Quilter's Retreats

Amy Davidson - Thursday thru Sunday, June 26 thru 29, 2008

Hip to Bee Square is a very easy fat quarter quilt. It goes together quickly and gives a 3-D illusion. It looks like the blocks float on the background fabrics.

Spend some time with Amy and learn how to combat bad piecing, strong arm pressing and other problems that plague quilters. We will make a beautiful quilt, but even better, we will explore all of Amy's "get outta jail free" tricks to fix it when it's not playing fair. Learn what a "Screaming Intersection" is and why having a big bottom isn't all bad

Hip To Bee Square supply list: 

About Amy...

Mark!

Mark Lipinski - Thursday - Sunday, August 21 - 24, 2008

As a designer, Mark's work has been seen in McCall's Quilts,
McCall's Quick Quilts, Quiltmaker, American Patchwork and Quiltings
Quilts and More, The Quilter and Fabric Trends magazines and has been
a guest on HGTV's Simply Quilts.

He has also launched a line of his own quilting patterns, called The Quilts
of Pickle Road. Mark has been commissioned to design products and
workshops for IslandBatiks (Bali and California), M&S Textiles (Australia),
Langa Lapu (South Africa), Wrights EZ Tools, Libas Limited Silk and the
Prym Dritz Company. Mark has also designed a line of fabric for Troy,
named Katmandu, which made it's debut at the Fall 2007 Houston quilt market.

His work with a senior citizens group won the "Viewer's Choice" award at
the The State Guild of New Jersey Quilt Convention (the largest all volunteer
show on the East Coast) and had been commissioned by The National
Council of Jewish Women to design, teach and construct a quilted huppa
(a wedding tent or canopy) project for the group which has been completed.

A veteran, Emmy Award nominated and Cable Ace Award winning, talk
show producer and programming executive, he worked on shows such as
Oprah, The View, The Joan Rivers Show, Attitudes and Ricki Lake (to name
but a few). Mark has also conceived and developed an innovative magazine
for quilters named Mark Lipinski's Quilter's Home, which is published by
CKMedia and is available on newsstands and by subscription.

Locally, Mark is the past Vice President of the State Quilt Guild of New Jersey,
the past Vice President and Quilt Airing Coordinator for The Common Threads
Quilters, and member of The Nubian Heritage Quilters, The Garden State
Quilters and The Brownstone Quilters.

On a national level, Mark is a member of the Quilt Professionals Network,
Studio Quilt Art Associates, and the American Quilter's Society.

A native of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, Mark has called home to San Francisco
(where he was a social worker at The Childrens Hospital of San Francisco
and headed up the milieu program for the Adolescent Day Treatment Center),
Miami, Chicago, and Manhattan.

Mark and his family moved from the hustle and bustle of New York City into a
historical 1864 fixer upper in Long Valley, New Jersey where he raises honey
bees and laying hens when hes not being called to his design studio (where
his family will one day find him dead and crushed by the too many bolts of
fabric and years worth of magazines and books that he has, cant throw away,
and will never use).

Gyleen Fitzgerald - Thursday - Sunday, September 4 - 7, 2008

Spider Hexagon

About Gyleen...

About Gyleen
Quilting is my passion!

I've been quilting since 1981 and began needlework at the very young age of 4. My Bachelor of Science degree in Chemical Engineering from Drexel University combined with my love of art provided the foundation for creating instructional lectures, workshops and patterns that encompass: design, quilt making and expression of colour. My quilts blend colour, pattern and texture to provide a contemporary essence to traditional quilting. I've gained support and enthusiasm exhibiting both locally and nationally and was ecstatic at being a "Best of Show" and a repeat blue ribbon winner. My writing life came much later; I started with technical reports, moved to technical instructions and finally got the courage to do creative organized thinking. My written works center around Haiku poems, quilt patterns and magazine articles and of course the crème de la crème, books. I have authored and published two books, The Dream and Poetry and Patchwork. You can see my published work in Quilt Magazine, Patchwork Quilting and Quilter's Almanac magazines.

I opened Colourful Stitches in 1999 and formed its first subsidiary, FPI Publishing in 2005.

Edyta Sitar

Edyta Sitar - Thursday - Sunday, October 9 -12, 2008

About Edyta
Edyta's love for fabric began at a very early age when she cut her mothers' drapes to create her first fabric project. Her mother recognized Edytas passion for fabric and she taught her the skills required for sewing. Creating beautiful gowns initiated Edytas journey into creative textile design and was a building block into the quilting adventure that lie ahead of her. Edyta considers her marriage to her husband Michael one of her biggest blessings. She not only fell in love, but she built a close relationship with her mother-in-law Carol and grandmother-in-law Anna; two women who introduced Edyta to their family tradition of quilting. Edyta has always possessed a desire to express herself about the objects or occasions in her surroundings and now quilting design is the avenue she chooses to release this passion. The combination of inspiration, a love for fabric, a keen eye for color, and her family teachings blended into the recipe for developing a thriving talent for designing quilts, innovative quilting patterns, and beautiful fabrics for MODA. My children and my husband are my greatest motivation; this is like a Cinderella dream for me, being able to do what I love and sharing this love with others is the greatest feeling and reward I could imagine!

