Class Description: Using natural materials, you will learn how to bind broomcorn to a sapling handle using a traditional American-style weave. The binding string is held under pressure with your feet, leaving both hands free to create a wide variety of broom styles. Each student will hand craft a cobweb broom and one or more hand brooms. This class is open to beginning broom weavers and returning students. Please Note: this class ends at 3 PM on Sunday.

Lunch: Lunch is included in the class fee. If you have any dietary restrictions, please note them when you register.

Instructor Bio: Born in the west central mountains of Virginia, where he still resides, Gary Robinson learned the art of broom making in 1991 and has been making brooms full time since then. Gary’s brooms appeared in the historical drama Sommersby starring Richard Gere and Jodie Foster and have been purchased by George Washington’s Mount Vernon for use in their portrayal of colonial life. Over the years, demonstrating and teaching his craft has been one of the most fulfilling parts of his journey.

Gary has been a juried Demonstrating Artisan at the Waterford Fair since 1991. He is a Waterford Landmark Artisan, exemplifying excellence in craft and education, and for his commitment to the Waterford Foundation's preservation mission. We recorded a conversation with Gary after his 2021 class, which is on our YouTube channel.

Class Description: Using a chair you bring from home, you will learn how to replace the seat with splint. The history, origin, and preservation of this woven seat style will also be discussed. If you aren’t sure if your chair is suitable for the class (click here to see an example of a suitable chair frame), please email an image to us in advance to ensure that you have what you need to successfully complete the project. Please Note: you will need to bring the following supplies to class: a standard stapler, a bucket or pan that will hold a gallon of water, a spray bottle (for water), an old towel, hand snips, pruners or sturdy scissors (to cut the reed), needle nose pliers, a utility knife, two 2-inch spring clamps, a pencil or pen, a butter knife (a thin blade is optimal), and your chair.

Lunch: Lunch is included in the class fee. If you have any dietary restrictions, please note them when you register.

Instructor Bio: Pamela Foster has been weaving for over 40 years. She specializes in wicker restoration, but weaves all types of chair seats, including splint, cane, rush, bamboo, rattan, willow, and grasses. She has woven seats for the Colonial Williamsburg Foundation and restored a wicker sled for the Loudoun Museum. She has been reproducing Gustav Stickley wicker lampshades for over 25 years, which are sold nationwide. She has been teaching for the Waterford Craft School since its inception in 2016.

You can learn more about Pamela in this YouTube video short, which captures a conversation we had with her in her cozy, mountaintop studio in 2021.

Class Description: Do you have a cane chair seat with a hole in it? Learn the craft of hand woven cane to replace the seat of a chair you bring to class. To successfully complete a newly caned seat in two days, the chair you bring to class should have 70 or fewer holes in the wood frame (example of a suitable chair frame). If you have any questions about the suitability of your project, please email us a picture of the chair you would like to work on in advance of the class. Additional Information: If your chair has more than 70 holes, extra cane material may be purchased from the instructor during class so that you can complete your project at home. Please Note: this classes ends at 3 PM on Sunday.

You will need to bring the following supplies to class: a bucket or pan that will hold a gallon of water, a spray bottle for water, an old towel, hand snips or pruners (to clip the cane), an awl if you have one, an old oyster shucker if you have one (don't buy one) or a narrow butter knife, and your chair. The instructor will bring all the other tools and supplies you need to successfully complete the project.

Lunch: Lunch is included in the class fee. If you have any dietary restrictions, please note them when you register.

Instructor Bio: Pamela Foster has been weaving for over 40 years. She specializes in wicker restoration, but weaves all types of chair seats, including splint, cane, rush, bamboo, rattan, willow, and grasses. She has woven seats for the Colonial Williamsburg Foundation and restored a wicker sled for the Loudoun Museum. She has also been reproducing Gustav Stickley wicker lampshades for over 25 years, which are sold nationwide. She has been teaching for the Waterford Craft School since its inception in 2016.

We visited Pamela in her cozy, moutaintop studio in 2021 and recorded our conversation, which you can watch on our YouTube channel.

Class Description: The Shakers began making baskets early in their history to help with everyday farm work. The Shaker Cheese Basket is just what its name implies . . . it was used in the Shaker community in the cheese making process. The large hexagonal weave (triaxial weave) was used for draining the cheese curds. Today, this basket can serve as a beautiful accent piece in your home, as it is so architectural in nature. This 26” cheese basket will be woven of 3/8” flat reed using triaxial weaving, which is composed of three sets of weavers that intersect and interlace with each other at 60 degree angles. The base of the basket is a hexagon with hexagon openings. As the sides are woven it becomes round. Once the spokes are turned down, you will complete the basket with heavy 3/4” half round rims and 3/8” lashing. Please Note: This is an advanced class so you must have weaving experience. This is a challenging basket to make, but certainly one that will add beauty to your home.

Lunch: Lunch is included in the class fee. If you have any dietary restrictions, please note them when you register.

Instructor Bio: Working over wooden molds, in the method of the Shakers, Karen Wychock’s baskets are traditional in shape and materials. She weaves both Shaker reproductions in ash and traditional, utilitarian baskets of reed. Native hardwoods such as ash and oak are used to make the rims and handles, and all of her baskets are lashed using ash. Each basket takes on its own character as it is woven in a quatrefoil. Twill or fancy lace patterns appeal to both eye and touch.

Karen was an art teacher for 22 years in the Neshaminy School District, Langhorne, PA, before becoming a middle school principal for 15 years in both the Neshaminy School District and the Central Bucks School District.

She is a member of the Bucks County Craftsmen’s Guild, the Bucks County Hand Weaver’s Guild and the PA Guild of Craftsmen. She is also president of the Penn-Jersey Basket Weavers Guild. Karen sells her work at various shows and galleries throughout the northeast (Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Connecticut, Virginia, and Ohio), and has the earned the distinction of Waterford Landmark Artisan for her commitment to the Waterford Fair and the Waterford Foundation. She teaches both children and adults.