't get an opening at Visarts, you might still find an opening for rug felting at the Cultural Art Center at Glen Allen. The rugfelting there is on Dec. 1.

One last mention of the felting classes. I have a class in Mathews to felt a rug like my Christmas Tree rug. It is called "Oh Christmas Tree". It also had openings. You don't have to felt the Christmas tree, but it was a class put together by special request, so I will be showing how it was done.

My weaving classes at The Visual Art Center of Richmond have openings for the Nov. Session. I hope to get 3 more people in that class. It meets on Thurs. nights from 6:30 - 9:00 pm. I had an opening occur briefly for the Roseneath studio, but it was filled from the 'waiting list'. I know several of you are still looking for openings there, and I am still trying to get additional studio space there. Glen Allen has 2 openings for weavers, and we will be starting a couple of spinners there on sunday afternoons also. If you are interested in spinning lessons, e-mail me at maidensweaver@earthlink.net

The Visual Art Center of Richmond also still has openings in the spinning class for Monday nights beginning Nov. 12 and continueing through Dec. 3, i think. This class is for beginners or intermediates. We keep the classes small enough to offer very personal instruction to everyone.

I think that covers it. I think I have some pics of handfelted hats to add to this. I will see if there is anything else. Stay in touch.
Cherri

Oh, one more thing. My church does a re-enactment of Bethlehem the night Jesus was born. It's called Bethlehem Walk, and is wonderful. You can catch it in December (15,16,17 I think) on Broad St. Rd.just west of the Food Lion on the South side of Broad St. e-mail me with questions.
C.

kumihimo as jewelery

Tomorrow I have a class called Kumihimo as jewelery. We have openings still. The class meets from 10-4.
We will be making lovely kumihimo braids and turning them into jewelery. I will try to post pics tomorrow.
If you are interested, sign up through the Glen Allen Cultural Arts Center. It would be nice to meet other folks with fiber interests.

Remember also that I have a weaving and spinning "teaching studio" at Glen Allen now. I have 3 openings for new students on the looms, and can take many spinning students. I teach weaving for beginners, intermediate weaving, specialty weaves, spinning yarn from the spinning wheel beginning, intermediate, and advanced, drop spindling, then I teach workshops in felting and workshops on dyeing at my home in Goochland. My next dye workshop is Saturday, May 4, 2007. I have openings still, if you would like to join us, e-mail me maidensweaver@earthlink.net

Mental Meanderings and much catching up

Gosh, there is so much to mention since last I wrote.
First, let me fill you in on my son. He finished boot camp on time. He is now a marine. Right now, he is doing more training where they prepare him for peace keeping missions. After that, he may go somewhere else for training, and he might go to off to do the job he has trained for. May God protect him.

Next, I am moving entirely off the old mediablog, which is now ilaugh.com. The comics were just too crude for me, and the tone of the site just doesn't reflect my own philosophy, or sense of humor. You can find me here now. I hat to leave the old entries unarchived, but don't know how to bring them over. It's like throwing away mementos of our past.

And....I have now opened another teaching studio. I wasn't able to obtain another studio at Roseneath, but have struck a bargain with someone for space in Glen Allen, Virginia. As a result, weaving and spinning classes are offered through that studio now, as well as through the Roseneath studio. It became necessary because my Roseneath students all bought their own looms, and wanted to continue our affiliation as student/teacher, but on their own loom. So their looms are in my studio and I have my looms at Glen Allen for new students. It is my hope to get a more permanent location in Glen Allen within the next year, and I will be able to take-on students wishing to bring looms with them in that area also.

The weaving and spinning classes in Glen Allen are currently being held on Sunday afternoons from 1:30 - 4:00. Weaving and spinning are taught at the same time, but Weaving classes start one week before Spinning. This gives my weaving/spinning students the opportunity to get to know each other, and potentially find someone that they would like to pair up with for handspun/handwoven projects, or sheep-to-shawls. I currently have several looms which are not committed, and can register you for a weaving class beginning in March. If you are interested, please call the cultural arts center at Glen Allen, or visit them on the web at http://www.artsglenallen.com

We have a lot of fun and are very oriented toward building a sense of community around our interest in the fiber arts. Additionally, I will be teaching felting and dyeing workshops. Please e-mail me for more information.