"Every time I begin a new quilt, it is normally because of a person or event that has inspired me. Sometimes it can be for a loved one in need, birth of a child, a thank you or simply a tribute to a natural beauty that I have experienced, such as a lovely sunset. The first person that inspired me in quilting was my husband's grandmother - Anna Sitar. Her love and patience that was invested into quilts will forever remain imprinted in my mind. Great quilters have taught, inspired, and challenged me to develop a love for quilting and I hope to be able to share some of the beauty of quilting with you."

Pam Hively

Pam Hively - Thursday - Sunday, October 16-19, 2008

"Folded Fabric Sampler"

This unique quilt is an eye-catching wall hanging that makes people ask "How did you do that"?

For the quilt maker, it teaches nine folding techniques from easy to more difficult with helpful hints to make yours stunning. You will see examples of how to use each technique in its own quilt. As a bonus, there is a surprise tenth folded block to use as a quilt label on the back.

Although Pam has been quilting for 8 years, she believes her quilting skills have really accelerated when she began working and teaching classes at Cindi Layne Fabrics, Inc.

There she is encouraged to work on her own quilt designs and then teach them in class offerings. Pam has a BS in Elementary Education and a Masters in Library Science. She keeps busy working and teaching, as well as raising her two boys and dabbling in various crafts.

Amy Davidson

Amy Davidson - Thursday - Sunday, October 23 -26, 2008

Amy's "Mad For Plaid" supply list 

Nancy Odom

June 25-28, 2009

 Timid Thimble

Nancy has appeared on three episodes of Simply Quilts with Alex Anderson and on America Sews with Sue Hausmann. She is a featured teacher and lecturer at quilt shows, quilt guilds, and quilt shops. Nancy's designs have also been featured in McCall's Quilting Magazine and For The Love of Quilting magazine. Nancy designed and quilted A Mother's Legacy , the 2005 International Quilt Association donation quilt. She has also created quilts for P&B Textiles, Hoffman Fabrics, Benartex Fabrics, Bernina Sewing Machines, and Viking Sewing Machines. Timid Thimble

Joan Shay

Nantucket Hydrangea: 2 Days

Students are instructed to come to class the 1st day with their basket tubes cut and sewn. The basket is then woven and attached to the background. The 2nd day is devoted to appli-bonding the hydrangea blossoms, needle-turn applique, stem construction and finishing touches. (A sewing machine is not needed!) Size: 26" x 31" Needs List - Tools Required pattern ($5.00/each)* Basic sewing supplies Fabric scissors * Paper scissors White marking pencil* Blue water-soluble pen* Template material (or pre-cut templates*) Template marking pencil Cutting board / rotary cutter / ruler Celtic bias bars * Appliqué / straw needles* Appli-bond needles* Embroidery needles Embroidery floss: green, cream, beige White glass seed beads (optional)* Gold metallic thread Thread to match fabrics Glue baste-it or glue stick* * These products will be available for purchase in class. Needs List - Fabrics For flowers and leaves yd each of 4 shades of fabric for Hydrangeas Background fabric 27" x 30" Assorted green fabric for leaves 1 yard Heat N Bond Ultra Hold Iron on Adhesive yard for binding For basket 1 yard fabric for basket " x 8" strip wood grain fabric for basket base yd fleece or flannel Complete kits are available in class Homework In order to devote more class time to the construction of the basket, please cut, sew and press the vertical and horizontal tubes for the basket, as instructed below, before class. The staves are the vertical basket strips. The fillers are the horizontal basket strips. Basket Fabrics Staves 1 " x 44" ( cut 8 ) Fillers: 1 " x 44" ( cut 7 ) Rim: 1 1/8" x 15" ( cut 1 ) Base: " x 8" ( cut 1 wood grain fabric) Handle: 1 " x 28" bias strip. Note that true bias is not necessary. Construction Without pressing in the crease, fold the strips for the staves, the fillers, and the handle lengthwise, wrong sides together. Sew along the raw edges with a " seam allowance. Trim the allowance to 1/8". Cut the stave tubes in quarters ( approximately 11" each) and the filler tubes in thirds (approximately 14 " each). Be sure to keep the staves and the fillers separate. Using the appropriate bias bar, press the tubes so that the seams fall in the center back of the tubes, not along the edges.