Posts Tagged ‘virtual learning’

The good, the bad and the ugly from Stash Bandit

Written by Diane Harris on . Posted in Blog, How-tos and Ideas, Open Classes for Everyone, Quilt Lifestyle

It has been quite a summer, friends.

I’ve experienced it all: the good, the bad and the ugly. It can be hard to know how much personal stuff to share. I do want you to know that my family has its ups and downs like everyone else. Lately there have been a lot of downs. Below is a video showing how I get in a little patchwork when things are rough.

If you’d like a bunch more ideas for using bricks, come to Sunday’s event: Beautiful Bricks.

It’s the next in my Scrappy Sundays with Stash Bandit series and I’ll share a bunch of things you can do with a simple rectangle. You won’t believe how versatile they are! Here’s a link to the $12 tickets: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/1997845618024?aff=oddtdtcreator

I had to cancel a guild event in Kansas City this week, something I have never done before. I felt horrible but it was unavoidable. They were gracious and kind. I was really grateful for that.

I hope you are sewing up a storm.

Scrappy Sundays is tomorrow!

Written by Diane Harris on . Posted in Blog, Classes, Inspiration, Open Classes for Everyone

We are just 24 hours away from a new edition of Scrappy Sundays with Stash Bandit. I hope you will join me tomorrow!

The featured quilt is called Surround Sound, and it presents a bunch of opportunities for learning. I’m looking forward to sharing helpful ideas for this quilt and others made from scraps or a scrappy vibe.

Tickets are just $12 and they include the pattern, more design ideas and a recording to watch at your convenience. Save your seat! 

I had a great time playing with this concept and I will share many other ideas in addition to the featured quilt. And the “hangout” time at the end is always enjoyable because we all just want to share about making scrappy quilts. I hope you’ll join me and I’ll look forward to seeing you there.

Get a ticket now.

I wish you loads of happy quilting!

Scrappy Sundays with Stash Bandit: Surround Sound

Written by Diane Harris on . Posted in Classes, How-tos and Ideas, Inspiration, Open Classes for Everyone, Quilt Lifestyle

Today I finished piecing the featured quilt for the next Scrappy Sunday session. It’s called Surround Sound and I hope you like it.

As so often happens with ideas, one thing led to another. There is the featured quilt, which I quite like, but then there are several more interesting designs that were inspired by it. Ticket holders will get them all!

Surround Sound by Diane Harris

I’ll be sharing how I make small, medium and large half-square triangles along with other methods so you can find the one that works best for you.

April’s Scrappy Sundays with Stash Bandit: 4/19

Written by Diane Harris on . Posted in Blog, Classes, How-tos and Ideas, Open Classes for Everyone, Quilt Lifestyle

Please join me for the April edition of Scrappy Sundays with Stash Bandit, Sunday, 4/19 at 1 pm Central on Zoom. Tickets are $12 and the featured quilt is Wild Romp, a new design I’ve had in my back pocket for a while. It is throw size, roughly 55″ x 70″.

Wild Romp by Diane Harris, an EQ rendering

Each Scrappy Sunday session includes a quilt pattern plus my demos and tips for making it work with lots of different fabrics. This quilt is much easier to make than it looks—a real bonus!

Your ticket also includes a bonus scrappy quilt pattern because I want to give you a lot of bang for your buck. The bonus pattern will be a surprise. And there’s time to interact with me and others in attendance if you like.

Wild Romp in blues and golds

Each session is recorded so you can attend live or you can take in the recording for two weeks afterwards.

You can make Wild Romp less scrappy if you like this look better. Here’s another version:

I will have a supply list and yardage for the scrappy version (below)

in an email sometime after you get your ticket.

This quilt does take scraps that are a little bigger. You will need a variety of colored pieces that are about 6″ square. You don’t need to have the fabric or even cut anything before the Sunday session. I would wait to shop until you hear the tips because there are several important things to consider. And you might be able to just shop your stash!

