Still love yarn? What color is that anyway?

Last week I told you about the Tapestry Answers class I'm teaching at YarnFest 2016. I am teaching two other classes there.

On Saturday of YarnFest I'm teaching a color class. It is called Simultaneous Contrast: What Color is that Anyway?  Look HERE and scroll all the way to the bottom. The Weaving classes are last, but we're the best!

Don't be too afraid of that color theory language ("simultaneous contrast"). What it means in reality is that every color influences the colors around it. We are going to play with that fact using yarn and tapestry! Color use is something that often stumps fiber artists. I'm not sure if that is because our color comes in the form of yarn so we can't modify the color or because we just don't have enough experience mixing colors. We are going to use both paper and yarn to learn to mix colors more effectively. We'll look at the amazing things that happen to colors when they are placed beside other colors. And hopefully we'll learn to make better color choices for our tapestry weaving.

What: Interweave YarnFest 2016
Where: Loveland, Colorado
When: March 31 - April 3, 2016
Why: Because we love tapestry weaving! (And also, we love yarn. And there is a whole lot of yarn at YarnFest.)

This is the class description:

Tapestry is a weft-faced weave and so we do get to work with solid blocks of color. Knowledge of color theory can be very helpful when learning to shift colors next to each other in different directions. This class will play with that concept using both paper and woven examples. We will learn how to make adjacent colors look warmer or cooler and how to shift the look of a color based on what is next to it.

This class doesn't require much weaving experience. You should have a little experience weaving tapestry, but the skills needed to weave colors next to each other are something anyone who has done a bit of tapestry technique can handle.

Hint: The red-violet squares are the same

I wrote about the Tapestry Answers class HERE last week and next week I'll talk about the class I'm giving Sunday morning. It is one we all should take, me included.

Love yarn? Interested in tapestry?

I will be teaching three classes at YarnFest 2016 in Loveland, CO alongside some other amazing teachers! I don't know how I am going to be able to teach tapestry when the likes of Jillian Moreno and Kate Larson are teaching spinning right next door. But I will soldier on.

Seriously though, I am teaching one of my favorite classes. It is a one-day class called Tapestry Answers: Do I want to be a Tapestry Weaver? (look HERE and scroll all the way to the bottom. The Weaving classes are at the end due to the vagaries of the alphabet.)

What: Interweave YarnFest 2016
Where: Loveland, CO (gorgeous northern Colorado just up the freeway from Denver AND an awesome view of the front range from the conference hotel)
When: March 31 - April 3, 2016
Why: Because we LOVE yarn and weaving!

Here is the class description:

Have you ever wanted to try tapestry weaving but weren’t sure you were really going to like it and didn’t want to buy new equipment until you were sure? In this one-day class we will explore all your basic questions about tapestry weaving. The morning presentation and discussion will be about tapestry weaving as a practice, what it entails, what looms work for tapestry, and warp and weft yarns to consider. We will look at examples of tapestries and talk about how to use this medium for creative expression. In the afternoon we will try some beginning tapestry techniques, look at ways to warp various looms, and learn why certain looms are great for this weave structure and others are not so good. This class is intended for people who have no experience with tapestry weaving. Rebecca will bring some small looms to borrow and a Mirrix you can try. If you have a portable loom of some kind, please bring it!

Though this class was designed for people who were trying to decide whether to get into tapestry weaving, I have had many advanced-beginner students attend who loved all the information about looms, yarn, and the basics of this great art/craft.

You'll get to experience different warp and weft yarn possibilities and take home yarn samples and information about where to get them.

We'll look at some images of tapestries (and a few real ones) and talk about what you might want to weave and whether this is the direction for you.

And here is the big advantage of taking this class in Loveland: I live just a short distance away. I will be able to bring a bunch of different warped looms that you can try in person. I'll bring some standard looms and you can feel the difference between the tension on a small jack loom, a Mirrix, and a frame loom. I'll have a copper pipe loom (a great DIY alternative) and a few other miscellaneous options. If you have a loom you're having trouble with or want an opinion about, feel free to bring it.

Please come join me! Registration is open now. (Hint: early-bird pricing ends Jan 15th.)

The classes are all short and you can take a wide variety of classes during your days in Loveland. This is a great area of Colorado and the hotel is close to a big shopping area with just about any kind of restaurant you might want.

I'm teaching two other classes that I think are almost as much fun as this one. I'll talk more about those in the next few weeks. And as if that wasn't enough, Clara Parkes is giving the keynote address. It is going to be one grand yarn-y event.