Ikonium Studio

snow and felt in istanbul

2012-02-01T12:20:00.001-08:00

crafting Ottoman Headgrear

2012-01-14T08:36:00.000-08:00

We have been working on alot of traditional hats lately....fez, sikke, borks etc....some are more dramatic than others. We will be working on some traditional traditional kepeneks for a film company......

lots of new work and new visitors to the shop

2011-12-20T10:17:00.000-08:00

hats and bags

2011-10-11T19:12:00.000-07:00

enjoying this line of bagsnd hats ... I am just playing with silk and wool...sketchingan dcoloring..then Mehmet is playng with the blocking..

Istanbul Ramazan Exhibition is finnished and now its back work in the studio!

2011-09-02T00:20:00.000-07:00

CUMA Amerikalı ressamdan Türk keçesi ZAMAN

2011-08-19T11:35:00.000-07:00

CUMA Amerikalı ressamdan Türk keçesi ZAMAN

Mr Swanman Saga

2011-05-07T13:14:00.000-07:00

We have had Mimarsinan University student, Baris working on some felt projects at the studio. Baris has been translating his own sketches as well as reproducing an ancient Swan felt piece. Baris has been an attentive student as this is his first foray in to felt work. In between work we have been sharing Turkish/
English lessons, good food and political chats.We have come to enjoy Baris's swan peoject and fondly named the figure Mr.Swan.Yesterday we had Baris working on his university project here in Istanbul while visiting with Haley on skype while she was working on her university project. Hsley has been shand spinning skeins of yarn to be hand dyed with natural plant dyes. Nicole has sent her lichens from the Berkshires, I had woad sent from England and we are sending weld and madder root from Turkey. The Turkish dye stuffs have arrived just in time and after retreiving them from th epost monday am ..Haley wil quickly mordant nd dye the yarn to meet the 4:30 in the afternnon deadline!!!!!

whew..we're back

2011-04-24T00:40:00.000-07:00

Turkey had a slight gliche with Blogs for a while but the blogs are finnally open!
We have been increasingly busy here at Ikonium Studio with our small production of felt wearables and teaching. Spring has spring hre in Istanbul with tulips and tourists everywhere!. The most enjoyable part of having a shop in an intenational city like Istanbul is the interesting people we meet from sll over the world. We are having fun increasing our langusage skills.

Trying our hand at Ebru..Turkish marbling

2011-02-28T10:45:00.000-08:00

This traditional art form can be very addicting like eating m&m's ...its hard to stop after 1,5,10..and the following applications are endless.

Istanbul and friends

2011-02-17T09:58:00.001-08:00

Museum visits to refresh our creative energy and good work

Enjoying our work

2011-02-09T17:02:00.000-08:00

Enjoynmg our feltmakng process

Cant keep Sally dressed

2011-02-09T10:06:00.000-08:00

We ;ut a new vest on Sally to be blocked and sold t in the morning wth the order of a matching vest slightly smaller. We were wishing our new dress makers manken would show up but the trackng keeps telling us they are at the Ataturk airport...imagne our Ken and Barbie mankens stting in the cafe at the airport sippng Turk Kahve....
the new vest will be finnished by mornng and ready for blocking. Having fun playing with colors and textures.

sold Sally's dress

2011-02-02T23:53:00.000-08:00

We sold the first felt vest dress now we have another finnished!!! They are comming nice.....my next plan is for some lovely indigo blue silk that we just re dyed.

mankens!

2011-01-25T11:27:00.000-08:00

We searched for tailor's makes yesterdasy in Istanbul and decided on two. The mankens arrived this eveig..very exciting ad we immediately dressed them in fel;t garments...Sally and Bob I am calling them.

New Feltwork

2011-01-23T12:43:00.000-08:00

Hanging some new felt work in the shop window. Playing with wool and silk.

feltmaking

2011-01-13T14:56:00.000-08:00

Daily work..feltmaking

Polish feltmaking group in Istanbul

2011-01-11T08:53:00.000-08:00

We had a great 3 day workshop with ouroup from Poland...they were pleased to know we had discovered the word for thankyou in the night...however rigth word...wrong spelling! We fit a lot of work in to 3 days in order to create a small rug, hat and bag. As with all our courses..we had as many wonderful pieces as there were students. We even had some fun by sending them out to kick their rugs in the park across the street with the Aya Sofya in the backdrop. We entertained both the locals and and the tourists alike!

