4th International Conference on Braids, Iga

13-18 October 2019
Home Programme Iga Registration
Lecture Workshop Exhibition Tour
 
Bobbin lace Monday to Tuesday
Room Tutor Title Capacity
5B1 Gil Dye Making braids with pillow and bobbins 12

For participants with no previous experience of bobbin lace the course will start with the basic techniques of winding bobbins and the twist and cross movements used between two pairs of bobbins. The course will then cover:
Plaits - with two, three and more pairs
Straight braids - basic braids with one or two pairs of workers
Shaping braids - curves and angles
Fancy braids - cable/chain, surface decoration, adding beads
Designing and adapting
There should be something for every level of experience and as there is no one 'right' way of working participants will be encouraged to experiment.
Items included in equipment fee
Student level Student supply list
Beginners

Cotton Pearl 8 or equivalent, Selection of other yarns from your stash, Pins - eg those used by dress-makers, A few beads - various sizes if available]
Scissors - for thread, crochet hook if available (approx #1), 2 piece of plain cotton fabric (one approx 45x45cm one 30x15cm (18x18 inches, 12x6 inches)), Pen, pencil, eraser, paper
Materials fee: 1800 JPY
Items included in this fee: 8 pairs bobbins, Small lace pillow, Instruction sheets
Bobbin lace Thursday to Friday
Room Tutor Title Capacity
5B2 Kim Davis Wire braids and bobbin lace on the pillow 12
This workshop will explore both bobbin lace and other braiding techniques on the bobbin lace pillow. Techniques covered will be Miao, Tunnmatta, traditionally spaced cloth stitch, wire friendly cloth stitch, multiple pair plaiting, Sinnet braids, twining, macramé, leadwork, Fiandra stitch, single strand gimp, and mitering corners.
Student level Student supply list
Students will need no more than very basic bobbin lace skills such as being familiar with the tools, cross and twist. If students have basic supplies such as a bobbin lace pillow, the instructor can lend specialized bobbins. Students can rent a kit for $10, or purchase one for $60.
Materials fee: 800 JPY
Items included in this fee: Wire for class
Sprang Monday to Tuesday
Room Tutor Title Capacity
5S Carol James The circular scarf 16
Explore the circular warp technique in sprang, and return home with a neckscarf. In this class you will create a piece that begins as twice the length of your frame. While flat warp sprang results in cloth that grows from the edges towards the centerline, circular warp sprang cloth grows from a starting line outward. We will begin on this warp with the basic interlinking stitch, and then will explore other stitches such as lace, cables, and interlacing, to decorate your scarf. Pattern reading and pattern writing are used as a vehicle to understand and record structure. Bind off your scarf with your choice from among several finishing techniques.
Student level Student supply list
The student must know how to set up a sprang frame with a flat warp, and must be able to work the basic interlinking stitch in sprang. Each student must bring 50 gms of a pale colored sock yarn, a sprang frame, as well as 3 pencils, each with a different color lead and a sprang frame.
Materials fee: 0 JPY
Items included in this fee:
Others Monday to Tuesday
Room Tutor Title Capacity
3K Carol Wang Good luck with crown sennits 20
Known to kumists as the strawberry end knot (十字吉祥結, 吉祥穂, 문고리매듭), crown knotting can be used to create both simple braids (sennits), the Cross Knot (十字結, 叶結び, 정자매듭) and the iconic Good Luck Knot (吉祥結, 菊結び, 동심결매듭). Explore the many variations of both including tools and techniques for beaded ropes. The theory of using a knotting table (marudai, sort of) will be demonstrated and discussed.
Student level Student supply list
Beginner Scissors, beading needles, seed beads, beading thread.
Materials fee: 2000 JPY

Class kit will include cord packs, paper knotting templates and printed instructions will be provided. Foam boards for beaded/thread knotting tool construction will be provided.
Bead packs for beaded ropes will be available for purchase. A limited number of bead spinners will be available for use.
 
