2026 Workshops • Pine Needle Arts

Each workshop participant will receive a SEASON PASS to the Laguna Art-A-Fair for each workshop they attend. Tickets can be picked up at the ticket seller’s booth anytime after you purchase a workshop. All workshops are 4.5 hours per session, from 10:15 am to 2:45 pm. Open to individuals 16 and older, unless otherwise specified (12-15 permitted with parent/guardian participation.) All materials are provided (except as noted). Workshop fees are non-refundable. Parking Information.


 

Pine Needle Basket

Pine Needle Baskets

with
Grace Swanson

Learn to make a basket made from long leaf pine needles, using waxed Irish linen, an assortment of beads or other embellishments, starting with a stone center. Topics to be covered include the differences between pine needle types, preparing the needles, waxed Irish linen, basket centers, embellishing your basket, and how to start and how to finish your basket. Students have the option to weave a basket, a pendant, or an ornament. Basketweaving is a wonderful way to recycle from nature and is also a meditative activity.

My main artform is gourd art which grew out of my childhood in Nigeria where I lived until high school. I decided to learn pine needle weaving so I could embellish the tops of my gourds with pine needles. I discovered that I really enjoyed working with them and now make pine needle art and pine needle baskets. 

My pine needles are sourced from the Southwest United States. Each piece is unique and takes many hours. a real labor of love. Some may hang on a wall, and others may be displayed on a stand.

Limit: 6 or 10 Participants depending on date
Skill Level: Beginner and Up

––
Pine Needle Basket

with Grace Swanson

  • Sun 7/12 - Limit 6 Participants

  • Tues 8/4 - Limit 10 Participants

  • Tues 9/1 - Limit 6 Participants


Story Wheel Prism

Story Wheel Prism

with
Jenny Goit

Make a Story Wheel light catcher using reed and a simple coiling technique. 

Weaving Light — The Story Wheel Prism.  In this hands-on workshop students create a circular Story Wheel light catcher using reed and a simple coiling technique. Beginning from the center, participants wrap and stitch reed as the form spirals outward into a sculptural circle. Glass beads accent the outer edge, a pine needle fringe creates natural texture around the rim, and a large faceted crystal prism is suspended in the center—transforming the piece into a radiant light catcher that scatters light when hung in a window.

Jenny Goit is a Southern California fiber artist known for her sculptural baskets and contemporary fiber art. Working with natural materials such as pine needles, reed, and fiber, her work blends traditional basketry techniques with a modern sculptural approach. Inspired by the landscapes of the American West, Jenny enjoys sharing the art of coiling through demonstrations and workshops that introduce students to the rhythm and beauty of this ancient craft.

Limit: 6 Participants
Skill levels: Beginner and Up

––
Story Wheel Prism

with Jenny Goit

  • Sat 8/29

  • Sun 8/30