Courses

Discover the ancient magic of the organic indigo vat, where blue pigment lies waiting in yellow liquid, turning fabric green and then blue in the air! Indigo is one of the best-known and longest-lasting natural dyes, discovered independently by cultures around the world. We'll set up a vat using all…

Learn the basics of traditional Roma frame basketry. The travelling people of Europe would harvest willow, hazelnut and hawthorne whips from the hedgerows along the road and weave these ribbed baskets. There are endless opportunities to play with shape and size and students will get all the basic techniques needed…

In the Willow Basket World, there are an infinite number of basketry techniques to learn and perfect. Rib-style techniques will be the focus for this class, following the designs of many century old basket styles. Learn about willow as a basket material; using wild and cultured, harvesting, sorting, and preparing…

Join featured instructor Greg Johnson of Lac du Flambeau, Wisconsin in this three day course to make traditional Anishinaabe folded birch bark baskets. This style of basket is used for maple sugar storage, but is a beautiful and useful addition to any home.When birch bark is harvested at a certain…

Learn the basic techniques and tools of blacksmithing in this intensive project-based class for women taught by a professional woman blacksmith. Students will explore the aspects of using fire as a tool, and will practice techniques such as tapering, spreading, twisting, punching, upsetting, shouldering, splitting, and dishing. Students will leave…

Break out the v-gouges and chisels! This tutorial format course is a great opportunity to get going on a new carving project or finish up something you’ve already started, all under the expert guidance of instructor Phil Odden. Phil specializes in Nordic-style carving and will have a variety of projects…

Carving wooden spoons is a tradition in Scandinavia, where carvers crafted spoons for home use, for seasonal income, and to give as gifts. The techniques, designs, and embellishments commonly used today are deeply embedded in centuries of cultural history, but spoon carving is also a vibrant and growing craft tradition…

This is the granddaddy of woven birch bark projects: the beautiful, functional birch bark backpack. The course will begin by learning about sustainable techniques for legal harvest. Students will then use hand tools to prepare their bark strips and then weave them into a backpack, measuring roughly 9"-10" x 11"-12",…

Whether you’re looking for a spare bedroom, office, studio, tent, sauna, summer cabin, or just looking to reduce your footprint, the yurt may be the answer. Yurts are ancient, portable shelters and one of the classic inventions of human history: simple, efficient, easy to heat, sturdy, and beautiful inside and…