​A Visit to John C Campbell Folk School

​Earlier this month, my friends Jackie, Sue and I ventured to John C Campbell for our first ever adventure there.  We had signed up months ago for a class on Deflected Doubleweave (“Masters of Deflection” with Elisabeth Hill).  And a wonderful adventure it was!

We met in Cary so we could drive to the mountains together.  Sue came in from Connecticut (she had planned to fly, but had to drive because her flight was cancelled) and Jackie came up from Pinehurst).  We packed up the car and headed out on our road trip with no real idea of what to expect.
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The drive took us about 6 hours, and the ride up the mountains was beautiful.  Finally we arrived in Brasstown, NC (population 46) which is situated in the far west corner of the state right around the corner from Clay’s Corner, home of the infamous New Year’s Eve Possum Drop (you have heard of the Possum Drop, right?)

​The Folk School was founded in 1925.  It offers year-round 5-day and weekend classes on a large variety of topics including music, arts, crafts, and some unexpected subjects.  During the week that we were there, 140 people attended classes in weaving, nuno felting, enameling, jewelry making, Italian cooking, writing, mandolin playing, wood turning, wooden mantle carving, blacksmithing, watercolors, chair caning, woodworking, and book arts.

Keith House, the administrative building

View off the back porch of Keith House

No explanation needed

Classes actually began on Friday evening after registration and dinner in the dining room.  After that we had daily class for four days each morning and afternoon with optional sessions in the evening after dinner. We were treated to stories and music at Morning Song each day before breakfast.  All meals were served in the dining room.  There were many optional activities at all times of the day including morning walks, tours of the campus and studios, chair massages, clogging demonstrations, contra dances, and the list goes on. ​​

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​The classes were held in separate buildings scattered around the campus.  The weaving building was very large and very well equipped.  We had a class of 12, all weaving on 8 harness looms, and there were many looms that were not used.  The yarn “closet” was the size of a small apartment and their weaving library is quite enviable.  I don’t think anyone wanted for a piece of equipment that they did not have, and I did not hear any complaints about the looms – Baby Wolfs, Mighty Wolfs, Glimakras, Louets, all in good condition.

The Weaving Building

The best part, however, was the class itself.  None of us knew anything about deflected doubleweave.  Lisa (Elisabeth) Hill was a wonderful, generous instructor.  She came with 2 tables full of yarn for us to use, pre-wound warps for anyone that chose to use them.  We used gorgeous tencel, silk and wool, alpaca and silk, and merino yarns to warp our looms with beautiful 6-yard long warps that were 10” wide. ​​

The classroom

Jackie, hard at work

Sue, warping her loom

We had a 2 part mission: weave a sampler and weave a scarf! Our first assignment was to weave a nice long sampler using 2 different treadlings and a total of about 16 different treadlings.  We cut the samplers from the loom and washed and dried them so we could which decide which treadlings to use for a scarf.  ​

​​Decisions made, we tied back on and wove our scarves.  We had time to twist our fringe, wash and dry (or almost dry) our scarves so they would be ready for the big presentation on Friday before everyone went home.  Thirteen scarves, thirteen completely different threadings and colorways. (Number thirteen was woven by Lisa’s pretty wonderful assistant, Lillian).  Pretty amazing results!

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That is not the end of the story. We spent a lot of time pouring over the many, many examples of deflected doubleweave Lisa brought with her, which included her beautiful shawls, scarves, runners, placemats, towels, clothing, bags, and samples.  They showed us so many ways to finish our pieces and how many different fibers would look woven in this technique.  She scattered short lectures throughout the weaving days so it gave us a break from the weaving without overwhelming us with technicalities. For those of us who finished our scarves early, Lisa helped us plan additional warps, and we spent the time measuring warps for those projects.  

​​Meanwhile, Lisa's trusty assistant, Lillian was at our beck and call, helping us with any problems we had and keeping us all on schedule.

Lisa (on the left) and her assistant Lillian

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Jackie, Pattie and Sue

​In a few short days, Lisa showed us just how magical this structure can be, and all three of us came away itching to try more.
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​For more information on John C Campbell or to see their online catalog, go to their website,  www.folkschool.org
 
To visit Elisabeth Hill’s website, 
​click here -->  www.plainweave.net

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