WE'RE SORRY!
CLASS IS FULL

Mightn't every Album need an open wreath? . . . And a thank you to a hero? This wreath from her book, Baltimore Elegance, is particularly beautiful. Its sophisticated asymmetrical balance adds visual excitement; its potent symbolism gives it depth of meaning. Elly has even deciphered the mysterious "bundle of sticks" tied with a blue bow (found it on a mid- 19^th century women’s association chart) with a meaning all quiltmakers will endorse! While the antique original was all cotton, Bette Augustine's 8" block here invites exquisite, soul-satisfying fancywork! Imagine your soul set free by twining a stitched tendril in and out of the wreath – punctuating it with wee knotted berries; shading buds in colonial knots held by ultrasuede calyxes, picking leaves, from a pointillist print, satin-stitching the chain in rayon floss. What a lovely way to start the Academy's 15^th Anniversary – fancy threads, Thanks, and Appreciation. Choose your own block size.

Skill Level: All
Lab Fee: $6 towards ultrasuede or ribbon

Return to Top of Page

Ornamental Fabric Framing! With Jenifer Buechel

To embellish, adorn, or beautify all refer to the process of lifting the ordinary to the extraordinary, and Jeni has all the skills to show you how to bring your appliqué to the next level of design excellence. Settings for appliqué blocks are often traditional borders and sashing, but what if your settings could be as interesting as the appliqué blocks themselves? Surround your appliqué with "ornamental fabric frames" from classically simple to elaborate elegance. Jeni believes nothing can highlight your appliqué blocks better than a companion fabric frame. Walk with her through the entire design process from finding inspiration and fabric choices to drafting and starting to stitch. This is a confidence building class where the "D" word (design) is demystified with plenty of tips, techniques, and encouragement a-plenty! Plus embellishment techniques that will give your quilt its own unique look, Two days to discuss, plan, doodle, draft and definitely stitch guaranteed to elevate your skills and your appliqué designs. Elly notes, "Every year, Jeni’s innovative Victoriana gives our needleart new life!"

Skill Level: Intermediate

Return to Top of Page

Love the idea of personalizing your album blocks to reflect the flowers in your garden (including realistic beauty and shading) but have no formal or informal art training? Where to start? Debbie began with those questions too, and is excited to share her successful techniques with you. Beginning with her mother’s garden and adventurous spirit she experimented with photos, and found easy ways to make patterns that would allow her fabric flowers to come alive. Debbie will also share ideas and sources where you might look for copyright free flower patterns. She will guide you as you learn how to shade your flowers through the creative use of fabric (be assured; no artistic ability necessary)! Learn how the selective use of fabric can create the leaves that complement the flowers; to build off-block appliqué pieces to effortlessly create your flowers; how ultrasuede can create your stems/thorns; and that an outline embroidery stitch makes fine stems that continue where the ultrasuede left off. Beware, your fabric stash could take on a new look as you learn how to view both patterns and fabric differently! What a nice way to begin your days at the Academy!

Skill Level: All
Required Lab Fee: $15.00

Return to Top of Page

Wreaths flourish in the Baltimore Album Quilts often encircling heartfelt sentiments, inkings, memorials and more; and friendship, love and truth are offerings of quiet symbolism in design elements such as the triple looped bow — with "blue for truth" implied! In traditional colors of red, green and blue, this classic wreath of layered roses is set in a 12.5" design area to blend with blocks from Elly’s books. Expertly drafted by Nancy, this block will provide tricks and techniques for stitching layered roses; split buds and leaves constructed off block; and the center of this block is perfect for an inking — what better way to memorialize your trip to the Academy than an inking of the Governor’s Palace from Colonial Williamsburg. The second of a hoped for series of Nancy’s blocks featuring buildings from the historic area, inking will be the first lesson using a rubber stamp! Instructions for perfect appliqué stitches, smooth curves and sharp points, reverse appliqué, and accurate placement are all included in this compact and well-rounded class. No one is better at teaching successful, complex block construction than Nancy, and her attention to detail, warm heart, and excellent teaching skills assure success for all.

Skill Level: Advanced Beginner and Up
Lab Fee: $10.00

  Return to Top of Page

Center medallions can spring from anywhere, and Emily has demonstrated this perfectly with her creation of this charming two-block wonder from two favorite blocks in Elly’s books, Peonies from Baltimore Beauties and Beyond, Vol I, and the heart block from Baltimore Elegance. Emily has assembled this quilt as a wallhanging/table topper, but it could just as easily become an extraordinary center medallion in your next quilt. The delightful peony is the focus of each small central 8" block, and the four block setting is winsomely off set with cheerful, repeat tulips on the outside edges. Class time will be devoted to the development of both designs while you learn to produce accurate repeated shapes with the help of an overlay. Cutwork appliqué is the technique used to develop the tulip blocks, and Emily will guide you through an easy process that allows you to add a second color to a cutwork pattern bringing excitement to your blooms as you stitch. The simplicity of successful design using repeat patterns will open your eyes to endless possibilities with the added bonus that so few fabric choices are required — with unexpected and spectacular results.

