General Information
It was January 11, 2009 when I headed east to Shelburne Falls, MA for a 5-month apprenticeship at Vavstuga Swedish Weaving & Folk Arts (www.vavstuga.com). Needless to say this has been an unexpected and interesting experience. Becky Ashenden (owner of Vavstuga and weaver extraordinaire) had a business partner who was quite ill upon my arrival and subsequently passed away on April 1, 2009. This left a void in the business' day to day operations so I stepped up to the plate and became an employee. My coveted apprenticeship was put on hold.
I work full-time as Operations Manager which leaves little time for weaving let alone life. I live in a small garrett apartment on the 3rd floor of a Victorian-era house just two blocks from the studio. In fact, everything essential is located two blocks away. I've enjoyed living in this idyllic New England town.
I have attempted to offer workshops in Parkman, OH but with a 520-mile commute this just does not seem feasible. Although I approach life with sometimes super-human zealous I'm finding that I need to focus on my current position as Operations Manager at Vavstuga. I will not be offering classes in the near future in Parkman but will be commuting to my home more frequently than I had in the past year. I cherish my time with my loving and quite supportive husband, Ernie. When in Parkman I plan to catch up on all-things family, health, friends, and home.
While at Vavstuga in the coming months I plan to implement e-commerce and hire personnel for the office, retail store and order fulfillment areas. Once personnel are in place I will begin to explore the wonderful world of weaving again. Becky and I will be laying out a schedule for the first six months of 2010 in which weaving is in my game plan.
Feel free to communicate with me via email at szconover@conoverworkshops.com.
With kind regards,
Susan Z. Conover
Conover Workshops
440.548.3491 voice
szconover@conoverworkshops.com