Summer Shorts Graphic (5)

Fiber College at Searsport Shores: Summer Classes in Fiber Arts, Cooking & Painting!

New in 2023, Summer Shorts are fun, 10 hour art retreats led by some of our favorite artists in residence.  A small group of camping guests and visitors will have the opportunity to forget their day-to-day lives and focus on a passion at the art studio and in the middle of the gardens on weekends.  For only $495 you'll have an accomplished teacher at your side, guiding you through your project from start to finish.

In an intimate, outdoor setting (10-12 people maximum), you'll be inspired to personalize your project.  You'll learn and refine skills that allow you to head back to your evening campfire (and ultimately home) with a glow of accomplishment.  Retreat attendees will share a freshly prepared lunch (included Friday and Saturday) in the garden kitchen and may prepare other communal meals there if participants choose to continue your conversation with a glass of wine under the setting sun.

Samantha Verrone~ Printing with Rust, Plants and Seawater

 June 23-25 Take a journey into the magical world of creating marks on fabric with rust and plants and pigments with Spring botanicals.  Learn to up-cycle garments, use invasive plants for their beautiful color and create one-of-a kind linens for your home. Register here

Mary DeLano~ Botanical Printing ❤️ Sold Out

July 13-16 Botanical Printing on silk, wool, cotton and linen using botanicals and dye blankets to create those Instagramable images you lust after.  Mary's work is the inspiration for Searsport Shores' new dye studio.  With her guidance, explore printing on wide swaths of fabric...wide enough for garments, table linens and so much more.

This class is designed for students who have already taken an introductory class and/or who eco print at home.  Students will learn to:

  • Mordant cellulose and protein fabrics.
  • work with tannin.
  • Experiment with a range of natural dyes.
  • Print garments and yardage that can be used to sew garments on a new five foot steam table designed specially for this class.

There is room for two beginning students.  If you are a beginner, you need to reach out to Mary ([email protected]) before you register to make sure that the beginner slots are still available. Materials fee $60 includes materials, mordants and dyes.

This class will run Thursday afternoon-Sunday noon.

 

Mary Laury~ Watercolor Painting

July 20-23  Explore watercolor painting in the garden with an accomplished watercolorist by your side.  Mary is a sought after and highly esteemed teacher who is frequently complimented for her ability to capture "Maine". She encourages all her students to believe they can be successful. Painting is an exciting medium; it flows and moves and does beautiful things. If you have never painted in watercolors, we will start at the beginning. If you have painted before, you will pick up some new tips and tricks as well. We all learn together!

PLEASE NOTE: This workshop will run concurrently from Thursday afternoon through Sunday Afternoon with Chris Toy's Asian Fusion Cooking.  All meals are included in the workshop fee as well as specially planned optional evening activities designed to extend your learning from the day’s workshops. Registration for this retreat is through Maine Adult Education.

Chris Toy~ Asian Fusion Cooking

July 20-23 Chris is the author of 6 popular cookbooks, a private chef, and has taught Asian-fusion cooking for several Maine community education programs. Cooking students will learn how to prepare a variety of recipes from Asia, Europe, and the Americas incorporating traditional and local ingredients. Each meal will actively engage cooks with the tools, techniques, and stories behind the dishes being created. 

PLEASE NOTE: This workshop will run concurrently from Thursday afternoon through Sunday Afternoon with Mary Laury's Watercolor Painting retreat.  All meals are included in the workshop fee as well as specially planned optional evening activities designed to extend your learning from the day’s workshops. Registration for this retreat is through Maine Adult Education.

Susan Muldoon ~ Weave Your Own Backpack Basket

August 10-12 Learn to weave a medium sized Adirondack style backpack and attachable beverage. We’ll learn the basics of weaving, twining, shaping, and rimming a backpack, great for everyday use. After you finish that, you can dig into our stash of colored reeds and create another with pizazz! Small or large, your choice. Bring items to add into your weave (ribbons, yarns, buttons, beads) if you’d like. 

This class will run Thursday afternoon-Sunday noon.

Samantha Verrone~ Printing with Tannins and Autumn Plant Material

 September 22-24 Guided experimentation with the plants on hand with rusty objects to explore regenerative design.  We'll focus on how rust is the quintessential regenerative dyestuff that gives and gives and gives and that over-dyeing and mending garments and home textiles breathe new life into beloved objects and helps us to reframe consumption in a manner that demonstrates actual care of the planet.

Summer Shorts Graphic (6)

Bring the family camping for Labor Day weekend and seize a day for yourself.  These one day, project oriented workshops priced at $259 include lunch in the garden and are perfect for teens and adults alike.

Saturday September 2, 2023

Molly Grant~ Leather Bag, Zipp Style

Sew a one of the kind leather bag with Molly.  Choose the color of your leather, straps, zippers and how it will be decorated.  Material kit $125 

Emma Morin~ Creative Embroidery

Learn 5 embroidery stitches while constructing a charming, 3-D  ornament.  These skills will give you the confidence to mend your clothes creatively, and create gifts everyone will want to receive  $10 material fee.

