Wool from Fleece to Fabric is a year-long workshop series created and led by Sara Loftus, Ph.D., fiber artist and natural dye practitioner. The series is hosted at Blue Thistle Fibers Mill & Natural Dye Studio in Gauley Bridge, West Virginia.

See workshop availability and book · Browse all workshops · Plan your visit

Let's explore how wool is washed, prepared, naturally dyed, felted, and transformed into knitted fabric. No previous fiber experience is required. Attend one workshop or follow the complete series through the year.

Wool From Fleece to Fabric: A Year in the Fiber Mill

  • Color from the autumn landscape to Pinterest (opens in a new window)
    Sale! Color from the autumn landscape

    Color from the autumn landscape

    Original price was: $75.00.Current price is: $20.00.
  • Felt Making Workshop to Pinterest (opens in a new window)
    Sale! Felt Making Workshop

    Felt Making Workshop

    Original price was: $75.00.Current price is: $20.00.
  • Introduction to Machine Knitting Workshop to Pinterest (opens in a new window)
    Sale! Introduction to Machine Knitting Workshop

    Introduction to Machine Knitting Workshop

    Original price was: $75.00.Current price is: $20.00.
  • Washing & Preparing Raw Wool to Pinterest (opens in a new window)
    Sale! Washing & Preparing Raw Wool

    Washing & Preparing Raw Wool

    Original price was: $30.00.Current price is: $25.00.
  • !
    Washing & Preparing Raw Wool : September 13th, 2026 - 1:00 pm - 4:00 pm
  • !
    Natural Dyeing with Autumn Botanicals: December 12th, 2026  - 10:00 am - 1:00 pm 
  • !
    Felt Making & Needle Felting Workshop: April 24th, 2027 - 9:00 am - Noon
  • !
    Introduction to Machine Knitting : June 12th, 2027 - 9:00 am - Noon

Affordable community access

MidAtlantic Arts Central Appalachian Living Traditions program support allows registration for these three-hour workshops to be offered at $20 per person, including materials (Full value at $75 per person).

Community scholarship seats are also available, with priority for residents of Fayette and Nicholas counties. No essay or formal application is required. To request a scholarship seat, email bluethistlefibers@gmail.com

Sara Loftus, PhD.

Sara Loftus, PhD.

Sara is a fiber artist, natural dye practitioner, and co-founder of Blue Thistle Fibers. Her work explores traditional Scots/Irish textile knowledge, natural color, women’s craft labor, and the connections among fiber, place, and cultural memory.

Why learn inside a working fiber mill?

Participants will work with real materials and encounter the equipment, processes, and decisions involved in small-scale fiber production.

The workshops connect:

  • agricultural materials
  • traditional textile knowledge
  • natural color
  • contemporary mill equipment
  • hands-on making
  • small-scale manufacturing

Blue Thistle Fibers is a working fiber mill and natural dye studio located in downtown Gauley Bridge, West Virginia.

Attend one—or follow the whole journey

Each workshop is complete on its own, but together they tell the larger story of wool.

The sequence

Raw fleece → washing and preparation → natural color → felted cloth → knitted fabric

This project is made possible by Mid Atlantic Arts’ Central Appalachia Living Traditions program.

Grant support allows Sara Loftus to offer the workshops at an accessible price, provide community scholarship seats, purchase materials, and share specialized fiber processes with a wider public audience at Blue Thistle Fibers.

Visit the Mill

Blue Thistle Fibers
314 Main Street
Gauley Bridge, West Virginia

Mill tours are available by appointment. Call 681-560-5749 or email bluethistlefibers@gmail.com.

Workshops take place inside our working fiber mill and natural dye studio.