Slow Fashion August

August 10-16, 2026
MEDOMAK RETREAT CENTER, WASHINGTON, MAINE

with Rae Hoekstra, Jessica Marquez & Atsushi Futatsuya

A small group of just thirty-six Makers will spend five full days in exploration of line, color, and stitch at a contemplative pace. Surrounded by the woods, on the edge of a lake, with the rustic beauty and charm of Maine as the backdrop. Small groups, individual pacing, natural inspiration-this will be a week for unwinding and exploring....

• Single cabin, $2,250.

• Double Cabin, $2,050.

• Triple Cabin, $1,850.

Registration will open for all on Sunday March 1st at 3:00PM EST

IMPORTANT NOTE: For the best experience of all involved, I will continue to engage Covid protocols. While the danger of contracting the virus is less, it still holds risks for many. I will require first time Campers to provide vaccine records that show up-to-date vaccinations prior to the current CDC administration for participation. (That means records that show vaccines from the inception 2021 to 2025 recommendations.) If you have participated in the past I will not require new records, though will be happy to know that you have gotten them if you choose to share. I will also ask that all Campers take precautions in the week leading up to their visit. More details will be shared once you have registered.

Are you seeking the time and space to slow down and connect with your skills, your agency, your creative practice in community? In these challenging chaotic, isolating digital days, we crave connection and community with other Makers. Maine is a good place to retreat, step back from the daily pace, and spend some time with your peers with needle, thread, dyepots, and cloth. This August, I invite you to join Rae Hoekstra, Jessica Marquez, and Atsushi Futatsuya to make that time and space for yourself.

Join Rae, Jessica, Atsushi, and me at the Medomak Retreat Center in Washington, ME where you can relax, unwind, and dive into your stitching practice. You will sleep in a modern yet rustic cabin, eat three meals a day with the community, and spend as much time as you like with cloth, needle, and thread.  Each day will be spent with Rae, Jessica, or Atsushi learning their techniques and tips, practicing new skills or sharpening old ones. In addition there are two days of time for musings, wanderings, exploration, and epiphany, both of the textile and human variety. The emphasis here is on settling into your Making practice and letting the rest of it float away....

WHAT YOU’LL LEARN:

~Rae is returning, hooray! to share a workshop on pockets! Pocket Power!!!

“Womenswear is littered with fake pockets that don’t open, or shallow pockets that can hardly hold more than a paperclip. If women’s clothes have pockets at all, they are often smaller and just fit less than men’s pockets do. And when we talk about pockets, we are talking about who has access to the tools they need. Who can walk through the world comfortably and securely.” - Pockets: Articles of Interest, 99% Invisible Episode 3

“Look, it has pockets!!” Does this sound familiar? One of the best things about sewing clothing is that you have the power to add pockets to any garment, even existing ready-to-wear garments that never included them in the first place. In this workshop you will explore ways to create, modify or add pockets to existing garment patterns or garments. We will cover basic pocket sewing techniques for various types of pockets, discuss size, placement and height, and learn how to sew inseam pockets with french seams. We will also learn how to modify a garment to include a new pocket or move a pocket to a new location. We will explore hidden or "secret" pockets, and discuss ways to sew and embellish pockets in fun and creative ways. Rae will bring plenty of samples along from her own wardrobe to inspire and empower you. Because to have pockets is to have power. 

~Jessica is returning to share her tried and true workshop, Re-fashioning and Mending. Cause if it ain’t broke then don’t fix it…! Refashioning is all about imaging the possibilities of our textiles. Lets alter our thrifted, handmade, vintage, and unused clothes to make them something different, something that fits our body and style better. These revisions can be simple to complex, from hemming, changing a neckline, adding or removing parts of the garment, including patchwork or altogether scrapping it into something completely different. Who knows where the inspiration will take you! Class begins by looking at a variety of sample garments, then sharing your own garments to discuss the possible creative approaches.  It's an amazing experience to be in a room full of creative sewists eager to encourage and offer up unique solutions to unique dilemmas. There's no one right way and each refashioning is a fun experience to puzzle out. After demos, you will work in community on your individual projects and share your progress at the end of class. In this workshop you will explore several techniques to rework and re-imagine your textiles including hand stitching, mending, and machine sewing. 

