Vavstuga Weaving School in Shelburne Falls, MA should definitely be ON your LIST of things to do.

In order to take most of the classes, you have to take the Basics class, but don’t poo-poo it! I have been weaving for over 15 years (off and on) and my mind was exploding with all the great information I gleaned from this totally awesome class! There were many “aha” moments, and many more “why didn’t I think of that??” moments as well. Becky Ashenden is a great teacher -- very organized and focused, but she is also just a Hoot and TOO MUCH FUN!

We had students who had Sweedish Looms, Jack Looms and even a Rigid Heddle loom! EVERYONE learned skills that they could take home and apply to their chosen weaving tool.

We wove a small wool blanket, a Cottolin/Cotton square table cloth, a Cottolin/Linen towel with a hanger band (made on the band loom) and a Linen Block Weave Sample (nice for the center of a table) on all 8 shafts.

We dressed the looms the first two days, wove for 2 days, and finished on the morning of the 5th day. There were also GREAT project planning and pattern drafting classes every day. The week SPED by -- I couldn’t believe how fast all this fun ended!