Colour Studies for Feltmaking :: Online Workshop

Colour Studies in Feltmaking Online runs from February 26- May 7, 2022

This class is now FULL for 2022!

Workshop Fee: $245.00 USD

Materials List for this class can be viewed HERE.

As the foundation for all of our other composition decisions, having a strong relationship with colour is very important. It is usually the first thing we see when we look at an artwork, and one of the first choices we make as we start on a project. This includes bright colours, soft colours, earthy colours, monochromatics and neutrals. They all make up the spectrum that we’ll be exploring in this class.

In this class, we explore colour comprehensively, passionately and personally!

We start with colour theory in order to have a clear understanding of how to describe colour and how colours work with one another. We do this through fibre work, which is the most accessible and pertinent medium for us, for working in felt.

We reflect and investigate our own personal relationships with colour. The interpretation, preferences and our use of colour are very individual. Colour brings forward different things in all of us, but it does always evoke response. We explore the psychology of colour and how colour selections affect us, as both the maker and the viewer. We have some technical studies, but also some fun, light studies! These complement one another and make for an engaging class!

We look with even greater depth at colour in felting, working with layering and blending to create gorgeous shifts and depths in colour and at the ratios and interactions of colours. We look at how to navigate the natural blending that occurs through the migration of fibres in the felting process, either utilizing that as a tool, or learning steps to keep colours fresh and crisp. We study wool layering in colours, how to choose the best wool colours to work with silks or other fabrics in nuno felting. We look at how to select the perfect accent or embellishments colours to catch the viewers eye and complete your work, adding harmony and balance!

Fiona, this course has been mind-blowing for me. I can’t tell you how much I appreciate your commitment to your students, all through these weeks, and how much I have learned in the process. Thank you so much. C. Moore

If you find colour choices challenging, the colour theory helps to provide ideas for colour selections, and then through practice, the use of colour becomes more intuitive.

If you work more intuitively, this study gives names and words, definition, to your design process that is helpful in describing your work, while deepening your awareness, self-confidence and respect for the colour choices you are already making and your own creative process.

We develop a personal palette of colour and technique. Learn more about your own unique preferences in colour and colour relationships to make design choices easier. Learn from your own work and also through the observation and discussion around other class participants work.

You will end this course with a strong understanding of colour theory and the language of colour, and your own defined personal colour palette.

I have learned so much in this class, especially how to look at my felt work and use design language to talk about it. You are a wonderful teacher and I’m impressed with how you do your online classes. Being able to download the information is great. I know I will refer to this class and the workshop materials often. C.Lang

This is an intermediate level class-for those with some feltmaking experience. You should be familiar with the materials and the techniques of basic feltmaking and have a genuine interest in learning more about design and applying it to your work.

I will be in the classroom for the first week of each section, answering questions and offering feedback. Then for the next two weeks, you can continue to work on your own, at your own pace, sharing your work, observations and reflections with your fellow class participants in the online discussion area. It takes time and practice for all of the information on colour to really settle in and this class schedule offers that extra time!

Section 1: Colour- Theory

February 26 – March 6: instruction week w/Fiona

March 7 – March 17: continuing practice and group discussion

Exercises: designs boards; colour wheel; hue/value/intensity; shades/tones/tints/mixtures.

Section 2: Colour-Interpretations

March 18- March 24: Instruction Week w/Fiona

March 25- April 7: continuing practice and group discussion

Exercises: connecting with definitions; relationships/contrasts; nature as designer; emotions and colour; your personal palette

Section 3: Colour-Interactions

April 8 – April 14: Instruction Week w/Fiona

April 15- April 29: continuing practice and group discussion

Section 4: Colour-Study

April 29 – May 7: group discussion week. Fiona will be in the classroom to answer questions and offer suggestions from May 3-7.

Develop your own small study to experience first-hand the theories and relationships of colour we have explored in previous lessons.

The class is 10 weeks long, with four modules. There are 3 full weeks of guided instruction, with 2 weeks between these, to give you time to work at your pace, explore the ideas more fully and practice with the materials presented in each instruction week. The colour study at the end gives you the opportunity to explore your preferred palette and form of colour design and contrast and bring them together into a small study which be used to inform a future felt project.

You will need between 4-8 hours each week for design and feltmaking. You can decide when and how you work on each module. I answer questions and give comments during the 3 instruction weeks, and then in the last week of the class, during the Colour- Study Week. This sets a relaxed pace, allowing all participating students to learn through one another’s compositions and observations.

This class material is available to you in the form of pre-recorded videos and downloadable PDFs, with clear text and lots of images. The videos can’t be downloaded, but can be viewed at any time, by logging into the online classroom. There is no live aspect to this class. You can access the materials at any time, from any time zone and work at a pace that best suits you! You have access to the classroom until at least the end of 2022. Lots of time to review the materials and return to the content. If I need to close the class in 2023 or beyond, I’ll email you and give you a months notice, so you have time to check in and make sure you have everything downloaded.

Please do email Fiona if you have any questions about the class. I want to be sure it’s the best fit for you!

If you have taken my Composition for Feltmakers workshop and are interested in revisiting this work, please do email me first, before registering! This new class does overlap with the first sections of the Composition class, but also includes some new material.

Dear Fiona, Thank you so much for this class! You always encouraged me so I could have more confidence. I was always afraid to use colours in my work and this composition course changed me. I really enjoyed the course and loved learning from you. You are a great teacher. Thank you so much! M. Choi.

Workshop Fee: $245.00 USD

Materials List for this class can be viewed HERE.

If you have any questions about how these online classes work, try reading through the FAQ’s here.