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Writer's pictureTheresa Filarsky

Workshop travels and Ecoprinting on Leather

On the road again!

On the road again 🙂


My workshops usually involve travel. My most recent was  teaching participants how to ecoprint on leather and paper and creating leather journals from our efforts :-). My car was packed and it looked like I was moving!  Air travel was impractical and the drive meant I could stop over with neglected relatives enroute. But there’s a good reason people go to Florida during the winter 🙂 I’m back now from a 2 week jaunt down there (and Georgia) and  I made time to actually turn it into a working vacation! Anyone who is a self employed artist knows how hard that can be!

I have taught workshops for a long time. You can’t be a painting artist and not share tips and techniques with big and small workshops.

Theresa teaching a “Paint your Dog” class at Jerrysartarama workshop space


So when the opportunity came from my friend, Suzanne Connors, to teach my ecoprinting techniques on leather and watercolor paper at her Aya Fiber Studio in Stuart, FL, I said “sure!” I chose leather and paper because once the techniques were mastered, my students would have the skills to create beautiful art journals for friends or for sale.

Not all workshops have such exotic locations! In this case, Florida’s weather was a far cry from what was happening in NC.

Views from the Aya Fiber studio


The 4 day workshop kept us busy! My students learned about the leathers that worked best for my technique, the papers that worked, leather tools, end products and created some amazing journals.

Students at their tables


A full hide on the worktable


Not all workshops end with finished products. But I felt it was important that they have finished pieces to refer to when back home in their own work spaces.

Ecoprinting on leather


Ecoprinting on different leathers


practice books


A finished leather and watercolor paper art journal


A finished leather and watercolor paper art journal


examples of additional leather techniques


leather journal



Additional techniques added a WOW factor to the leather and everyone had gorgeous results!

sheets of watercolor paper


Workshops do not have to be held in inspiring places. I’ve been in dusty expo buildings, recreation halls and similar places. My North Carolina studios are in the country and I share them with my artist hubby, Stephen Filarsky. It offers a different ambience-just as inspiring-but in a totally different environment in the country!

Below is a busy workshop I held in an Expo building in Michigan. My participants were just as enthusiastic!

Workshop in livestock building in Michigan


Below is the art studio transformed into a workshop space for my participants (we also hold painting workshops in here of course)

Workshop in my art studio


My workshop studio


May roses at our studio!


April and May are the time the heirloom “rescued roses” bloom at our location!

Our alpacas


A few alpacas provide not only fiber but entertainment for little ones who often mistake them for camels lol!

As long as people wish to learn new skills and techniques and involve themselves in the beauty of art, there will always be classes and workshops :-). Embracing the unknown in the arts broadens the mind and fills that creative space in your soul that just waits for some kind of inspiration!

And as a bonus to my teaching trip to FL we took a sunset cruise recommended by the studio. I missed the manatee that swam up to the studio docks but not on the hour long cruise! I had never seen one before!

Manatee and baby


So I am off to unload my car, (which looks like I moved half of my studio!) but adding

The Golden Hour


a parting image of what is called “The Golden Hour” on the water. We were able to enjoy it from the quiet puttering of the electric boat (and also why we could silently come close to the manatees)

Until next time!-Theresa

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