Meet Our Instructors:

Farm Pickings

News and Updates from Sanborn Mills Farm

— January 25, 2023 —

Emma Woodward, left, and Emily Ostroff used traditional techniques

to hand-build the 20-over-20 Grange windows.

Let There be Light:

Windows for the Grange

One of the most striking features of the restored Grange at Sanborn Mills Farm is the set of huge 20-over-20 light windows that punctuate and give rhythm to the Grange’s walls and overall design. There are 12 of these windows in all, and 10 of them were handmade by two of the Farm’s carpenters, Emily Ostroff and Emma Woodward. The windows were constructed using a combination of traditional and modern techniques; all of the wood for the frames and muntins (the pieces holding in the individual panes) came from the Farm’s own timber, sawn in the water-powered sawmill and then milled in our woodshop.

In the shop, Emma and Emily made jigs to make building the windows a consistent process, and Emma made all of the mouldings with a hand plane.

Each window comprises two 20-light sashes (hence the 20-over-20 designation). Much of the glass was already on hand at the Farm; Emily and Emma used a glass-cutting tool to cut the individual panes to size. “We used glazing points to hold the glass in place,” says Emma. “Glazing putty, primer, and the finished black paint weather-seal the glass.”

The result is a well-lighted interior of the Grange. In the daytime there’s more than enough natural light to read by. Some finishing work still needs to be completed inside, and once done the Grange will host workshops and community events, just as it did at its original location in Loudon, N.H.

Meet Our Instructors:

Jo Hesse

Jo Hesse learned her craft all over the world – literally. She attended the Freie Hochschule for textile crafts in Stuttgart, Germany, then studied under master feltmakers Mehmet Girgic (a UNESCO honoree) and Theresa Girgic in Konya, Turkey, along with her father Kent Hesse. Since then she has exhibited her textile work at the APE Gallery in Northhampton, Mass., and at the Bombyx Center for Arts & Equity in Florence, Mass. Images of her work have been published in Fiber Art Now and Rug Insider. Currently she teaches at the Bowsprit Foundation in Maine. She and Kent feature their work and teaching on the website The Ram & the Worm.

Her five-day workshop at Sanborn Mills Farm, Felt Area Rugs: Traditional Turkish Felt Beating, runs from April 12 through April 16. Students will learn how to make their own fully functional thick felt area rug patterned with geometric designs from undyed wool. One of the skills taught by Jo in the workshop will be “kicking” the felt with what she calls “a dance-like rhythm.” In traditional Turkish felt rug-making, this rhythm can be sustained for days at a time.

Jo’s workshop is a rare opportunity to learn a traditional Middle Eastern rug-making technique from someone who is skilled and well-practiced in the craft. Plus – she’s a delight to know! Learn more about her at www.theramandtheworm.com

To register for Jo’s workshop at Sanborn Mills Farm, click on this link: Felt Area Rugs: Traditional Turkish Felt Beating.

Photo Credits

Photos of Jo Hesse courtesy Jo Hesse.

All other photos by Steve Bjerklie.