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2023 Guild School

June 10-17, 2023 - Maine Maritime Academy, Castine, Maine

24 Hour Classes

Pete Acquisto - Wine Cup (Full)
Pete Acquisto - Luxury Flower Vase
Jeanie Anderson - Harvest Board
Jeanie Anderson - Halloween Party
Pete & Pam Boorum - Pembroke Table (Full)
Natalia Frank - 17th Century Crewel/Jacobean Bed Coverlet
Phyllis Hawkes - The Flying Clipper Ship, The Lightning
Tine Krijnen - An Illuminated Manuscript, Psalm 23 (Full)
Iulia Chin Lee - Wood Candlesticks/Umbrella Holder
Deb Mackie - Tooled Leather Doctor Bag (Full)
Marcia McClain - Dressing a Traditional Bed
Mary Grady O’Brien - Your Collection of American Folk Art
Lidi Stroud - Picnic Basket with Attached Bottle Holders


INSTRUCTOR: Pete Acquisto, Fellow
COURSE: Silversmithing and Machine Work
PROJECT: Wine Cup

This class is FULL.

This beautiful classic wine cup, circa 1641, is an excellent project for beginner to intermediate students. Students will use the lathe and various attachments to turn this wine cup using sterling silver rods. Next, students will learn finishing and polishing techniques using the flex shaft machine and polishing wheels of various shapes to create a highly polished finish. The ultrahigh polish will be done using the buffing machine. There will additional silver available for students that finish their wine cup early to make another.

TIME: 24 hours. Completion is likely.

POWER TOOLS: lathe, flex shaft, buffing machine

SKILL LEVEL: Beginner and intermediate

MATERIALS FEE: $100 to be collected at school

INSTRUCTOR: Pete Acquisto, Fellow
COURSE: Silversmithing and Making Cutting Tools for the Lathe
PROJECT: Luxury Flower Vase

I love the shape of this gorgeous flower vase. Students will learn how to accomplish this beautiful shape using the lathe and various attachments to turn the outline of the round portion of the vase and the milling machine to make the square base. Then students will learn finishing techniques using the flex shaft machine and rubberized polishing wheel of various shapes to create a beautiful shine on the vase. Finally, the buffing machine using a soft muslin wheel and jeweler’s rouge for the ultrahigh shine.

TIME: 24 hours. Completion is likely.

POWER TOOLS: lathe, flex shaft, buffing machine

SKILL LEVEL: Beginner and intermediate

MATERIALS FEE: $120 to be collected at school

INSTRUCTOR: Jeanie Anderson, Artisan
COURSE: Polymer Clay
PROJECT: Harvest Board

In this fun and action-packed class, students will create a beautiful fall harvest board with colorful produce and foods. Using polymer clay, chalk pastels, acrylic paint and varnish, they will make oysters, crab apples, mushrooms, grapes, gourds and cheese, and arrange them attractively on a board using various props. Time permitting, there may even be some surprise bonus projects! The finished piece will be a perfect enhancement for any kitchen or dining room setting.

This piece was inspired by specific varietals that were abundant in the US in the 17th and 18th centuries, but we will practice several shading and shaping techniques that can be applied to a wide variety of future miniature food projects. Students will receive oyster and mushroom molds, as well as a lovely ceramic pitcher and bowl made by IGMA artisan Jane Graber to complement their arrangement.

TIME: 24 hours. Completion is likely.

POWER TOOLS: None

SKILL LEVEL: All levels. Patience and a steady hand are helpful, but the beginner and the seasoned clay artist alike are welcome.

MATERIALS FEE: $70 to be collected at school

INSTRUCTOR: Jeanie Anderson, Artisan
COURSE: Polymer Clay
PROJECT: Halloween Party

Join this course for an appetizing class designing your own Halloween party dessert buffet brimming with treats—some cute and some ghastly! Students will learn lots of techniques in this class as they create a layered chocolate cake with flying bat cookies and tiny pumpkins, ghost-topped cupcakes, eyeball gobstoppers in a glass jar, and spider web sugar cookies. Also taught but not pictured will be a blood-red martini with a chilling garnish, creepy shortbread “witches fingers” and itty bitty candy corns. Students will learn clay shaping and coloring techniques, piping, and how to work with molds, liquid clay and UV resin. We will also be embellishing vintage Halloween cards, covering a board with decorative paper, and creating tiny banners, sparking your creativity.

