The only weaving class that makes color mixing completely predictable
Color Mixing
Stop guessing. Start knowing.
Learn the five factors that control all color mixing in woven cloth
Predict your results before you weave
4 weeks of instruction + 4 weeks access
April 11 – June 5, 2026
$49
Registration closes March 28
The Missing Piece
You chose beautiful yarns. Rich, saturated colors that looked perfect on the cone.
The cloth came off the loom looking… not like what you imagined. Muddy. Or flat. Or just different – and you had no idea why.
So you stuck with safe colors. Similar palettes. Published recipes. And you stopped experimenting, because that just meant wasting yarn on another disappointing project.
How many skeins are sitting in your stash right now – gorgeous, bold skeins you bought because they took your breath away – that you haven’t touched, because you aren’t sure what they’ll do?
Fortunately, color mixing in weaving isn’t random – and it’s not a matter of talent.
It seems unpredictable because…
Nobody taught you how color actually works in weaving
Color resources skip weaving mechanics – they jump straight to palette selection, color theory, and artistic expression. They don’t explain how warp and weft colors interact.
It’s like trying to learn gardening from plant catalogs without anyone explaining that plants need sun, water, and the right soil.
Color in weaving is fundamentally different from quilting, knitting, or painting. The interlacement of threads creates optical mixing that doesn’t happen in other crafts.
Your struggles don’t come from having “no talent for color” or not trying hard enough. It’s simply that nobody’s taught you the color mechanics specific to weaving.
Five factors control all color mixing in cloth
There’s one phenomenon behind every color interaction in woven cloth: optical mixing. When your eye sees dots of color too small to distinguish separately, it blends them into a single perceived color. Just as a pointillist painting looks like a landscape from across the room, even though up close it’s just dots.
In weaving, optical mixing is controlled by exactly five factors: draft type, yarn size, color patterning, viewing distance, and value contrast.
Five factors. Not “it depends” or “when the planets align”. Five factors that actually make sense.
Once you see that...
Those color surprises stop being surprises. “Why did that happen?” becomes “I knew it would do that.”
And those bold combinations – the ones that used to scare you into safe palettes? They become deliberate choices. Choices you make because you understand what will happen, not because you’re crossing your fingers.
You can finally use bold, intentional color in your weaving!
In Tien and Janet's classes, a light bulb just came on in my head!"
Color Mixing
Four weeks from unpredictable color to complete confidence
Here’s what you'll learn:
- Why colors mix in woven cloth
- The five factors that control color mixing
- How to maximize blending for smooth gradients and subtle effects
- How to minimize blending for vibrant and distinct colors
- How to dial in the exact degree of mixing you want
4 weeks of instruction + 4 weeks of access
to review and practice at your own pace
$49
Less than the cost of one ruined project!
Your instructor: Tien Chiu
Tien has spent over a decade studying one question: why do colors do what they do in woven cloth?
Her approach? Not theory borrowed from painting. Not tips adapted from other fiber arts. Original, hands-on research – thousands of dyed samples and hundreds of woven swatches, each one testing a specific variable to figure out exactly what controls color mixing in cloth. “Anything worth doing is worth overdoing,” she says cheerfully.
Her teaching approach: Systematic, clear, and grounded in evidence. Tien’s superpower is taking complex design principles and making them simple and logical enough for anyone to use. She shows you why things work – not just what to do – so you actually understand the mechanics and can apply them on your own.
Her track record: Multiple weaving awards. Museum-collected work. Handwoven magazine cover feature. 30+ published articles. Tens of thousands of students taught.
How you’ll learn
Four weeks of content, eight weeks to review and practice.
You’ll start with the why — understanding exactly how optical mixing works, and why five specific factors control every color result you’ve ever gotten.
Then you put it to work: two hands-on exercises in the Draft Editor, using your own colors, seeing on screen exactly how your cloth will look before you’ve touched a spool of thread.
Included with your enrollment:
- 15+ written lessons with video demonstrations
- Two hands-on Draft Editor exercises (your yarns, your projects)
- A live lecture with real cloth demonstrations
- Four Q&A sessions — bring your questions, get real answers (all sessions recorded)
- Forum support where Tien participates and answers questions
By the end of class, you'll have
- The complete five-factor framework for predicting color mixing
- The ability to look at any project and know what the colors will do
- The tools to see your results before you weave
- The freedom to work with bold color - on purpose, not on a prayer
Only $49
The color lessons are my favorite so far! Tien is able to break down her mastery of color into easy to understand lessons with practice exercises that help you design on your own."