This quilt is throw size, about 55″ x 70″. Throws are my favorite size because they don’t take me a year to make and they are easily quilted on a domestic machine. And they’re useful!

If this sounds good, reserve your seat right here.

And please invite your friends! Word of mouth is an important way of getting this info out. Thank you!

I will look forward to spending time with you on Sunday, April 19. We’ll all be in the comfort of our own homes!

Until then, happy quilting!

Quilters Paradise summit March 9 to 13

Written by Diane Harris on . Posted in Blog, Complimentary, How-tos and Ideas, Open Classes for Everyone, Quilt Lifestyle

Next week I’m giving a talk on bricks during the Quilters Paradise summit and you’re invited.

The Quilters Paradise summit is a complimentary online event from March 9 to 13, in which 26 instructors will share on a variety of topics of interest to quilters. There’s a little something for everyone!

Framework is one of the first brick quilts I made. It started me on a journey and I see no end in sight.

There are so many things you can do with bricks! I’m going to tell you how I define a brick and what makes it special. You’ll get a handout that shows a boatload of brick ideas.

This gorgeous brick quilt by Marcia was part of show and tell when I visited a quilt guild in Houston. She started it during a Stash Bandit online workshop. It makes me so happy when people bring their quilts to share with me and others. It never fails to blow me away!

My Break of Dawn quilt design is based on bricks. There’s no end to the fun!

Let me tell you more about the Quilters Paradise summit.

This is a new style of event in the past several years. A group of instructors present material over a period of days and registrants can watch all of the talks at no charge for a limited time.

If attendees want to upgrade to a paid ticket, they get extended access to watch the talks and a bunch of bonus content. But it’s totally optional and you’ll get a lot out of it whether or not you choose to upgrade.

Sunday, March 8 is the last day to register for your free ticket.
Click right here to get it now! 

I can’t wait to share all the best info about bricks with you!

 

Scrappy Sundays: March 22 is a great quilt block!

Written by Diane Harris on . Posted in Blog, Classes, Open Classes for Everyone

I’ve been working on the ideas for the March edition of Scrappy Sundays with Stash Bandit and I hope you’ll love them.

They are based on a very simple quilt block called Strength in Union. I found it in Barbara Brackman’s Encyclopedia of Pieced Quilt Patterns. It’s block #1807 and it has a lot of potential.

Here is the first version I made. I thought about going huge but since I was on a deadline, I opted for this smaller one instead. But it’s easily customizable to whatever size you want to make.

This is a great block through which to learn more about value and contrast, because you really need to place the values correctly or you’ll get a bunch of mush.

Here is an alternate look made with solids. Of course this is an EQ rendering although I did start sewing these blocks a few days ago.

The pattern for Strength in Union is included with your ticket which is $12, and Eventbrite adds a few dollars in fees. Just like last time, there will also be a bonus pattern included—something that helps build your skills in fabric selection.

Get your ticket here: $12 on Eventbrite

There are other ways to set these blocks and I’ll show you those during our time together. I can’t give too much away beforehand! But believe me when I say this is a great block for learning and playing.

This session stands alone. In other words, you don’t need to have been in the first session for this one to make sense. Each Scrappy Sunday presentation will be fine all by itself, but I hope you’ll come to more than one!

And yes, the session will be recorded and made available for you to view for two weeks after the live event.

If you’d like to attend, get your ticket promptly because the first session sold out. I am figuring out if and how I can make the recordings available for purchase when an event sells out, so please stay tuned.

Get your ticket here: $12 on Eventbrite

I can’t wait to share all the fun of this quilt block with you!

Let’s Tango! Fun, easy class.

Written by Diane Harris on . Posted in Blog, Classes, How-tos and Ideas, Inspiration, Open Classes for Everyone, Quilt Lifestyle

There’s still time to register for Tango, a class that happens live tomorrow 4/8 from 11 to 5 Central. If you can’t attend live, you can watch the recording later at your convenience.

