The Net Loft Fiber & Friends 2014 warmly welcomes these fine (and brave, for those traveling from afar and willing to venture off the beaten path) instructors who will be our mentors for the week :
Bonne Marie Burns
Loving all things to do with the making and wearing of fashionable clothing, Bonne Marie Burns founded the design company Chic Knits early in the 21st century. She is currently being inspired by the colorful majesty of the Pacific Northwest, where she lives and designs modern knitwear and teaches innovative knit construction techniques.
Alana Dakos
Alana Dakos is a knitwear designer and host of the Never Not Knitting podcast. A former knitting instructor, Alana began designing knitwear in 2009 and has produced the Never Not Knitting pattern line ever since.
In 2011, Alana ventured into book publishing and in the past few years has published best selling knitting titles such as Coastal Knits (co-authored with Hannah Fettig) in 2011 and Botanical Knits in 2012. Alana's work has been featured in magazines such as Knitscene, Interweave Knits, Jane Austen Knits, The Knitter, Knit Simple and Knit Now and her designs continue to be a favorite among knitters worldwide.
Alana's design aesthetic reflects her love of nature and textured stitches. She often works botanical inspiration into her knits. www.nevernotknitting.com.
Michelle Dockins Ess
Michelle will hopefully be joining us for our fiber week here at The Net Loft. She is a multi-talented craftsperson, creative and energetic. She and her recently married husband/fisherman /knitter Micah have recently purchased a farm in Colorado, and her attendance will be dependent on whether she will be able to find helpers to cover the farm while she is gone. Michelle is an encouraging and enthusiastic teacher, having taught felting and jewelry classes at The Net Loft in the past, and we look forward to her joining us for the week if all goes well back at the "ranch".
Donna Druchunas
Donna Druchunas grew up learning many different crafts from her mother and grandmothers including knitting, crochet, rug-hooking, embroidery, and sewing. She is the author of six knitting books including Arctic Lace, Ethnic Knitting Exploration, and Successful Lace Knitting. She has been knitting for her whole life, and has been designing for the past decade. For the past few years, she has been researching and studying Lithuanian knitting and she is just finishing a new book on that topic. Her designs and articles have also appeared in Interweave Knits, Piecework, and Spin–Off magazines.
Lori Goldman
Lori Goldman is a textile artist that has been working with wool since she was twelve years old. She has her B.A. in textiles from San Francisco State University and her M.A. in sculpture from SFSU as well. She has designed and sold sweaters for three sweater companies around the country.
Lori has taught everything from spinning yarn to knitted sculpture for 30 years, privately, at the California College of Art and at numerous bay area yarn stores. She has also run a children's art camp for six years (focusing on the textile arts) and has been an instructor at a public school in Oakland teaching 350 children a week.
Lori's inspiration comes from the body, organic forms in nature, birth and life cycles. She has continued to be fascinated by fiber and ancient non-loom ways of creating a "fabric" such as felt making (matted wool) knot-less netting, coiling, sewing and of course knitting and crocheting.
Currently her sculptural work has been represented by Cecile Moochneck in Berkeley, California and at Artefact in Sonoma, Ca. Her passion for sharing her love of knitting is her life’s work!
Lori is an old dear friend of one of our other instructors, Bonnie Morris Phillips. Bonnie describes Lori as her main knitting teacher and inspiration, and because of their longstanding relationship, how much she exemplifies the connection between friendship and knitting, and the healing and nourishing role they both have in our busy lives. How wonderful that these two friends will be reunited for our Fiber and Friends gathering, and it is perfect fit that Lori and Bonnie will be hosting the Knit and Chat sessions together for us.
Christa Hoover
Christa is one of the core Net Lofters from days out the road at 6 1/2 mile, when we were actually located in a Net Loft of a fishing warehouse. She is a multi-talented handcrafter, and has lent many a hand through a variety of Net Loft classes, programs, and events, and has taught both needlework and needlefelt classes at the shop.
