UpcomingClasses

2 March, 2016

Classes On the Road: Handweavers Guild of America Conference 2016

beckarahn2016-03-02T17:28:47-06:00UpcomingClasses|Comments Off on Classes On the Road: Handweavers Guild of America Conference 2016

If you are in the neighborhood of Milwaukee, WI, I will be there a LOT this year. Coming up in August is the Handweaver’s Guild of America conference, Convergence. It seems like it’s a little early to talk about this one, but I know that attending a big conference like this takes some planning ahead. I have never been to the HGA conference before, but I have heard stories from many of the weavers I know. I am looking forward to being a part of it!

What am I teaching?

Thursday August 4 is a “super-seminar” called Marketing Yourself Online. In this session, I do a roundup of all of the popular social media platforms and talk about how you can make them work for you as an artist. Whether your social media goal is to sell your work or get gallery exposure, there are platforms that are going to help you with that better than others. Basically my goal is to help you compare and contrast and get the start of a social media plan that will help you narrow down your options (because we all know you can’t do everything!) and start a plan.

In the afternoon on Thursday, I do another super-seminar called Photo Basics. In this session, I am not going to teach you how to take photos but rather how to work with the ones you have. Every call for entry or online submission, has very specific specifications that they want your photos to follow. 300dpi at 5×7, sRGB, <3MB. If all of that looks like gibberish to you then THIS is the session to decode that! We will talk about simple edits, cropping, resizing and most importantly how to set up the photos so you don’t get disqualified for not following instructions.

Friday morning is a seminar of Intro to Digital Fabric Design. This is a quick and dirty intro to everything you need to know to get started designing and printing your own fabric. See lots of samples and ideas and participate in a collaborative fabric design in class.

Friday afternoon is Photo Boot Camp. This one gives you strategies for taking better photos. We will talk in depth about lighting, equipment (both professional and DIY), and quick edits that can make all the difference. We will also practice looking at shots and diagnosing what to do to make it better.

Saturday is my favorite of the sessions. It’s an all day class about Designing & Printing your Own Fabric. It will cover the basics just like we do in the seminar, but this class lets you work hands-on all day. We will complete several small design projects throughout the day to give you ideas and techniques you can use to create your own designs and coordinating prints.

22 February, 2016

Upcoming Classes: Artist Development in March!

beckarahn2016-02-22T16:54:27-06:00UpcomingClasses|2 Comments

I have three different artist development classes coming up in March: Etsy Behind the Scenes, Marketing Yourself Online and Photo Basics.

Etsy Behind the Scenes (March 1) takes you on a tour of my Etsy shop. I show you what it’s like to run a shop from behind the scenes and how to use all of the special tools and features built in to Etsy. It is a fast paced class, but packed with information for beginners or artists on the fence about opening a shop.

Marketing Yourself (March 7) is a compare and contrast of more than six different social media sites and how you can make the most of them as an artist. I will help you decide which ones really can be used to meet your goals as an artist whether it’s making sales, educating, connecting or reaching a broader audience.

Photo Basics (March 28) isn’t about taking photos, it’s about what to do with them once you have them. It seems like every place you need to upload or submit a photo needs to have it in some special size and format. This class shows you how to make your photos work for all of them by cropping, resizing, converting and understanding what the specs are asking for.

I hope to see YOU there. And in case you are curious, that mandala design up above is something I am working on for a class proposal. You’ll see it again.

3 January, 2016

It’s almost here…

beckarahn2016-01-09T08:51:04-06:00Spoonflower & Fabric Design, UpcomingClasses|Comments Off on It’s almost here…

Registration for the Spoonflower Handbook Master Class opens on Monday January 4th. I am really excited about this one – I have been wanting to teach this class for years! I am taking care of all of the registration details so if you have any questions, this is the place to ask. Edited: It’s now open. Register here!

10 December, 2015

I might be coming to a city near you.

beckarahn2015-12-09T18:50:03-06:00An Artist's Life, UpcomingClasses|1 Comment

BIG News.

I have been invited to teach at some pretty awesome new places in 2016. I am so excited about these. If you know anyone who is close to these places and might be interested in the classes, please share this with them!
April
I am teaching at 3-day Master Class at Spoonflower in Durham, NC. A crash course in Adobe Illustrator and more.

May
I am the keynote speaker at the University Days event at the Wisconsin Museum of Quilts & Fiber Arts in Cedarberg, WI.

June
I will be at Arrowmont in Gatlinberg, TN teaching a 5 day class in digital fabric design.

July
I am teaching five seminars & workshops for the Handweavers Guild of America Convergence conference in Milwaukee, WI.

I am also working on a possibility of being in Atlanta later in the year. How cool is that?

16 November, 2015

Upcoming Classes: Tatted Snowflakes

beckarahn2015-11-15T20:57:39-06:00Classes & Teaching, UpcomingClasses|1 Comment

That’s right! I am teaching a beginning needle tatting class coming up in just a week. We are going to use sock-weight yarn (so you can really see your stitches) to make these awesome snowflakes. Class is at Darn Knit Anyway in Stillwater and all materials will be provided – you even get to take your tatting needle home with you. This is the very first design I mastered when I learned tatting and I really think it is fun to do with yarn (and a lot easier than teeny-tiny thread). I will even show a couple of ways to add beads to your basic snowflake design. Come and try something new! Monday November 23 at 6pm.

19 October, 2015

Upcoming Class: Handpainted Skeins

beckarahn2015-10-19T14:38:30-05:00UpcomingClasses|Comments Off on Upcoming Class: Handpainted Skeins

These are snapshots of the student’s work in progress from the last time I taught this class (plus some finished yarn balls). On Sunday October 25, I am teaching “Handpainted Skeins” for the Weavers Guild of MN. We are going to focus on dyeing yarns made from animal fibers: wool, alpaca etc and some nylon. I teach how to dye several styles of skeins in this class. Semi-solids are basically one color but have variations of light and dark. Self-striping are divided up and dyed in sections so that you can get a striped effect when you knit it up. Confetti skeins have lots of different colors but can read as one color from a distance. We will also talk about some techniques for overdyeing, both starting with yarns that aren’t white and learning to overdye as a way of creating a cohesive colorway. It is a fun fun class and you will leave with several mini-skeins (which we use to practice technique and test out colors) and then you will have time to dye 1-2 of your own skeins. Class will be held at the Weavers Guild. (It’s past the deadline to register online, but you can call and still get in!)