Room Tutor Title Capacity
3KF Helen Vonow Kumi-felt 10
This technique is combination of two of my interests – felt and braid making. You will learn a simple one-to-one oblique-interlacing technique which combines with felt-making, to produce a scarf. The braid is laid out freehand in an open format. If you are not familiar with felt-making then the complexity of this technique is in learning the properties of the materials and the felting techniques.
Student level Student supply list
Beginner

1 or 2 towels, spray bottle (if you have), Rubber gloves and waterproof apron (optional)

Materials fee: 2000 JPY

Items included in this fee:  Wool Tops prepared for one scarf ~ fine Merino wool or wool/silk blends, in white, black, and a range of colours.
We will also supply: 1 'non-slip' mat 1 flat tray (at least 32cm wide at base, 5cm deep), 2 jug (1 litre capacity and 10cm wide at top), 2 bamboo or round wooden sticks – 30 cm long, rubber bands, Liquid soap.
If you wish to make another scarf the tutor will have extra supplies available to purchase.
Others Thursday to Friday
Room Tutor Title Capacity
5FB Katia Johansen Make your own handbook of braids 25
We will compile a sample book of traditional free-end braiding techniques. Everyone knows the simple three-strand braid, but there is a whole world of more complex free-end braids which are often overlooked, though easy to master and with a wealth of decorative variations. Worksheets for 8 categories of braids, with up to 5 techniques in each, will include diagrams and directions for each braid, and space for attaching one or more samples. Categories include braids with 3-17 elements, as well as braid-like structures including guilloche, braid stitch and novelty braid. Variations include asymmetry and multiple elements working as one, round/square/flat braids, thick and thin elements, hollow braids and combinations of colors and materials. The emphasis will be on making as many short samples as possible. Free-end braiding may predate all other textile techniques and its uses are varied throughout all cultures. Watching how threads move is essential training in the often overlooked discipline of paying attention and analyzing what we see. Learning (and re-learning) to braid with free ends increases our awareness of how threads work as well as encouraging a deeper appreciation of textiles as basic manual and cultural education. ”Making” is the new buzzword, and with this sample workbook we can show many easy braids. Anyone spending too much time at the computer can learn how satisfying it is to make pretty and useful braids.
Materials: cotton, linen, silk, wool, straw. Participants are welcome to bring own yarns.
Student level Student supply list
Suitable for beginners; students familiar with other textile techniques may progress more quickly.

Scissors, paper and pencil (please, no pens) for notes, small amounts of special yarns for extra samples if desired, clipboard. Participants are welcome to bring own yarns.
Materials fee: 1780 JPY

Items included in this fee: Materials fee will cover a variety of suitably tightly plied cotton yarns/cords, which are easy to work with and show braid structures well. Other yarns will be available for extra samples showing variations in quality, color, size, fiber.
A folder for all worksheets, with illustrations and space for own notes and samples, will be provided.
 
Room Tutor Title Capacity
5O Lyn Christiansen & Barbara Walker One Thing Leads to Another: Working with Multiples 12
You have a collection of braids and/or narrow bands that you have created over the years. Now discover unique ways of combining them to create new pieces. How might they be interlaced? How can they be combined with other techniques? For this workshop you will bring examples of your work—narrow bands of all sorts. There will be two exercises where you will interlace these in different ways to make new and more complex pieces. For one exercise you will work independently with your own braids or bands. Then you will work in a team of two to four people to make a collaborative piece comprised of work from each team member. As Aristotle said so long ago, “The whole is greater than the sum of its parts.”
Student level Student supply list
Enthusiastic and curious explorers at all levels.  Students must make or gather a selection of braids or narrow bands prior to the conference for use in the workshop exercises. Any and all techniques are appropriate.

A collection of braids, bands, or ropes that the student has made.
Purchased cord or other fiber material, 1-2mm in width.
Paper, scissors, pencil, (tapestry) needle and thread, tape.
Materials fee: 2815 JPY

Items included in this fee: materials kit for exercises.

 
This is minimum information for students to select their classes. Other information including names of students and tutor's facial photos will be added in due course.
 
   

4th International Conference on Braids, Iga

13-18 October 2019