TIME: 24 hours. Completion is likely.

POWER TOOLS: None

SKILL LEVEL: All levels. While patience and finger dexterity are helpful, beginners and seasoned clay workers alike will enjoy this fun class.

MATERIALS FEE: $52 to be collected at school. There may be optional items offered for an additional fee.

INSTRUCTOR: Pete & Pam Boorum, Artisans
COURSE: Furniture Construction
PROJECT: Pembroke Table

This class is FULL.

Often called a Breakfast Table on this side of the pond, the Pembroke Table (named for the Countess of Pembroke who first commissioned such a table) is typically a small drop leaf table that could accommodate breakfast or a light meal, and possibly be moved out of the way for more formal occasions. The original table was made of mahogany, but in this class we will be using quarter-sawn cherry, to better replicate the grain structure.

To replicate this in miniature, students will rely on traditional mortise-and-tenon joinery, as well as rule joints for the drop leaves. There are pull-out supports for the leaves that slide in the space between the bottom of the table top and the top of the drawer. Students will then be learning to locate and attach the hinges for the drop leaves. Drawer construction will follow. All of these are skills and techniques, which will transfer to many miniature furniture projects.

TIME: 24 hours. Completion is likely.

POWER TOOLS: table saw, shaper/mill

SKILL LEVEL: Beginner and intermediate

MATERIALS FEE: $40 to be collected at school

INSTRUCTOR: Natalia Frank, Artisan
COURSE: Needlework
PROJECT: 17th Century Crewel/Jacobean Bed Coverlet

Crewel embroidery is a beautiful type of surface embroidery that’s been around for over a thousand years. Crewel embroidery is often associated with the late sixteenth and the first quarter of the seventeenth centuries during the reign of King James I in England. Working on linen twill the students will have fun learning the history of crewelwork; the difference between crewelwork and Jacobean work; and the difference between the English and the American crewelwork. The techniques, threads, designs, stitches, the types of coverlets, and how to make a pattern for them will be discussed as well.

Based on the information students receive, they will have a choice creating an elaborate crewel or Jacobean bed coverlet using different stitches and their variations. The design of the coverlet includes flowers, leaves, birds, animals, and hills motifs. Students will have a choice stitching the designs prepared by the instructor, or their own after the concept of the design and colors will be explained. Different ways of transferring the design on fabric will be discussed. The students will learn how to assemble a Table Clamp Stand Needlework System 4, mount the fabric on the stretcher bars, stitching with two hands. Different ways of finishing the edges of the bed coverlet and its construction will be demonstrated. 

Students are welcome to bring their own beds, or purchase a bed by JBM that is pictured for this project from the instructor. It’s a large, boldly carved early 17th Century oak bed with hand carved panels, a reproduction of the Great Bed of Ware. The two shelves in the posts at the foot of the bed provide space for the owner of the bed to display heirloom family statues or crests.

TIME: 24 hours. Completion is unlikely. However, students will have the necessary information and materials to complete the project on their own.

POWER TOOLS: None

SKILL LEVEL: Beginner and intermediate

MATERIALS FEE: $40 to be collected at school. The materials include all essential supplies, including linen twill, different types of needles, brands of cotton and silk floss, and stretcher bars. A Table Clamp Stand Needlework System 4 will be supplied for each student and available for further purchase. The price of the optional bed is yet to be determined. It is pictured here also.

