Printing and Dyeing Workshops

Enjoy a relaxing two days at The Creative Granary in Norton Canon, learning how to Dye Fabric with Plants on Muslin, Dyeing Shibori on Cotton and Relief Printing. The program is as follows:

Saturday ~ Dyeing with Plants on Muslin 

To begin the day I will briefly explain about mordanting fabric and will go into more detail the following day, as it is most important to start the dyeing procedure as quickly as possible. To achieve the best results cellulose fibres require 24 hours to dye.  You will gather plants from my dyers’ garden and process these for dyeing muslin.  It will take you one hour to make the dye, the vegetation will then be removed and your muslin fabric will be placed in the boiling hot dye and left until the following day. 

The fabric will have been mordanted in advance as this can be very time consuming and cannot be done on the same day as the dyeing. For the remainder of the morning you will undertake Shibori.

Saturday ~ Shibori on Cotton

Shibori is the Japanese Art of shaped resist dyeing of which there are three main elements, fold, stitch and tie, and you will be undertaking two, namely stitch and tie.  Full instructions will be given for you to produce beautiful patterned fabric.  This fabric will also then be placed in the dye pot.  After lunch I will provide you with a selection of designs from which you will choose three to carve and these will be printed on your dyed muslin scarf on Sunday.

Sunday ~ Relief Printing

You will remove the muslin fabric from the dye and put it to dry and whilst the fabric is drying I will explain in detail about mordanting.  We will go into the garden and I will show you where these natural mordants can be found, and advise how these should be processed.  If you wish to retain notes about these processes please bring notebooks with you.

Now the fabric is dry this will need to be ironed flat and you will then be able to relief print this with the three designs you chose to carve on Saturday.

The shibori fabric will be removed from the dye pot and put to dry whilst the relief printing takes place.

2022 planned dates – June 18 & 19 | July 2 & 3, 16 & 17 | August  6 & 7, 20 & 21 | September 3 & 4, 17 & 18 | October 1 & 2.

COST:  £180 per person to include lunch and refreshments, and home made cake, daily.   Please advise of any dietary requirements or allergies when booking.  All tools and materials will be provided.

This two day course is for all those who are interested in creativity, families, groups, individuals, beginners and others alike.  However, because of the type of tool used for carving, it is not suitable for anyone under the age of 18 years.

The Creative Granary offers a range of workshops for half days and two days, for Dyeing Fabric with Plants, Relief Printing, Flora Printing, Abstract Painting and Shibori. These are run from a converted nineteenth century granary on the farm where owner and teacher Mary lives in Norton Canon, rural Herefordshire.

Please Note:  All government COVID-19 guidelines have been put in place.  Provided we are allowed to proceed please ensure you bring a face covering with you when you attend.  If social distancing is necessary I will cut the numbers attending from eight to four to keep everyone safe.  Hand washing facilities and hand sanitisers are available and you should utilise these as often as you feel is necessary.  Your safety is important.