Christa is a fine needleworker and craftsperson, but most recently, she has become a skilled surface needlefelter, and will be sharing her skills in creating artistic scenes in felt using a variety of fibers. (ps...Her little felted mushrooms and terrariums are pretty sweet, too.)
Gudrun Johnston
Gudrun was born in Shetland in the 70's when her mother was running the successful knitwear design company, The Shetland Trader. Some 30 years later and now living in the U.S, she has followed in her mother's footsteps by reviving the Shetland Trader name, and has made a name for herself in the knitwear design industry using the internet to directly interact with an international community of knitters.
Gudrun often includes aspects of her Shetland heritage in her designs, mostly utilizing traditional lace patterns in a contemporary context. She also loves to design using seamless construction methods and is always adding new methods to her seamless knitting skills.
Gudrun has had designs published in Knitty.com, Twist Collective.com, Brooklyn Tweed.com, Knit On The Net.com, and with Interweave Press publications. Her designs can be found at theshetlandtrader.com
Alyssa Kleissler
Alyssa Kleissler started dancing when she was 3 years old in her hometown studio in Union, NJ. Encouraged by her dance teacher, she completed the Dance Teacher's of America summer intensives in NYC and began teaching at Cherney Dance Studio when she was 16 years old. Although she did not major in dance in college, she continued to take classes in ballet and modern dance at Mason Gross School of the Arts, part of Rutgers University in NJ. At 23, she joined the performing group Up With People and traveled around the country and the world as one of the lead dancers.
Upon moving to Cordova, AK, where there was no dance going on other than on the barroom dance floor, she decided to open her own dance business, then called Cordova Danceworks. She has remained in Cordova, now teaching all styles of dance to all ages out of her home studio, Current Rhythms. Before she became of mom of 2 girls, who so far LOVE to dance, she enjoyed going to dance intensives.
She started practicing yoga in 2001 and has just recently completed the 200 hour yoga teacher's training through Laughing Lotus Yoga Studio in Anchorage, AK with Svia Rothstein and Lindsey Britt. Her yoga classes are a blend of different schools of yoga including Viniyoga - the therapeutic style, Vinyasa Flow - linking the postures with the breath like a dance, and Hatha Yoga - focussing on alignment and foundations of the postures. Having practiced through both pregnancies and breast cancer, she loves how yoga readily adapts to a person’s ability every day, every practice.
Alyssa has been dancing for 40 years and teaching dance for 27 of those years. Alyssa loves how dance allows a person to express herself without words and also how dance develops and nourishes human relationships. She enjoys seeing her students strengthen their self-esteem and self-confidence as well as work on their problem solving skills. She will be teaching the yoga for kniters workshops.
Mary Jane Mucklestone
Mary Jane Mucklestone is a hand knitting designer who likes the process of knitting as much as the product she makes. This website gives Mary Jane the happy opportunity to share with you directly what she's learned and what she loves. Mary Jane Mucklestone loves to knit, especially with color.
Mary Jane’s the author of 2 new books featuring stranded colorwork; the stitch dictionary 150 Scandinavian Motifs, and Fair Isle Style a contemporary take on colorwork featuring 20 projects from 18 popular designers. Her first book 200 Fair Isle Motifs was an instant classic and has been translated into many languages. Mary Jane travels the world to study traditional knitting techniques and to learn more about the history of the craft.
Mary Jane is a popular teacher specializing in lively, fun and informative classes. She feels lucky to be invited to teach all over the world, and is eager to share knitting knowledge with her students. She aims to give students the courage to try something new! Mary Jane’s inventive handknitting designs are featured in many books and magazines as well as on her website, http://maryjanemucklestone.com/
Gail Nowicki
Gail Mack Nowicki has been a summer resident of Cordova since 1987. She was born and raised in Hawaii, and is the wife of a commercial salmon fisherman in Cordova. Being the fortunate neighbor of the original Net Loft at 6 1/2 mile, Gail began working at the Net Loft in 1989, as well as taking numerous classes in knitting, cross stitch, silk ribbon embroidery and weaving.
