2021 Workshop Registration

Instructor: Sandy Jordan (Jacksonville, Florida)
Level of Difficulty: All

Class Minimum: 2    Maximum: 10

Create this wonderful ornament using the "pen and ink rouging" technique created by Mary Owens. The technique uses India ink and oil paints to create the finished design. If you have ever wanted to "try the technique" but not invest a lot of money, here is your opportunity. Come enjoy the fun, and learn a new technique. I would like to thank Mary Owens for teaching me this beautiful technique. The rim for the ornament is not part of the class.

Students need to bring: apron

Instructor will provide: Everything for this class.

Instructor: Suzi Nonn (Elk Mills, MD)

Level of Difficulty: Beginner/Intermediate

Class Minimum: 4    Maximum: 12

Spend the morning experimenting with alcohol inks and embellishments (alloys, mylar, and metallics). The class is geared to exploring alcohol ink properties. Students will also discover advantages of base coating gourds with Artisan dyes. By the end of the class students will create one 9-10 inch gourd and two yupo cards.

Instructor will provide: Everything for this class, including gourds, yupo paper, blower, blending pen, inks, alloys, mixatives, blending solution, disposable gloves, tape, and handouts.

Instructor: Sandy Jordan (Jacksonville, Florida)

Level of Difficulty: All

Class Minimum: 2    Maximum: 10

The student will use a small canteen (cheese) gourd to create this elegant Halloween pumpkin. The student will also add Halloween Bling to make their pumpkin their very own. They will then learn how to create leaves and a triple cluster using the mudding technique. The student will have a choice of making a black pumpkin with white mud or an orange pumpkin with black mud. Mud is a dimensional paint developed by Margot Clark. Her mud and techniques will be used. The instructor will provide mud, brush, gourd (cleaned and painted students color of choice) and bling. Mudding kits will be available to purchase. I want to thank Margot Clark and Carol Craig for teaching me this wonderful technique.

Student needs to bring: apron: Students may bring bling (self-adhesive gemstone, usually found in scrapbooking area) if they have something special they want on their pumpkin.

Instructor will provide: Everything needed to create this project. 

Instructor: Sue Hollon Taber (Belton, MO)

Level of Difficulty: Intermediate

Class Minimum: 6    Maximum: 12

Learn how to create eyes and details, dry brushing, and free form work.

Students need to bring: stencil brushes—#2 round and 3/8 angle

Instructor will provide: gourd, paint, pattern

Instructor: Madonna Watermon (St. Louis, MO)

Level of Difficulty: Advanced - Must have knowledge of carver and sander.
Class Minimum: 1   Maximum: 12

Students will learn how to carve 3-dimensional maple leaves and how to undermine carve.

Students need to bring: Dust mask, pencil, electric sander with different sanding grits, sanding paper with different grits, files, high speed carver (needs to use 1/16 burs), various sizes of diamond wheel burs, and small diamond football burs if you have them. 

Instructor will provide: gourd shard, tutorial, pattern, tracing paper, 1/16 (14 round diamond burs and #699 carbide burs)

Instructor: Vickie Echols (Temecula, CA)

Level of Difficulty: All Levels—some pine needle coiling will be helpful but not necessary

Class Minimum: 5    Maximum: 12

Learn how to coil glycerinated pine needles onto a prepared gourd to make a unique vessel. Class will start with a demo on how to make Tyvek beads. You will use pre-made beads to incorporate into your swoosh so you can finish your project. A detailed tutorial will be emailed after class.

Students need to bring: sharp pair of scissors, small needle nose pliers, small jewelry wire cutters, heat tool

Instructor will provide: prepared gourd, glycerinated pine needles Irish waxed linen, stitching needle, prepared Tyvek beads, 2 sheets of Tyvek and bamboo skewer, emailed tutorial

Instructor: Marla Garber (Frankston, TX)

Level of Difficulty: All Levels

Class Minimum: 6    Maximum: 12

This is a fun project. Let your imagination juices flow. We will use Quickwood to build the entire gnome/woodsmen. Embellishments can be added if you desire.

Students need to bring: disposable gloves if Quickwood bothers your hands, 3 medium dry brushes, heat gun

Instructor will provide: gourds prepped and ready to sculpt, paints, Quickwood, sealer

Instructors: Connie and Dennis Brady (Colorado)

Level of Difficulty: All

Class minimum: 6     maximum: 12

The “Tree of Life” gourd lamp class is especially designed to provide success for all levels of gourd art enthusiasts. Create a uniquely designed gourd lamp that will cast warm, inviting light upon your walls and ceiling. While beginners can illustrate their design with decorative holes, more experienced crafters may carve and filigree their design. Connie and Dennis Brady are a team-teaching couple with many years of experience as educators and gourd artists. They are based out of western Colorado and travel by RV to teach gourd art throughout the western USA.

