Traditional handweaving instruction
I am pleased to announce that in addition to teaching at CeCe’s Wool - a wonderful local yarn shop close to my home in Guilderland, New York, I will be opening my new weaving studio in Cambridge, New York in the SPring of 2024! Please follow the link below to view the classes that will be offered at both locations, which include my 4-harness weaving instruction, CeCe Tkaczyk’s rigid heddle classes, as well as knitting, felting, dyeing and spinning classes taught by other instructors. https://www.ceceswool.com/events-and-classes/
Please join us!
These happy students designed and wove their Connecticut River Blankets in my Old Lyme studio with natural-dyed wool yarn created by Patricia Fortinsky, ultimate yarn designer and owner of Tidal Yarns, Old Lyme, Connecticut..
In my Old Lyme Studio: Apprentice Hannah Kitts teaching Esme to weave an alpaca rug. She wove two rugs in a two-day workshop!
:|:|: WORKSHOPs :|:|:
My mission is to teach traditional hand-weaving techniques using local wool and alpaca yarns, and North American-grown, spun and woven cotton. Unlike other weaving schools I do not use tencel, silks, bamboo or other fibers popular with handweavers. because they do not originate from the fiber farms or spinning mills in our own country. My one exception is linen, which unfortunately is not available from North American sources but is an essential and traditional fiber in textiles. I build collaborations with New York and New England fiber farmers in order to use their yarns in our weaving. These farmers also use New York and New England spinning mills to create their artisanal yarns. My cotton warps are sourced from Canada (Brassard et Fils, Quebec), or North Carolina (Maysville, 100% grown, spun and dyed in the United States). Cotton rag and naturally-dyed wool are the main ingredients of my own work. I am convinced that we have enough fiber in this country to weave the most beautiful and sturdy textiles we need, using time-honored traditions and tools.
Workshops range from two to five days depending on the length of time needed to complete a functional piece that you can wear or use in your home. Class sizes are small and intimate, and students appreciate the individualized attention. The goal is to create a finished, useful textile in an atmosphere of fun and sharing. Beginner workshops focus on the essential basics of reading drafts, designing and warping, but all students go home with a beautifully finished and useful project at the end of the 3 to 4 full days. Experienced weavers will design, wind and warp their looms during intermediate and advanced workshops. Although my personal focus is on rug and blanket weaving I teach beginning and more experienced weavers on traditional looms in the hope that they will fall in love with weaving! Contact me at stephaniemortonhandweaver@gmail.com.
A student’s Connecticut River Blanket
Jeannette and I are weaving together on the 9-foot weaving width Clement.
Rag rug weavers at work in my Old Lyme studio!
Summertime Indigo Shibori workshop in Old Lyme. Susan now creates one-of-a-kind indigo-dyed and marbled paper lampshades in the Berkshires.
Apprentices Jeannette and Steve are weaving Jeannette’s rug on my 11-foot-wide Glimakra loom used for weaving larger rugs.
”Stephanie is a talented, knowledgeable, and kind weaving teacher. Her focus is on individual time with each student. Her classes are small so she’s able to accomplish this with what seems to me - ease. Being a first time floor loom weaver I had many questions and often they were ones I’d asked before. Stephanie answered them again with the same clarity and patience she did the first two times!” Cathy P., Old Saybrook, Connecticut