Monday, January 17, 2011

Take a look at our "local" teachers!

We have a fabulous list of teachers coming to Symposium 2011 in June, but we are most proud of our "local" teachers. Notice the quotation marks? I'm just not sure we can consider these three strictly local as they all teach and sell patterns nationally. I'm talking about Karen Comstock, Laura Martell and Janice Pope.



 Karen Comstock
After years of perfecting her patterns with students, Karen Comstock launched her company, Quiltricks, in 2005. She has produced award-winning quilts, three dozen patterns, and traveled from Florida to Oregon exhibiting and teaching. Her designs have appeared in American Patchwork & Quilting Magazine, 100 Blocks From Today's Top Designers and Better Homes and Garden Quilting Calendar 2003. "Patterns," an exhibit devoted exclusively to her work, is  on display at The National Humanities Center in Durham, North Carolina through June 30. It's a great symposium side trip to schedule Thursday morning before arriving at Peace College. The NHC is located off I-40 at 7 T.W. Alexander Dr.

Known as a caring instructor with a warm sense of humor, Karen  is eager to share her love of the craft with quilters of every level. She's teaching one of her ever popular tryptics, "Magic's Harvest" on Saturday, June 4th. If you plan on purchasing the optional kit for this class, do make sure you pre-order by marking your registration form.


Laura Martell
 A lifelong sewer, teacher and founder of The Creative Thimble, Laura made clothes for her Barbie dolls by hand until her grandmothers taught her to sew on their machines. A quilter since the 80s, Laura saw a had-to-have tote bag in a high-end catalog. Not being able to afford that one, she decided to try to make her own designer bag. Well, of course she was hooked. Her love of handbags and tote bags prompted her to design, make and sell bags. After moving to Raleigh in 1993, she was soon teaching her bags and totes in local classes. Since then she has developed a line of eight patterns and teaches extensively in the eastern U.S.
Laura is well-known for her detailed and easy-to-follow instructions, along with her simple tricks to accomplish sometimes challenging techniques. Laura has designed a NEW unpublished tote pattern for "Laura's Purse Sampler," a 6-hour class on Saturday, June 4. Students will learn three different EASY ways to sew a zippered pocket into a tote bag, purse, or even your sweatshirt! Of course, you will learn several of Laura’s favorite purse techniques as you sew the purse, a detachable zippered pocket that converts to a mini purse, and a  zippered change purse to match. 

Janice Pope
Known for her energy and enthusiasm, Janice is the creative mind behind “Anything But Boring”. She seeks to make projects that not only look great, but help solve everyday problems of contemporary life. Sewing since a teenager, this 50-something quilter has created and carried her own style of purses for several years. Now her bag and quilt patterns are available for everyone, especially those with limited time to sew. Shouldn't all patterns be quick and easy to make? Janice thinks most should! 
We love Janice's purses so much that we are offering two of her most popular classes at Symposium, the Schlepping Bag and Two-Hour Tulip. 
Saturday's 6-hour, the 25" x 30" Schlepping Bag, pictured on the left will be your best friend when it is time to pack up for a class or guild Show and Tell. There's pockets for a long ruler, large mat and even a removable pouch for those endless quilting tools.
The Two-Hour Tulip, is a fast and easy purse, ergonomically balanced so it won't turn over! This is a fast and fun 3-hour Sunday morning class. You can choose any one of 4 sizes: Petite to Jumbo. Janice will teach you her tips and tricks to make this purse even faster and easier.

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