Show Quilts and Class Planning
Two of my quilts got ready for a show - of course I waited until the last minute to sleeve and label them. I did schedule the get-ready project on my calendar. Is it still procrastinating if you schedule something the day before it’s due?
Sunflower and Scrappy Scallops got sleeves this week. They also got labels and they’ve been turned in the Tucson Quilters Guild for our annual show on January 28 and 29.
Both quilts are in judged categories - Sunflower in the Applique category and Scrappy Scallops in the Modern category.
Believe it or not, this is the first time I’m attaching sleeves that aren’t flat. I’m making room for the hanging rods! (I should have been doing this all along but it always seemed too complicated and the idea of a weird puckery thing on the back of my quilt was not appealing to me…)
It’s not really that hard. =) And I’ll probably not notice the puckering. Or maybe I’ll just remove the sleeve at some point.
Planning a New Class
Most of the time, I’ve made a quilt (or a single block) and someone may tell me the project would make a good class. If I think “yeah, I could teach that”, here’s some of the usual steps I go through.
Recreate the project in my head, jot down a few notes, imagine how it might look in different colors, and pick some new fabrics.
Identify main learning objectives; draft a class description and supply list. Often these are needed before I’m totally ready to teach.
Break the project down into chunks (for example: selecting fabrics, piecing blocks, adding borders…) and write down some steps for each chunk.
Consider what illustrations, photos, or videos might help clarify the steps.
Draft an initial outline and consider how it might look as class handouts.
Actually remake the project following the initial outline draft.
Edit the outline as necessary.
Generate any helpful illustrations.
Take any photos or videos demonstrating the steps.
Finalize the outline and any other helpful handouts.
Write some teacher notes and a draft preliminary time schedule.
Below you can see a few of these steps happening with the main outline for the new mandala applique class.
Mandala Class Outline
Early draft of chunks 7, 8, and 9 with some placeholders for illustrative photos.
The main handout is coming along really well. I only need to replace two placeholder photos with the actual photos and proofread the text several more times. Oh!!! Maybe I should also add some references to any supplemental videos demonstrating the steps. ???
Printed two-sided on 11”x17” heavyweight paper, the four-page handout makes a nice booklet when folded. Looking at it, I didn’t leave a lot of room for note taking. Hmm… the ease of the booklet goes away if the outline is more than four pages… And students do bring their own note taking supplies… I’m just thinking out loud here…
Inaugural Mandala Class
I have nine (9) days until I teach this class for the first time. This feels comfortable - I’ll be ready.
The inaugural class is important and kind of fun. Occasionally there are bugs that require a creative solution - but that’s part of what makes life enjoyable and interesting. Also, we work out the timing, which up to this point is a guess. Usually we’re pretty close.
Bowling
Last weekend I finished 5th in a local Tucson tournament. This weekend’s bigger tournament that was drawing bowlers from out of state got cancelled because of Covid concerns. Kinda sad, but now I get more time to quilt!!!
Next big bowling events are two regional pro tournaments in Las Vegas the first weekend in February. Maybe I should practice…
Next Time
If it’s interesting, next time we’ll talk about what we learned from the inaugural Mandala class and any improvements I might want to make.
Quilt your way!