Sievers School of Fiber Arts

Learn, refresh and reflect

  • Home
  • Specifics of Enrollment
  • Housing
  • Travel Info
  • About Us/Our Shop
  • Blog
  • Contact

Three of a (fiber art) kind

August 28, 2022 By Carolyn Foss

Perhaps the art and practice of batik, beginning weaving and cartonnage might not have much in common, but from August 15-25, these three (one-of-a-kind!) classes certainly shared the joy of learning, making and being creative. This was the first year we’ve had an Introduction to Batik class since…way back. Our batik classes evolved over the years to a studio week for experienced batik students, so when Anne Landre offered to teach an introductory class with Karen Zeman, we enthusiastically said, “Yes!”. Anne brought many, if not all, of her Indonesian tjaps, which allowed beginners to apply an entire design in wax at one time on the fabric. After applying the wax, the cotton or rayon fabrics were dyed one or […]

Filed Under: Book Arts/Paper Arts, Surface Design, Weaving Tagged With: Batik, Cartonnage, Table Loom Weaving

Time flies

June 30, 2022 By Carolyn Foss

When the schedule is set for the season, we immediately begin to wait (with great anticipation) for the classes to begin and to see all of you! That certainly applies to the Batik Alumni Week, led by Mary Jo Scandin. Mary Jo first taught Batik here in August 1982. The last line of her biography in the Sievers brochure that year read, “Her work and products are outstanding and her students learn so much.” These words were added the following year, “Her enthusiasm about the art makes learning the batik process a delight.” How time flies! Here we are forty years later having the great pleasure of so many batik classes either taught or co-taught by Mary Jo, who now […]

Filed Under: Surface Design Tagged With: Batik, Landscape Painting with Fabric, Mary Jo Scandin, Susan Hoffmann

The latest four

July 6, 2021 By Carolyn Foss

In the past four classes, four separate fiber arts were represented in the Sievers studios. Those four were: surface design (Batik Alumni Studio), weaving (Beyond Beginning: Weaving with Nancy Adams), stitchery (Japanese Temari Techniques with Judith Yamamoto and Kathy Broer) and basketry (Splint-Woven Basketry: Independent Study with Jeanette Biederman). The Batik Alumni Studio was a way for previous batik students at Sievers to return and work outside the formal class structure to share ideas, get feedback from each other and design/wax/dye…repeat. Mary Jo Scandin, who taught Batik classes here for many (wonderful) years, came as part of the Alumni group. Reviewing the warping and weaving process and choosing projects appropriate for next-step weavers was the focus of the Beyond Beginning: […]

Filed Under: Sievers School Tagged With: Batik, Japanese Temari, Splint-Woven Basketry, Weaving

Batik & Beyond

July 2, 2019 By Carolyn Foss

It was 1982 when Mary Jo Scandin first came to Sievers and offered a class in Batik and Direct Dye Painting. Every year since then we have delighted in the return of “batik week”. Some of the students in this most recent class first came for batik in the mid-1980’s! What a wonderful journey it’s been together. Mary Jo’s piece, “Nighttime on a Hill” appeared on our brochure cover last year. Now, thanks to her, it is part of our permanent collection, a gift for all who walk through the doors of Sievers. Batik is a multi-step process and there are both active times dyeing and rinsing and quiet, meditative times drawing, waxing and ironing. The results are beautiful. Pam […]

Filed Under: Sievers School, Surface Design Tagged With: Batik, Mary Jo Scandin

A Washington Island week

June 24, 2019 By Carolyn Foss

We’re taking this opportunity to share Washington Island with you sending along some end-of-June scenes and happenings. We hear over and over again that time spent on Washington Island is an important part of the experience when attending a class at Sievers. So, here are some recent north, east, west, south and in-between scenes. After taking in the views, for those who are on Washington Island this week, there are a number of events on the calendar. On Saturday night Cindra performed “If Once You Have Slept on an Island” with our friend Dan Hansen at the TPAC in Julian Hagen’s Washington Island Musical History program. This week is the Wisconsin Council of Churches Forum, the annual Grilled Whitefish Dinner […]

Filed Under: Washington Island Tagged With: Batik, Washington Island

Summertime

July 14, 2018 By Carolyn Foss

For us, Batik with Mary Jo Scandin and Thom Scott together with their students means summertime!  Like all of our classes, it’s one we look forward to long in advance and then while here, the time goes by too fast.  So much is accomplished in those five or seven days. In some cases, clothing is brought to class, ready to wax and dye.  Other projects are created from start to finish in the studio.  A design challenge is part of the week, too, as is the delicious smell of beeswax and freshly ground gourmet coffee!          A puzzle, perhaps, to read this in reverse, but the message is worth the effort.  I think it’s fair to say the subject was found this week in the Batik studio.       A mix of […]

Filed Under: Sievers School, Surface Design, Weaving Tagged With: Batik, Judith Yamamoto, Mary Jo Scandin, Thom Scott, Twill Weaving

Two weeks…three classes

July 7, 2017 By Carolyn Foss

There have been great things to share with you from the three classes that took place through the end of June, Batik with Mary Jo Scandin and Thom Scott, One-of-a-Kind Jacket with Mary Sue Fenner and Knitting on Location with Carol Anderson. Taking advantage of the sun when it appeared, the batik class sometimes had to resort to “inside sunshine” to dry their pieces.  Nothing could detract, however, from the artworks these talented students made or worked on during the week.       The official title of this class is Batik: Ancient and Modern.  We know the “ancient” doesn’t really refer to our early days, shown in a photo from a 1989 class with Mary Jo Scandin (in the aqua sweatshirt), but we wonder now, […]

Filed Under: Beading/Stitchery/Wearables, Dyeing/Knitting/Spinning, Surface Design Tagged With: Batik, Knitting on Location, One-of-a-Kind Jacket

Fiber friendships

June 20, 2016 By Carolyn Foss

We received a wonderful surprise gift from the Batik class of 2015 and instructors Mary Jo Scandin and Thom Scott after this year’s class introduction.  Last year, each of the students and teachers had made a batik panel based on a color challenge that was later assembled, backed and sewn by Thom (he also did the bottom Sievers School of Fiber Arts panel).  Now hanging from the beams in the Walter Studio, this is really a gift to all of Sievers – including you!  Thank you batik artists for the banner and for your friendship! [intense_row padding_top=”0px”] [intense_column size=”6″ medium_size=”6″ small_size=”12″ extra_small_size=”12″] [/intense_column][intense_column size=”6″ medium_size=”6″ small_size=”12″ extra_small_size=”12″]  [/intense_column][intense_row] The buckets were brimming and the wax pots were in use for the next seven […]

Filed Under: Sievers School, Surface Design, Weaving Tagged With: Batik, Beginning Weaving, Mary Jo Scandin, Nancy Adams, Thom Scott

Next Page »

Class Categories

  • Basketry/Carving/Furnishings
  • Jewelry/Stitchery/Wearables
  • Paper Arts
  • Knitting/Spinning
  • Open Studios
  • Quilting
  • Surface Design
  • Weaving
Sievers Newsletter
Subscribe for Free!
We do not send spam or share your email address with third parties

Share Sievers School with Friends

FacebooktwitterpinterestmailFacebooktwitterpinterestmail
FacebookpinterestrssinstagramFacebookpinterestrssinstagram

Copyright © 2023 Sievers School of Fiber Arts · 3W · Log in