Finally in our new shop

2010-12-28T02:19:00.000-08:00

After alot of work to transform this empty space in a gallery workshop..we are ready to start felting again. Thanks to Mehmet's sons Mustafa and Sahli (and a bunch of other guys)..we organized this space quickly. We are ready for workshops here, we will be hosting agroup of students from Poland next week. Our neighbors here are happy to see us working and tourists are slowly finding us. We are still trying to figure out how to set up the galery space upstairs but for now we have things in the big glass window for folks to enjoy.
We hope people will stop in when they are visiting Istanbul or plan to organize a felt class here. We are open to 1-8 students depending on the project size.

İKONİUM new address

2010-12-09T01:25:00.000-08:00

The paint is on the walls and the electric light fixtures will go in today..we plan to move the studio this weekend to our new Istanbul location. Of course the weather has been beautiful here in Istanbul but the forecast is for SNOW this weekend !
Gere is our new address, come visit anytime!

Mosaic Workshop photos

2010-12-05T04:48:00.000-08:00

This is a posting of photos from some previous mosaic work and workshops
To look at more photos you can find them at Flickr ..search Kececi

Getting chilly..its time for vests!

2010-11-21T01:32:00.000-08:00

I have been playing around with vests this week....big layout but quite fun

Different Kind of Dye Day

2010-11-20T09:17:00.000-08:00

Played around with acid dyes today..they will play nicely with our traditional wool

workshops and work

2010-11-10T09:45:00.000-08:00

We have been busy teaching, dyeing silk and makng felt. We are getting ready to move the shop to a new location in Istanbul by the end of the month. We are lloking for more daily visitors to the studio. We had a nice workshop with two students from Australia and New Zealand this week. We have been hand dyeing silk for our felt work and it is comming out quite nice.

Felt Hat Workshop with Jasmin Zorlu in Istanbul

2010-11-02T23:48:00.001-07:00

We had American hat designer Jasmin Zorlu join us for a 1 day hat making workshop.
I think she now better appreciates the work to make felt caps. We played around with the blocking...I call it the acorn squash series.......

Nice day for indigo

2010-10-31T07:42:00.000-07:00

Today we revisited the dyepot of indigo with new fabric and some overdyeing. It is so hard to resist as it is amazing to watch the new colors revieled after each dip. The dyepot itself is quite alluring!

Felt and Embroidery

2010-09-26T23:51:00.000-07:00

Here are some samples of old embroidery on felt from Turkey. It is interesting to see where the thread has worn away, showing the stiff paper underneath which was used to make the stitching mre prominent. The other photos are of felt work we did using old embroidery as the model for the design.

2010-09-21T21:07:00.000-07:00

2010-09-21T20:50:00.000-07:00

2010-09-21T20:48:00.000-07:00

2010-09-21T20:35:00.000-07:00

2010-09-17T04:34:00.000-07:00

Felt workshop with Leiko and Guest

2010-08-27T15:36:00.000-07:00

Had a little help with the felt for the Jacket....fun in the felt studio!!
Our friend Paddy dropped by to help!

Felt workshops with Leiko

2010-08-27T15:02:00.000-07:00

We had a lot of fun and played with new applications of wool for felt over a few days. The work of Leiko Uchiyama was an inspirational background for the workshops. Students were surprised at the patience needed to craft felt lace. I took the various samples made in each class and added some yardage from leftover wool
(and help from a friend) to craft a cute little felt jacket.

wool lace

2010-07-28T20:35:00.000-07:00

I have been making samples with our natural dye Turkish merino for the upcomming workshop...I think I will order some silk to add in....

