Somehow it seems as though we look forward to something for such a long while, and then in the blink of an eye, it is done and dusted and behind us, as though it was a little bit of a dream.
So it feels with the first Drakensberg Fibre festival. Granted, it was all put together rather quickly, and in a bit of a rush – but the opportunity arose and we grabbed it with both hands!
Driving down to the Drakensberg for the first time in many years, I was once again stuck by how beautiful this country is, and I gave myself permission to relax and enjoy the drive – warm and cozy in my little Caddy, while outside the elements did their best to be depressing – in short it was pretty freezing outside – and snowing on the Berg!
The weather warmed up nicely over the next few days though, and so did the activity as the teachers and students settled in for some fairly intense learning. We had weaving (of course) in the ‘museum’, crochet of various disciplines in the small dining room, and the knitters migrated to sit outside on the deck, under the beautiful trees.
Ardmore Guest Farm is a truly beautiful spot, and the owners and staff were amazing – nothing was too much trouble, and if anyone went home hungry, well, that was entirely their own fault, because the food was great as well as plentiful.
My weaving class was well attended, and as usual I tap-danced my way around, dealing with everything from complete beginners, all the way up to a more complex eight shaft gamp.
The gamp is the work of a student who started weaving with me just over two years ago. The bug bit her really hard, and she is now producing wonderful work on an eight shaft loom, having graduated in that direction about a year ago. I do love it when I see someone progressing in leaps and bounds, mostly under their own steam – wonderful!
Gamps are a wonderful tool for learning. I don’t know the exact origin or even meaning of the word, but in weaving terms, a gamp is a study piece, and the term can be applied to structure, technique, and also colour.
Apart from the gamp pictured above, which focuses on eight shaft twill variations, I also had students working on colour gamps on rigid heddle looms.
The colour gamps are always interesting. As beginner, or relatively inexperienced weavers, we often struggle to understand how colours behave in our weaving, and find it difficult to visualise how the warp and weft combine to form blends of colour – rather as one would mix paints on a palette to achieve the correct hue for a painting. When we add texture into the mix, we achieve a whole different effect again.
(I actually have a new on-line course coming out in October which illustrates these concepts. It is called ‘Waffling About Colour’ and I’m very excited about it, so watch this space for more info.)
The Rigid Heddle beginners, as usual, did not disappoint! I love watching the faces of these new weavers as we do the ‘big reveal’, and they realise just how much they have achieved in such a short space of time. I try to incorporate a number of different techniques into my beginners classes, so that the student gets an idea of just how much we can do on our little looms, and the result is always incredibly gratifying.
Apart from the industry happening in the museum with the weavers, we also had Fair-Isle knitting, Tunisian and Mosaic crochet, and a whole lot more besides, including a Spindle spinning demo, and a quick look at Continental knitting in the evenings!
We worked, we laughed, we ate, and we worked and laughed some more. It was everything we could have wished for, and at the end of a long day, there was always time for a little bit of peace and tranquility.
I can’t wait for the next one!
