North House is excited to welcome Leon Valliere, also known as Ozaawaagosh, Elder and Spiritual Leader from Lac du Flambeau, Wisconsin as our Featured Instructor for Fiber Week 2023. He will offer a three day course in fingerweaving, a technique used by the Anishinaabeg people to create various articles needed for daily life. The workshop will teach the weaving of belts, bags, and sashes and include discussion of historical traditional fibers and types of woven items within the material culture of the Native American woodland culture, as well as the transition to full European woolens and fabrics. Day one will include basic technique using modern yarns. On day two, students will have the option to continue exploratory work or focus on completing a sash. Patterns taught will include full color, diagonal, arrowhead, lightning, chevron, and double chevron. Skills for sashmaking will include project planning, set up, completing the weave, and braiding fringe. A variety of samples of woven work will be available for discussion. Ozaawaagosh is also an Ojibwemowin speaker and will augment student cultural understanding through the introduction of many terms. Students ages 16+ are welcome to attend.

Required Tools

• Yarn of your choosing; more information provided after registration, but you will need approximately 4-5 skeins for the course, so expect to spend $25 minimum
• Moozhwaagan (Scissors and/or a knife)