A number of classes on dyeing and surface design will be offered at the upcoming Silver City Fiber Arts Festival, July 17 & 18 at the Grant County Center. Ice-Dyeing on Fabric will be offered two times on Friday July 17: at 10 am and at 12:30 pm. Ice dyeing is a quick, easy and safe method for making blended color fabric to use in a variety of personal fiber arts projects. Instructor Judith Kreiger will demonstrate the technique, and participants will leave class with a 5" square of ice-dyed fabric from her collection. In "Embellishing Apparel with Sponge Painting", taught by Blythe Whiteley on Friday July 17 at 10 a.m., participants will embellish a colorful painted cotton top using Procion dye applied with a disposable sponge. A demonstration on "How to Dye with Natural Plant Dyes" will take place on Saturday July 18 at 10 a.m. Fiber artist and weaver, Donna Foley, will show how to use the natural dyes from plants to produce a beautiful palette of color and will also demonstrate dyeing in an indigo vat. There is a small charge for the Ice Dyeing and Sponge Painting classes. Pre-registration for all classes is recommended at The Common Thread, 107 Broadway, Silver City, 575-538-5733, open Mondays 10 am-5 pm, and Thursdays-Saturdays, 10 am-5 pm.

The Silver City Fiber Arts Festival will be held on Friday and Saturday, July 17 and 18, 2015 from 10am-5pm at the Grant County Business and Conference Center at 3031 Hwy 180 East in Silver City, NM. The festival will feature juried vendors of handmade fiber art and fiber art making supplies, a variety of special exhibits showcasing many different fiber art items, classes, workshops, and more. The festival is free and donations are encouraged at the door, to help the Southwest Women's Fiber Arts Collective's nonprofit fundraising efforts.

The festival is a celebration of the fiber arts and is also a major fundraising event for our 501 c 3 non-profit group. The group provides opportunities for rural women to earn income, provides classes in various fiber arts, and helps educate the public about the many different fiber arts. We operate The Common Thread , a fiber art gallery of handmade fiber items by our members at 107 W. Broadway in downtown, Silver City, NM.

For more information about the festival, please visit www.fiberartscollective.org or email scfiberartsfestival@gmail.com or call The Common Thread at 575-538-5733.