One of the sure signs that the Slow Fashion movement is growing all the time is the number of slow-fashion-focused retreats that have been cropping up. At present, I’m aware of 4 that are happening in the coming months, and no doubt you’ll know of others — please do mention them in the comments! Some of these are sold out while others still have openings, but I believe all of them have wait lists and will also be repeated. So make your interest known to them!
– Slow Fashion Retreat / Saco, Maine / July 22-27, 2018
Launched by Samantha Lindgren of A Gathering of Stitches last summer, this was the first one I heard of. Sam organizes 30 students into smaller groups that rotate between in-depth classes taught by Cal Patch (garment sewing), Katrina Rodabaugh (mending) and Jessica Lewis Stevens (dyeing), so everyone gets to learn everything. There’s also a clothing swap, guest speakers and more. Katrina says, “It’s held in a summer camp venue in Saco, Maine … we have a private classroom that’s literally across the street from the ocean.”
– Slow Textiles Retreat / Hudson Valley, New York / September 21-23, 2018
Katrina and fellow dyer Sasha Duerr hosted a retreat last fall, which they’re repeating this year in Katrina’s own barn-studio. This one is more intimate, at 12 guests, and the focus is on foraging for and working with natural dye plants as well as incorporating dyeing and stitching/mending into a slow-fashion practice. In other words, a serious consideration of our relationship to the textiles we wear and how to make it as meaningful and long-lasting as possible.
– A Study in Slow Fashion / Oceana County, Michigan / August 23-27, 2018
This will be the first retreat from newly formed Kinship, and will explore various aspects of building a handmade wardrobe, all in a gorgeous yurt in rustic Western Michigan.
– New England Fiber Arts Summit / Wing & A Prayer Farm, Vermont / Spring 2019
Tammy White has been hosting small-scale gatherings on her beautiful Vermont fiber farm the past few seasons and has one in the works for next year that’s slow-fashion-centric, with an incredible lineup of teachers, but that’s not quite public knowledge yet. So I’m just giving you a heads-up on this one! Watch @wingandaprayerfarm for further news.
I’ve been invited to attend or guest/speak/teach at a few of these and have yet to be able to make it, but I hope one day my schedule and a gem of a retreat like this will line up!
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PREVIOUSLY in Craftlands: Lost and found at Stitches West
Photos courtesy of Katrina Rodabaugh
Karen,
In 2007 or 08, I attended my 1st and only Rhinebeck. There may not have been a Ravelry yet. I knew none of the players. I had not made it my mission to cultivate a life in some of the world’s knitting yarn. So if I attended now, it would be a whole different experience.
I can only imagine what it feels like to look across the Convention Room floor and see Crafters carrying your Field Bag or scissors.
My dream is to eventually get to Knitty City one year. But I’m not sure the airlines allow a passenger 16 suitcases full of goodies without setting off alarm bells.
It does make your heart happy when you find and follow the Natural Path. Keep on sharing.
Thanks for the list. I knew about three of the four; I’d love to be able to get to one of them in the future. Must start planning now.
Kristin Nicholas https://getting-stitched-on-the-farm.blogspot.com offers classes in the summer at her farm. A wide range of classed, from stenciling, crocheting, working with color, pottery. Be warned she is a true colorist. Lots of color books on creating a colorful home, how she mixes patterns etc. Been a fan for years.
Technically not a retreat, but Cal Patch is teaching a class on making and modifying patterns at Harrisville Design mid August that I would love to take, although I’m not sure my sewing skills are up to snuff. Harrisville is a magical place, without being terminally ‘quaint’ like many other New England towns are. And they spin Brooklyn Tweed there!
Slow fashion is just 21C punk, according to this article. https://theconversation.com/visible-mending-punks-not-dead-just-patching-itself-up-91226
Great link, thanks!
Hope you can join us at a Slow Fashion retreat too, Karen! Thanks for compiling all this info. Xo
Everyone keeps planning them on dates I can’t do! lol
Someday we’ll get her to a retreat….! I’m just going to keep inviting her.
yes, thanks for compiling this list karen! i bet many people have no idea these events exist; it’s so easy to miss these smaller ones if you don’t already follow/subscribe to the actual organizers or teachers. i’m sure there are more to come, and that you’ll be able to attend one soon! there is nothing like being with a group of people from diverse backgrounds who come together over a common thread of beliefs and skills…