Gail has been teaching rigid heddle weaving classes since 2002, when the Net Loft moved to its current location. She is excited to be a part of Fiber and Friends 2014 and is most grateful to the Net Loft for providing years of fellowship and tea at knitters night outs, enlightening classes for the heart and soul, and years of friendship around the camp fire.
Bonnie Morris Phillips
Bonnie is our guest of honor for The Net Loft Fiber & Friends 2014. Having met Bonnie in the APA bunk house in 1978, she has been a source of inspiration and a beloved friend. Bonnie taught me how to hang fishing nets and it was in the old net loft in the Alaska Packers Association warehouse that the idea for "a little wooden cabinet with a shelf of yarn and a jar of needles and some cross stitch kits" was conceived. I have known her for her knitting and her sourdough.
Born in Bozeman, Montana, sewing since age five, she learned to knit when she was eight years old. Bonnie studied at UC Berkeley in 60's, graduated with a Bachelors of Science in Civil Engineering from University of Wyoming, and Masters in Secondary Math Education at Alcorn State, Mississippi. She studied textiles at Pacific Basin in Berkeley, Arrowmont School of Arts & Crafts, Haystack Mountain, and Amana Arts Colony, and taught knitting in the Alaska Artists in Schools Program. Having lived in Alaska for many years, her multi media creations range from birch bark baskets to Nets of Ribbon reflecting her years as a commercial fishing net mender on the docks of Cordova.
Currently living in Islamabad, Pakistan where her husband is working, she does some experimental art work with textile techniques, but mostly for friends. Her knitting, however is functional and fitted, and a stronghold for her throughout the years. In her words, simply, yet perfectly put, "I love wool, it is so cuddly and reliable".
A kindred spirit.
Celia Quinn
Celia has taught workshops extensively across the U.S. since 1983. She knits, weaves and crochets, with an emphasis on garments and household textiles. She has spun everything from rope to sub-sewing thread, and still holds Spin-Off Magazine’s fine spinning record for cotton, at approximately 83, 000 yards per pound. Her thoughts on spinning can be found in many back issues of Spin-Off. Celia calls Alaska home.
Frances Samuelson
Frances was born in Valdez, Alaska. Her father had brought her mother to Valdez from Evens Island, Prince William Sound, about 6 weeks before Frances was born. When she was about 6 weeks old, he & her mother built a house on Evens Island, where Frances was raised until she was 12 years old. At that time, they decided she should go to public school, so they moved to the big town of Cordova.
Frances has many talents. Her mother taught her knitting, crocheting & embroidery basics while they were out on the island, right along with sawing logs, splitting wood, picking fish & other chores. She went to school in Cordova until her Junior year, then was married & moved to Tacoma, WA where she graduated from High School. When her husband was sent to Korea, she moved back home to Cordova, and he joined her upon his return from his tour in Korea. They lived on the lake at 5 mile & had three girls and when the youngest was four, she started gillnetting. Frances gillnetted until 1995, when she bought the bead shop in to town. Frances went to work at the airport as a weather observer in 1994. She continues to work at the weather station, as well as run Siren Beads, her beadshop.
Frances is our hostess for our evening gatherings on Monday and Wednesday nights at The Net Loft. She teaches drop spindle spinning and is available for knitting and fiberart assistance at the shop during those evening sessions. She is a patient and calm teacher and loves to share stories and help others with their projects. Her warm friendly smile is always a welcome sight.
Terri Stavig
While in fourth grade, Terri Stavig and her one-room country school classmates, were taught to knit during recess when the winter temperatures in northern Minnesota fell below zero. She didn’t pick up knitting needles again until the fall of 1980 after being inspired by a summer spent in Greenland and Iceland. With Elizabeth Zimmerman’s books at her side, knitting friends, and the support of her local yarn shop owner, she has enjoyed a knitting journey filled with fun!
Her blog, Dilly Dally Days, is a pleasant and enjoyable retreat into her wonderful multi-craft life.
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