Workshops at the FarmMake
your visit to Joybilee Farm a
joyful learning adventure by including a workshop.
Homeschoolers, Families, Teachers, Corporate groups welcome.
Workshops must be prebooked.
Fees are per person with a minimum of three people per workshop.
Private tuition available.
How it works: You pick the workshops that interest you. Gather your friends. Create your vacation itinerary and call Robin to prebook the workshop on the day its convenient for you. A minimum of three people are required to receive the quoted costs. Private tuition is available at $30 per hour plus materials -- minumum charge $75.
Payment of 50% of the tuition fee required at booking --
Cancellation with refund allowed up to 7 days before the workshop date.
Workshops in Fiberarts and Homesteading available.
joyful learning adventure by including a workshop.
Homeschoolers, Families, Teachers, Corporate groups welcome.
Workshops must be prebooked.
Fees are per person with a minimum of three people per workshop.
Private tuition available.
How it works: You pick the workshops that interest you. Gather your friends. Create your vacation itinerary and call Robin to prebook the workshop on the day its convenient for you. A minimum of three people are required to receive the quoted costs. Private tuition is available at $30 per hour plus materials -- minumum charge $75.
Payment of 50% of the tuition fee required at booking --
Cancellation with refund allowed up to 7 days before the workshop date.
Workshops in Fiberarts and Homesteading available.
Fiber Arts Workshops:
Contact Robin to book a workshop.
Beginner Spinning -- Care and Maintenance of a Spinning Wheel,
Basic drafting techniques, and twist control. Learn to spin singles yarn for knitting or weaving.
2 hours -- $50 per person. Full per person Workshop fees may be applied to the price of a new Spinning Wheel if purchased during the class.
Beginner Spindling -- for spinners on the go -- Basic drafting techniques and twist control. Plying from two spindles or a centre pull ball. Winding a ball of yarn on a nostepinde. Making inexpensive spindles from found materials.
2 hours -- $50 per person, including materials.
Spinning Dog and Cat Hair -- Spin a special yarn from
your precious pet's hair. Learn
basic spinning techniques and apply them to spinning yarn from your own
animal. Learn the special techniques necessary for working with
short, slippery fibers and the design considerations for knitting or
weaving with hair fibers.Bring your own wheel or use one of ours. 1/2 day $75, including materials.
The Care and Feeding of Angora Yarn -- Find out about the special needs of angora rabbits and how their care differs from other rabbits. Learn how to groom the rabbit during their seasonal molt to harvest their prime, luxury fiber.
Then move to the spinning wheel and learn how to handle this slippery,
soft and inviting fiber using special techniques. --
1/2 day workshop, $75 including materials. Bunny not included but available for purchase)
Beginner weaving -- weave a scarf on a rigid heddle loom -- Learn the weaving techniques of plain weave, interlocking weft and ghiordes knots while weaving a joyous, unique scarf on a rigid heddle loom in just 3 hours from warp to twisted fringe. You will learn how to apply creativity to the weaving process in free form weaving technique. Your final scarf will be as unique and full of personality as you are.
3 hours, $75 per person including materials.
3 D felting -- jewelry, scarves -- Wet felt in 3D and make a basic bangle bracelet to understand the properties of wool and felting and then apply what you've learned to a larger project -- a scarf or hat.
3 hours, $75 per person including materials.
Needle felted teddy bear
s -- A project for the whole family -- using a sharp barbed needle create wool sculptures with personality and class. Felting techniques will be explained and there will be lots of room for creativity, laughter and fun. Younger children can make a felted ball while older family members work on their teddy bears.
2 hours, $50 per person, includes materials and bandaids. Children 5 and under free, when accompanied by a paying adult.
Wet felting -- Spa Bars -- Using both needle felting and wet felting techniques
wrap a bar of natural goat's milk soap in a sweater of wool and create a unique gift.
2 hours, $50 per person, includes materials for two Spa Bars.
Washing Fleece and Fiber preparation - Learn how to effectively wash wool and mohair and prepare it for spinning using both carding and combing techniques. Try spinning yarn
samples with each preparation to understand the advantages of each.