INSTRUCTOR: Phyllis Hawkes, Fellow
COURSE: Traditional Oil Painting
PROJECT: The Flying Clipper Ship, The Lightning

The Lightning was a clipper ship, one of the last really large clippers to be built in the United States. It was an extreme clipper whose interior woods, marble, gilding and stained glass rivaled that of the Queen Mary. Built in Boston in 1854, she held many records including crossing from Liverpool to New York, Melbourne to Liverpool, and circumnavigation of the world. She did a brief stint as a troop ship. In October 1869 she caught fire and could not be saved, so was sunk on a shoal off Australia, now known as the Lightning Shoals. Montague Dawson was a British marine painter, son of a yachtsman and grandson of a marine painter. He had been interested in ships since childhood. During the First World War he served in the British Navy and was the graphic artist for magazines. After the war, Dawson established himself as a professional marine artist, concentrating on historical subjects and portraits of deep-water sailing ships often in a stiff breeze or on high seas. Dawson is noted for the strict accuracy in the nautical detail of his paintings. He painted many different portraits of The Lightning.

In this class students will learn traditional oil painting and glazing techniques using a layering method. They will get experience in brush handling, color mixing, shading, and blending, plus many valuable hints and tips, especially in painting ocean and clouds. Our painting will measure 2 3/8" wide x 1 7/8" high.

Students will work on gessoed board and approach the painting in a step-by-step fashion, beginning with transferring the image and initial color blocking to adding levels of detail each day. Students will be amazed at the results this technique produces.

TIME: 24 hours. Completion is likely.

POWER TOOLS: None

SKILL LEVEL: All levels. Some experience handling paint brushes is helpful.

MATERIALS FEE: $80 to be collected at school. For an optional fee of $40, students may purchase a John Hodgson frame.

INSTRUCTOR: Tine Krijnen, Fellow
COURSE: Bookbinding and Gold Edging
PROJECT: An Illuminated Manuscript, Psalm 23 

This class is FULL.

The main goal of this workshop is learning the ins and outs of bookbinding. Students will learn to form signatures, sew the book block with the help of a sewing frame and make a leather cover with a title tooled in gold foil. New from the previous year, students will learn the technique of gold edging the book block with gold leaf—a technique for perfectionists. Of course, students will first practice on a dummy book block to get to grips with the technique. 

Students can choose from three titles: The Tulip Book, Short Lessons in Bookbinding by D. de Bray or the new book Psalm 23, An Illuminated Manuscript with calligraphed text on the right side and a matching illustration on the left. The illustration will be colored by the students themselves with aquarelle (watercolor) paint and gold paint. After coloring, the bookbinding process starts. 

Whatever title is chosen, the students will go home with a beautiful book, and enough knowledge to make more books at home. 

TIME: 24 hours. Completion is likely.

POWER TOOLS: None

SKILL LEVEL: All levels. Students need to know that besides the bookbinding and tooling, 24 illustrations need to be hand-colored. This takes time, very good eye-sight, a steady hand and patience. To avoid this, students could choose not to color or partially color the illustrations.

MATERIALS FEE: $50 to be collected at school

INSTRUCTOR: Iulia Chin Lee, Artisan
COURSE: Wood Turning
PROJECT: Wood Candlesticks/Umbrella Holder

This is a double project. In this class students will be making a holder for umbrellas and walking canes, plus a pair of candlesticks. Both involve faux-bamboo turning design. Faux bamboo was a very popular style in the Victorian era.

The class will start with an overview of the techniques of spindle-turning. Then it will advance to bamboo shaping, hollowing and making the holder. The second project is to make a pair of candlesticks. The emphasis is placed on the challenging task of turning identical pieces without a duplicator. After the students are more comfortable with turning the bamboo shape, they will proceed to the more delicate turning of making candlesticks. The students will learn how to analyze shapes and various cuts, which will be incorporated into the making of candlesticks.

TIME: 24 hours. Completion is likely.

POWER TOOLS: lathe

SKILL LEVEL: Beginner and intermediate As usual, the instructor will coach students individually to ensure that the beginners get their best learning interests and the more advanced students their detailing and artistic enhancements.

MATERIALS FEE: $45 to be collected at school. Turning tools are necessary for the class. Turning tools are not all alike. For those who do not have turning tools, the instructor recommends Sorby Micro Turning Tool Set HS45. These tools are superb and the blades remain sharp for a long time. The instructor will purchase them for the students on request. Sorby Micro Turning Tool Set HS45 is $150.

