Quilting & Design Workshops
Japanese Boro: Stitch to Mend & to Create (1 to 2 days)
New! Come experience boro, the artful Japanese tradition of hand sewing. Born of a need to revive & reuse worn textiles, fabric scraps are patched and “mended” into renewed fabrics. Simple running stitches and sashiko thread create patterns that are elegant and complex. Boro or "country sashko" is often densely stitched. Bring a variety of fabrics. commercial prints, hand-dyes, etc., perhaps some with difficult to use patterns. You're also welcome to bring a garment or object that needs upcycling.
Kantha: A Hand-Stitched Quilting Tradition
New! Expand your quilting vocabulary with Kantha. Originating in India, recycled fabrics are layered and patched with hand-sewn running stitches fill backgrounds. Batting is minimal or non-existent so stitches create ripples and shadows that change with the direction of sewing lines. Designs can be improvisational or abstract or they can include simple embroidered figurative elements. Traditional kanthas tell a story--something about the maker's life. We can adapt images, make up our own stories and replace some of the embroidery with raw edge appliqué. This class is stand alone or works well after the boro class.
Edgy Slow Stitch: Applique & Quilting (1, 2 or 3 days)
New! Applique and quilt in one step. Raw-edged fabric is basted by hand directly to a foundation of batting. Inspired by Japanese boro mending, creative quilting stabilizes and completes the textile. The intent is slow stitch hand work throughout, but the technique is adaptable to sewing by machine. Bring a design idea and fabrics and we'll tackle it!
Snapshot: Start a Picture Quilt (1, 2 or 3 days)
Create fabric pictures--landscape, still life, etc.-- based on assigned snapshots that you bring to class. Pick your favorite photo and adapt it to quilting, using simple tools like photocopies and tracing paper. Begin selecting fabrics that will bring the image to life. NOTE: A one day class produces designs on paper; a two- or three-day workshop proceeds to fabric sketches—fused or raw edge applique.
Natural Lines: Mark Free QuiltingTechniques (1 Day)
"Draw" a design on a quilt top without touching it. Learn about lines--an important last design step in a quilt. Use mark-free methods for transferring designs to fabric and choose hand and/or machine quilting options. Techniques involve simple, available tools. Students work on samples and, if available, a previously completed top. Step away from the straight and narrow and try irregular patterns especially suited for picture quilts.