We just added four new classes to the schedule…check them out! We’re currently working with some great instructors for all day classes on Thursday…these should be posted by May 1st…
Thanks to everyone who has sent their class registrations early…
Yesterday the Jurying Committee of 5 met and deliberated over almost 80 class applications. Oh my gosh, to narrow our choices down to 40 was like deciding which flavor 
of ice cream to choose when they’re all homemade and luscious…or choosing between silk, mohair, wool, cotton and angora…oh how we suffered on your behalf!
But we narrowed the class list down to give us a nice representation of disciplines and now we’re working at the big wall board to make certain everything fits into the schedule. Applicants, we’ll be in touch by the end of the week. Students, we’ll try to have the class list published on the website by the end of the weekend. It’s going to be exciting…we promise there’s something for everyone’s skill level and many classes you won’t find anywhere else this year.
If you’re wondering why one class was chosen over another, the response could be any number of things: we couldn’t fit the desired class time into a slot, certain fiber interests were better represented than others and we simply had to choose, materials fees didn’t seem like the best value to students or there was no appropriate photo to accompany the application and of course we want the course offerings to stay fresh and timely. If your application wasn’t chosen, don’t hesitate to ask why…and PLEASE, PLEASE, PLEASE try again next year!
Thanks for your patience,
The Jurying Committee
Every fiber event is a good event…right? Well actually some are better than others. If you’ve had the pleasure of taking a class with Linda Whiting here at the College or at other venues, you know that she is precise, well organized and delightfully talented. She’s put these strengths to work for attendees at the Pleasant Mountain Fiber Arts Workshop and we all encourage you to check it out.
Linda writes:
Classes range from basket making to needlefelting with lots in between.
NETA’s own Rudy Amann will be teaching spinning and nalbinding this
year and Leslie Samson will be back to teach three different felting
classes. Our new feature artist this year will be Heather Kerner of
Spiral Works Felting. She makes those amazing vessels that you may have seen at Rhinebeck in the top of the double decker building. She will be teaching felted vessels,sculptural hats and nuno felt textures.Rose Ann Hunter will present four different rug techniques that can be
used for small projects or large ones. There will be classes in rug
hooking, penny rugs, color blending, dyeing, and kumihimo braiding, an
off-campus natural dye class at Michelle DeLucia’s studio and garden.
Julie Yarbrough of Kick the Moon Farm will lead you through the
techniques needed to create your favorite dog breed or pet. And there
will be more opportunities to make a special shawl pin with Leslie Wind.There is something for everyone at this informal June workshop weekend. The focus is on learning a new craft or expanding what you already know. In addition to three days of workshops, half and full day, there will be an exhibit of instructors’ work to inspire you.
Fiber ‘holics Unite!
Is spinning your thing? You should know Pogo because she can demonstrate a technique in the wink of an eye and when you walk away, you know what to do…she’s that good!
If you’re looking for a workshop, consider the Friends Folly Farm in Monmouth Maine. If you’re looking for an Angora goat, then you want to look here too…just want mohair roving? Look here too…oh what the heck, just visit the farm 
But can it be spun, knit or woven?
Today I got a phone call from fiber arts writer Cheryl Krementz. She said that the magazine Yarn Market News was going to be doing a story in the up-coming issue on the fiber arts scene in Maine and she wanted to include our perspective…I’m so flattered! YMN is supports local yarn store owners (LYS’s) by being a forum for pertinent issues facing the yarn industry… So we talked about the teachers and vendors and attendees of Fiber College with a particular focus on yarn.
From my point of view, Maine is THE PLACE for all things wooly because where else in the world can you wear a wool sweater in July? But seriously, the friendly competition, level of expertise and overall support of needle work in Maine and New England puts us a bar above the general public when we show off our knitwear. We take our education very seriously
The retail yarn market has everything to gain from knitters, crocheters and needleworkers who learn to distinguish one yarn from the next using more
than color as a guide. As we expand our appreciation of wool breeds, luxury fibers and custom blends, we’re better able to match yarns to projects and dreams to reality. Have you noticed how exciting and individualized final projects are these days? Moreover, as recreational spinners increase in numbers, they begin producing one-of-a kind yarns for themselves and lucky loved ones…envious non-spinner friends and relations then head to the store to find similarly interesting yarns.
The impact of our passions is bigger than we might imagine. When we buy local fibers, we’re economically empowering small farms to diversify and raise personally selected flocks of sheep, goats, alpacas, llamas, rabbits and an occasional water buffalo. I love thinking that the sweater I knit has a history I can trace back to a real farm and a real shepardess. Even further along that line of thought, when others come to Maine for events such as Fiber Frolic or Fiber College, the money they spend in our LYS’s, at our special venues and on local farms stays right here in the local economy…or helps a small farm anywhere else in the world…this money doesn’t travel to Arkansas or any other corporate headquarter site. Local purchases help maintain the people and places that give our world a unique flavor. This authenticity should be protected and we do it every time we begin thinking and buying for the new project that awaits us.
That’s what the surging fiber arts in Maine is doing to solve the world’s economic problems…has anyone else got a better solution?
This is the new poster for Fiber College…Janice Webster designed it and it’s fantastic! Thank you Janice! Notice that we’ve added a new tag line…Fiber College on Penobscot Bay, Educating Creative Expression
It’s not news that New England is home to prolific and generous artists. This year we’ll be hosting a book signing event on Sunday from 10 AM to 1 PM. We are currently looking for the “right people” to invite…do you have any thoughts or contacts?
Finally, government intervention that makes sense!
Published yesterday, the online newspaper, The Onion reported on how members of the US Congress are working out a plan to help the floundering economy by raising Alpacas in impoverished areas of the United States…three cheers to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) for recognizing a good idea when it comes across her desk.
Please show your support for this marvelous idea!
We’re thrilled to announce that this year’s Artist in Residence will be Quilt Artist Mary Ellen Kranz.
You may know her from her appearances on HGTV’s Simply Quilts or from her book Blending Photos with Fabric: A Beautiful New Way to Combine Photography, Printing and Quiltmaking or perhaps you’ve been lucky enough to take one of her classes in Paducha Kentucky.
Mary Ellen teaches quilters how to use the technology that is common in our homes to 
enhance traditional arts. She delights in introducing new fiber artists to the joys of quilting and aiding experienced stitchers to combine fresh colors, embellishments and new techniques to bring personal perspective to their art quilts. “Right now the technologies have all kind of come together. We now have printers that can print directly onto fabric that are basically home, ink-jet printers. At the same time, we have digital cameras that are allowing people to more freely take pictures. Combine that with image editing software that is getting easier and easier to use and you’ve got opportunities for quilt makers with very average equipment to do some pretty exciting things in terms of integrating photographic imagery into their quilts”
How often have you taken a beautiful digital picture and wished you could share it with the world in another format? Are you tired of simply printing you picture and hanging it on the wall? Or worse yet, taken a beautiful souvenir of a wonderful vacation and simply filed it away on the hard drive? Not any more!
In the months to come, we’ll update you on Mary Ellen’s schedule at Fiber College 2008
