Passementerie Weaving – An Introduction

Tutor: Elizabeth Ashdown
Level: Suitable for all
Date: A series of two one-day courses: Sunday 7 July and Sunday 14 July 2024, 10am-4pm
Price: £270

Course details
Join us for a unique contemporary weaving workshop and explore the wonders of hand passementerie weaving with passementerie artist and heritage craft specialist Elizabeth Ashdown. Passementerie is an 'endangered' craft in the UK and so this is a very special opportunity to learn how to create passementerie from one of the last remaining passementerie artists.

One of the rarest and most special of all textile crafts, passementerie is the art of creating decorative ribbons, trimmings, braids, cords and fringes. Whether you're interested in interior design, accessories, fashion design, or fine art, this workshop will teach you the introductory passementerie weaving skills you need to create your own fabulous hand woven designs bursting with colour, texture and pattern.

You will create 4 different hand woven contemporary passementerie designs, each design exploring a different hand technique. You will also learn how to create your own hand-spun cords using traditional techniques. No prior experience of weaving or of passementerie is required.

Materials to bring

• Sharp scissors
• A notebook and pen may be useful

Materials included
A selection of yarns to use during the course will be provided and a table-top frame loom used to learn the techniques to keep.

Equipment provided
All necessary equipment will be provided for use on the course.

About the tutor
One of only a few hand Passementerie artists working in the UK today, Elizabeth Ashdown MA RCA combines endangered craft skills with a contemporary aesthetic in order to create hand woven passementerie.

Working from her studio in London, Elizabeth creates work for a diverse range of clients. In 2023, Elizabeth was awarded the first Queen Elizabeth Scholarship Trust ADAM Architecture Scholarship for passementerie. In May 2024, Elizabeth’s book will be published by Schiffer.

General information
Short courses are open to anyone aged 18 and over.
The course fee covers tuition and materials where stated. You will need to bring all other items listed under the ‘Materials to bring’ section.

Refreshments
Coffee and tea are included in the course fee, but you will need to bring lunch with you to eat in the refreshments room. There are plenty of local venues to purchase food locally, if needed, though we recommend that you bring a packed lunch.

Refunds and cancellations
Cancellations are permitted up to 6 weeks before the start of a course and subject to a £35 cancellation fee. Refunds will not be given for cancellations less than 6 weeks before the start of a course.

Students who do not attend due to illness, personal or professional commitments do not have the right to a refund. For this reason, we recommend that students take out personal insurance against any unforeseeable circumstances before the start of their course. It is not possible to transfer to future courses.

We reserve the right to cancel a class in unusual circumstances. We try to avoid this where possible, but sometimes it is unavoidable. In this situation, a full refund will be given. We’re sorry that we cannot be financially responsible for extreme weather conditions, travel disruption or any other situations that are outside our control.

Access
If you have any specific access needs, we will need to know about your access requirements in advance. Please tell us about your needs in confidence by emailing: bookingsoffice@westdean.ac.uk

This venue has steps to the front reception, with limited access via a side gate to the ground floor. There is a small lift to higher floors or stairs.

Safety
Short course students are required to sign a safety compliance form as part of West Dean Health and Safety regulations.

Disclaimer
The information given is accurate at the time of publication. However, West Dean College reserves the right to cancel or amend courses if circumstances require.