Katama Murray~ September Impressions: Basics of Cyanotype Printing

Dive into the process of cyanotype printing with Katama Murray of Teach Peace Prints in this
hands-on, one day workshop! This outdoor workshop will focus on how to create prints on
watercolor paper and cotton fabric using foraged or personal items with the power of the sun.
Cyanotype printing is an amalgamation of photography and printmaking that commonly yields
cyan-blue prints, also referred to as blueprints. In the case of cloudy or rainy weather, we will
still create prints using special UV lamps. This process yields different results each time, and is a
great opportunity to let go while collaborating with nature. Create beautiful, one of a kind prints
that can be admired forever, while taking time to slow down and appreciate the richness and
diversity of plant life dwelling alongside us. Students will create five prints on paper, small prints
on cotton fabric, and a printed cotton tote bag. $30 material fee

Santa Steve~ Weaving Chain Mail

wire woven chain mail chokerSince the 3rd century, humans have been weaving wire to create coats of armor for protection and prestige.  Today we weave wire rings to create beautiful and extremely tactile jewelry. Learn the basics of chain mail construction and take home an elegant bracelet or pair of earrings. (please note that the image is a more advanced project but the weaving is the same) $10 material fee

Deb Dutton~ Paste Paper and Flag Book

Paste Paper and Flag Book ImagePaste paper, which was produced starting in the late sixteenth century, is made from both vegetable dyes and inorganic pigments mixed with paste.  An endless variety of patterns can be achieved by manipulating the wet paste. Unlike other types of paper which involve extensive equipment and are made only by skilled craftsmen, paste paper can be made in the binding workshop, and the patterns that resulted represent an amazing range of detail and quality. Bookbinders use paste paper for their end pages.

Modern paste paper uses common household items, found objects, brushes and sponges to create patterns in the wet paste/paint mixture. We’ll use our imagination and create designs on paper - as freestyle or traditional as you like.  Then we’ll make flag books from our artistic papers.  

The foundation of the deceptively simple Flag Book structure is an accordion folded spine. Rows of flags attached to opposing sides of each of the spine’s “mountain” folds allow the artist to fragment and layer a number of complementary or contrasting images and narratives. The flag book was originally created by Hedi Kyle. $12 materials fee

Sunday September 3, 2023

Molly Grant~ Leather Bag, Susan Style

Sew a one of the kind leather bag with Molly.  Choose the color of your leather, straps, zippers and how it will be decorated.  Material fee $125 

Emma Morin~ Creative Embroidery

Learn 5 embroidery stitches while constructing a charming, 3-D  ornament.  These skills will give you the confidence to mend your clothes creatively, and create gifts everyone will want to receive  $10 material fee.

Katama Murray~ Weaving and Dyeing with Foraged Color

Weaving and dyeing with foraged color imageDuring this one-day workshop, students will learn the basics of natural dyeing and small tapestry
weaving using organic, foraged materials. Each student will create a naturally dyed cotton
bandana, a palette of naturally dyed yarn, and a series of small tapestry “bookmark” weavings.
We will embrace our surroundings and settle into stillness as we tune into the meditative qualities
of weaving. Inch by inch, row by row, students will gain an understanding of the creative
capacity that weaving on a small, mobile loom holds. Light and portable, these small Hello
Looms can fit in the palm of your hand, making them easy to take on any adventure and
accessible to beginners and experts alike. Students will have the option to integrate both
naturally dyed yarn and foraged organic objects into their weavings.
Natural dyeing is an ancient textile process that has been practiced for thousands of years around
the world. Colors used in natural dyeing are often derived from various plant, mineral, and
invertebrate sources, such as flowers, leaves, bark, wood, berries, roots, insects, fungi, lichen,
food waste, and more. Water is added to the dyestuff to create a dyebath, in which the colors
from the source are extracted and intensified. Prepared (mordanted) fiber is then left to sit in the
dye bath either with or without heat application, which allows the pigments to transfer to the
fibers over time with patience. Colors and shades from dyes are dependent on location, soil,
water quality, pH, and much more, meaning some colors may never be created exactly the same
twice - this makes for a fascinating world of experimentation and letting go...These meditative
processes yield unique, one-of-a-kind results, and provide opportunities to relax collaborating
with nature. All levels of experience are welcome! Material kit $30

Santa Steve~ Weaving Chain Mail

chain mail choker, chainmaille chockerSince the 3rd century, humans have been weaving wire to create coats of armor for protection and prestige.  Today we weave wire rings to create beautiful and extremely tactile jewelry. Learn the basics of chain mail construction and take home an elegant bracelet or pair of earrings. (please note that the image is a more advanced project but the weaving is the same) $10 material fee

Deb Dutton~ Book Binding Three Ways

Deb Duttons Book Binding Class for Labor Day weekendLearn three different book bindings in six hours. Not the flag book of Saturday, this time you'll learn Japanese stab binding, crown book and Dos e do ( double signature front+ back). You can bring your own papers or purchase them from Deb.  $12 materials fee