Workshops with Leiko Uchiyama

2010-07-25T06:39:00.000-07:00

Ikonium Studio will be offering a 2 day series of worshops with Japaneese textile artist Leiko Uchiyama. We will be showing the creative work of this artist at the studio as well. Leiko has set many interesting felt bags nd garments from her collections to experience.
The workshops being presented are Pine Needle Layout and Tubular work. Both methods are innovative techniques for felt application.
The workshop shcedule is : Aug 5 Pine Needle /Aug6 Tubular Work
Classes are 9-5 daily, $125/1 day and $225/2days
Register by contacting Theresa at felter508@yahoo.com

Fiberpalooza

2010-07-23T04:23:00.000-07:00

Felt flower photography..........

Felt Hats

2010-07-22T09:53:00.001-07:00

We had a great hat workshop at Ikonium studio last saturday with our student Christopher inveting is DQ twist design!
I think Mehmet enjoyed having a new young man to mentor in felting!
Jody crafted a lovely aubergine wide brim hat with a subtle blue braid motif.
Our red sample hat is another of our fun joint efforts to show functional art!

Santa Fe

2010-07-22T06:09:00.000-07:00

Our dear friend Ercan Nalkiran of Rug Man of Santa Fe hosted us for 3 days of felt wokshops at his shop. We enjoyed our visit and our students crafted some nice felt pieces. You can see photos through the link: http://picasaweb.google.com/kristifelts/SantaFe2010?feat=email#
I will add more photosas they come in ....

Hat Making Workshop with Mehmet Girgic July 17, 2010

2010-06-28T06:07:00.000-07:00

Feltmaster Mehmet Girgic will offer a 1 day hat making workshop at Ikonium Studio.
Learn to craft a seamless hat with personal design using organic natural dye wool.
Mehmet is a noted craftsman for his work in making sikke (hats) worn by whirling dervish durring sema. Mehmet will teach layout and hand rolling techniques for functional art .
Class size is limited, contact Theresa at: felter508@yahoo.com for registration

Scarf Element Workshop with Leiko Uchiyama

2010-06-28T05:52:00.000-07:00

Leiko Uchiyma of Kyoto Japan will be here at Ikonium Studio for exhibition of work and two one-day workshops. Leiko is an exciting contemporary feltmaker who has studied and exhibited her work around the globe. Leiko will be sharing some unique methods for application in feltwork. Leiko's scarves have been in varrious publications including the Scarf Book by Lark publishing.
Exhibit will rn August 5-12 at Ikonium Studio 69 Church Street ,Lenox,MA
Workshop: Aug 6 & 7 2010 9-5
Aug 5-Pine Needle work
Aug 6 Tube Scarf Design
$125/1 day and $225/two days
contact: felter508@yahoo.com or 413 637 5070 to register

salvaged pieces

2010-06-13T17:46:00.000-07:00

I have been working on felt paintngs all week......
The customers who ordered the commission piece came in to see it and they were very happpy...
I frustrated with one painting and after an early morning felting party (me & the felt)...I decided to cut it up. Two thirds were framed as painting and the other third (grrrrr) was made into pouches!!!!!!I am happy with the salvaged pieces.

Santa Fe Workshop

2010-06-10T04:36:00.001-07:00

For more information reguarding the workshop please go to:
www.thefeltmakerinsantafe.com
or
felter508@yahoo.com

The workshop will be held at the gallery of The Rug Man of Santa Fe
July 8,9,10 22010
One, two or three day workshops available 9-4
Exhibition of work July 7, 2010

Looking for Students for Felt Rug Workshop in Santa Fe

2010-06-10T04:19:00.001-07:00

2010-05-24T14:56:00.001-07:00

We will be teaching at the New York Sheep and Wool Festival in October 2010

Please visit the site for more information:

http://www.sheepandwool.com/

Felt Rug Workshop in Santa Fe

2010-05-23T05:10:00.000-07:00

We will be offering a workshop and exhibition in Santa Fe,NM this July, 2010.
The workshop will be held at The Rug Man of Santa Fe, for more information you can contact Ercan, here is the website:

www.thefeltmakerinsantafe.com

Felt Hat for the Farm

2010-05-23T02:40:00.000-07:00

Working on some wide brim felt hats. My son Timothy will try is out while he works in the gardens at SUNY Purchase this summer. Hope to have some for sale at the Massachusetts Sheep & Wool festival on memorial day weekend in Cummngon,MA. I hope to see foks at Ikonium Studio in Lenox that same weekend...trying to figur out how to clone myself!

flowers in felt

2010-05-19T10:52:00.000-07:00

Mehmet and I had fun making fowers in felt with our student Lisa...each getting more impressive. Ifound a great book on floral photography to work from.

