SILK, spinning & colour blending workshop

Workshop Fee: $364

The fee includes a beautifully curated materials kit (retailing at $169), a complimentary Welcome Dinner, two complimentary light lunches, a coupon from SANJO SILK Ltd. for 10% off your next fibre or yarn purchase, a coupon for 10% off SweetGeorgia Yarns hand-dyed yarns and fibres plus a coupon for 15% off for the first payment of an All-Access Monthly or Annual subscription at the School of SweetGeorgia.

https://www.sanjosilk.com/

https://www.schoolofsweetgeorgia.com/

Dates: October 24 to 26, 2025

This workshop is expected to fill up quickly. If you find the first workshop has filled and are interested in attending between October 29th-31st, please contact Diana at c2lsa3dlYXZlZGlhbmEgfCBnbWFpbCAhIGNvbQ== so she can post the second dates on Eventbrite.

Times: See Schedule below

Place: Salt Spring Island, B.C.

We strongly recommend you make ferry and accommodation reservations as soon as possible. Salt Spring Island can either be glorious in the fall or wet and cool. If the weather cooperates, we can spin on the balcony overlooking Ganges Harbour. If the weather is inclement we will work indoors where we can keep ourselves warm and cozy.

Maximum Number of Participants: 10

Description:

This year’s silk spinning workshop is all about colour. Join me, Kim McKenna, and your host, Diana Sanderson of the Silk Weaving Studio, on Salt Spring Island for a weekend immersed in silk and colour.

Session 1 - Wild Silks, natural coloured and dyed

Over the course of the weekend we will work with the natural coloured silks listed below as well as eri and tasar silk which have been custom-dyed by Diana Sanderson expressly for this workshop. Before we start blending the silks in your kit with the handpainted wool provided, we will examine the unique attributes of:

• Muga: a lovely golden coloured silk that sparkles when it catches the light.
• Peduncle tasar: a fibre that has a mesmerizing depth and complexity to it. This fibre has a soft lustre and its dark rich brown colour reminds one of oil rubbed bronze.
• Eri silk: a soft white colour with a soft pearlescent sheen.
• Kosa silk. a new fibre sourced by Sanjo Silks, the Kosa silk in this workshop is from a strain of tasar known as Dabha. Dabha, is a creamy light honey colour with a sparkly lustre.

Session 2 - Deep Dive

In this session you will delve into the world of colour; blending handpainted and natural silks with handpainted wool from SweetGeorgia Yarns. Kim will walk you through a series of colour blending exercises to help you explore the concepts of hue, value, saturation, tints, tones, shades, relationships between hues on the colour wheel and the relationships between values on the value scale.

Session 3 - Colour Design Strategies & Weaving Tips

In this session Diana & Kim each review their approach to colour in their work. Diana will share how she designs her handpainted warps. Kim will explain her approach to choosing the colours for her warps, her fibre preparation methods, and how she spins different colour effects for her silk weft yarns. In addition, Diana and Kim will share some of their best tips for weaving and working with silk.

Session 4 - Colour Blending

With the exercises in the Session 2 under your belt, it is time for you to put your understanding of colour theory to the test. Using natural and dyed silks from your materials kit, along with handpainted wool top from SweetGeorgia Yarns, you will create your own wool/silk blend, or blends, which you will then spin into a handspun skein, or skeins, that resonate with your own personal taste.

Schedule:

Friday 6 pm.

Complimentary Welcome Dinner, provided by your host, Diana Sanderson. Please bring your spinning wheel to this dinner as your “plus one” so Kim can make sure it is tuned and ready to go in the morning.

If you have any food concerns, please contact Diana c2lsa3dlYXZlZGlhbmEgfCBnbWFpbCAhIGNvbQ==

Saturday 9:00 am Session 1 & 2

12 pm - 1:30 pm Light complimentary lunch

1:30 - 2:30 pm Session 2

2:30 - 4:30 pm Session 3

6 pm Potluck dinner

Sunday 9:30 am - 12 pm Session 4

12 pm - 1:30 pm Light complimentary lunch

1:30 - 4:00 pm Session 4, continued

Materials: Your curated materials kit contains 100g of natural coloured silks, 100g of custom-dyed Eri, 100g of custom-dyed Dabha, 120g of SweetGeorgia Yarns handpainted Corriedale, and 50g natural light grey Corriedale.

CANCELLATIONS

We strive to create a well thought out and engaging experience for students within an intimate setting. Unfortunately, we are not able to refund workshops under any circumstances due to the time and preparation required in advance of the workshops.

Workshops are fully transferable, and we’re happy to accommodate a friend or family member to come in your place. Please contact c2Fuam9zaWxrIHwgZ21haWwgISBjb20= if you need to arrange for an alternate attendee.

COMMUNICATION

When you register, pease provide an email address that you monitor regularly, to check for updates regarding the class

Also check out other Workshops in Salt Spring Island, Food & Drink events in Salt Spring Island.