Classes at AQS Show in Des Moines

"The Fine Art of Echo Quilting" ~ Warm-up exercise

My classes in the upcoming AQS show in Des Moines Oct. 3-6 are almost filled.  Thanks everyone for signing up, and I hope you will love what I have to share with you about machine quilting on a home sewing machine.

The photo above shows one of our warm-up exercises for echo quilting to get you comfy and ready to do some more challenging quilting.

Sometimes these warm-ups turn out so well students have gone on and used them in quilts, with pretty threads, as focal point quilting.  Some have expanded them to fill entire spaces around other designs as wavy, lyrical background quilting instead.  Once you get the hang of even echoes and even stitches, it's fun and easy to do this.

Remember, don't "lazy susan" or turn your quilt sample, even if it is small enough to do so.  You'll be at a loss when you quilt a larger quilt in a home machine and cannot turn it.  It's best to learn right from the start to quilt in all directions, deal with the visibility problems you face in a home sewing machine, learn to adjust machine speed so you don't overshoot or make mistakes in blind spots.  And there will always be blind spots.

This little sample is not perfect, lines are not perfectly spaced, it was done in a class as a demo. You don't have to have perfection to create something beautiful and unique. Instead of making a new sample to show you here that would be a bit better, I used this one so you will feel confident about class, and look forward to coming and exploring quilting with me.

There are a few openings left in "It's Bananas," a 3-hour class that will focus on this design, below, that many have tried from my Quilt Savvy book.  If you want to perfect it, get it to look its best, this class is for you. 

Beautiful Bananas

However, it is also for those of you who simply want to improve all your quilting designs, as much of what I will share with you is what I've learned over the years working with so many talented quilters who have taken my classes.  These important things will be included in all my classes to help you improve your own free motion quilting, be more at ease and more confident.  I want you to love your own quilting.

To register for this class, go to this weblink at AQS.

Fall is in the air here finally and quilting is as well.  I'm packing my teaching samples, preparing handouts, and planning my trip to Des Moines.  I hope to see many of you there, even if you aren't in my class, please say hi.

Keep quilting!  Your work gets better every day,
Diane

Teaching at AQS Des Moines Show in October!

"Podflowers, Froth, Diane-shiko, Pearls...."

After taking some time off from travel and teaching, I have signed on to teach at the AQS Show in Des Moines, IA this October 3-6, '12.  I know many have emailed me regarding my schedule, so I am hoping to see some of you at this event.  You can get all the information at www.americanquilter.com under the "Quilt Shows" menu. 

I'll be teaching some 3-hour classes, and two 6-hour classes geared for home machine quilters. 

There is always a bit of repetition in all of these if you do sign up for more than one, so be prepared to hear some of the info each time.  What we quilt will be different in all of them.  If you want to learn some tips on good free motion quilting, any of the classes will be fine, so don't stress about which one to take.  If you register early you'll be able to choose which one will work best for you.

In the "It's Bananas!" class I'll show you how to quilt this beautiful design, and we'll try some different threads, combine with them with other motifs (if there is time).  In a short class like this I try to spend time with each student so I can give you some individual help, and the rest is instruction for the entire class.   Because the size of the class is large and time is so limited, there is only a short time to be spent with you individually.  I believe because we will have provided machines there will be reps from the company there to help everyone with the machines.

One six-hour class is  all about Perfecting your Machine Quilting.  We'll problem solve, get good stitches, and work on some pretty motifs.  I think it will be a great day.

The other day class is  all about learning to quilt free motion freehand echo feathers.  We'll start easy and work up to some more intricate designs.  These are organic but can be made to look very formal, so it works for both styles of quilting.  Again, we'll also talk about stitch quality, consistency, tension, thread choices, etc. 

Come prepared to dive right in, take some notes, quilt on a provided machine (I think I'll have Berninas but that can always change).  Then you go home, relax, do it some more on your own machine and use the class materials as your reference. 

If you practice some more at home before the class info fades away it helps so much to reinforce what you learn.  Then go ahead and use it in a real quilt. 

Sometimes it's a good idea to prepare something ahead of time to quilt so when you GET HOME there won't be any wasted time.  Also, think of it as a "sacrifice quilt," don't worry if there will be mistakes made in it.  Feel free to experiment on it as you learn to improve you quilting. 

If you have questions about the class, what to bring, your experience, etc., email me ahead of time:  dianequilter@sbcglobal.net

I'm so looking forward to a lovely fall drive to Des Moines, and meeting many quilters I've not had the chance to work with so far.  And of course, seeing a splendid quilt show too.  Oliver says, "Be there!"

Stay cool in this scorching heat,

Diane