Students need to bring: Fully-charged drill with extra battery pack, and handpowered carver or Dremel with assorted bits for hole-drilling, filigree, carving and sanding, woodburner, N95 mask, apron or clothing cover (we will have tools available to borrow, but to avoid waiting and sharing, feel free to bring your own.)

Instructor will provide: Prepared large kettle or martin gourd with wooden base, LED bulb and electrical component (value $65) gourd ink dyes in a variety of colors, tutorial and template of tree as well as tools to borrow.

Instructor: Robin Bryson (Quail Valley, CA)

Level of Difficulty: Intermediate (Beginners ok)

Class minimum: 1    maximum: 12

Create unique relief carved gourd antler cross from a gourd accented with woods burning for shading and a semi-precious stone.

Student needs to bring: Carver with Dremel bits #116, 110, 107, 105. Temperature controlled woodburner, round skew tip, face mask, protective eyewear, E6000 glue.

Instructor will provide: Tutorial, pattern, gourd piece, cabochon, bail and leather piece, sandpaper. Teacher will have some Dremel bits for sale.

Instructor: Karen Brown (Alto, MI)

Level of Difficulty: Beginner

Class minimum: 4    maximum: 12

Creativity abounds in this fun filled class. Students will create their own one of a kind mask using a half gourd and a whole lot of imagination. The teacher will have tubs of dry natural materials, feathers, glitter, sequins, ribbons, and much more to decorate your mask.

Instructor will provide: Everything needed to complete project.

Instructor: Sandy Jordan

Level of Difficulty: All

Class Minimum:  2    Maximum: 12

Come learn this wonderful "mudding" technique created by Margot Clark.  The student will create this wonderful gourd bell of snowy trees and snowflakes.   If you have ever wanted to "try the technique" but not invest a lot of money, here is your opportunity.  The instructor is supplying everything for this class. Come enjoy the fun, and learn a new technique.

Student needs to bring: apron

Instructor will supply: Everything needed for this project.

Instructor: Susan Nonn (Elk Mills, MD)

Level of Difficulty: Beginner/Intermediate

Class Minimum: 4    Maximum: 12

Create with vinyl cutouts. The class project will be overlaying vinyls to give the illusion of depth (there will be a variety of vinyls available). During class, we will explore the characteristics of alcohol inks and alcohol pearls, and the advantages of base coating the gourd with Artisan dyes.

Instructor will provide: Everything needed for this project.

Instructor: Sandy Jordan (Jacksonville, FL)

Level of Difficulty: All

Class Minimum: 2    Maximum: 10

Looking for a gourd festival? Come create this beautiful sign in Pen and Ink Rouging. Sandy (a certified Mary Owens Instructor) will take you step-by-step, through the pen and ink rouging process. This unique process is done with India ink and oil paints. Everything to complete the class will be provided by the instructor. Come learn this beautiful technique. I want to thank Mary Owens for teaching me this beautiful technique.

Student needs to bring: apron

Instructor will provide: Everything for this project.

Instructor: Sue Hollen Taber (Belton, MO)

Level of Difficulty: Beginner

Class Minimum: 6    Maximum: 12

Learn how to dry brush and work freehand on a unique rounded surface.

Student needs to bring: stencil brushes, paper towels

Instructor will provide: Gourd, paint, screen, and pattern

Instructor: Vickie Echols (Temecula, CA)

Level of Difficulty: All

Class Minimum: 5    Maximum: 12

You will learn how to coil pine needles around the rim of a gourd and how to make floating coils that incorporate porcelain beads to make your bead ribbon. You will work on shaping skills to create a narrow neck and finish off with a flair! 

Student needs to bring: sharp pair of scissors, small needle nose plyers, fine tip wire cutters

Instructor will provide: prepared gourd, glycerinated pine needles, Irish waxed linen, 3” doll needle, porcelain beads, and a detailed tutorial (emailed after class)

Instructors: Connie and Dennis Brady (Grand Junction, CO)

Level of Difficulty: All

Class Minimum: 6    Maximum: 12

Created from a canteen gourd, participants will draw their design, woodburn details, jigsaw cut and filigree a beautiful wall hanging for themselves or as a special gift. Previous experience is helpful but we will ensure all students receive the help they need to complete the project. Connie and Dennis Brady are well-known gourd artists from Western Colorado who travel and teach art throughout the Southwest.

Student needs to bring: Mini jigsaw, handpowered carver or Dremel with assorted bits for hole-drilling, filigree, carving and sanding, Woodburner, mask, apron or clothing cover (we will have tools available to borrow, but to avoid waiting and sharing, feel free to bring your own.)

Instructor will provide: Cleaned canteen gourd and sawtooth hanger, access to tools on loan, gourd inks, tutorial.

Instructor: Marla Garber (Frankston, TX)

Level of Difficulty: All

Class Minimum: 6   Maximum: 12

We will make 3 minis in this class: an elephant, snail, and turtle. We will use Quickwood to do our sculpting. 

