Archive: Classes
April 2, 2011
French General Workshop: Dyeing with Woad
Kaari from French General in LA has a special event coming up next Saturday, April 9th. The French General Woad Workshop on April 9th from 9am - 4pm is being taught by Denise Lambert, one of the world's few master woad dyers who is coming from the South of France to teach this medieval craft. Denise will teach how to dye with a plant that produces the eponymous French Blue color which can fourteen different shades of blue. Denise was written up in the January 2011 issue of the French magazine Cote Sud, as being one of the few remaining people in the world that are still teaching this magical technique of dyeing. Participants will get the chance to dye anything they like in the four dye vats.
Jenny Ryan will be covering this special all-day workshop here on CRAFT. Look for the story mid-April on our site. If you are in the LA area and interested in joining this special workshop, there are still a few spaces left you can sign up for.
October 14, 2010
Greenwich House Pottery's Summer Arts Program for Kids
Non-profit ceramics studio Greenwich House Pottery (GHP) in New York City is in the running for a $5,000 grant that they'll use to fund summer arts programming for NYC kids in need. And they need your vote.
For more than 100 years, Greenwich House Pottery has offered classes and workshops to New Yorkers of all ages. Greenwich House offers health, arts, education, and social services to New Yorkers in need.
You can vote online every day until Nov. 1 and help Greenwich House Pottery get the funding to provide free summer ceramics and mixed media classes for NYC kids. The funding will give GHP a chance to help a group of deserving young artists, all thanks to the Pepsi Refresh Project.
The more people you tell, the more votes they'll get!
August 30, 2010
Non-Profit Basics
i3Detroit's Ed Platt has a great post on non-profit basics, from definitions to status requirements. A quick read for anyone interested in getting a craft group started down this path.
August 9, 2010
DIY Bookbinding Class in NYC

New York City hackerspace NYC Resistor is holding a DIY bookbinding class next weekend at their awesome space in Brooklyn.
Learn everything you need to start making your own artist's books or hand-bound journals! In this class, learn techniques and tips to make your own hand-bound books. We'll go over a bunch of stitching methods, page-folding, and book cover options. Materials will be provided, if you want to bring some special paper you have, we invite you to do so.
Instructors: Alicia Gibb, Shelby Arnold
DIY Bookbinding
Saturday, August 14, 2010 from 3:00 PM - 5:00 PM (ET)
NYC Resistor
87 3rd Ave Brooklyn, NY
Class fee (including materials): $60
June 23, 2010
Summer Classes at 3rd Ward in Brooklyn

If you're in NYC this summer, check out the inspiring class offerings by 3rd Ward, a hub of creative makers in Brooklyn. Not only do they have classes on things like digital design, electronics, metalworking and woodworking, but they also offer some hard-to-find craft classes like sandal making, loom weaving, children's book illustration, and hatmaking. Checking out their class catalog has got me inspired, already!
May 14, 2010
MAKE Class at Parsons: Awesome DIY Projects

