Get creative with Abakhan!

ave you ever wanted to make a quilt and learn the art of cutting up pretty fabrics to make something more beautiful to treasure? Our ancestors used patchwork to recycle and use up every scrap of fabric so nothing was wasted, to create a warm quilt to pass on to the next generation. In this fun workshop suitable for beginners, where you will receive full support to create a beautiful unique freestyle quilt, made of 4 blocks with a spare block that can be easily used to create a matching cushion at home.

Patchwork and quilting is an addictive hobby be prepared to be hooked at the first stitch.

On this two day course (Saturday 10th & Sunday 11th October) you will learn how to:

● Accurately cut with a rotary cutter

● Stitch with a precise ¼” seam

● Match your the seams

● Echo quilt

● Bind with mitred corners

● Complete or be able to complete a patchwork quilt.

Course notes will be provided but a pen and paper is always useful to take down some notes.

Skill level: Suitable for the confident beginner

What to bring:

All fabrics are of the same weight and 100% craft cotton

6 fat quarters in colours that blend and contrast or six 15 inch (39cm) off cuts. (Try to choose colours that are a good mix of light, medium and dark colours).

1 metre of a dark fabric for the borders (Black, navy or brown to go with your colours)

1.5 metres of backing cotton fabric

1.5 metres of 2 oz wadding

5 metres of 25mm binding in a contrasting colour

Small tin of temporary basting spray

Machine sewing thread to match your fabrics or grey to blend for sewing up the patchwork (2 small reels)

Contrasting machine embroidery thread (variegated looks wonderful but single colour is lovely too)

Janome sewing machines will be provided on the day along with a hot drink and biscuits. You will also receive a 10% discount card to use in-store.

For FAQ's please visit here

Tutor: Carolyn Buxton

I was lucky to be born into a creative family and I have sewn all my life. My passion for patchwork and quilting began in early 2000 when my mother introduced me to a wonderful book Learning to Quilt: A Beginner's Guide by Lori Yetmar Smith, ISBN: 978-1574867206 and we both worked through the 25 lessons in it. We were hooked and I have carried on my learning attending workshops with wonderful quilting masters from around the world.

During the week I work in a local college teaching adults academic and computer skills and it is here where I achieved my teaching qualifications. I am passionate about education, patchwork and fabric collecting!

There is nothing quite like creating something to bring about mindful peace, happiness and a sense of achievement, especially if it involves learning new skills. This to me is pure joy only improved when passing on these skills to others. In 2015, I achieved one of my dreams and began teaching patchwork and quilting at Abakhan, where I have met and helped a lot of lovely people to start their patchwork journey. Hard to believe that patchwork takes a lovely piece of fabric, cuts it into pieces and sews it back together to form a beautiful piece of art to be loved and cherished for years to come.

Patchwork has been around for centuries and began as a way of using up scraps of fabric to create a warm blanket, the quilting is purely to hold the stuffing which was originally horsehair between two layers of fabric in place. Over time the scraps have become wonderful geometric patterns that can be truly astounding, and the quilting has become an artform all of its own which can be simple lines or beautiful drawings in thread, and all can take your quilt to the next level.

Working in my sewing room with fabric, designing and making quilts is my ultimate happy place, so please come and join me for an adventure of a lifetime, but be warned patchwork is addictive but the side effects are warmth, laughter and fun.

How to choose Fabrics for Patchwork Project

In patchwork and quilting we try to stick to 100% cotton fabrics and preferably of the same weight. I tend to use only 100% Craft Cotton, the reason we do this is that when we wash the finished quilt, the fabrics should hopefully all shrink and behave the same, it can ruin a quilt if one fabric shrinks and the others do not. It is also a good idea to carry out a colour test on your fabrics if you can, before you sew them up. Some cotton fabrics may ‘bleed’ into other fabrics and again this could ruin your quilt. A colour test is easily done: heat the water to your normal washing temperature ie. 30 degrees and add detergent. Place in a transparent container, place a 2 inch square of fabric into the mixture and leave it for 30 minutes. After 30 minutes place the container over a piece of white paper to check if the water is discoloured. In patchwork we try to avoid large printed fabrics because when they are cut the effect will be lost. However this is not always the case, and it may be the effect you're looking for! Or you may wish to “fussy cut” the fabric.

Description supplied by the event organiser.