Whither next?

As the handwoven wedding dress project draws to a close, I’m starting to think about what I want to do next.  The latest Shuttle, Spindle, and Dyepot had an article on their TLC (Teaching and Learning through Correspondence) program, which is a year-long program of directed self-study.  You come up with a topic you want to explore, they pair you up with a mentor, and together you come up with a plan for the year.

This sounds good to me.  I’ve been wanting to do a more disciplined program for awhile, and this will give me a chance to delve into some areas that interest me.  I like planning and do better with concrete goals and schedules (I am a project manager, after all!), and this will let me lay out more or less what I want to do without binding me irrevocably if I decide to explore a different byway in the same topic.  So I am seriously considering it.

Topics that currently look intriguing include doubleweave, using Photoshop to create new drafts, and tied weaves.  I’d like to play with color, too, but that can be done in any structure.  So I have sent out some feelers to various potential mentors, which will hopefully spark further discussion about possible things to explore.  I don’t plan to commit definitively to anything before Convergence, though, and will probably do one or two projects in each area to see if I enjoy working with that particular structure.  Tied weaves and (stitched) doubleweave are typically two-shuttle endeavors, for example, so if I don’t enjoy using two shuttles there’s no need to torture myself with them for an entire year!

The other thing I’d like to learn is (more about) couture sewing, and/or pattern drafting, but I think I want to focus on weaving for now.  They say it takes about 10,000 hours to become a master  at something.  If I include the time I’ve already spent, I think I can do that in 9-10 years of concentrated study.  Sounds like a lot…but I suspect the time will fly!