Mehmet Girgic carpets

2010-05-18T20:58:00.000-07:00

www.videolife.tk/city.taskale/

Many of the carpets for sale in Ikonium Stuio are woven by our weavers in the Turkish city of Taskale..take a look at this video from the lovely city of Taskale

Boxy Bag

2010-05-17T11:36:00.000-07:00

Here is another large bag..I gave it a more boxy structure with sewing ..and buttons on the corners. Could be good for knitting or maketing! Finnished with string and buton latch like on large enveopes.

NEW !!! IKONIUM STUDIO

2010-05-14T08:20:00.000-07:00

IkoniumStudio 's new location is at 69 Church Street in Lenox ,MA in the heart of the Berkshires!

We have traditional and contemporary Turkish /American art including: knotted carpets, kilims, felt work, pottery, jewelry and paintings.

Open each day, stop by and take a look!

Budapest Bag

2010-05-14T06:23:00.000-07:00

Ildko worked on a large felt bag for her upcoming trip o Budapest to pick p pupy. Thebag might be bi nough for her and the puppy to get inside !!

Felt Yurt at the Maryland sheep & Wool Festival

2010-05-14T05:10:00.001-07:00

Mehmet enjoyed his visit to see Lady Liberty and a localfisherman reel in a big striper!

Mehmet and I put up the Tukish felt yurt at the Marylad Sheep and Wool festival and it was enjoyed by many!

Mehmet had some bonding time with Susan McFarland's little lamb.

It was kind of hot weatherbut the customers finally came around !

2010-05-14T05:07:00.000-07:00

More of theMaryland felt class

2010-05-14T04:30:00.001-07:00

Painterly workshop at the Maryland Wool Festival

2010-05-13T19:27:00.000-07:00

Great class work from the Maryland Festival.

The best thing about teaching this class is..you get as many wonderful different pieces as there are students in the class!

Maryland Sheep and Wool Festival

2010-05-13T05:23:00.000-07:00

Mehmet and I had a great class at the Maryland Wool Festival...18 students!!!!!

Everyone had a great time and produce fantastic art work. I am especially proud of our 76 year old student.....you can really tell she is a painter!

The yurt was a big hit again, unfortunately we couldnt be near our yurt as our booth was stationed ...down the road. People who really wanted to find us made the journey.

The weather turned unusually warm and wool was a hard sell but we finnaly found some takers. Anyone interested in more of our work can find us at our new location in Lenox, Massachusetts. Ikonium is now located at 69 Church Street in the historic district.

We are offering felt making workshops at the gallery as well. Call or write for a private and group session or check out our upcoming course schedule (to be posted soon)

small bags for the Maryland Wool Festivsl

2010-04-24T00:54:00.000-07:00

Turkish Carpets for sale!

2010-04-17T03:35:00.000-07:00

A poster child for Turkish carpets visited the shop yesterday!

Scarf workshop at the new studio

2010-04-17T03:28:00.000-07:00

Pretty birch inspired scarf. Working out the kinks in the studio

Breaking in the felting Studio

2010-04-15T10:57:00.000-07:00

Making art on two continents!

2010-04-07T10:21:00.000-07:00

We have been busy in the studios this week crafting felt paintings.

The shop in Instanbul has been rearranged once again and the little shop in Lenox has opened its doors to a nice welcome from the other shop owners and afew customers checking us out!

Today is just alovely day..warm weather and no bugs...started the day at my friend Liz Celli's farm looking at new sprouts in the garden and putting in dibs for a rooster to be roasted by Mehmet when he gets here...better fatten him up with fressh grass and earthworms!

2010-04-06T15:46:00.000-07:00

Here is the link to the workshop we will be teaching in Nova Scotia this fall.

http://www.lunenburgcraftschool.com/turkish_felted_rug.htm

Opening Soon

2010-03-26T18:52:00.000-07:00

Trying to fill up the shop and take care of all the little details...so much to do and I wish I was making felt! I think I will at least make us a nice felt "open" sign...hope it flies with the historical district!!!