~Atsushi is returning to share his Sashiko ways with the fashion folks this year. He will bring his deep knowledge of the Japanese tradition of Sashiko to Slow Fashion. Sashiko, as introduced in English, primarily focuses on "patterns" and the technical aspects of "how to stitch." Some resources may emphasize "how to make even stitches." Occasionally, there is a teaching style that promotes the idea of "embracing imperfection." While it is true that we can embrace imperfection, when a teacher starts encouraging acceptance of being clumsy, it marks the end of true "wisdom." In the Western approach to learning, Sashiko is generally categorized into two broad groups: (1) improving participants' skills in needle control and (2) emphasizing "freedom" in stitching. However, neither (1) nor (2) truly captures the essence of Sashiko stitching. Since many English-speaking teachers have not undergone the proper experience in Japan, they can only interpret Sashiko from their own perspective. Their teachings aren't incorrect, but they lack the most crucial element of Sashiko for us, as a collective of Japanese Sashiko artisans.

In this Sashiko Workshop you will learn the "form" of Sashiko, which leads to mastering unshin—the movement of the needle. This workshop is not the kind of experience that says, "Let's enjoy Sashiko together." It is an intensive learning process that may involve a challenging and uncomfortable phase as participants acquire new skills. We all have muscle memory from past experiences, and some must break old habits to develop new muscle memory. Once this is learned, one can use both the old and new muscle memory, but the learning period can be quite challenging. Most participants find their form within this time, while others develop their own rhythm and form after continued practice. Understanding this fundamental "form and rhythm" is essential in our Sashiko practice.

There will be a kit, with a fee, organized by Atsushi for this workshop.

OTHER FUN STUFF:

You will spend a day with each teacher, with plenty of time for inspirational wanderings.  Two back-to-back, then a break. On the third day we will take a small field trip to the coast and a fabulous local fabric store. Or if you prefer, you can go for a swim, take a hike, do some stitching, some reading, or whatever your heart desires. The last day of instruction on Friday. Then Saturday is entirely for you to do with as you please. Check in with one of the instructors on a technique you need clarification on, take a nap, sew up another muslin, the day is yours!

We will have a clothing swap, so bring any and all wearable items that no longer sing to you, and watch them leave with another, while perhaps bringing something new and thoughtful into your closet. If you don’t have garments to swap, yardage and patterns, yarn, and notions, are always welcome! The swap nights are always tons of fun! We will also have an evening for Garment Stories. Bring a beloved item of clothing that has a story behind it. We will share our stories and our thoughts about the lives of our garments. This evening is always engaging. Our garments hold so many untold stories and memories, it is fascinating to hear them. So much emotion, so much history, culture, identity in our closets. Let’s share our stories.

The primary focus for the week will be on slowing down, taking time, connecting to your practice, the community, and your inner voice. Evenings will be open for more stitching, conversing, knitting, star gazing, cricket concerts, Loon appreciation, and anything else you might like to do in Maine in August....

INSTRUCTORS:

LOGISTICS:

In order to give you some time to check, and double check, your schedule, and confer with partners, bosses, children, parents, and pets, to make sure this will work for you, I delay the opening of registration. This year registration will open Sunday March 1st at 3:00pm EST. I will send an email to my newsletter group when registration opens. If you want to be notified when registration is open, you should sign up for the newsletter, spots have gone quickly in the past….. You will need to pay a non-refundable deposit of $400 to register, and then arrangements can be made for how to pay your balance.

[Deposits are non refundable, but registrations are transferable. All efforts will be taken to accommodate Covid changes, but the virus moves in mysterious ways, and is able to out maneuver me. I ask for your patience and forbearance in dealing with these changes.]