We hope there is something of interest for you in our range of courses and events.

Come with a group of friends - we can accommodate up to 5 people in Casa dos Artesans.

Come on your own - and get to know like-minded people interested in craft.

Choose between courses given in English - or in Spanish.

Visit Lluis and Anna's web sites - www.lluisgrau.com   and   www.annachampeney.com

ALL COURSES AND EVENTS ARE HELD IN THE CRAFT WORKSHOPS IN CRISTOSENDE, CLOSE TO CASA DOS ARTESANS, IN CRISTOSENDE, 2¼ HOURS FROM SANTIAGO DE COMPOSTELA (JOURNEY TIME BY CAR), SPAIN.

Combine a spring break with basket making and practice your Spanish at the same time!

Choose from various dates and course options including Celtic Basketry and Spanish Gypsy basketry.

All courses suitable for beginners.

Further information

A 30 hour specialist course for those with experience who wish to learn Spanish split wood basketry techniques and forms.

Full information
or email: lluisyanna@terra.es

Lluis and Anna open their workshops to the public. See and buy their baskets and textiles, discuss commissions and future craft courses.

Opening Hours
August
    Mondays: closed
    Tuesdays: 5pm - 7.30pm (mornings closed)
    Wednesdays - Sundays: 11am - 1pm, 5pm - 7.30pm

NOTE: Please note that during the rest of the year the workshops are closed to the public, except to guests in Casa dos Artesans and by prior appointment.

Further information

Weave yourself a simple textile in a morning, an afternoon or a day on table looms already set up for you to start weaving.

No previous experience required.
Age requirement: 13 years upwards.

Further information and dates

Combine a September break with basketmaking and practice your Spanish at the same time!

Choose between two dates and course options (both suitable for beginners).

Full information

Visit Lluis at Catalunya´s annual basketry fair in Gerona
(around an hour by car from Barcelona)

Lluis will be at the historic market fair held in the Gaudi-designed Colonia Güell, (on the outskirts of Barcelona, within walking distance from the train station Santa Coloma de Cervelló-Colonia Guëll)

Do you want to learn to weave and use natural dyes? Anna offers one person a low-cost opportunity to come and learn "on the job" as her assistant-pupil over three weeks.

No previous experience of weaving is necessary, just a genuine interest in dyeing and weaving and a methodical approach.

Further information

Practice your Spanish and learn the basic principles of willow basketry in this intensive course held in the Silent Season in the Ribeira Sacra.

Further information

Course Description:

Come and combine learning basketry with exploring the Ribeira Sacra, and improve your Spanish at the same time.

The basketry weekends are self-catering. Course participants have use of the spacious kitchen in a dos Artesans.

Extend your stay in the area go walking in the Ribeira Sacra? Ask us for details.

Course timetable: 8 hours course duration (4 hours Saturday and Sunday)

Course requirements: No previous basketry experience required, basic Spanish is sufficient.

COST: 120€ (around 82 pounds) includes Friday and Saturday nights in a shared room.
60€ (around 42 pounds) course only.

ABOUT THE BASKETS
In northern Spain two simple but very effective methods of split wood basketmaking have evolved which, unlike other related techniques, require little more than a knife. The method can be used with many different types of wood, worked green – ash, wild cherry, sweet chestnut, alder buckthorn, oak…. Using these techniques, rural basketmakers developed particular forms of basket, such as the attractive “horned” baskets of the Pyrenees – known variously as the “bres” and the “desca”, using sweet chestnut and hazel.

This split wood basketry tradition is now almost extinct and the beautiful forms and techniques are on the verge of being lost. Thanks to a grant from the BA in 2004 Lluis was able to visit the last basketmakers in the area and learn from them. The course is a rare opportunity to learn these techniques.

ABOUT THE COURSE (30 hours over 5 days)
In this course, Lluis introduces you to the techniques and forms belonging to this basketry tradition. He explains how to select suitable hazel and chestnut and introduce other woods for using in the same way. You will then learn different splitting techniques, prepare wood strips yourself, and go on to make at least one of these unusual, horned baskets! The course should teach you everything you need to know to be able to go back home and continue using and developing the same techniques.

Please note that the course is physically demanding and involves the use of basket makers´ tools such as penknives and curved basket makers´ knives. You should have at least some experience of using these tools and be physically fit.

For any pupil interested in preparing broader split wood strips using a drawknife, as traditionally used in Galicia there will also be an opportunity to use the traditional Galician method (hopefully there will be a full course on this technique in the future).

TO BRING - Secateurs and a knife/penknife.
If you have a curved basketmakers´ knife please bring that too.

COURSE TIMETABLE
The course lasts 8 days in total: 5 days of basket making (6 hours daily), 1 free day midweek + arrival/departure days.

We follow the Spanish custom of eating the main meal at 2pm, with a break after lunch, and start work again when the temperature is cooler (June can be hot).

