Sara Goodman Archives - Sanborn Mills Farm

Harvesting Color

Lea Rossignol — Fri, 24 Nov 2023 10:00:47 +0000

The main product of this class will be a set of approximately 50 - 5” sample swatches, made of 5 different fibers: cotton, linen, wool, silk dupion and silk organza. Students will leave the class with an extensive color library. On the first day of class we will prepare all the cloth for the dye bath with proper scouring and mordanting for both cellulose and protein fibers. Then we will head to the Sanborn Mills dye garden to harvest the flowers we will use in our dye baths. At this time of year there will be many plants available for collection. We will look for leaves from trees, nuts, bark, wildflowers, and roots. We can even experiment with some food scraps that give good color. We will bring these treasures back to the studio to photograph, identify and then prepare for dyeing. Most everything will need a good long soak overnight before we make dye baths. Possibilities for modifying colors by changing ph, adding iron, and over-dyeing with indigo will be explored. An indigo vat will be available for overdyeing sections of the color swatches. Students are welcome to bring dye materials from their own gardens or other materials from their home environments to experiment with. Students may also bring 1 or 2 piece of natural fiber clothing from home that they would like to overdye.

Skills and Techniques:

Fiber preparation: scouring for cellulose and protein
Identifying dye materials in the dye garden and the field
Mordanting with alum potassium sulfate and alum acetate
Modifying colors with soda ash, citric acid and iron after-baths
Overdyeing with indigo to expand color range
Making sample swatches of dye colors on different fibers: good record keeping

Materials Fee: $30 paid directly to the instructor.

Special Tools or Equipment: Students will need to come dressed for walking outside in the woods and fields. Gardening gloves and clippers. Students are welcome to bring dye stuffs with them that they have collected on their own for the group to try. Students are welcome to bring one or two pieces of natural fiber clothing to over dye.

Please be sure to read our policies before you register for a workshop which can be found here Workshop Policies

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Indigo Weekend

Lea Rossignol — Fri, 24 Nov 2023 10:00:46 +0000

This two-day class is a wonderful introduction to the magical experience of working with indigo — a dye unlike all the others. On the first day we will begin in the Sanborn Mills dye garden, harvesting fresh indigo leaves to dye silk scarves a brilliant turquoise blue. We will also extract indigo pigment from these fresh leaves. Then, using indigo extract powder, students will learn how to make an iron vat with extract, ferrous sulfate, and slaked lime (calcium hydroxide.) This is the easiest and most stable of the natural vats and is a good place to begin an exploration of dyeing with natural indigo. A smaller 1-2-3 vat will also be made using fructose as the reducing agent. Some basic shibori techniques and a process of using a clay paste resist will be taught for making patterns on cloth. Students will have the opportunity to dye 3 cotton bandanas, as well as a piece of natural fiber clothing they have brought with them, using these techniques, in the indigo vats.

Skills and Techniques:

Dye a silk scarf with fresh indigo leaves harvested from the SMF dye garden
Extract pigment from the fresh indigo leaves
Learn how to make an indigo iron vat with powdered indigo extract, ferrous sulfate, and slaked lime
Learn how to make a 1-2-3 indigo iron vat with powdered indigo extract, fructose, and slaked lime
Learn how to use and maintain the vats over time.
Learn some basic shibori techniques.
Learn how to use clay resist paste for making designs on cloth.
Dye 3 cotton bandanas
Over dye one piece of natural fiber clothing brought from home.

Materials Fee: $40 paid directly to instructor.

Special Tools or Equipment: Students are invited to bring one piece of natural fiber clothing that they would like to over dye with indigo. Wash it in hot water and dish detergent in preparation for dyeing.

Workshop Policies: Please be sure to read our policies before you register for a workshop which can be found here Workshop Policies

The post Indigo Weekend appeared first on Sanborn Mills Farm.

