Rendezvous in Grenoble, drive to Saint Chaffrey and check into our hotel.

We will meet up in Grenoble in the early afternoon, and drive by van to our rustic hotel in Saint Chaffrey, just steps away from the “Filature” (woolen mill) of Chantemerle. We will check in to our hotel, and perhaps have a tour of the woolen mill if time permits.

A couple of young French fiber artists share their skills at a sheep festival.	photo info

"Wools of Europe" seminar with Marie-Thérèse Chaupin in the morning (1/2 day), explore Briançon in the afternoon and evening.

After breakfast in our hotel, we will head over to the woolen mill to join Marie-Thérèse Chaupin, coordinator of ATELIER Laines d'Europe (Wools of Europe), the European Association for Textile Study, Liaison, Innovation & Research. She will share her vast knowledge of the distinct European breeds of sheep found throughout the continent. By means of photos and samples, we’ll come to see and understand the properties that make them different from each other, and suited to different end products and uses. This gives us deeper insight into the variety of fibers and fabrics we see in yarns, in shops and in garments every day.

After lunch, we will take time to explore the beautiful walled city of Briançon. We will dine together in Briançon, and return to Saint Chaffrey for the night.

Fleece cleaning (1/2 day), then felting workshop (1/2 day) with Magali Bontoux.

On this morning, we will get our hands on a fleece selected by Marie-Thérèse for us to clean, prepare, and eventually spin. We start by cleaning the fleece together. Leaving it to dry, we break for lunch, then spend the afternoon learning about felting, with Magali Bontoux, a local felt maker and natural dyer.

Dyeing workshop (full day) with Magali.

This entire day will be devoted to a plant-based and natural dyeing workshop with Magali. Starting with an introduction to the more famous dye-plants such as madder (red), reseda (yellow) and woad (blue), as well as other local and exotic plants, we will move on to the practical application of various dyeing techniques currently being revived by modern practitioners; particularly fermentation dyeing, and techniques particular to indigo and cochineal-based colors.

Carding/combing (1/2 day) with Marie-Thérèse in the morning, then move to Saint-Véran, explore the village and start spinning with hand-crafted spindles.

The fleece we washed together on our first morning should be dry and fluffy by now. We'll begin our day by carding and combing it, under the instruction of Marie-Thérèse. After lunch we'll say good-bye to Marie-Thérèse and Magali, and drive up into the mountains to the rustic and beautifully preserved village of Saint Véran. After checking into our hotel there, we will have plenty of time to explore this village, it's narrow streets and flower-festooned cottages, its museum depicting the traditional life of the villagers of another era. We'll see artifacts of their hand-crafting industry—in woodcarving and lace-making particularly—and get a feeling for how they made profitable use of long winter evenings and cold days, by necessity spent indoors. In the evening we can begin to spin our own hand-prepared fleece on hand spindles locally carved just for us, and decorated with typical motifs peculiar to this area.

We've been working hard on our creative pursuits, now is our time to get out and enjoy the fresh air of the great outdoors for one full day. We'll hike up to the high mountain hut of La Blanche, and get a taste of the life of the “montagnard” (mountaineer type folk). Alpine mountain huts are designed and built to cater to the hordes of trekkers, climbers, and other outdoor enthusiasts who want to make a real expedition into the hills, but without carrying a heavy backpack. Comfortable bunks with bedding, and a full service kitchen and cooking staff allow hikers to link multiple day outings with a light daypack, and meet interesting fellow travelers along the way. After lunch or a snack at the hut, we'll return to Saint Véran for the night. We may have energy and time to work on our spinning or some other project in the evening.

Visit the Costume Museum in Abriès, afternoon hike, last night together in Briançon.

After breakfast we will check out of our hotel and drive deeper into the mountains, to the town of Abriès. Here we'll visit the Costume Museum, where we'll be able to appreciate fully the expertise and prolific output of the lace-makers of this area, busy and talented women whose lace was highly prized and traded far and wide. The income from this trade greatly enhanced what would otherwise have been quite a seasonal and rather meager family income! We should have time to enjoy a last afternoon of walking and enjoying the expansive views, before driving back to Briançon for our last night together.