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10
NW QUILTING EXPO
September 2012
While attending the Northwest
Quilting Expo, make sure to
introduce yourself to the many
vendors and instructors on-hand
sharing knowledge — and unique
quilts.
While the list is extensive, here is
just a sampling of the variety of
skill-sets showcased at this year’s
event.
■
Store life in your pocket:
Marsha McClintock said she is
excited to teach attendees how to
incorporate her
popular SAF-T-
POCKETS into
their clothing at
her lecture.
“I will be
showing lots of
i n t e r e s t i n g
details on SAF-
T - POCKE T S
garments such
a s
h i d d e n
pockets, reversible garments,
surface embellishments and unique
garment closures,” McClintock said
of the fashion that functions —
patterns with pockets.
The patterns — also shown
online at saf-t-pockets.com — are
designed for customers to wear for
convenience while traveling or for
everyday use.
“You can look classy,” she said,
“but still have the benefit of hidden
pockets.”
■
Save time during last steps:
Michele Crawford with Flower Box
Quilts — flowerboxquilts.com —
said her demonstration highlighting
machine appliqué and quilting
hopes to encourage quilters to
machine appliqué as the last step in
making a quilt.
“Basically, I piece the blocks and
borders, machine quilt the quilt,
bind the quilt and then fuse and
either machine- or hand-appliques
as the last step,” Crawford said. “I
hope that once a quilter sees my
technique and samples, they will
see what a time-saver it is to
machine- or hand-applique as the
last step of a quilt.”
Crawford said that she likes
working with new fabric collections
and designing quilts that will
showcase the fabric used to make it.
Her two books “Just Cut the Scrap”
and “Just Cut the ScrapAgain”were
written to encourage and inspire
quilters to use the fabric they
alreadyhave “in creating interesting
and colorful quilts that utilize a
variety of different techniques,” she
said.
■
Pick a pattern:
Deb Karasik
with debkarasik.com will teach this
year’s attendees through a variety
of classes with different patterns
such as “Turning Over a New Leaf,”
making little stylized leaves for a
quilt; “Batik Wheels,”making a
colorful wall hanging; and “Arizona
Sunrise,” using double spiked rows
and gentle y-seams to create a wall
hanging.
“I teach my students to get over
their fear of paper piecing. I show
them that not only can the process
be fun, but it
also enables the
s tuden t
t o
a c h i e v e
o u t s t a n d i n g
results they
could never get
with traditional
p i e c i n g , ”
Karasik said. “I
teach several
different ways to
set curves, so each student can find
away that is comfortable for themto
use.”
She also noted that all of her
workshops include a quilt binding
demonstration.
“As a quilt judge, the number
one problem with most quilts, is
the binding,” Karasik said.
Karasik said she is looking
forward to “being with all my
students, seeing extraordinary
quilts that are made by such
creative, talented quilters — and
the magical energy you always feel
at this event.”
■
Make quilt-inspired jewelry:
Fran Valera, creator of Little
Windows resin and photo jewelry,
will have ongoing booth demos,
“teaching people how to
photograph their quilts and turn
those photos into jewelry,
embellishments and buttons they
can wear with pride,” Valera said.
The Little Windows website —
little-windows.com—also features
other ideas for personalized
c r e a t i o n s
u s i ng
f ami l y
photographs.
“We’ll be
showing just how fun
it is to use our safe and easy resin
and tools to create gorgeous
pieces, which are lightweight and
waterproof,” Valera said. “This is
our first time at the NW Quilting
Expo, and we’re so very excited to
meet these creative quilters and
offer something new that ties in
with their creations.”
■
Try templates a new way:
Carol Bledsoe with Sew EZ
Quilting, Inc. — sewezquilting.com
— said she is excited to teach her
class “Templates the Marti Way”
at the expo.
“I will be teaching how
templates from Marti Michell can
make piecing a quilt more accurate
— even if it is for a simple block,”
she said.
Bledsoe noted that some people
don’t understand how a template
works when quilting.
“I want to teach them a new
approach to cutting with a
template,” she said. “I also want
them to know that they are a very
useful tool that improves accuracy
and reduces frustration when
piecing a quilt.”
This show gives Bledsoe
another chance to be creative,
which, she said, is her favorite
aspect to quilting. And using her
artistic license is important when
personalizing a quilt.
“I very rarely do things exactly
like the picture,” she said.
And she encourages other
attendees at this year’s expo to
unleash some creativity and enjoy
the displays.
“I always look forward to this
show. There are always excellent
quilt displays,” she said. “Last year,
I found the book club group’s
quilts. I’m really looking forward to
seeing that exhibit again this year.”
Weaving together an unforgettable weekend
■
Check out a
sampling of the
talent-on-tap at
this year’s expo
By
NICOLE DeCOSTA
Pamplin Media Group
Marsha McClintock Saf-T-Pockets
Marsha McClintock
Deb Karasik
Michele Crawford
Deb Karasik’s Arizona Sunrise
Fran Valera has created an entire cottage industry with her Little Windows creations.
CONTINUED / Page 16