Breakfast from 7.45am     Basketry 10 – 1.30     Lunch at 2.0pm     Basketry 5 – 7.30pm     Light supper at 8 – 8.30pm.

ACCOMMODATION
Accommodation is provided in shared rooms in Lluis and Anna´s holiday cottage - “Casa Dos Artesans” - and in Anna´s barn workshop. Both are just a stone´s throw from Lluis´ basketry workshop. Accommodation consists of 3 twin rooms and one single. The single room is allotted randomly, unless a course participant requests it specially. We provide 100% cotton and linen sheets and towels.

FREE DAY (midweek)
We usually organise a day out with lunch to explore the area if there is interest. The cost of this day out is extra and costs approximately 50€. Another option is to stay in Cristosende and explore the area on foot.

MEALS
We hope to prepare you some delicious meals during the course, using homegrown organic veg and other local ingredients where possible. If you are vegetarian or have any special requirements let us know when you book.

EXTENDING YOUR STAY
If you would you like to extend your stay with us we can arrange further nights b&b – but please let us know in advance.

GETTING HERE

Fly Ryan Air London (Stanstead) – Santiago de Compostela
Budget airline. (When we called Ryan Air at the end of May 2005 we were quoted under 50 pounds for a return flight in June, 2005 prices).
Fly London (Heathrow) - Santiago de Compostela – British Airways / Iberia
Train London-Paris, Paris-Irun, Irun-Ourense – takes around 24 hours (couchettes available)

Getting to Cristosende from Santiago de Compostela or Ourense.

By bus - Santiago de Compostela – Ourense, Ourense – Cristosende (the latter on Mondays, Fridays and Wednesdays only). The Ourense-Cristosende bus leaves at around 6pm from Ourense bus station. Please note that if you plan to travel to Cristosende by public transport from Santiago you should plan an extra day as connections mean that you may not be able to reach Cristosende the same day.

By taxi: June 2005 taxi prices were around 130€ Ourense – Cristosende. If you are interested in sharing a taxi let us know and we can put you in touch with other interested course members. It is not necessary to book a taxi from the airport.

Car hire: You can arrange car hire from Santiago de Compostela airport through most travel agencies in the UK. If you would like the names of other course members interested in sharing carhire let us know and we will pass names onto you. We can send you written directions for driving to Cristosende from Santiago airport, avoiding urban centres. Journey time – between 2 and 2 ¼ hours.

ABOUT THE REGION – The Ribeira Sacra, Spain´s Sacred Riverside

The Ribeira Sacra is a little-known part of Spain which is green and hilly, covered with vineyards and shady sweet chestnut groves. The Rivers Sil and Miño and its cluster of historic monasteries give the area its character and name. The River Sil “Cañon” boasts a Mediterranean micro-climate, with 100 year orange trees and cork oaks. With no large urban centre close by the area retains its rural atmosphere – with village butchers, fishmongers and wood-fired bakeries still the norm. There are no large supermarkets for miles.

Many villagers are of retirement age and grow vegetables, keep a pig or two and work the vineyards to produce wine for home-consumption. Wildlife abounds, with birds of prey, wild boar and wolves further up in the more mountainous areas. Every year we see polecats, fat toads, lots of moths and butterflies, including swallowtails, praying mantises and snakes. The area is well known for its red and white wines, herb or coffee liquor or aguardiente, distilled from the fermented grapeskins, and wood-fired wheat / rye bread.

June in the Ribeira Sacra
The end of May and beginning of June can be one of the best times to visit the Ribeira Sacra. Wild flowers include lavender, heather and the brilliant yellow piornos or broom bushes. You can hear nightingales, orioles and hoopoes, and see the darkening green of the sweet chestnuts and the vineyards. This time is excellent for walking – although temperatures can be up in the late 20s / 30s centigrade.

Cristosende – Cristosende is a small, peaceful village of wine cellars and stone cottages overlooking the River Sil, surrounded by vineyards, meadows and chestnut groves. Despite its small size it has a hotel with public bar and restaurant and a family-run winery. Many cottages and wine cellars (bodegas) are now empty but the village’s fortunes are beginning to change and several houses / bodegas have been restored in the past 5 years.

COST PER PERSON

445 pounds (approx. 644€) all-inclusive – with 7 nights accommodation in twin rooms, all meals except on the free day, tuition, materials, tea +coffee.

Excludes: Travel, free day activities, holiday insurance

Exchange rate: Throughout our 2006 programme we use the conversion rate of x 1.45 (pounds to euros) which is current at the time of writing.

BOOKING
To reserve your place please email us for a booking form on lluisyanna@terra.es or telephone us on (+34) 988 20 74 04 or (+34) 669 600 620

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Spanish basketry by Lluis Grau in willow and split wood (chestnut, alder buckthorn...). Includes traditional forms specially selected for their functionality or beauty from Catalunya, Galicia and the Pyrenees.

