I realize I am the odd duck here. It seems most people like to be shown how to do things and rarely learn from a text book. I was the kid that took the textbook home, did my homework, and went back to school the next day finally understanding what the teacher was getting on about.
When the guild announced a workshop day to learn to make a fully lined, zippered boxy bag and supplied the link to the tutorial so that interested people could bring needed supplies, you know what I did? I went ahead, jumped the gun, and made the bag at my own pace and with no distractions.
I made my boxy bag with an exterior of handwoven fabric, the warp being a hand dyed (not by me) tencel and the weft being my own handspun wool yarn. The finished bag is not absolutely perfect, but I'm pleased with it.
I'll still show up at the workshop, but now I can relax because I've done my homework.
4 comments:
Thanks for this post. You are not the only one. Group learning settings are wonderful for those who experience them as wonderful. But they are not for everyone, myself included. Again, thanks for this post which certainly resonates for me.
I totally understand. I had to always sit at the front of the class (thank goodness for a last name starting with "B") In college a professor decided that we needed "assigned seats" (really? In college???) And I was placed at the back. Two classes in, I went to the office and dropped that class.
The bag looks great. I far prefer to sew alone. I need the lack of stimuli to concentrate. I can weave with a group as long as I am not doing a complicated pattern.
I think it would be wonderful to be one of those people that learn well and have fun in a group setting, drygardening, but the fact that I am not was brought home to me rather dramatically when, nearly in tears, I left on day one of a two day weaving course I had paid good money for. The environment that seemed to energize and motivate the others in the group had me confused and incredibly stressed in a way that never would have happened if I had studied alone.
I can weave freestyle with commotion going on around me, Gene, but given a choice I would always choose solitude instead. There is very, very little that I would choose to do in a group setting if there was an alternative. Possible exceptions might be Christmas dinner (family only!) and going to the theatre or other entertainment, also only with family rather than alone.
I like the energy of group learning. I have had the experience with the 2 Schacht Rigid Heddle Loom classes and another class on the Schacht 4 shaft loom. With these experiences, I find so much depends on if the learners bring a friend. When the friends stick together and don't join in on the group discussions the atmosphere can be strained. The questions within the group greatly enhances my learning and that is what I like best.
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