Saturday Fibre Workshops - East
Saturday, October 24, 2026
Tett Centre for Creativity & Learning, 370 King St W, Kingston ON K7L 2X4
A day of fibre arts to inspire your creativity. Join the East Fibre Workshops for sessions on dyeing, weaving, spinning and felting
Registration opens in May
- OHS Members: $100.00
- Non-OHS Members: $120.00
- Materials fees are paid directly to the workshop instructor.
Full Day Workshops
- Introduction to Kumihimo (Japanese Braiding) - Laurie Harkin-Chiasson
- Weft Faced Rug Weaving - Barbara Heins
- Wet Felting a Tea Cozy - Christianna Ferguson
Half-Day Workshops - Morning
- Introduction to Cotton Spinning - Jane Schuell
- Natural Dye Sampler - Katherine Romba
- Spinning Longwool Fibre - Grace Clare
Half-Day Workshops - Afternoon
- Designing a Tartan - Susi Reinink
- Introduction to Cotton Spinning - Jane Schuell
- Spinning Longwool Fibre - Grace Clare
To Do - byo meals, refreshments provided, refunded policy less admin fee, no refunds after x date....
Questions? Send a note to info@ohs.on.ca
Workshop Descriptions
Introduction to Kumihimo (Japanese Braiding)
Laurie Harkin-Chiasson - Full Day
You will make 4 sample braids on a MARUDAI (traditional wood braiding stand) using TAMA (weighted Bobbins), all provided by your instructor.
The workshop will discuss the history, uses for Kumihimo braids, recommended materials, how to read a pattern etc. The four braids will be: Round Braid, Square Braid, Flat Braid with Chevrons and Ridged Spiral with a Core. These four braids will give you a good basis to continue Kumihimo.
Laurie Harkin-Chiasson has been braiding Kumihimo for about 15 years. Laurie has been an Instructor with the Ottawa Valley Weavers and Spinners Guild for about 20 years. She has taught Beginning Weaving, Basketry, Kumihimo and Pine Needle Basketry. Her teaching skills come from Transport Canada's Flight Instructor #1 License. She taught Ground School (the classroom part of a Pilot's license) at Westair Aviation.
Participant Equipment and Materials to Bring
- Scissors
- Pen/Pencil
Materials Fee: $5.00 payable to the instructor for the hand-out and yarn
The instructor will provide the Marudai/Tama braiding equipment for you to use in the workshop, and handouts and warps for your braiding (pre-wound for you).
Note: Most people prefer to stand when they braid. If you prefer to sit, we can try to accommodate sitting down with the Marudai between your legs. Wear pants if you are going to sit.
Marudais and weights will be available for sale to participants for $50 should you wish to continue this braiding art.
Weft Faced Rug Weaving
Barbara Heins - Full Day
This workshop is an introduction to rug weaving commencing with a discussion of best practices used in weft faced rug weaving. Participants will begin by weaving examples of faster, simpler rug techniques and then move on to more complex structures, as well as finishing techniques. Participants will weave two samplers, each made up of a variety of samples. The goal is to provide participants with the knowledge and confidence to weave a rug on their own.
- Sampler One: variations of plain weave such as rag wefts, inlay techniques, colour and weave patterns as well as a simple pile technique. This sampler will be cut off the loom so participants can practice some warp and weft finishing techniques used to finish well constructed rugs.
- Sampler Two: how to use colour in a range of twill weave structures.
- Optional Sample: There will be a loom already set up for participants to weave a three shaft Krokbragd sample if they choose.
Barbara Heins has been an avid weaver for more than 40 years. She completed the OHS Weaving Certificate and earned her Master Weaver certificate in the early 90s. Since then, she has been teaching a range of weaving courses mainly at the guild level. After years of weaving rugs to sell, she became the unit leader for the OHS weaving course Unit Six: Rug Weaves. She continues to weave rugs as well as other items, including garments and tea towels.
Equipment and Materials
Participants will be provided with instructions to thread their looms before the workshop so that weaving can begin quickly.
- Any four or eight shaft Jack type loom will be adequate for this workshop because we will only be weaving small, narrow samples.
- Linen, wool or 4/8 cotton yarns can be used for the warp.
- A range of colours of 2 ply wools are suitable for the weft yarns as well as rags such as old sheets or jeans.
Participant Material Fee: $0. There will no be a materials fee because students will be asked to provide their own materials. The instructor will bring some rags and wool wefts and participants can share colours. More detailed information will be provided to participants before the workshop
Wet Felted Tea Cosy
Christianna Ferguson- Full Day
Create a one of a kind custom wet-felted tea cosy. Participants will learn everything they need to know about how to make beautiful handmade felt using a resist to create a seamless three dimensional form. We will cover wool selection, proper layout, fulling and shaping techniques and final finishing touches. This workshop is suitable for beginners or for those more experienced felt makers.
Christianna Ferguson is a textile artist and educator with a studio practice in Lakefield Ontario. Working primarily making handmade felt, her work is recognizable for its colourful multi-layered surface design and ranges from wearables and accessories to conceptual work. Making textiles with this simple yet versatile material allows her to play with colour, texture, pattern, form and surface design in an infinite number of ways. Christianna's passion for felt began during a year abroad in Western Australia where she joined a Felting Guild in 2012. For over a decade she has taught felting throughout Ontario. Her work has been featured in various international publications including FELT, Felt Matters and Fibre Art Now and Uppercase Compendium of Craft.
Participant Equipment List:
- Two old towels.