INSTRUCTOR: Deb Mackie, Artisan
COURSE: Leather Crafting
PROJECT: Tooled Leather Doctor Bag

This class is FULL.

Carried primarily by doctors in centuries past when making house calls, this duffel-shaped satchel was usually plain black or brown leather. It featured a metal frame that opened the bag to its full dimension when separated, providing easy access to medical instruments and other necessities inside. Although today’s doctors rarely make house calls, the style of bag has become popular in modern leather goods. Doctor-style bags range in size from small handbags to larger “weekender” type travel bags. Based on a full-size design by Aaron Heizer of Maker’s Leather Supply, this bag can be customized to be much more stylish than the plain black bag carried by doctors of the past!

Students will learn several techniques, such as tooling, stamping, skiving (thinning the leather), dyeing, lining and assembling the piece. Custom-made brass hardware by Dr. G’s Brasshole will finish the bag. Students may follow the class samples or customize the bag with different colors, textures, tooling and decorative items.

TIME: 24 hours. Completion is likely.

POWER TOOLS: None

SKILL LEVEL: Intermediate. Leather experience is not necessary, but students should be familiar with using sharp tools, using mallets, cutting and fitting tiny pieces, bending and gluing tiny metal bits to a piece. Manual dexterity is required.

MATERIALS FEE: $75 to be collected at school. Specialized leather tools will be offered for use in class, and available for purchase if students want to keep them. The optional fee varies by tool.

INSTRUCTOR: Marcia McClain, Artisan
COURSE: Upholstery
PROJECT: Dressing a Traditional Bed

This lovely four-poster bed is made by IGMA Artisan Pete Boorum and will be the base for the dressed bed. It is a classic style that can fit many design periods. Students will be making the pleated bed skirt and spread. It will also be accented with pillows and the blanket at the foot of the bed. It can be very traditional with rich deep colors, cottage, beach or farm-house themed depending on the choice of fabrics. Let your imagination create a wonderful piece for a bedroom in your house. The instructor has a huge stash of fabrics that she will help you choose from prior to your arrival at Guild School through email and photos.

TIME: 24 hours. Completion is likely.

POWER TOOLS: None

SKILL LEVEL: Beginner

MATERIALS FEE: $110 to be collected at school

INSTRUCTOR: Mary Grady O’Brien, Fellow
COURSE: Folk Art Painting
PROJECT: Your Collection of American Folk Art

This class is intended to share the instructor’s early tinware days when her folk art study centered only on fabricating and painting tinware. Her focus began with the most simple pattern and the history of those who made and painted these cheerful objects, so useful in the average home. It was always a labor of love for her.

Thus, students will pursue these simple, colorful designs that centered around a palette of primary colors. Students will have three tin items (cut corner tray, tea caddy and bread tray) plus two clay folk birds. All will be displayed in the wall shelf made by IGMA Artisan Pam Boorum that is included in the class fee. This class is intended to educate and encourage interest in folk art and the confidence to pursue students’ own future projects after Castine.

TIME: 24 hours. All levels are welcome and everyone can expect to finish the week with all their goals achieved and a lot of creative ideas.

POWER TOOLS: None

SKILL LEVEL: All levels

MATERIALS FEE: $120 to be collected at school

INSTRUCTOR: Lidi Stroud, Artisan
COURSE: Miniature Basketry
PROJECT: Picnic Basket with Attached Bottle Holders

This basket is constructed on a wood base, using wire for stakes and 2-ply waxed linen thread for weavers. Students will learn how to weave their basket using the following weaving techniques: pairing weave, 3-rod whale, and 4-rod whale. Students will also learn how weave a design on to the front of the basket, and shape/weave a lid to fit the basket. They will learn how to lay a round base to form the bottle holders. After coloring the woven pieces, the students will then assemble the pieces of the basket to form the whole.

TIME: 24 hours. Completion is likely.

POWER TOOLS: None

SKILL LEVEL: Beginner and intermediate

MATERIALS FEE: $30 to be collected at school