Tools of the Trades: American Handmade Implements & Devices is the first exhibition of its kind to highlight beautifully designed, hand-crafted tools made by contemporary toolmakers and artists in the United States. It celebrates the ingenuity born of necessity and the special narratives in the hand-crafted.

The objects pertain to a wide scope of crafts: ceramics, textiles, hot glass, wood working, and metal, including the niche fields within them, such as blacksmithing or spinning.

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Give the gift of uniqueness this holiday season!

Shop exquisite glass art handmade by our international community of artists as well as Pilchuck Glass School merchandise.

Every purchase made on this site supports artists and the legacy of Pilchuck Glass School.

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2024–25 Lab Grant Residency Artist Sam Moyer will discuss her experience working at Dieu Donné Paper Mill to develop her first series of handmade paper works.

In her series Soft Mods, she used alternating layers of translucent abaca and pigmented cotton, in shades of Payne’s grey. Working intuitively, Moyer manipulated paper pulp in a sculptural way, creating images that seem composed of light and shadow.

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12:00 – 1:00 pm ET

This virtual artist talk will feature Timothy Barrett and Paul Wong discussing how they each developed archival, conservation-quality papers that were used to rebind or rehouse national treasures in our libraries and archives.

Moderated by Director of Artistic Projects & Master Collaborator Tatiana Ginsberg.

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Wool embroidery has offered needleworkers expressive texture on many types of textiles throughout history.

Learn about a few of its various iterations in this introductory class while stitching your own floral piece with yarn from the instructor’s sheep.

A kit is included in the class fee; students also provide some supplies. Each kit includes the tools and materials for one student. Kits will be available for pick up or can be shipped for an additional $10 fee. Suitable for ages 18+.

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Join Swedish textile artist and educator Kerstin in weaving a weft-facing repp band, a technique where the weft is given more space and a pattern is built up over time, much like a drawing or picture.

Using their band weaving loom and materials, students will develop skills in this intermediate-level class.

Suitable for ages 12+. Students provide their own materials and should be comfortable warping their small rigid heddle loom ahead of class; please see the full materials list link.

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Enjoy the relaxing art of needle felting while making a textile as pretty as a painting.

Using a piece of felt as the canvas and wool roving as the paint, students will work alongside textile artist Kayla Ann to create a 2-D folk-inspired floral bouquet in wool.

Suitable for ages 16+, the class fee includes a kit that has the tools and materials for one student.

Kits will be available for pick up at the American Swedish Institute starting January 22 or can be shipped for an additional $10 fee.

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Create a sweet felted chickadee inspired by Minnesota’s north woods in this afternoon-long class.

Students will follow step-by-step instructions to transform hand-dyed wool from the instructor’s own sheep into a small felted chickadee.

Class fee includes a kit. Each kit has the tools and materials for one student, including a needle felting base, felting needles, and wool roving.

Kits will be available for pick up at the American Swedish Institute or can be shipped for an additional $10 fee.

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Virtual class: Saturday, January 17 – Sunday, January 18, 10 am – 12 pm CST

Join Swedish textile artist and educator Kerstin to design and begin weaving a repp band, a style where warp threads tightly cover the weft threads.

Students will practice creating a pattern, warping, and starting to weave a repp band over two online sessions using their own small, rigid-heddle band weaving loom and materials.

Suitable for ages 12+.

Students provide their own materials, details in the link.

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This is a live virtual class.

Create a festive ornament using needle felting techniques alongside teaching artist Kayla Ann!

This fun project utilizes cookie cutters to create a felted ornament with clean lines, even shape, and adorable details. This class is ideal for beginners.

Kits are included in the fee and include wool and felting tools for one student (cookie cutters not provided). Kits will be available for pick up starting 12/4, or can be shipped for $10. Registration closes on 11/24.

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Five decades ago, the most influential craft exhibition ever staged, OBJECTS: USA, toured America. New York-based gallery R & Company revived the exhibition in 2020 and 2024, ultimately resulting in a traveling version that pairs work by artists from the original exhibition with those of contemporary makers.

America has changed a great deal over the past fifty years, yet the creative capacities of individual makers remain one of America’s most inspiring cultural wellsprings.

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Woven in Wool: Resilience in Coast Salish Weaving showcases both historical and contemporary woven items, including blankets, tunics, hoods, and skirts.

Journey through the seasonal cycle of weaving, from gathering materials and spinning wool to dyeing with natural ingredients and weaving intricate designs. Along the way, learn firsthand from weavers and gain insight into the deep cultural and scientific knowledge embedded in every strand.

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with grant support by:

Free Public Flameworking demo with Shane Fero, master of the medium for 50+ years!

Live in person at the Sonoran Glass School in Tucson, AZ and Live Streaming via YouTube @sonoranglassart.

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with grant support by:

Art talk and hot glass demonstration with Kazuki Takizawa.

Free and open to the public. Also live streaming on YouTube @sonoranglassart

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with grant support by:

Hot Glass Blowing and sculpting Demo with Karen Willenbrink and Jasen Johnsen, in person in Tucson at the Sonoran Glass School and Live Streaming via YouTube @sonoranglassart.

January 30 2026 from 5-7pm Mountain time.

Join us for this free public demonstration event!

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