FULL CIRCLE AT EMPTY SPOOLS SEMINAR

More than two years ago I was invited to teach at EMPTY SPOOLS SEMINAR held every year at Asilomar Conference Center on the Monterey Peninsula in central CA. I have been looking forward to it since then. This is the 39th year, it began the year I became a quilter.

See my post about the place and the experience here: Empty Spools Seminar Part 1

The class I was asked to teach is FULL CIRCLE, a pattern by Wendy Williams. This is a great project for a 5 day Seminar--it has lots to teach and would keep the students engaged for the entire time. My sample turned out great and the quilting by local longarmer extraordinaire Patty Wilson made it that much better:

I have written several blog posts about this quilt, read them here for more info:

What You Can Learn

See the Quilting

Class Taught Locally September 2023

Each student bought the pattern and my 10 page addendum with tips and clarifications. 

I was thrilled to have 21 students, one of the largest classes that Session. They came from all over the country: OH, WI, HI, WA, UT, CO, and CA. The two from Hawaii had taken Western Sun with me in Houston last fall--I was so pleased they wanted another class. The two from Colorado took class with me in Durango last spring--so great to see familiar faces again. 

This class had to be fast-paced as I had to be sure we covered all 9 of the patterns in Quadrant A as well as how to assemble the outer borders and complete quilt. "We advance for the swift and repeat for the deliberate." Everyone was encouraged to ask all the questions they might have, as frequently as necessary until they "got it". 

The first day was 1.5 hours of instruction before dinner and the evening welcome program. They got right to work drawing their patterns. The first full day, Day 2, we spent the morning on more pattern drawing. After lunch it was time to sew and sew they did. 

Here is what I saw before class began the morning of Day Three:

Wow! I was so happy to see so much progress. Everyone was cheerful, eager to learn, fun to talk to and kept up with what is a pretty fast-paced class. 

A couple showed me quilts they were inspired to make from my blog:

Suzanne made X blogs from Charm Squares from my tutorial

Susan was happy to have the outer road on Color My World, another Wendy Williams pattern that was the 2021 Block of the Month quilt for The Quilt Show

And here are the photos I took at the end of day 5:

And there has to be a CLASS PHOTO. I would be delighted to see any of these students in class again. They worked hard, learned more than they know, and will be able to make the entire quilt now. Although a couple plan to make only Quadrant A. I look forward to seeing their completed quilts sometime in the future:

Empty Spools Seminars is such a magical experience! I will teach there as often as I am invited--it's just that kind of place. I came home with my cup of creativity full to overflowing. I am working on a new sample or two for future class offerings.

AND IF YOU WANT TO LEARN THIS QUILT, YOU HAVE ONE MORE CHANCE: I am teaching this at Southern Charm Quilting in Huntsville, AL as a 5 day SPECIAL EVENT May 6-10, 2024. The fee includes the pattern, my addendum, 5 full days of class instruction, lunch the first day and $100 toward fabric purchases. Don't miss this opportunity. Fifteen students attended the first of these Special Events last September. There is a great hotel nearby if you are traveling from out of the area. I hope to see you there. Register online today.

Let's quilt!

Barbara