March Highlights.....

March was an exciting month here at MSW with a long awaited for workshop by Rabbit Goody on Pattern Weaving and Drafting. We had a full class of 12 students and in two very full days everyone came away with more information then they thought possible. Besides working with the usual graph paper process, Rabbit also brought her computer with the Fiberworks PCW program and students got to see how wonderful the capabilities of computer technology can be in designing patterns. We also had numerous looms set up with various weave structures so that everyone could see how these patterns translated into actual cloth. The next week we had two new students from Williamstown, MA ...Suzy Konecky and Matthew Ball ...who were head cheesemaker and farm manager, respectively...of Cricket Hill Farm. They both needed a little break from the cows and decided to come and weave for a week. Suzy wove a cotton dishtowel warp of green and black and Matthew opted for a wool throw in Navy and Gold. They both were pleased with their finished pieces and promised to send some of their speciality cheese from the farm for us to sample! In the upholstery shed out back, Ellie worked with long term former student, Polly Connell's handwoven cotton to cover a wonderful old chaise. Polly had woven the fabric years ago and was patiently waiting for Ellie's return from England. It was well worth the wait!

Rabbit explaining the in's and out's of pattern drafting to an attentive class!

Sandra and Stevie choosing an overshot pattern to figure out.

Rabbit showing Susan and Monica how to use the computer to work out their block pattern.

Rabbit, Stevie and Alison discussing the pros and cons of computers versus graph paper.

Matthew checking out Suzy's dishtowel warp.

Matthew tieing the fringe on his finished throw.

Suzy's finished dishtowel warp!

Suzy and Matthew with their finished projects.

Polly's chaise with her handwoven cotten.

A happy customer!