Silk lecture and tour

 

I have worked with silk since 1989 and was thrilled to find a active silk production here in Oaxaca.  If you are curious about silk here in Oaxaca there are two upcoming events that might interest you.

On Friday, 15 December here at the Oaxaca Lending Library I will give a lecture/ demonstration on local silk production and products.  Information and registration here.

The following week Pablo González Marsch and I have organized  a one day tour to a studio that raises silk and transforms it into textiles. You will be doing  the processes involved in transforming cocoons into silk thread.

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Hands-On Tour

Silk in Oaxaca

Karren K. Brito, Pablo González Marsch

Monday, 18 December 2017

9am-6pm

Meet at 9 am at the Oaxaca Lending Library and travel to Teotilan del Valle, a nearby Zapotec village famous for its weavers, to the studio of Arteseda. Rina, Aurora, Miguel and Reynaldo will receive you and show you their studio where they weave and dye silk, cotton and wool and raise their silk worms.

First you climb up to mulberry grove to see how the trees are planted and tended and the leaves collected for the silkworms. Then you will see the space and beds where the silkworms are raised. There are not any silkworms feeding this time of year, there may be some eggs. You will work with the harvested cocoons, both yellow and white. Some cocoons will be perforated because the moths have emerged. Others have been stifled. They need to be sorted, ones for spinning, ones for reeling,and cleaned before degumming by boiling for an hour.

While the cocoons are boiling you will have lunch at a the local traditional restaurant, El Descanso. Pablo will take you to see Santa María, a XVI century baroque style church in the center of Teotilan del Valle. It shelters several altarpieces and some slabs with ancient Zapotec engravings. This catholic church was built atop an ancient platform.

Once the cocoons that have been selected for spinning are boiled, they need to be dried then opened to prepared them for spinning. The prime cocoons are reeled hot and wet once softened by boiling. Once you find the end of the silk thread the larva spun you can simple unravel the cocoon to produce fine silk filament yarn. The dried, degummed cocoons need to be stretched and fluffed before spinning. You will have a chance to try spinning the silk fluff with a supported spindle and/or a spinning wheel.

You will then return to the OLL by 6 pm.

Arteseda does have a shop on the premisses en Teotilan del Valle and a booth a the Pochote market on Calle Marcos Perez in Oaxaca de Juarez on Friday, Saturday and Sunday.

Limit 12 participants

Cost person: MX$900 (includes transportation,materials, lunch and bottled water)

To register contact Pablo González Marsch at marsch@prodigy.net.mx or call

(52 1) 951 134 7391 or WhatsApp.

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For tour questions contact Pablo, for technical questions about silk  you can leave a comment here and I will get back to you.

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You are all invited!

SUNDYES Feb/March 2011

 Sundyes at ENTWINEMENTS, a sunny well stocked textile arts studio.  Fun adult afternoon projects, 1-5PM, with everything provided and everyone welcome

 

Sunday,13 February 1-5 PM

MAKE A FELTED CAT TOY

free introduction to wet felting

Felt alpaca fleece around a jingle bell to make a
delightful play things for your or your friend’s
feline companion. This is a wet felting
technique.

 

Sunday, 27 February  1-5PM

NUNO FELTED SCARF

$30 including the silk scarf, alpaca fleece, instruction
         afternoon make it, take it

            Please call to registrar

 

The silk serves as foundation for the felt, and
the resulting nuno felt has the properties of both
alpaca and silk.

 

Sunday,13 March  1-5PM

WARPING AN INKLE LOOM

     free warp-along

An inkle loom is a simple loom used to weave
narrow warp-faced cloth. I will warp the loom
with a complimentary colored warp using
crochet cotton and home made string heddles. If
you have a inkle loom, bring it and follow
along.      Call me for what you need.

 

Sunday, 27 March  1-5PM

TUMULTUOUS COLORED SHAWL

$30 including the silk shawl, dyes, instruction
              afternoon make it, take it

              Please call to register

 

You will dye a large hand-woven silk shawl in a
low water immersion technique to create crystal
like patterns in multiple colors of your choosing.

 

 

UPCOMING SHOWS

I have finished shows for 2007. I have two planned for Spring 2008:
PALM BEACH FINE CRAFT SHOW
29 Feburary, 1.2 March, 2008
West Palm Beach, FL
SMITHSONIAN CRAFT SHOW
10-13 April, 2008
Washington D.C.
If you need a scarf sooner, you can visit a shop or call me at the office, 937.767.8961, 9-5 (Eastern Time). We help a lot of customers on the telephone.