Weaving Connections
Basketry Retreat
2024
Join us March 8th-10th 2024 for three days of weaving willow at Aspen Ridge Greenhouses in Sherwood Park, AB.
Classes will be offered as morning, afternoon, or all-day sessions. You can sign up for both a morning and afternoon session, or a single all-day session, for each day of the event.
We can't wait to meet you!
Registration is Now Closed
Friday
Morning
9am - 1pm
3 Bird Feeders
with Sarah
Using a jig to help hold the willow rods, you will learn three versions of Bird feeders. Corn dolly weave, pairing and simple randing.
Tools you should bring: shears
Afternoon
2pm - 6pm
Mushroom Basket
with Candice
Using a solid base (some polypore mushrooms will be available as bases) weave a willow basket incorporating wild materials such as dried mushrooms, pine cones driftwood etc!
Tools and all wild materials/treasure are provided but your welcome to bring both if you've got something you prefer or treasure to incorporate.
All day
9am - 6pm
Catalan Base Basket
with Arielle
Using wild willow, you will be weaving a shopping/lunch bag. You will learn how to weave a catalan base, and build up with different technics: 3-rod waling, regular randing or possibly zig-zag randing. And finish with a simple border. You will be able to add leather straps to your basket adding a 10$ for the leather. The base hoop will be prepared in advance.
Tools you should bring: secateurs (shears), knife, beater, bodkin (awl)
Friday & Saturday
All Day
9am - 6pm
Willow Laundry Basket
with Maryann
For those who already have some experience and want a BIG project. We will learn an oval base, stake and strand. We will choose either a double French rand or an English rand side weave and a 5 by 2 border. We will use native ditch willows , so tight, tight, tight will be encouraged. These will hold your socks!! A maximum of 6 baskets can be made in this class. You can choose to make them on your own or pair up with a friend for a second set of hands. Instruction and material fees are based on a per-basket rate.
Tools you should bring: pruning shears and a sharp knife.
Saturday
Morning
9am - 1pm
Pine Needle Coiling
with Tania
This workshop is intended for beginners. Learn how to harvest, clean, and prepare pine needles for basketry. You will create a basket (approximately 4.5” wide x 1.5” tall) with a semi precious cabochon centre of your choice and learn two different stitches.
Tools will be provided by Tania.
Living Willow Sculpture: Willow heart and Harlequin tree
with Arielle
We will cover the details and techniques to know all about creating, planting and taking care of a living willow structures. And practice with 2 fun projects, weaving a willow heart and a harlequin tree that you will be able to plant in your garden as soon as the ground unfreezes. The sculptures should not be taller then 5 foot.
Tools you should bring: secateurs (shears), knife, bodkin.
Afternoon
2pm - 6pm
Pine Needle Coiling
with Tania
This workshop is intended for beginners. Learn how to harvest, clean, and prepare pine needles for basketry. You will create a basket (approximately 4.5” wide x 1.5” tall) with a semi precious cabochon centre of your choice and learn two different stitches.
Tools will be provided by Tania.
Willow Wreath with Dried Flowers
with Jo
You will learn how to bend willow into a round frame on which a multitude of Jo's amazing dried flowers will then be adorned.
Tools you should bring: shears.
Willow Dragon Fly
with Candice
Using willow we will construct two different abstract versions of a dragon fly!
All tools provided though your welcome to bring yours as well if you’d prefer.
All day
9am - 6pm
Fitched Round Basket
with Dom
In this class we will be making a round base, and weaving our (many) uprights together using a technique called fitching.
Tools you should bring: rapping iron, bodkin, and shears.
Birchbark Patchwork Jewelry
with Cathie
Participants will make either a cuff bracelet or a breast piece using different shaped pieces of birch bark and use waxed linen and a variety of embroidery stitches. You will design your own piece. You will learn how to soften birch bark to make it supple. Your piece will be backed by leather and edged with a braid of waxed linen.
Tools you should bring: sharp scissors, old towel, sharp, large eye embroidery needles, safety pin, a dozen 2 inch clips or clothes pins.
Sunday
Morning
9am - 1pm
Mini Baskets
with Maryann
Using strips of willow bark as our base, we will pair (or twine) with multiple leaves to create a pendant or tiny ornament. Bring a tiny bottle if you want to cover it! Dandelions, sweet grass, birch bark, iris and day lily leaves. 4 hours
Tool you should bring: Sharp scissors.
Afternoon
2pm - 6pm
Willow Flower
with Dom
Using a variety of native willow colours, a circular base will be twined and petals and stem added. There should be time for more than one.
Tools you should bring: bodkin, and shears.
All Day
9am - 6pm
Diagonal Weave Bark Pouch
with Arielle
Using different kind of bark we will work with diagonal weave pattern to do a small pouch. Details around harvesting and preparing the bark will be share. You will be able to add leather to do a belt pouch and/or sew material to be able to close the pouch.
Tools you should bring: scissors, flat pliers, bodkin, measuring tape, tongs.
Ribbed Basket
with Crystal and Dragan
Weave a ribbed basket. More information coming soon.