Participant Material Fee: $20.00/person payable to instructor at workshop to cover the cost of wool roving and prefelt provided to complete the project.
Chris will provide
- A handout with instructions to take home
- All the tools/materials required to complete the project (bubble wrap, soap, resists, water containers, sprayers)
Introduction to Cotton Spinning
Jane Schuell - Half-day - morning and afternoon
Workshop participants will be introduced to short and long staple cottons, and naturally coloured cotton in both raw and roving forms. You will be carding cotton and will learn to spin on your own wheel, and on a support spindle if desired. I’ll also demonstrate spinning on a charkha. If there is time, we’ll discuss cotton blends and make/spin a cotton/silk blend.
Jane Schuell: I’m a 2012 graduate of the OHS Spinning Certificate program. I’ve instructed the OHS Level 5 cotton unit and have given a webinar and various workshops on cotton spinning. After struggling to spin cotton using the conventional (wool) method, I suddenly “got” the technique of spinning off the point of where the twist enters into the fibre. It was pure magic! Being able to spin cotton has opened up a whole new world of other fibres, and has helped to improve my spinning abilities. I’m hoping to pass that along to others.
Participant Equipment and Materials to Bring
- a spinning wheel with a fat core bobbin (half full with spun yarn, or I can provide foam pipe insulation);
- hand carders (cotton or fine carders are preferred, but regular are okay);
- a support spindle, such as a Tahkli, if they wish to learn that method. I’ll have a limited number of Tahkli-style spindles for sale;
- scissors.
Materials Fee: $5 paid to the instructor.
I’ll provide a cotton baggy containing Pima, Acala or Uplands, and naturally coloured cottons in raw and roving forms, plus some cotton and silk to prepare a blend.
Spinning Longwool Fibre: A Study of 5 Long Wool Breeds
Grace Clare - Half-day - morning and afternoon
Let’s open the second layer of the chocolate box and spin the lustrous fibre of some of the long wool breeds. In this workshop we will study 5 long wool sheep breeds, their characteristics, fibre preparation, and spinning techniques.
By the end of the workshop, I hope you will have fallen in love with spinning long wool fibre as I have.
Grace Clare is a farmer, producer of long wool fleeces, and a breeder of sheep for more than twenty years. She has presented workshops on long wools for the Handspinning Seminar, given farm tours and skirting demonstrations to various guilds in the area and you will find her at many of the fibre festivals held across Ontario. Shepherd’s Hill Farm is located near Campbellford.
Participant Materials to Bring
- Spinning wheel
- Your spinning kit
- Flick carder and combs if you have them.
Materials Fee: $15 paid to the instructor
Natural Dye Sampler
Katherine Romba - half-day - Morning
In this workshop, we will sample the many variations in colour that we can obtain not only from the plant dyes themselves, but also from other factors that can impact the dye process. Using the same four or five natural dyes (foraged and gardened locally), we will explore a range of colour possibilities through different mordants (including banana!), fibre types, fibre colours, pH and iron baths, and overdyes. There will be ample opportunity to explore the possibilities, and everyone will likely arrive at a different final palette. This workshop is perfect for the beginner but is also great for more advanced dyers interested in testing the range of natural colour possibilities.
Katherine Romba has been experimenting with natural dyes since 2020, seeing the dyes as part of a larger project to spin, weave, and dye with natural, regenerative materials. She has been a member of the Kingston Handloom Weavers and Spinners since 2015, where she co-organizes their Dye Garden, Fibre Garden and their Sewing Club. Recently she has been interested in finding good uses for invasive species in dyes, inks, cordage, and weaving.
Participant Equipment and Materials to Bring
- Apron and rubber gloves
- Optional: Extra containers for taking damp, dyed fibres home (one large ziplock bag will be provided in the workshop)
Materials Fee: $25 paid to the instructor
Each participant will receive
- a range of prepared skeins, mostly wools, ready to be dyed
- a handout with natural dye information
- a ziplock bag for taking home damp, dyed fibres.
Participants will be using the Kingston Handloom Weavers and Spinners dye station, which will include the dye baths and pH and iron baths.
Designing And Weaving Tartans
Susi Reinink - Half-day - afternoon
The weave structure of tartans - a 2/2 twill - is simple, yet the designing and process of weaving can be challenging. The history, culture and significance of Scottish clans and tartan weaving will be covered in this course. Much emphasis will be put on designing a pleasing plaid: the importance of placement of colours, scale, sett and drape. The procedure of having a new tartan design approved for registration or accreditation with the Scottish Tartans Society will also be discussed.
Susi Reinink is a graduate of the OHS Master Weaver Certificate, obtaining her Master Weaver status in 1986. She also is a graduate of Fibre Arts at St. Lawrence College (with distinction) in the same year. Since then, she continues to be very active in all aspects of weaving: teaching, presenting, exhibiting, writing and as the resident weaver of the Allan Macpherson House in Napanee, ON.
Susi’s experience in weaving is extensive, ranging from many weave structures, to designing, and to reproducing antique textiles. One of her achievements is creating a tartan commissioned by the Township of Lanark Highlands which has been registered and accredited by the Scottish Tartan Society.
Participant Equipment and Materials
- Two or three white cardboard strips 2” (5 cm) x 8”-10” (20-25 cm)
- Small amounts of yarns (preferably in tartan colours) of the same thickness, to make reelings.
- Graph paper and coloured pencils/markers
- Scissors
Participant Material Fee: $8.00 for the handout payable to the instructor.