Tango by Diane Harris. Photo by Kristin Laing Photography.

Easy piecing has never been so much fun! And Tango looks great in any color recipe or fabric style you choose.

I’ve searched high and low for the name of this quilt’s maker. If you can help,
please let me know. It was started in one of my Tango classes.

The number of finished quilt photos I get indicates that many people do finish their projects, and that’s the best news! None of us needs one more UFO.

Here’s an EQ8 version that I adore. I might have to make this one.

If you want a smaller quilt or a larger quilt, that’s easy to accomplish. The quilt does grow (or shrink) in 9″ increments but otherwise, it’s very doable.

I made these yellow, gray and white blocks recently and I can’t wait to quilt them.

One of the beautiful things about Tango is that you can make it very controlled or very scrappy, or somewhere in between. You can often sew from your stash with no extra purchases needed.

Stephanie Lockhart made this Tango from Alison Glass fabrics and
shot it in a delicious setting.

Once again, you can attend Tango live on Friday, 4/8 from 11 to 5 CDT, or you can watch the recording later at your convenience.

Tickets are $65 at eventbrite.com. Get yours now!

Upon registration, you’ll get an email with a link to the supply list and the Zoom link to attend live, even if you plan to watch the recording. Everyone who registers will have access to the recording.

I hope to see you in class!

Manage your scraps beautifully: Two online quilt classes!

Written by Diane Harris on . Posted in Blog, Classes, How-tos and Ideas, Inspiration, Open Classes for Everyone, Quilt Lifestyle

Join me online January 26 and 28 for scrappy fun during the Quiltfest Virtual Schoolhouse.

Simply Bricks by Diane Harris


#1: Wednesday, Jan. 26, 10 to 4 EST, online workshop for Quiltfest Virtual Schoolhouse

Scrap Management: Brick by Brick

Bricks are so easy to cut and sew but the potential for amazing designs is endless! This class is beginner friendly but more experienced makers will gain new insight regarding value, contrast, scale and more. You may choose from several sizes of bricks and you’ll precut so you’re ready to hit the ground running. A ridiculous amount of fun!

Sunday Sew-In Coming Up

Written by Diane Harris on . Posted in Blog, Complimentary, How-tos and Ideas, Inspiration, Quilt Lifestyle

Today I decided to stop analyzing and just get some events scheduled. The first one is coming up on Sunday, June 6. We had so much fun learning together during Scrap Quilt Secrets so I created a Sunday Sew-In. We’ll hang out and sew on Zoom, and I’ll share a block pattern plus some scrappy tips.

I’ll share a few quilts that are not in any of my trunk shows and you’ll get to see what I’m currently working on. If you want to, you can share what you’re working on, too!

You’ll need a ticket and they’re priced right at just $5. Get your ticket on Eventbrite now!

UFO Clinic for Quilters

Written by Diane Harris on . Posted in Blog, Classes, How-tos and Ideas, Inspiration, Quilt Lifestyle

I had an idea the other day and I decided to go for it! I’ve hosted a UFO workshop many times in person but I wondered about doing it virtually. I think it will work!

You’re invited to join me

Join me for an informal two-hour session and get help with a UFO (that’s quilt talk for UnFinished Object) that has you stalled.

About this Event

I’ve helped scores of quilters regain momentum to finish UFOs and get their sew-jo back. Whatever the problem is, I can help you figure it out and start moving toward completion.

Maybe it was ugly fabrics or a technique you didn’t understand. Perhaps the instructions were unclear or the method was too difficult—or maybe you just need a cheerleader to urge you forward.

Blocks I made a quilt retreat

I’ll be happy to do what it takes to move your UFO into the finished pile.

I’m in! Take me to registration.

A 10 person class will make it possible to help everyone. I will ask for your patience as I work out a system.

I can’t wait to tackle your UFO together!

Click here to register.

This session is an experiment and is priced accordingly. Future sessions may be priced differently.