Love working with Laura’s designs and feeling ready to create your own? Have ideas but not feeling certain where to start? In this course, which is the first segment of a 5-part series focusing on design, it’s time to begin your fiber arts (though other mediums are welcome) designing adventures! We will meet via Zoom on Sundays 2-4pm CST, May 7, 14, and 21.
This class is inspired by Laura’s practice in the mediums of drawing, tapestry weaving, punch needle rug hooking, painting with wool needle felting, and more. If you are keen to embrace the journey of being a designer, all mediums are welcome. No previous experience necessary.
Students will be shipped a special starter packet, as well as sent digital access to a richly colorful photo essay with inspiration, useful practices, and illustrative exercises. Side effect may include creative abandon, a plethora of ideas, and the fact that nothing will be safe from adding to your design journal. This is an active participation course! The goal is to get you into the flow of designing, embracing the lifestyle and ways of seeing that make this magical process happen.
Suggested Additional Materials:
- Implements for cutting, such as a scissors or craft knife. You will be collecting images, so have a way to snip them out.
- Devices or adhering, such as double-stick tape, staples, or glue. You’ll want to save what you are collecting, adding it your design journal.
- Tools for adding color, such as colored pencils, markers, art pens, watercolor, paints, etc. Color is a powerful element of design, so don’t limit yourself just to the black pen.
- Pieces from your stash, including drawings, photos, yarn, magazine clippings, greeting cards, etc. You’ve already kept these things because they spoke to you, so now it’s time to mine them.
Course Outline
This course can be self-paced, and students are welcome to embark on as much making as desired. The idea is that you’ll be actively working through the material, individualized to your interests and medium(s). Here are notes on how the Zoom sessions will be paced.
Session 1: Meet and greet. Intro to life as a designer–embracing a way of seeing and being. How to use your designer’s journal. Setting your intentions and developing helpful habits. Reframing a relationship with drawing. The value of taking your design journal everywhere. Permission, permission, permission.
Session 2: Progress report. Please take pictures of current exercises to screen share. The value of your artist’s “compost pile.” The value of concept art. Reframing your relationship with your inner critic.
Session 3: Progress report. Please take pictures of your process to screen share. What surprised you? What stand out for you from this process? Pro tips and tricks for keeping the journey going. Invitation to take your ideas to the next step.
Please make sure the email you use during the checkout is the email you’d prefer Laura uses for class communications. This is the email that will receive the digital download of the photo essay Laura’s creating, as well as your Zoom link before the first class. Thank you, and happy creating!
