Workshop: Design and Sew a Kjolsäck

This class runs Friday, June 23 through Sunday, June 25, from 9 am-5 pm each day at the American Swedish Institute. The final afternoon is a gathering with students from other weekend classes.

Join Johanna Runbäck, a lead instructor from Sätergläntan Institute for Craft’s hand sewing program, for a weekend of sewing a Swedish kjolsäck, or decorative skirt bag. Johanna travels to us from Dalarna, Sweden, where she teaches in the three-year hand sewing curriculum. These small bags (also called pockets) have served as both useful places to keep personal items close as well as decorative elements in folk costumes. A seamstress specializing in hand-sewn folk costumes, Johanna will guide students through the design, embellishment, and assembly of their own kjolsäck. Students will first examine historic examples from ASI’s material collections and Johanna’s personal collection, identifying shapes and stitches that will become the basis for a new pattern. Then students will practice various embroidery stitches and applique on the wool front before assembling the pocket with a linen lining. The finished pocket will be about 8” x 10” in size and a beautiful complement to a folk costume or modern outfit!

A $50 materials fee is included in the class fee and includes all necessary materials and tools. However, students are also invited to bring decorative elements to make their kjolsäck unique and personal, such as buttons, beads, beautiful cotton fabric, thicker wool yarn or decorative ribbons, and their favorite sewing needles and other hand sewing tools. Students should also bring magnification (e.g. readers) if they need it. This class is suitable for students 18+; students will be most successful with this project if they have previous hand-sewing experience.