Touchstone Center for Craft 2009 catalog of classes

I want to share with you about Touchstone Center for Craft, as I thoroughly enjoyed myself there last year. AFter many years of raising kids, and holding our breath to make ends meet, our kids are grown, and I can take myself to art camp! Last year, I taught at Touchstone, and intend to do so again this year. It was so much fun. They have a fantastic, yet fairly intimate facility. There is a Photography studio, a rather amazing blacksmithing facility, beautiful watercolor/painting studio along a little singing brook, a pottery studio along the same. Ther is a paper arts and stained glass(I think, it had a lot of torches) studio, and LOOMS galore! I will be teaching spinning, rigid heddle weaving, and weaving on the floor loom.
No matter what you take, you should take yourself off to art camp this summer. It was quite a gift to give myself last year. It was a beautiful drive from central Virginia to Farmington, PA, where Touchstone is. You might even enjoy the trip, as I did.
Here is a link to the catalog. http://www.touchstonecrafts.com/Graphics2000/catalog.pdf
gotta go. I've got a spinning commission to get finished, and a solo show to work on.
I've got to be ready for the show in JULY!!!Panic!!!!!

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

spinning from the fleece

I also wanted to post some pics of the yarn produced from spinning directly from a raw fleece. I don't pull locks, and tease them, or anything. It's just drafted directly from the fresh fleece. This has been navajo plied, which you can see in the close-up of the lovely loop-d-loop produced by this method. Yes, this loose, furry, textured yarn is what I was looking for, and I rejoice in every moment I spend producing it.

Spinning and weaving in Richmond,va

I have been advertising my spinning and weaving classes on several online venues, trying to boost enrollment at the Visual Art Center of Richmond. We have pretty good response to the "learn to weave in a weekend", but are still waiting for enrollment to increase for the regular and ongoing weaving class. It meets on Thursday nights, right here in Richmond, VA. We meet from 6:30 - 9:00. I have room for 8 students. I think I'm offering 4 or 5 sessions of it this spring, so you could actually learn a great deal just this spring alone. You don't have to have your own loom. Floor looms are provided by the art center. There is also plenty of open studio time, so you can come in outside of class and do various steps outside of class, so you can maximize your instructional time. No previous experience is necessary. If you can't make it, you can e-mail me, as I frequently have openings at one of my own studios for private lessons, or in one of my studio classes (Wed. nights, or Sunday afternoons).
I sell looms, spinning wheels, fiber for spinning, and yarn for your projects in class. If you are looking for someone to do loom repair, or spinning wheel repair, I do that and sell parts.
The looms I carry are Louet, Leclerc, and whatever used Looms I might have for sale at any given time. Currently, I have a 12 harness mechanical dobby loom by AVL that is for sale. You can e-mail me about that if you are interested. I also have a horizontal warping mill/reel for sale. It's a floor model, but folded up, it fits behind a door.

Spinning yarns from the spinning wheel

This class started tonight at the Visual Art Center of Richmond. It is a small group - 3 students. Two people came in with their own wheels, and the third's is coming from Louet in a week or so. One student is a returning student. She is doing well with her spinning, but not finding time enough, as she is in a masters program right now. The other two are very new, but both have tried drop spindling.
As usual, the new spinners didn't feel adept at what they were doing, but both were doing quite well by the end of the class. The one with her own wheel spent some portion of class working on the center's wheel. When I got a chance, I checked out her wheel, got it going, and she switched to her own wheel, and had great success with is. I suspect both students will return with a
voracious desire to spin more.
It is fun teaching the fiber arts and my life is very fulfilled at the moment. Take care, and I'll be back.
Cherri

Learn to Weave in a Week

Monday, a new class begins at the Visual Art Center of Richmond. It is my Learn to Weave in a Week class. We will meet mornings M-F and dress the looms, and weave off a nice project. If you are interested, check out my classes in the list of fiber classes for adults at http://www.visarts.org
I am also teaching kids to embroider, weave, tie-dye, and spin yarn. So you can enjoy the fiber arts, and sign your tween or teen to do the same.
If you are looking for sewing classes, I have a class upcoming June 18 from 1-4 pm at my own studio at Roseneath. This is for students 11-16. Bring your own machine, or use mine. e-mail me for more information.
maidensweaver@earthlink.net
Spots are still available at the Glen Allen studio for weavers. We meet on Sunday afternoons from 1:30 - 4 pm.
I accept spinning students during this time also. It is a group class, so you will also meet other weavers and spinners.
If you don't see what you are looking for, you can e-mail me, or check out my website at
http://cherrihankins.com

silver linings

Just a not on hidden blessings. I accepted a commission months ago for a hand-spun, hand-woven project. I have done thousands of yards of spinning merino yarn, and dressing the loom with thousands of yards of warp, only to discover an error half way into the project. Not a problem, I found a use for the fabric, that would still work toward part of the same commission, cut the error off the loom and proceeded to wet finish. Much to my surprise, after years of dyeing fibers, I finally did one that bled!!! I had indigo bleed into all my lovely handspun, handwoven white weaving, and did everything within my power to restore the work to it's natural state. It never happened. I am stuck with this chambray blue weaving that is no larger than a lap blanket. What to do. I dried the fabric and pressed, as a matter of doing things right. And guess what. I fell in love. It is merino after all. It is sooo soft and I never weave for myself, so here is this amazing little gift. It is wonderful, and I have plenty of time to replace the work that was messed up, and you know what! I learned something in the process! Isn't that what we are supposed to do in life? Learn from our mistakes. No matter how experienced you get, don't forget to take care of the details.
Let me say that again:
"No matter how experienced you get, don't forget to take care of the details"
Take care, and learn something from your mistakes today. Give yourself a gift, and take a bad situation, and turn it into a blessing for someone.
Cherri

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

Current Happenings

Hi, Have you been looking for a new post? Things have been really busy lately. The classes at Bay Schol have been great. I taught one on rug felting, and another felting class on Purses, pouches, and pocketbooks. We have also had several classes at the new studio. It's going well.
I'll try to post pictures, once I get my new camera figured out. I'm having some problems getting my new HP camera to interface with my computer.
I have a dye workshop coming up the first Saturday in May.
We will be dyeing wool and protein yarns from 10 am - noon. At noon, we will be dyeing cotton and other cellulose yarns and at 2 pm, we will be dyeing wool/protein rovings. If you are interested in vat dyeing (all one color), contact me in advance.

Each 2 hour session is $20.00, and you will need to bring your own yarn, or purchase yarn here. You are more likely to get what you want, if you reserve your yarn when you book your space in the workshop.

Also available, are private lessons in spinning yarn with the drop spindle, or spinning wheel, weaving, and felting. You can also book a group lesson for yourself and friends or family. I have great workshops in felting rugs; felting purses, pouches and pocketbooks; and hat felting; Can't wait to hear from you!
Cherri

First class at the new studio in Glen Allen

Well, Sunday was fun. We had a small start for the new class at Glen Allen. One person is weaving double weave. Another is just beginning a rag runner for her bay window, and the third is warping a tapestry loom. We had several folks drop in, and are looking forward to a couple more people joining us in a week or two.
Please let me know if you are interested.
Cherri

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.