Skill Level: All

Return to Top of Page

Shaped to gather and store gentle dreams and happy memories this open wreath holds them safe. Roses, buds and berries are carefully shaded to offer touches of sun and shadow to this woodland delight with bursts of yellow for happiness sprinkled throughout. What better place to forever store your flights of fancy. We are so lucky to have award-winning quiltmaker, Sharon Schamber, with us again generously sharing her extensive expertise. Students continue to praise Sharon’s classes as her open sharing of tips and techniques seems never ending. Success and confidence is always achieved with her guidance, and this original design is another exquisite example of her magical machine appliqué and one of 9 new patterns first offered at here The Appliqué Academy. Sharon’s secrets of latticing with "molded" bias stems for floral stems, perfect tiny circles, and naturalistic color shading are only part of how this block was perfected. She offers her unique technique using Appliqué Foundation Paper Light to create the lovely look of hand appliqué yet stitched entirely by machine. Designed for the average quilter who wants to move onto a higher level of work, the entire project is created by machine. If you have loved the idea of machine appliqué, but were afraid to try, this class will allow you to create the most beautiful appliqué ever. Not just for machine quilters, every appliquér will love this class. Machines generously provided by Bernina of America.

Skill Level: All
Lab Fee: $15 which includes foundation plus video
Optional Fabric Kit: $25 which includes all fabric needed

Return to Top of Page

With the rich tradition of English paper piecing leading the way this exciting class uncovers how the time-honored technique translates so perfectly into today’s appliqué quilts. Judy will guide you through the design possibilities adding texture, color, and spark to your appliqué blocks with classical shapes to accent and dress up your designs. With a myriad of patterns to chose — hexagons, pentagons, diamonds, tumbler, jewel and many more — these classic shapes can be sewn together and appliquéd in framing patterns, borders, accents and embellishments; or strewn about like ornamental gems to enrich your appliqué or quilt with a fresh touch. Bring blocks of appliqué of any design motif to see how with a splash of English paper piecing your work can be magically and beautifully enhanced. Judy encourages and inspires her students with her easy manner; and her personal touch is legend with her students many of who return to her year after year.

Skill Level: All

Return to Top of Page

Are there ever really enough sunflowers in our world?! "Sunflower Glory", in all its cottage charm, celebrates the sunflower and boasts fanciful birds and luscious fruit among a cascading leafy garland. Jeanne’s original design is brought to life through the perfect complement of conventional, dimensional, layered, gathered and fussy-cut appliqué, Broderie Perse, ruching and a tasty bit of embroidery. As always, Jeanne will work to help you achieve truly invisible appliqué stitches. With a heavy emphasis on technical skills, you’ll spend information-rich, fun-filled days fine-tuning your needle skills with Jeanne’s easy, precision techniques for getting great results. Learn to make even your smallest appliqué pieces behave for the pointiest points, smoothest curves and deepest "v’s" — consistently! Fortified with skills and confidence, your stitching time will be more relaxed and joyful! The project can be completed in your choice of a standard 12" finished block or custom-sized to your specifications. Join Jeanne in jump-starting this year’s Academy with a burst of sunflower sunshine, heirloom sewing and the best girlfriends on the planet! Each day promises to be filled with tips and tricks to make your needle sing! We’ll laugh some, learn a lot and stitch ‘til our heart’s content!

Skill Level: Confident Beginner to Advanced
Lab Fee: $12
Optional Fabric Kit: $25 for fabric kit. Offered in a 12" Block Size. Includes all fabric for background and motifs as seen in photo.

Note: Please contact Jeanne directly by January 5, 2010 to order your fabric kit and/or arrange for a custom size block. Thank you.

Return to Top of Page

This elegant vase brimming with florals creates a bouquet in the signature style of the Baltimore’s Albums. This lovely block, found in Elly’s book, Dimensional Applique, offers a lush fountain of greenery, buds and blooms. You can almost smell the flowers! The curvaceous handles and fabric choice for the vase in this design are all about fabric selection, and touches of reverse appliqué used to compliment the pattern of the fabric create added dimension. Nadine offers her well-versed talents to help you successfully create stuffed roses, folded rose buds, ruched roses and buds, tulips and forget-me-nots. And what about rick rack? Nadine says, "Reminiscent of my mother's white rick rack rose earrings worn with a beautiful summer dress in 1955, we will make our own roses in the same style. My Mom would love this part. I think that you will too." You will finish with perfect circles, embroidery and ink embellishments and, most important of all, discover that you are just that much more skilled at the end of the day.

Skill Level: All
Lab Fee: $8.00

Return to Top of Page

Weave, then joyfully overflow your artisan basket blending traditional appliqué with elegant embroidery stitches to fashion exuberant buds, blooms, and a ladybug or two. Tulips, rose buds, lilies, gerbera daisies, Canterberry bells…can you feel spring in the air? Experiment with innovative techniques, stumpwork, new embroidery stitches (damask, padded raised stem band, woven picots, to name a few), and multiple thread mediums (gimp, silk floss, wool, ribbons)! "Weave" your basket, then walk with Jan through the garden picking "flower" techniques to fill your basket with buds and blooms. Master silk cocoon and wool calyxes, carnations, and more. All this plus a "stitcher’s workbook" to record your lessons. The reformatted "smaller" workbook makes a lovely "embroidery design studio". This sampler portfolio allows you to continually add to your library of stitches with each new block. The added bonus of a detachable sewing kit makes it easy to design and stitch on the go! Elly notes: Can’t you almost feel it coming? These ornately embellished 8" Album blocks seem to beckon to a Baltimore Revival all their own!

Skill Level: All
Required Kit Fee: $35.00

Return to Top of Page