Weaving Groups
I have had a passion for creating all of my life. My joy in creating comes from the physical experience of being in the body while using the mediums of various forms of handwork such as knitting, weaving, felting, embroidery, needlework, metalwork, spinning, and quilting. I find that the creative experience of handwork in particular engenders a sense of peace and timelessness and connection with all who have come before us. I celebrate individual creativity and would like to help others to consider and embrace the uniqueness of products made by human beings.
Several years ago, I had the fortune of studying one on one with fiber artist Susan Barrett Merrill. The creative coaching sessions and instruction that I received from Susan literally changed my life. As a result, I would like to help others realize their creative potential through weaving the seven keyforms, a journey of self discovery developed by Susan.
The weaving group process is an approach to re-visioning oneself and one’s possibilities through a hands-on process of creating a series of simple weavings called keyforms developed by fiber artist Susan Barrett Merrill. The keyforms – amulet, bowl, doll, belt, mask, sacred bundle, and shawl – are elemental forms and ancient symbols common to all cultures throughout the world. They become physical manifestations of personal meaning for the one who creates them. The woven forms hold symbolic significance in themselves, and form a kind of vessel or template for the individual to create a unique and personal experience of a path to self-discovery.
Weaving groups are a personal process for revealing the vision and gifts you already hold inside. It is the journey to the source of our choices which determine the nature of our experiences. It is the apprenticeship to weaving a conscious and intentional life, and can be part of the preparation to living a spiritual life. It is the process of recognizing, receiving, and living in harmony with our own deepest truths. It is about transformation.
Learn the seven keyforms and embellish them using a variety of beautiful yarns, fibers, beads. Come and create something beautiful while learning about yourself in the process. My weaving groups will provide a safe and nurturing environment in which we can enter into a journey of creativity and self exploration. The groups will create an opportunity to learn to weave in a social group while delving into our inner journey. Take time for yourself. Find your inner peace, and experience a sense of timelessness, freedom and joy through this ancient form of handwork. Gain an understanding of your personal journey through this life. See yourself more clearly, explore your spiritual creative self and in the process learn to be and love your own true self. Together, we will create and share in a relaxing environment and encourage self acceptance and love.
Contact me if you are interested in:
- Individual classes
- Joining a weaving group
- Hosting a weaving group of your friends in your home
- Creating a weaving group in your religious community
- Doing a group EarthLoom weaving (see below)
Physical Benefits
- Promotes emotional centering and relaxation
- Promotes crossing the visual/kinesthetic/tactile midline we all have, by physically crossing
our center with both hands in the process of weaving back and forth - Facilitates left-right coordination
- Facilitates hand-eye coordination
- Weaving activates, connects and balances both sides of the brain
- Increases attention by creating visual-tactile connection
- Some Weaving practices are helpful in EMDR
Amulets
THE KEYFORMS
The Amulet
The Amulet
The Amulet
Invocation
A call for change. Where words cannot reach, a mythic pattern speaks through your heart with your hands. The amulet is an invocation to awaken to the need for change.
The Bowl
The Amulet
The Amulet
Invitation
An invitation to receive yourself wholeheartedly. The bowl is an invitation to see a new dimension of yourself in your desire to find what has lasting value in life. You, like the bowl, have an inside and an outside.
The Doll
The Amulet
The Belt of Power
Insight
The doll carries insight into the meaning and nature of your own soul journey. The doll brings you insight into who you want to become.
The Belt of Power
The Belt of Power
The Belt of Power
Choice
Develop an inner commitment to eliminate what no longer supports your beliefs. The belt is the choice to make the vision real by delineating a part of your life for it.
The Mask
The Belt of Power
The Sacred Bundle
Identity
Weaving a mask initiates you into the possibility of identifying with the enlivening force behind the face you wear every day. The mask is initiation into the mystery you seek.
The Sacred Bundle
The Belt of Power
The Sacred Bundle
Taking Hold
The toolkit for the inner journey: learning how to collect the energy of the attention. The bundle is the taking on of the responsibility to yourself to fulfill your quest.
The Shawl
The Inner Life
The practice of living the inner life and balancing it with what you do in the world. The shawl, traditionally used in meditation, wraps the ego at its death, when the personality loses its power to block the natural spiritual impulse; it represents the practice of stillness in order to go behind the mask of the world.
Instruction
Dyeing & Printing
Please contact me if you are interested in felting, dyeing or printing classes.
The EarthLoom
The EarthLoom is a symbol of our intention to weave together the fabric of community. It brings the magic of weaving together to groups, families in hospital waiting rooms, celebrations, memorial gardens, and ceremonies. The EarthLoom helps communities to unite hands and hearts to build and weave together an emblem and an instrument of peace. With many hands on both sides of the loom, we use our differences to create art in which every contribution is vital to the design as a whole.
