Why I Teach

Having recently returned from a great quilt teaching trip, I have been thinking about why I do this. Travel away from home, spend time with strangers, stay in hotels where sleep is not often the best, and spend hours over many days preparing for that kind of trip.

There are unexpected good surprises, like the call from the hotel front desk that a package had been delivered for me. I loved this guild already and hadn't met them yet:

And more expected things--happy, successful students showing off their work.  Women of the West Alabama Quilt Guild, Tuscaloosa, AL, with their morning efforts making Western Sun. In the afternoon they worked on Flying Geese sashing, learning a variety of methods. Don't they look happy?

How about the next day? More women, and some returning, made lots of 3" blocks as they learned secrets to great piecing with Charming Sampler:

More photos from the two workshops. The students were enthusiastic, friendly, eager to learn, and satisfied with the class--except this Yankee still talks too fast sometimes:

Charming Sampler blocks--Becky B

Charming Sampler blocks--Paula

Rose, workshop coordinator, as she introduced me as the "world renowned Barbara Black"--what a  hoot!

Our temporary Design Wall

All you Guild folks--take note of the 3 x 5 cards taped on the table in front of each person's spot--Rose made these name cards so I would know everyone's name--this is brilliant! I like to call people by name and nametags on chests are often too small to see. She added 4 small pieces of fabric to each to use as "leaders/enders", a bonus nice touch:

                                             

I love Show and Tell. Before Western Sun began, Paula B showed me her Wild and Goosey, finished just the night before. She wasn't sure what she was doing in Western Sun, which has LOTS more flying geese sashing, but she was there. Wild and Goosey is a Bonnie Hunter pattern available in her book Addicted to Scraps: 
 

                                                     

Finally. at the end of the second day this happened: 

They presented me with a guild t-shirt, making me an honorary member

In 2014, I retired from H&R Block, turned 60, had my Red and White quilt  featured as the Commemorative Quilt for the 40th anniversary of International Quilt Festival, had 3 quilts juried into AQS Paducah, and 3 quilts featured in the book 500 Traditional Quilts. The experience in Houston was beyond words but I tried to sum up what that meant to me with this post: Red and White--the Wrap Up. If you only read one of my past blogs, I encourage you to read this one.

As I came home from Houston I thought about what the rest of my life would look like. I wrote:

 I did not expect that this experience would make me even more certain I will spend the rest of my days making the best quilts I can and teaching as many others as I can to quilt.  There is so much inspiration at Festival and I am eager to piece and quilt to my heart's content!  Baby quilts are next up!

Our first grandchild was on the way, oh, joy! And I would now have time to travel and teach quilters who wanted to learn the things I have learned over the many years I have been a quiltmaker.

Travel is hard, yes, even more so today. But quilters I don't know are not "strangers", they are friends I haven't met yet. 

My goal for every class is that EACH student, regardless of skill level, will leave class thinking "I learned more than I thought I would". And they have to have FUN, that's important too.

And occasionally I get a wonderful reminder from a student that I seem to be accomplishing my goal. 

The day after my visit to the West Alabama Quilt Guild, I received this email:

We were so thrilled to have you. It was even better than we anticipated! I learned many things I had never even heard of and feel confident to venture out to try more complex blocks! Many in that Saturday class have been in awe of the more adept quilters and I’m sure they, too, will be inspired to quilt more. After that crisscross block, we are invincible!

Rest assured, we will be asking you to come again!

While I have taught quilting locally for almost 35 years, I  have been "on the circuit" for about 10. I will do this a few more years so if your guild or shop wants to have fun while learning how to improve your  skills, contact me and we can make that happen. 

Let's quilt,

Barbara