UPCOMING WORKSHOPS

Beaded Hearts - Valentines Earrings

Saturday 2/1 @ 10am-2pm - Longhouse @ Peninsula College, Port Angeles, WA (Link to register)

This beginner friendly project not only lets you make cute personalized valentines earrings for special people you know but also helps you learn the versatile flat brick stitch beading technique to apply to future projects. Start on larger pony beads or size 8 seed beads to learn how, advance to little size 11 beads when you’re ready (pink hearts in photo near dime.)

Peyote Stitch Hoop Earrings

Saturday 3/22@ 10am-2pm - Longhouse @ Peninsula College, Port Angeles, WA (Link to register)

Learn the flat odd-count peyote stitch beading technique to make a pair of these fabulous and light hoop earrings. Large hoop earrings are a fashion trend this year, but these earrings will be staples in your wardrobe for decades. Using two sizes of seed beads (size 8 mostly, and size 11) to create a curved piece of beadwork we'll also learn how to roll and join the finished piece around an earring hoop to create the circular peyote stitch look without the hassle. Use the supplies and beads provided in the workshop or bring your own to get the color combinations you know you love.

Loom Beaded Bracelet on Leather Cord

Saturday 4/26 @ 10am-2pm - Longhouse @ Peninsula College, Port Angeles, WA (Link to register)

This beginner friendly project uses large beads and leather cord to create a stunning bracelet quickly. Use the provided supplies to create a bracelet together or bring your own beads to get the perfect colors or add some originality to your unique design. This is an extremely flexible pattern that can be easily elevated with stone or semiprecious beads or kept economical with equally dazzling glass and ceramic beads.

PAST WORKSHOPS

SOLD OUT- “Fancy Bracelet” Loom beaded glass and crystal bracelet Fall 2024 @ Peninsula College in Port Angeles, WA

Port Angeles Saturday 11/16 @ 10am to 3pm

Join us for a Saturday workshop and finish 1 or more bracelets to gift or keep for yourself. Borrow one of looms or bring your own and leave with a finished sparkly bracelet!

Beading Workshops Fall/Winter 2023 @ Peninsula College in Port Angeles, WA

SOLD OUT - Bronze “Clay” Sculpting- Small Figures and Charms - With Port Angeles Fine Arts Center (PAFAC) @ Vern Burton Center Sunday 10/27 & 11/3 10am-1pm. Port Angeles, Washington

Join us for sculpting with bronze "clay" with local artist Karen Sixkiller.

Basic Beading @ PENCOL Community Ed Starting January 12, 2023

Loom Beading/Peyote Stitch/Embroidery

Learn basic loom beading/Peyote stitch/beaded embroidery techniques through these 4 week hands-on workshop.

This class is brought to you in collaboration with ʔaʔk̓ʷustəƞáwt̓xʷ House of Learning, Peninsula College Longhouse.

These hands-on workshop focus on you, the student, learning and practicing the focus beading techniques with instructor support and brief demos. Learning the process of the techniques is emphasized over creating a complete “product,” but exercises are geared toward finishing a small project, then using class time to plan and start your own unique project and techniques to complete the piece to be worn as jewelry or embellishments for clothing.

Materials are provided, but please bring your own beading loom if you have one.

Embroidered Objects: Dates: 1/9/2024 - 2/13/2024 Times: 6:00 PM - 8:00 PM Pacific Time
Days: Tu @ Room: Keegan Hall M238-Main Campus Course fee: $199.00

Peninsula College Beading Workshops

In collaboration with Sadie Crowe at the PENCOL ʔaʔk̓ʷustəƞáwt̓xʷ House of Learning “Longhouse,” I will be teaching 5 beading workshops on Saturday 10/1 from 11am to 4pm. This series of workshops is provided to the public free of charge as part of the Peninsula College’s “Fall Spectacular” event. Designed to be 1 hour each, and alternating between loom beading and peyote stitch, each workshop will accommodate 20 people.

By writing up bulleted instructions ahead of time, we hope that everyone can enjoy the process of learning each beading technique, even if they aren’t able to leave with a finished product. Color pattern examples are also provided, including the more complex Cherokee Water Spider patterns developed by the artist, Karen Sixkiller. Because the Cherokee Water Spider “Disdolhdi” is famous for carrying the first burning ember to the mainland, these spider designs have a single red bead on her back to represent that ember.

U of Illinois Native American Beading Workshops

Because of the continued controversy around “Retiring” the Chief Illiniwik mascot, the Native American student center really wanted some authentic experiences for students. I obtained campus funding for this series of beading workshops. Attended mostly by students but also by some of the wider community members, we made loom beaded bracelets one day, peyote stitch keychain fobs another and an embroidered rosette. Each workshop punctuated the amount of time and effort needed to bead even the smallest object, and thus how Natives would feel offended by the Chief Illiniwek wearing a fully beaded outfit without anyone recognizing the deeper meaning of the regalia. He also wore a full war bonnet (and did a silly dance) that was from a region in the Southwest, far from the cultural roots of the indigenous Midwest people of the region.

"Around the world wampum belt"

University of Illinois NAH & NASO "around the world wampum belt"

Final Report:

* How many individuals attended the event (estimate the number of students, faculty, staff, or community members attended)? - 300-400 attended the event, over 100 students visited our booth, 32 students signed in and added a row of beads to the Wampum belt :)
* Did you experience any problems? - The weather was unexpectedly cold that day, making attendance to all booths at the event less than anticipated.
* Did you meet your stated goal for the event? - Yes, we had many positive interactions with the student population and produced a tangible product that can be displayed to remind those who helped make it about the message of friendship embodied in the activity, and we distributed culturally accurate information about wampum belts that would not otherwise be known to the majority of participants.

Cooking Workshop

Native Chef: Brave the Kitchen!

After securing a grant to bring my mother, Shelia Sixkiller-Fritts, to the University of Illinois campus we organized a meal for 100 and gave a cooking demonstration to the crowd. The response was amazing and we had great feedback from attendees. There was one would-be-heckler who my mother gracefully answered and deflected into an attentive audience member. The venison stew was fantastic, the grape dumplings were sweet and delicious and one of the little kids who attended even said his favorite was the corn bread.