Handwoven linens and wool and "Galician felpa" (handmade pile fabric cushions etc.) with natural dyes by Anna Champeney.

Come and visit the open workshops, see and buy craft direct and ask about future courses and events.

See also - Summer Weaving for beginners

Opening Hours
August
    Mondays: closed
    Tuesdays: 5pm - 7.30pm (mornings closed)
    Wednesdays - Sundays: 11am - 1pm, 5pm - 7.30pm

NOTE: Please note that during the rest of the year the workshops are closed to the public, except to guests in Casa dos Artesans and by prior appointment.

Visit Lluis´ and Anna´s websites to find out more about their work - www.lluisgrau.com   and   www.annachampeney.com

Description:

(English and Spanish spoken)

Combine a visit to Anna and Lluis´ summer exhibition or a summer holiday in the Ribeira Sacra with this short weaving activity...

Weave your own fabric - to create a small towel, a bag or (with a little more patience and time) even a scarf ....

There are 4 half day places available daily / 2 full day places on Summer Weaving which uses 70cm wide Louet table looms already set up for you to weave on.

Anna explains the basics of weaving and bobbin winding at the start and is on hand to resolve any problems you may have.

Small projects may be completed in a morning whilst longer projects, such as a scarf, will take at least a whole day.

No previous weaving experience is necessary.

Visit Anna´s own website to see examples of her own work - www.annachampeney.com

Timetable:
½ day session - 10 am-1.30pm
Full Day Session - 5pm -8.30pm.

Level:
No previous experience necessary
Minimum age 13

Cost: (including materials, instruction and use of loom)

Morning / Afternoon Session - 30€ / person
Whole Day Session - 60€ / person

Bookings contact us on lluisyanna@terra.es

Summary
The 2006 assistant-ship is a low-cost option for learning the basics of weaving and natural dyeing "on the job", in Anna´s small rural weaving workshop in the Ribeira Sacra. It involves working alongside Anna as her assistant and helping with the different processes in the creation of hand-woven textiles dyed with natural dyes. The assistant-ship is the opportunity to learn the basics of hand weaving and natural dyeing within the context of a smallscale working studio, rather than in a theoretical, school-or-college based situation.

No prior weaving or dyeing experience or qualifications are needed, just a genuine interest in hand weaving and natural dyeing, ability to work in a patient, focussed and meticulous way, and a willingness to participate in all aspects of the craft.

The assistantship involves 6 hours of work per day, 5 days a week, flexible times by arrangement.

Work will include preparation of fibres for dyeing, mordanting and dyeing fibres with a range of natural dyes, preparation of floor loom for weaving, finishing, pricing, packaging and selling hand-woven textiles. Design and realisation of the assistant´s personal weaving project will include basic project design.

The assistant-ship is considered ideal for a person considering a career or life change, upon retirement, or when taking a "year out" either before or after a college or university course.

Own Project: In addition, in his/her free time the assistant will enjoy exclusive use of a Louet table (sampling) loom and wool / linen yarns in the workshop on which to create his / her own weaving projects. Anna will explain project design and assist in the setting up of the loom, and resolve any other queries or problems the assistant may have.

Accommodation and Food: During the Assistant-ship the assistant will have his / her own bedroom in Casa dos Artesans and live-in as another member of the household, sharing simple meals, washing up etc..

Free Time: Opportunities for going out and socialising are somewhat limited in the rural village of Cristosende (population around 40). There is limited public transport to Ourense city during the week. The area is ideal for someone who enjoys being close to nature. The area is also attractive for lovers of landscape photography etc.. There are plenty of books in Spanish and English - from novels to travel writing and books on weaving and basketry. Free internet access is possible during weekday mornings in the local council building, a 20 minute walk away.

To Apply: Please apply in writing, by post , enclosing a self-addressed envelope at any time but before July 1 2006 with a basic c.v. and explaining your interest in the textile assistant-ship. You can apply by post or by email to lluisyanna@terra.es

See Anna´s work on her website - www.annachampeney.com

Description: Practice your Spanish and learn willow basketry in the Ribeira Sacra

In this course you will have time to make several willow baskets, starting off with a basic round model. This will give you the necessary skills to choose another shape for your next basket or make a table mat or try different borders, weaves and decorative elements.

Self-catering Course participants are free to use the spacious kitchen in Casa dos Artesans to prepare their meals. Coffee and croissants are provided each morning for breakfast and lunch is provided on the first and last days of the course.

Maximum number: 8

Timetable: 24 hours of basket making is spread over five days. The course starts with a lunch on Wednesday 6 December and finishes with a lunch on Sunday 10 December.

Level: No previous experience necessary. Intermediate Spanish.

Cost : 310€ or 220 pounds includes four nights b&b accommodation in a shared room from the Wednesday to the Saturday night, lunch on Wednesday and Sunday, tuition, all materials, use of tools.

See Lluis' work on his website - www.lluisgrau.com

Bookings: contact us on lluisyanna@terra.es