Student needs to bring: apron, paint brushes, gloves, mask, small silicon sculpting tools

Instructor will provide: spinner gourds, paints, tutorial, Quickwood, everything else you need for this fun class

Instructor: Robin Bryson (Quail Valley, CA)

Level of Difficulty: Intermediate

Class Minimum: 1  Maximum: 12

Create a spectacular hanging horse gourd planter. Learn how to burn on the inner part of the gourd. The method is very different than the outer shell. Enhanced with ink dye and pine needles woven around the rim.

Students need to bring: temperature controlled wood burner with a round skew tip, face mask, protective eye wear, E6000 glue and small sharp scissors

Instructor will provide: tutorial, pattern, a clean and prepared gourd piece, ink dyes, micro brushes, pine needles, wax linen, embellishments and artificial plants, bail and leather strip

Instructor: Karen Brown

Level of Difficulty: All

Class minimum: 4   maximum: 12

Students will learn the basics of scrumbling with color pencils. Three sheets of different patterns and a handout come with class along with a set of professional grade color pencils.

Instructor will provide: Everything needed for project

Instructor: Sue Hollon Taber (Belton, MO)

Level of Difficulty: Beginner

Class Minimum: 6    Maximum: 12

Learn how to freehand paint and use dry brushing techniques.

Student needs to bring: stencil brushes—#2 round, 3/8 angle

Instructor will provide: gourd, paint, pattern, scarf, wreath

Instructor: Vickie Echols (Temecula, CA)

Level of Difficulty: Any level of experience will enjoy this class

Class Minimum: 5    Maximum: 12

For this class you will discover ways of altering magazine pages to create amazing works of art with very little effort. You will be amazed with the variety of organic patterns with this technique. You will then take the altered pages and decoupage them onto gourd shards to make your own stone centers for pine needle coiling or anything you can imagine.  

Student needs to bring: sharp pair of scissors,  heat gun, latex gloves, an old stencil brush or a chip brush, paint brush for applying mod podge

Instructor will provide: everything else required

Instructors: Dennis and Connie Brady (Grand Junction, CO)

Level of Difficulty: All

Class Minimum: 6    Maximum: 12

Create a unique piece of meaningful art, using a gourd shard with a scroll containing your private message.  Your art will be beautifully displayed in a 5x7in. shadowbox, making an amazing display for your home or a gift for a friend. Consider personalizing your art with a small token to be embedded into the design, perhaps an orphaned earring, necklace pendant, button, beach glass, fossil or stone (about the size of a quarter.)

Student needs to bring:   (if you have) woodburning tool and/or hand carving tool, to avoid wait

Instructor will provide: all supplies provided including gourd shard, shadowbox, scroll, epoxy clay face, woodburning tool to share, embellishments, inks and metallic dyes (A limited number of tools will be available to borrow during class.)

Instructor: Susan Nonn (Elk Mills, MD)

Level of Difficulty: Beginner/Intermediate

Class Minimum: 4    Maximum: 12

This class will teach you the flexibility and creative uses of sea grass.  First you will explore the endless possibilities coloring with alcohol ink. Next, learn how to create a simple rim of sea grass and then how to expand the rim to add dimension and pizzazz. During class, the instructor will talk about how to embellish the rim with beads or natural materials. The instructor will provide your gourd (a nice 9-10 inch bowl cleaned and painted inside) along with sea grass and you are ready to get started.

Instructor will provide: Everything for this class.

Instructor: Robin Bryson (Quail Valley, CA)

Level of Difficulty: All Levels

Class Minimum: 3    Maximum: 12

Learn how to paint with ink dye to create adorable baby owls peeking out of a tree hole, accented with natural bark.

Students need to bring: a clean cut canteen gourd, belt sand the top and bottom at an angle for free standing. Sand down flush where the stem came out of and also on the other side.

Instructor will provide: tutorial, pattern, ink dyes, micro brushes, formula 49, bark, brushes, pitt pen, and mod podge

Instructor: Marla Garber (Frankston, TX)

Level of Difficulty: All

Class Minimum: 4    Maximum: 12

Learn how to sculpt the face of giraffes using Quickwood. We will completely sculpt the giraffe, but you will paint it at home.

Student needs to bring: small curly neck dipper gourd, small funnel, face mask, nitrile gloves if sensitive to Quickwood, apron

Instructor will provide: All materials needed except dipper gourd and funnel.

Instructor: Karen Brown (Alto, MI)

Level of Difficulty: All

Class minimum: 4    maximum: 12

Students will burn one pattern onto a gourd and use a rotary tool to add the highlights afterwards. There are several different patterns to choose from for this class and a handout.

Student needs to bring: temperature adjustable woodburning too, small ball or writing tip pen

Instructor will provide: gourds, handout, patterns, fixative, rotary tools and burrs