2 hours, $50 per person
Natural Dyes -- Take a walk through the woods to the Dye Po
t -- Learn
to identify local plants rich in dye chromophores and tannins.
Make a mordant bath and several after dips and dye wool yarns in
several sample shades from just 1 or 2 different plants. Learn
why natural dye colours evoke mystery and culture and how they differ
from chemical dyes.1/2 day -- $75 including materials -- July to October only, dress for the weather and wear walking shoes.
Natural Indigo -- Witness the mystery of the natural indigo vat. Learn several shibori resist techniques and apply them to the twisting, folding and stitching of two silk scarves or cotton fat quarters. Dye the scarves or fabric in the natural indigo vat and see the
magic transformation of cloth with this ancient dye.
1/2 day -- $75 including materials.
Growing a sustainable blue -- The Woad Plant and its dye -- Learn about this unique and generous dye plant, significant through out history as the main source of blue dye in Europe till the mid 1700s. Understand how to grow and harvest Isatis tinctoria to get the most from this plant. Learn the details of its unique extraction process by harvesting woad l
eaves from the Joybilee Farm Dye Garden and
extracting its blue dye for yourself. Understand the chemistry of
the woad plant and see it transformed before your eyes into
indigo blue. Learn how to alter the dye process to achieve
several shades of blue as well as other colours such as pink, beige,
peach, yellow, red and green from just one plant. Full day workshop -- $125, includes all materials including yarn and dye chemicals. August only.
Direct Contact Dyeing -- Take a walk through the woods and the natural dye garden and learn to identify plants rich in chromophores and tannins. Then skip the dye vat and learn how to make leaf, flower and seed prints directly on silk for a beautifully uncommon, natural dye scarf -- a memento of your visit to Joybilee Farm.
2 hours -- $50 including materials --July to October only.
Contact Robin to book a workshop.
Homesteading Workshops
Butchering on the Homestead -- Learn to butcher your own healthy, farm raised meat from small livestock. Learn the basics from humane killing, proper bleeding, clean handling of the carcass and skinning. Discover how to cut and wrap for your family use. The economics of raising meat on the homestead will be discussed as well as recipes for using your own healthy, delicious farm raised food.1/2 day, $75 -- wear a coverall. (October to April only)
Goats Milk Mozzerella -- making cheese from your farm fresh milk --Mozzerella cheese is a fresh cheese that is stretched and acidified to make it melt when heated. Learn the basic techniques for successful mozzerella cheese making from raw goat's milk.
Recipes for using goat's milk mozzerella will be discussed.
1/2 day workshop, $75. -- June to September only
The Herbal Medicine Chest -- "The leaves of the tree are for the healing of the nations" Rev. 22:2 Learn how to appropriate the healing in the herbs that grow wild in this area. Take a walk and identify medicinal plants in the wild and in the garden. Learn their uses and the best time to harvest them for full value. Take home recipes for making basic salves, balms, teas, tinctures and lozenges to stock a home medicine chest and take control of your family's health and well being.
1 day workshop, $100, includes materials, and take home samples, and a book list for further reading. -- 1/2 day workshop, $75 -- July to September only.
Building a Homestead Business from the Ground Up -- Break free from wage slavery and find peace in the current economic turmoil. Learn how to evaluate the strengths and w
eaknesses of
your farm or homestead and to plan for diversification.
Capitalize on the strengths and interests of your family members
to gain their cooperation and ensure success. Understand niche
marketing and develop products or services that will enhance what you
are already doing on the farm. Learn how to create a business plan and
how to evaluate it and make changes to keep your small farm profitable.
Building a website and internet marketing will be discussed as well as
other areas of diversification -- agritourism, value added products,
and branding. Minimum 3 people -- Maximum 10. 4 hours, $75 per person, includes farm tour and notes.
Private Consultation fee: $75 per hour, with Robin Dalziel, BA, MBA, CGA, and retired CFP
with 11 years experience farming -- full time for 7 years.
Contact Robin for more information or to prebook your workshop