Soon I will post the listing of classes both at the shop and around the globe!

Ikonium Studio to open doors April 1, 2010

2010-03-16T02:25:00.000-07:00

The studio is shaping up .......it has been a challenge try to get as much work up to be seen as possible. I have been trying varrious racks and things as the space is small but inviting. The workshop area is all set and ready roe small classes of students. For the spring I will offer the studio for classes mon-thursday. Anyone interested in signing up for a class can contact me at :

felter508@yahoo.com. $50/1/2 day and $100 full day plus materials.

Our cozy cute new Location for Ikonium Studio

2010-03-07T14:04:00.000-08:00

Welcome /Hos Geldidnz

Crazy Day in the felt Studio

2010-03-03T16:16:00.000-08:00

Ildiko came to the studio looking to make a sculpture and went home with a crazy hat!

Jodie's Felt Slippers At Last !

2010-02-27T15:19:00.000-08:00

Jodie finally braved the snow to come to the studio to craft herself a delightful pair of felt slippers...meanwhile I worked on ...more scarves!

Painterly Felt Workshop in Istanbul

2010-02-26T20:29:00.000-08:00

For registration information contact: Theresa at:
felter508@yahoo.com

Painterly Felt Making Workshp with felt masters Mehmet Girgic and Theresa May-O'Brien

Istanbul, Turkey September 13-17,2010

$1,000 fee includes:

6 nights double occupancy accomodations

felt workshop/city tour including trips to Aya Sofya,Blue Mosque and Ethnography museums

breakfast & lunch meals

students responsible for own transportation to and from Istanbul

2010-02-26T09:00:00.000-08:00

Beautiful art work from students in Istanbul

simple spring scarves

2010-02-22T20:30:00.000-08:00

Felt Workshops in Istanbul

2010-02-19T05:23:00.000-08:00

Students participating in felt workshop with felt master Mehmet Girgic

kids week @ is183 art school

2010-02-19T05:00:00.001-08:00

felt rice bowls for Chineese New Year

New Painterly Felts from Istanbul

2010-02-18T00:42:00.000-08:00

Felt landscape paintings of the Istanbul coastline and harbor.

"gotta love...gauze"

2010-02-14T11:58:00.000-08:00

working on lightweight scarves for spring..really ..it's comming!

2010-02-09T03:08:00.000-08:00

Berkshire Artist GeGe Kingston has asked us to participate with her at a local fundraising event.

It will be a nice chance to reconnect with local artisans

Farm Chic, A Jewelry & Accessories Sale

Benefit for Berkshire Grown

Sunday February 28, 2010

11am-3pm

Allium Resturant

42/44 Railroad Street

Great Barrington, Massachusetts

JOIN US THERE !!!!!!!!

Mehmet Girgic UNESCO Living Treasure in Turkey

2010-01-14T13:14:00.000-08:00

Mehmet Girgic was given the distinction of national Living Treasure of Turkey by UNESCO for his lifelong work as a felt maker. UNESCO believes living expressions of cultural traditions especially through oral history is critically important. I have witnessed first hand that this accolade is well deserved. Mehmet has not only promoted the craft of felt but also taught this craft to numerous individuals around the globe! Congratulations!

Afiyet Olsun!

2010-01-08T12:35:00.000-08:00

Working on ideas for my children's felt work book and cooking!!

Afiyet olsun!

2009-12-22T21:33:00.000-08:00

December has been busy breaking in the new studio. The space is wonderful andwe are looking forward to offering more workshops in the new year!

Yurt in First Snow

2009-12-06T01:41:00.000-08:00

The partially set up yurt is waitng Mehmet's arrival so we can finnish the roof!

Looks a little fantastical with the fresh snow covering!

Worksing on more wool and caashmere hats..they are comming out lovely!

2009-12-04T14:45:00.000-08:00

New Shipment of Wool from Konya!!!

Beautiful natural dyes wool just in time for December workshops.

With the wool came wooden hat blocks and saop....super hat making here we come!!!