Tools you will need: Clippers or shears, awl, sharp locking knife, old towel, spray bottle.
It Could be Willow
with Cathie
This workshop is a great introduction to willow without all the challenges of willow. All the techniques used in this round commercial reed basket can be used in making the same willow basket. Commercial reed is much easier to work with than willow. You will learn how to twine, 3 rod wale, French rand and a basic willow rim.
Tools you should bring: spray bottle, sharp scissors or basket shears, 12" diameter bucket or pot, tape measure, awl.
Willow Garden Bee Skep
with Michelle
Make your own Bee Skep, perfect for Bumble Bees to nest in. Bumble Bees are great pollinators and live in small colonies. During this course you will weave your own Skep using traditional weaves and different colours of farmed and soaked willows to make it unique. A beautiful and functional addition to your garden!!
Tools you should bring: rapping iron, bodkin, and shears.
Friday, Saturday & Sunday
All Day
9am - 6pm
Open Weave
Take a break from classes and joing us for an open weave, where any interested can lead, share or just hang out around the collective creation that we hope to make as a thank you to Aspen Ridge Greenhouses. Maryann has a giant ball of gratitude in mind! Random weave, that is HUGE, yet still fits through whatever doors it needs to.
Bring what you have. Rapping iron, bodkin, shears, willow, dog wood, anything of interest. Extras will be avaliable.
Schedule
Friday
AM
PM
Saturday
AM
PM
Sunday
AM
PM
Mushroom Basket
3 Bird Feeders AM
Willow Laundry Basket
Catalan Base Basket
Pine Needle Coiling
Pine Needle Coiling
Willow Wreath with Dried Flowers
Willow Dragon Fly
Willow Garden Bee Skep
Mini Baskets
Living Willow Sculpture
Willow Flower
Ribbed Basket
It Could be Willow
Fitched Round Basket
Open Weave
Keynote Speakers
Rae Hunter
Rae Hunter was born in Lethbridge Alberta... just to be near her parents. Her work as a leadership and community development consultant for the Alberta Government evolved naturally into her later becoming a "basket case"
Fortified with government grants, and a lifelong fascination with natural materials, Rae took to the wilds in the early 90's to give vent to her creative passion, basketry. Since then, she has used a variety of seemingly unbasket-like materials, to create some of the finest artworks in this craft.
Since 1992. she has taught basketry courses throughout Alberta, as well as in British Columbia, Yukon territories and though United States.
Arielle Prince-Ferron
Arielle Prince-Ferron is a basket weaver and storyteller. She discovered the art of basketry 12 years ago. In 2020, she created Brins d'Nature, a small scale business born from a desire to devote herself totally to her passion for weaving with nature, to share an ancient skill that is slowly being lost and to offer an alternative to the accelerated degradation of our ecosystems and our overall mental health. She enjoys creating various practical objects for everyday life, as well as weaving living willow structures.
She works only with local plants harvested by hand in a respectful way. Such as wild and cultivated willow from her willow garden, dogwood, roots, birch-cedar and willow bark, cattails leaves and other beautiful plants.
Arielle learned various basketry techniques, mainly self-taught and with a few teachers from Quebec, Vermont and Japan. She also been facilitating groups of all ages for the last 12 years around nature connection, art in nature and empathy. Her focus is to create a small revolution where relation to all life matters, and where we care for the living world and each other.
Meals
Catering will be brought to us by Elvira of Under the Linden Bakehouse. Elvira is a part of our weaving community, and we are thrilled that she has offered to provide us with a selection of her wholesome cooking and baking. Lunches will be $20, and suppers will be $30. Please bring a dinner size plate, standard soup bowl, and utensils.
Elvira will attempt to accommodate any dietary restrictions; however, it may be wise to bring a few of your favourite snacks if your diet is very limited. There will be a fridge available to all who need it.
If you are tenting in the greenhouse or just want to join us for an early morning hangout you will need to bring your own breakfast provissions. There will be a toaster and kettle available. We kindly ask tenters to bring a cooler to store their breakfast supplies in their tent, if possible.
Accommodations
Townhouse: A few of us are getting together to rent a townhouse about 15 minutes away from the retreat. We have a few more rooms available for $60 a night. There are also a few couches available for $15 a night. We have rented it for Thursday, Friday, and Saturday night, with the option to extend it for Sunday night if desired. If you would like to join us, please indicate it in your registration form or email us at borchfam@hotmail.com.
Tenting: We will have limited space for tents this year to accommodate all the new classes we are offering. Preference will be given to tenters who intend to stay for the whole weekend. If you are planning to tent, make sure you get your registration in as soon as possible.
Billeting: We have had a few of our members offer space in their homes for the duration of the retreat. Each home is different, but most people are offering a room for between $0 and $15 a night. If you would like to stay with someone or have room to offer another attendee, let us know in your registration form or send us an email at borchfam@hotmail.com.
Location
Aspen Ridge Green House
7-52257 Range Road 231
Sherwood Park, AB
T8B 1A7
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