Putting a Spin on Flax–Field to Fiber

Learn the historical process of flax cultivation from the field to fiber preparation and spinning. Experience using different tools and techniques to process flax, including rippling, using a flax brake, scutching, hackling, distaff dressing, and hand spinning. Whether a fiber artist, museum docent, or teacher of early domestic practices, all students will benefit from individual attention and skill development. Intermediate to advanced students welcome; basic hand-spinning skills required.

$75-$90

Peter Cook has over 40 years' experience in spinning and related fiber arts. He is a retired museum curator and professor, specializing in pre-industrial textile technology, who is widely published and cataloged. Peter has lectured on major collections of spinning and weaving equipment, and early textiles of the 18th and 19th centuries. He has conducted spinning workshops throughout New England, the Midwest, and in the U.K. Peter and his wife own an 18th-century working farm, where they raise historic breeds of domestic livestock and hold classes in the fiber arts.