Weaving: 4 Warps in 4 Days

Lea Rossignol — Fri, 24 Nov 2023 10:00:33 +0000

Sara’s weaving intensive meets the needs of all weaving levels. If you are a beginner but have always wanted to learn to weave on a four-harness floor loom, this class is for you. You will put on a new small warp every morning and weave if off in the afternoon. By the end of the 4 days, you will really know how to set up a loom on your own. And with each new warp, you will learn a new weave structure: plain weave or tabby, log cabin, twill, and overshot etc. If you have a loom, but haven’t woven in years and need a refresher, this class is also for you. If it’s possible for you to transport your loom to class, then you can learn on your own loom. Every loom has its own quirky personality, and the class will help you make the best use of the equipment you have. If you are an experienced weaver and want to expand your knowledge to include some new weave structures or kinds of yarn, how to use a warping paddle, how to use a computer for creating pattern drafts, or how to read block drafts, then this class is also for you. More advanced students can spend the 4 days working on one project, with the support of the instructor. Because this is a small class, Sara will work with students individually at their level. You may communicate with Sara prior to class so that you come to class ready to begin. Students who have studied weaving with Sara in the past are certainly welcome to return! All necessary weaving equipment and yarn will be provided, though students are welcome to use their own yarn as well.

Skills and Techniques:

Learn weaving vocabulary and the parts of a loom
How to dress or warp a loom: winding the warp, sleying the reed, threading the heddles, tying on and adjusting tension
How to read a pattern draft for different weave structures
Warp and weft calculations
How and where to buy yarn for a project
Tips for good weaving, managing edges etc.
Finishing the handwoven cloth: washing, fringe etc.
Resources that are available for weavers to take your next steps

Materials Fee: $10 plus cost of yarn used in class.

Special Tools or Equipment:

Sanborn Mills Farm has 3 looms to loan out on a first come first served basis. To verify availability, email marsha@sanbornmills.org before registering if you can not bring a loom and/or warping board . Yarn and all other equipment are provided by the instructor.

Students should bring the following:

Best but not required: a 4 harness loom, table looms are acceptable if you have one.
Optional: Any yarn you have that you want to use
Samples and/or photos of your weaving and other fiber work

Workshop Policies: Please be sure to read our policies before you register for a workshop which can be found here Workshop Policies

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Dyeing Yarns with Mordant Dyes and Indigo

Lea Rossignol — Fri, 24 Nov 2023 10:00:19 +0000

This is a color class for spinners, knitters, and weavers who want to dye their own yarns with natural dyes. At this time of year we will need to use concentrated dye extracts, as the plants in the dye garden will not be blooming. However, we will be able to use dried flowers from the 2023 harvest. In the class we will be dyeing yarn as either skeins or in wound warps for weaving. We will make immersion baths to dye the fiber all one color. We will also make the dye extracts into thickened paints for space dyeing. An indigo vat will be available for over-dyeing the mordant dye colors to get deep purples, greens and browns. It is rare, in introductory dye classes, to ever get to the stage of mixing colors and inventing new combinations. In this class we will do that, both in the dye baths and for the paints.

Skills and Techniques:

Managing yarn, with proper tying, so you don’t end up with tangled spaghetti in the dye pot.
Fiber preparation: scouring for cellulose and protein
Mordanting with alum sulfate and alum acetate
Making stock solutions from concentrated dye extracts
Using dye extracts in immersion baths and as thickened paints
Using dried plant materials from the dye garden in immersion baths
Painting, or space dyeing skeins and warps with different colors
Using ferrous sulfate as a color modifier
Steaming the painted yarn to fix the dye
Over-dyeing with indigo to achieve purples, greens and browns

Materials Fee: $30 paid directly to instructor.

Special Tools or Equipment: Students are encouraged to bring any natural fiber yarn they have spun or like to work with. Make sure you know the fiber content. Weavers may bring a small (no bigger than 2 yards) warp for painting. A variety of yarns will also be available from the instructor.

Workshop Policies: Please be sure to read our policies before you register for a workshop which can be found here Workshop Policies

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