Wool and Cashmere Felt Hats

2009-12-03T18:45:00.000-08:00

Felt Hats for the Catskill Fiber Celebration December 4,5,6 2009 at the Woodstock Firehouse on Zena Road off Rte 28

Felt Vessel Workshop at ikonium studio

2009-11-30T23:57:00.000-08:00

December Workshop Sign ups

2009-11-20T12:20:00.000-08:00

Getting excited as folks are signing up for classes at the new shop!!

The work studio is shaping up and the yurt will go up soon!

2009-11-15T07:03:00.000-08:00

December Workshops and Open House

at İKONİUM STUDIO

36 Old Rte 20

New Lebanon, NY 1225

607 435 5215

felter508@yahoo.com

DECEMBER Workshops with Mehmet Girgiç & Theresa May-O'Brien

9&10 Felt Table Runner/Painterly

11 Felt Bag/Seamless

12 &13 Felt Vest/Lightweight silk & Wool

14 Felt Hat/Seamless

15 Felt Accessories/Beads & Flowers

17 FeltVessels/Seamless

19 FeltScarf/Lightweight silk &Wool

December 18 4-10pm Wine &Cheese & Shopping

meet the artists

Hand crafted halı, kilim,felt Garments & Homegoods for sale

2009-11-10T02:50:00.000-08:00

Süper Felt Workshop This Weekend! More classes being organized for December!

2009-11-02T16:28:00.000-08:00

Getting warmed up in the New lebanon Studio!

Stop by and check out the shop.

I will be organizing some workshops soon.

simple wool sketch

2009-11-01T18:08:00.000-08:00

Jumping into felt work at the new studio in New Lebanon,NY !!

wishing to get into the studio to make felt!

2009-10-31T03:25:00.000-07:00

2009-10-30T19:18:00.000-07:00

2009-10-30T19:13:00.000-07:00

2009-10-04T19:03:00.000-07:00

Just in from the Vermont Sheep and Goat Fair.

It was a little soggy on saturday but we were graced with sun on sunday!!!

Here are some snipets from the festival

Felting at 5

2009-10-02T03:15:00.000-07:00

Up at 5 am food, meditation and felt..its a great way to start the day.

It will be a rainy weekend so I am planning my course of attack for the weekend Vermont Sheep & Wool Festival.

Delicious new rugs and felts

2009-10-01T15:28:00.000-07:00

It is always like christmas when I get packages from Konya. New gorgeous knotted rugs and super contemporary felts are now spread across my living room floor. Meanwhile I am working away on felt pocketbooks in the kitchen...welcome to the house of wool!!

2009-10-01T03:25:00.000-07:00

Spent a super day with my fiber finatic friend Denise !

Bought buttons to inspire me for new pocketbooks and made some bling bling felt earings for my 76 year old mom to wear to a party!

morning inspiration

2009-09-29T06:09:00.000-07:00

Inspiration for kitchen felting then off to see the Berkshire Hills and Dales girls....lokks like it will be a great day!

Felt Exhibition in Istanbul

2009-09-28T19:39:00.000-07:00

Here is the link to the gallery where we will be exhibiting a collection of felt work for the month of October

Ready, set ,Go!!

2009-09-28T19:13:00.000-07:00

Getting ready for the whirl wond of teaching an dwool festivals for the month of October, meanwhile organizing a new shop! Mehmet will be here soon to help out, yeah!

I will be at the Vermont Sheep & Wool Festival in Tunbridge, VT this weekend.

Artistic Identity crisis

2009-09-28T06:46:00.000-07:00

It has been 8 years since I first met my creative partner Mehmet Girgiç. I have apprenticed under his master craftsmenship as a felt maker since that time. We have been a good influence on each others creativity and together created some new and exciting techniques for contemporary felt making. We have traveled extensively teaching our art form and our love for wool!

We have given ourselves a number of business monikers trying to find the right one and in the end..we will probably go with Mehmet's old business name of Ikonium ..as it will cost way too much money to make a change. So if you see the names Thefeltmaker or Woodscapeartistry or Kececi ..it is all us tyring to find who we are!

Visit our website http://www.woodscapeartistry.com/ to see where you can find us teaching feltmaking or selling our hand crafted felt goods!