What makes this different?
The right knowledge for the job
Most color education teaches palette selection and the color wheel – useful for choosing yarns, but not for predicting what happens to them on the loom. Color Mixing teaches the actual mechanics of how colors physically interact in woven cloth, built from a decade of original research in real cloth, not borrowed from painting or graphic design.
Five factors. How they work together. Learn them once, apply them to every project you weave from here on out.
You’ll use it, not just learn it.
The Draft Editor exercises put these principles in your hands – experiment with all five factors using your own colors and see on screen exactly how your cloth will look before you’ve wound a single thread. You’re building skills, not passively collecting information. That’s what locks it into memory so you can apply it later.
You won’t be on your own.
Most weaving classes are videos you watch alone, then go figure out the rest yourself. That’s not how we roll! As you build your understanding, we answer your questions, give feedback on your work, and make sure you never get stuck. We cheer you on, every step of the way. Because we loooove seeing your aha! moments!
No risk
Try the class for 14 days. If it doesn’t click, email us and we’ll refund every penny. No questions asked.
What you’re risking by not enrolling? Another season of playing it safe with color. Another project where you choose the cautious palette because you’re not sure what the bold one will do. That’s a bigger gamble than $49.
$49. Less than a half-day workshop. Less than the yarn you’d use on a single project where the colors go sideways. And it’s knowledge you’ll use on every project you weave from here on out.
Enrollment closes March 28, 2026
Class starts April 11, 2026
(P.S. I won first place at the Minnesota State Fair!)"
Your best color work is ahead of you
You know those yarns? The brilliant ones. The bold ones. The pair you spotted at a fiber festival and thought those would be stunning together – and then put back, because last time you tried something that adventurous, the cloth came off looking nothing like what you’d imagined.
Those yarns have been waiting.
In four weeks, you’ll know exactly how they’ll behave – which draft keeps them vivid and separate, which blends them into something new, what happens at arm’s length versus across a room. Not because you’re guessing. Because you understand how it works.
Your cats may be disappointed that you’re no longer throwing all that yarn away – but you won’t be!
If color mixing has been the question that follows you from project to project – why didn’t those colors do what I expected? – this is when that question gets an answer.
$49. Four weeks. Knowledge you’ll use on every project you weave from here on out.
Enrollment closes March 28 • Class starts April 11
We’d love to show you why your colors do what they do – so you can finally make them do what you want.
Common Questions
No. Color theory – the color wheel, color harmonies, palette selection – is a different subject.
This is the mechanics of how colors physically behave when woven together. Most weavers have never encountered this knowledge.
No! If you can warp a loom and weave a project, you’re ready. We start with the fundamentals of color mixing and build from there.
This class works with any number of shafts and also works for rigid heddle looms. The principles of optical mixing apply to all woven cloth.
We won’t be weaving during this class – so no loom required!
You don’t! The Draft Editor that you’ll use to create designs works in any browser, so the only thing you’ll need is a tablet or desktop/laptop computer. (We do recommend using a stylus for those using tablets, to make editing easier.)
The Draft Editor is easy to use. We’ll provide instructions and demos on how to use it, too.
You’ll get answers! You can post questions in each lesson’s built-in Q&A section, or ask them at the Live Q&A sessions that come with the class. If you have a question, we’ll make sure you get an accurate answer!
Both! You get the best of both worlds.
The lessons are entirely self-paced (and available at the start of the class), but you’ll get live webinars and Q&A sessions, as well as an in-class discussion forum where you can get answers to your questions. The live sessions are recorded, closed-captioned, and transcribed for those who cannot attend “live”.
You’ll have 8 weeks of access (4 weeks of content + 4 additional weeks to review and practice). Access begins April 11 and ends June 5.
Students who want to continue learning can join the full Handweaving Academy membership at $50 off their first year ($149 instead of $199).
No worries! We have a 14-day money-back guarantee (which starts at the beginning of class).
If it doesn’t work for you, we’ll refund you completely.
Still have questions?
Email us at academy@handweavingacademy.com and we’ll answer them!
The Handweaving Academy
P.S. It took Tien a decade of samples and swatches to map the five factors. You can learn them in four weeks. Join us for Color Mixing.