Oh, How I Love Artfiberfest!

 

If you've been reading my blog for any length of time, you know how much I love and adore Artfiberfest.  Teesha and Tracy really know how to throw a party!  This year was no exception.

 

Held at Reed College here in Portland, it was fun to have my home city play host to my favorite event of the year.  And the venue didn't disappoint.  Reed's campus is absolutely lovely, tucked into the Eastmoreland neighborhood of southeast Portland.  And the weather was a dream...sunny, warm, breezy.  Blissful. 

 

We stayed in dorms that were built last year, and let me tell you, these are not the dorms I lived in when I went to college.  The buildings were light and airy, with lots of windows.  The rooms were large and inviting, there were lots of common areas to meet and mingle and craft, and there was a full kitchen.  Truly, they were outstanding.

 

Dining in the Commons Dining Room was great!  The food was surprisingly good (especially the vegan oatmeal cookies!  Must. Learn. To. Make. These.)  The dining room itself felt like it was in a large treehouse.

 

Walking around campus to various classes, to the dining hall, or to the dorms was a little nature hike.  Walking bridges spanning Reed Canyon, paths winding through over 100 species of trees, sidewalks lining grassy areas amongst lovely old brick buildings. 

 

The first night, there's a kick-off meeting, where we get general information about the venue, the classes, the event, and the teachers get up and say something witty and inspirational.  This was my first year as a teacher at Artfiberfest, and although I was not in the least bit nervous about teaching my class on Saturday, getting up and saying something witty and inspirational to the group had me a titch bashful and anxious.  I got through it, though, and Artfiberfest officially began!

 

On Thursday I took Mary's Bird with Hats class.  It's the third year I've taken her rug hooking class, and I absolutely loved it again!  Mary is such an awesome teacher, and rug hooking is just too, too fun!  After three years, I think I'm actually going to go out to our local rug hooking supply shop and get outfitted. 

 

Charlotte's Enchanted Felt Cottage was my class on Friday.  I'm not quite finished with my cottage, but I love the way it's going.  It would be fun to make a whole little village!

 

And on Saturday I taught my Treasure Nests class.  I had an AWESOME group of artists in my class!  We laughed a lot, told a lot of hilarious stories, and even got our nests finished.  Most of the photos on this post are of my students' Treasure Nests.  They turned out GREAT!  There are more class photos over .

 

I'm always sad to see Artfiberfest come to an end, but at the same time, I leave feeling inspired, with my creative battery re-charged and ready to rock!  Cannot wait for next year.  And if you're considering Artfiberfest as an artsy getaway next year (I highly recommend it), it will be held again at Reed College the last weekend of June. 

 

If you weren't able to come to Artfiberfest, but you'd like to learn how to make your own Treasure Nest, I'm teaching an encore class over at Joggles.com later this month. 

Comments

[Cindy (Junque Art)]

I really think this was the best Art Fiberfest I've been too! I'm still laughing from all of our silliness! Miss you gals! I love how your treasure nest turned out and so glad to hear you are teaching it over at Joggles!!! Hugs!

[pam]

Hey miss thing! Great to see you and as always, hear your happy peals of laughter. Love your projects too and getting to visit a bit more on vendor night! xo

[cerri]

Love how your nests turned out Tammy! I'm so glad you girls had such a wonderful time. Hopefully next year I will be able to join you!
Cerri xo

[Marci Glenn]

Oh Tammy - AFF sounds like it was so wonderful - I hope to attend next year. Thanks for posting these fabulous pics. ~Marci

[martha brown]

I wish that I could go to AFF!!maybe someday -- your treasure nests are beautiful! I think I'll head over to Joggles and see about taking your class!