This semester at Parsons the New School for Design, I had the pleasure of teaching a group of inspired students (both undergrad and graduate) about DIY projects online. The students were interested in everything from electronics to crafts, and their final projects are tutorials across a very wide spectrum of topics. Here are the project highlights from the class, many of which have been posted on Make: Online and CRAFT.
Crafts, food, home decor:
- How-To: Use Templates on a Potter's Wheel
- How-To: Purse with Feet
- Yarn Octopus Teaches Kids to Braid
- How-To: Mini Indoor Herb Garden
- How-To: "Plastic" from Expired Milk
- How-To: Kitchen Pegboard with iPad
- How-To: Fashionably Accessorize Your Insulin Pump
- How-To: BBQ with Uncle Pappy
- Grocery Bag from Old T-Shirt
- How-To: Turkish Borek
- Marilyn Monroe makeover
- Cocktail: Moscow Mule
- BBQ Broccoli with Uncle Pappy
- How-To: Under the Shelf Magnetic Spice Rack
Electronics, technology:
- Musical table plays melodies with Arduino
- How-To: Perfboard hackduino
- Censor a photo
- Making brickbreaker using Flex
- Make an explosion using Maya and Realflow
- Binary Arduino synthesizer
- Representing audio through vibration with Arduino
- Basic color correction with Shake
- How-To: Use a wirewrap tool
- How-To: Sound-dependant light-up Moog theremin hack
- How-To: RGB LED brooch
Great work, guys, I had such a great time in class with you!
April 13, 2010
April Soft Circuit Workshops in SF
The Soft Circuit Workshop taught by NYU ITP alum Grace Kim has 2 classes coming up this month at Gray Area Foundation for the Arts in San Francisco. The workshop will cover basics of wearable technology. Workshop participants will be given a historical overview of wearables in the context of fashion, art, and technology. Grace Kim will share basic sewing and embroidery techniques and tips on how to repurpose everyday sewing procedure for use in wearables projects. Students will be given project-based instruction on basic circuitry and will construct soft circuits using conductive thread and fabric. No prior experience with electronics or sewing required. All materials and fees are included. There's still seats available for this Saturday's workshop!
Special deal to CRAFT Readers: Sign up online as a member and save $25!
Dates:
Saturday, April 17th
Saturday April 24th
1pm-6pm
Location:
Gray Area Foundation for the Arts
55 Taylor St.
San Francisco, CA 94102
Day One:
History and context
Measuring energy
Creating a circuit on a breadboard
Soft circuit basics
Embroidery basics
Workshop time: make an LED wristband
Assignment: prototype a concept of an exaggerated sense
Day Two:
Class presentations
Introduction to resistance (including how to use a multimeter)
Introduction to sensors
Introduction to switches (including how to turn everyday sewing notions into switches)
Watch this fun timelapse video from a previous workshop:
March 3, 2010
Denyse Schmidt Improvisational Quilt Class This Saturday
Beloved quilt designer, Denyse Schmidt, will be teaching her improvisational quilting class this Saturday at Providence, Rhode Island's Craftland School of Craft.
She'll explain her intuitive design techniques, as well as the skills needed for a strong foundation to bring your own quilt projects to life. Students will create exciting work that will challenge the way you think about color, patchwork and your own creativity. If you're a beginning crafter looking for the skills to tackle some of the projects in Schmidt's books, or an experienced quilter who wants an opportunity to work with one of the most important quilters in the field today, this is the class for you.
If you're lucky enough to be in the area, be sure to nab a spot in this special day-long workshop!
January 23, 2010
Heather Ross Guest Instructor at Portland's Summer of Making
The Summer of Making returns to Portland's Pacific Northwest College of Art this year, with fabric designer, Heather Ross, as a special guest instructor. Ross will be conducting workshops on how to digitally design fabric, and has teamed up with Spoonflower so students will be able to print yardage after the class. You can read more about the Summer of Making series and register over on their web site.
January 12, 2010
Soft Circuit Workshop in SF with Grace Kim

NYU ITP alum Grace Kim will be running a soft circuit workshop at the Gray Area Foundation for the Arts in San Francisco:
Soft Circuit will cover basics of wearable technology. Workshop participants will be given a historical overview of wearables in the context of fashion, art, and technology. Instructor Grace Kim will share basic sewing and embroidery techniques and tips on how to repurpose everyday sewing procedure for use in wearables projects. Students will be given project-based instruction on basic circuitry and will construct soft circuits using conductive thread and fabric. No prior experience with electronics or sewing required. All materials and fees are included. Limited space available.
Soft Circuit Workshop: Grace Kim
Gray Area Foundation for the Arts
January 23rd, 30th, and February 6th 12pm-4pm
55 Taylor St. San Francisco, CA 94102
November 19, 2009
Stitch Lab Sewing Studio of South Austin
I was thrilled to see this beautiful feature on my crafty home base here in Austin, The Stitch Lab sewing studio. Apartment Therapy did a home tour of the studio and an interview with the fabulous studio owner, Leslie Bonnell,, and it's too awesome not to share. I feel lucky to teach hand embroidery at such an inviting and inspirational place, and even luckier to have such a rich resource for crafty classes to take myself (I spent last Friday night screen printing and stitching up some spectacular space geek tote bags). Chances are you have an equally awesome local craft studio in your town. Seek it out and support it!
October 26, 2009
Betz White's Felt + Stitch Holiday II Online Workshop
Great news! Betz White has opened up a second session of her Felt + Stitch Holiday II online workshop!
Betz writes:
Join me for a second session* of my first-ever online workshop! No matter where you live we can gather together online to make wonderful felted wool projects for your holiday décor and gift giving. I'll be teaching and working with you along the way through a combination of blog posts, downloadable PDF's, and videos posted weekly, where participants can communicate with each other and with me. Projects will include ornaments, home décor and small gifts, designed especially for this workshop and are not available in my books or anywhere else!
