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workshop

Button, Button, Who's Got the Button?

No sewing machines used in this workshop, which can be a half or full day program.



1/2 DAY WORKSHOP: Plant a nosegay of button flowers on a sample quilt block. As you go, you'll discover and cultivate at least a dozen wild & crazy ways to sew on a button, adding a special decorative accent to your quilts, any wearable, or accessory.

PLEASE BRING THE FOLLOWING TO CLASS:

  • 16" square quilt sandwich: quilt top fabric, batting, and backing
  • Embroidery floss or pearl cotton in green and other assorted colors
  • Embroidery needles
  • A jarful of buttons—any kind, but sew-through buttons are the most versatile

ALTERNATE 1/2 DAY WORKSHOP: Craft your own original buttons for any quilt or wearable—there's no better way to get the colors, size, shape, and feeling that will match your quilt surface perfectly. You can also create a beautiful guild pin, or a stunning piece of contemporary jewelry. Try your hand with easy-bake techniques using polymer clay and/or shrink art plastic (which I will provide).

PLEASE BRING THE FOLLOWING TO CLASS:
  • A toaster oven if you have one—ideally one for every 6 people Let me reassure you: There will not be toxic fumes or plastic residue to mar your oven for future use in baking.
  • Metal spatula or pancake turner
  • Potholder
  • 4" x 6" rectangle of tagboard or posterboard
For Clay-Work:
  • Small bricks of Sculpey or Fimo polymer compound in at least two different colors
  • Optional: seed beads, bugle beads, fine metal ball chain, plastic beveled jewels, and other glass or metal accents to press into the clay
  • Wax paper
  • Rolling pin
  • Small paring knife
I'll bring some rubberstamps and other assorted goodies for marking, cutting, and pressing textures into the clay, for students to try out.

For Shrink Art Plastic (Shrinky-Dinks):
  • Fine tip, permanent-ink marker: black--other colors optional
  • Scissors for cutting thin sheets of plastic
  • Hole punch
  • Optional: crayons, colored pencils, small acrylic paint set with fine, tapered brush, guild logo or other line-art graphics no larger than 4" x 6", scrap paper and pencil.
I'll provide: a 4" x 5" sheet of shrink art plastic for each student (more can be purchased). I'll also bring my decorative hole punches, marking pencils and pens, decorative-edge scissors, for students to try out.

FULL DAY WORKSHOP: We'll do it all! A bonanza of beautiful button techniques! See the lists above for materials and supplies to bring to class.

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