As I wrote in yesterday’s blog post, June 12-18 has been declared a National Week of Making in the U.S. According to the White House, “During National Week of Making, we celebrate the tinkerers and dreamers whose talent and drive have brought new ideas to life, and we recommit to cultivating the next generation of problem solvers.”
Now, the notion of “making” isn’t revolutionary to quilters; making is what we do, after all. Most of us take advantage of current technologies and tools to make our projects a little easier or to allow us to achieve more complex and personalized designs. We may even do a little tinkering in our sewing studios to streamline our processes so we can make the quilts we want.
But if you’re looking for ways to engage more fully in the maker movement, particularly the STEM (science, technology, engineering and mathematics) aspects of quilting and sewing, here are four ideas that you might want to explore this weekend.
1) Power up your quilts with LED lights.
In my previous blog post, I said most makers might prefer using LED lights over 50-weight thread. Well, there’s no reason we quilters can’t have our cake and eat it too!
The Easy Lesson in our June/July 2014 issue offered a tutorial in adding conductive thread to an art quilt that allows you to incorporate LED lights without needing extra wires or an external power source. It’s a nifty way to add a spark of energy (pun intended) to a wall hanging, particularly those made for the winter holidays and patriotic occasions.
Celebrite by Gigi Khlasa
And speaking of patriotic holidays — of which there are a few coming up — we have a companion pattern for a wall hanging, Celebrite designed by Gigi Khalsa, available as a free download. The pattern is easy and offers a great opportunity for you to try your hand at using LED lights in your quilts for the first time. Click here to download the free pattern for Celebrite.
The Easy Lesson instructions for using conductive thread can be found in our June/July 2014 issue, available both as a print edition and as a digital edition.
2) Design and print your own fabric.
One of the hallmarks of the maker movement is taking advantage of cutting-edge technology to produce your work. For some art quilters, that might mean spending just as much time at their computers designing in Photoshop as they do at their sewing machines.
Gay Lasher photographed in front of one of her quilts at aBuzz Gallery in Denver, Colorado
Gay Lasher is a textile artist who uses computer software and digital photography to create custom-printed fabric for her art quilts. We were lucky enough to interview Gay for Quilters Newsletter TV: The Quilters’ Community last year and learn about her inventive process. View the episode on QNNtv.com.
Diane Rusin Doran is an award-winning art quilter whose Return of the Grackle we featured as the Photo Finish quilt in our October/November 2011 issue. Diane is known for incorporating digital photography and collage into her work, and she shares her techniques in her online course “Digital Surface Design.” In it, Diane provides an overview of creating effects in Photoshop to allow you to create your own fabric designs; digital fabric stamping is also covered in this video. Learn more about Diane’s course on CraftDaily.com.
3) Upcycle your wardrobe.
As I also mentioned in my previous blog post, there is a strong textile arts component to the maker movement with an emphasis on upcycling garments into new items. It’s right in line with the maker movement’s DIY/hacker approach to life with a (dare I say it) hipster undercurrent.
Last year Gigi blogged about customizing tank tops using quilted strips to replace the original straps, resulting in a unique and stylish “new-to-her” wardrobe. Read about Gigi’s quilted strips technique on the QN blog.
Resew: Turn Thrift-Store Finds into Fabulous Designs by Jenny Wilding Cardon is a fun book; don’t tell my coworkers, but the copy we received in the office might possibly have been on an extended vacation at my home for the past year or so. “Make a skirt” is on my summer to-do list, and this book has a number of really cute patterns and approaches I’ve been eyeing. It also has patterns for tops, dresses, purses, scarves, bags, and hats, plus a rug, a simple quilt that’s great for absolute beginners or those wanting an easy pattern, and more. Learn more about Resew: Turn Thrift-Store Finds into Fabulous Designs.
Blogger and sewing enthusiast Marisa Lynch taped a video tutorial for CraftDaily.com called “Upcycle Secondhand Store Finds!” In the class, Marisa gives quick fixes for thrift-store garments, making them wearable and chic, as well as tried-and-true techniques to guarantee the best fit. Watch “Upcycle Secondhand Store Finds!” on CraftDaily.com.
4) Teach a kid to quilt.
A lot of the emphasis during National Week of Making is on getting kids interested in the value of tinkering and hands-on experimentation from an early age. Similarly, many quilters are never happier than when we get a young person interested in quilting. It’s the only way to ensure the tradition not only lives on, but grows and develops along with the times.
Expert longarm quilter Angela Walters and her young daughter Chloe recently wrote a book, Get Quilting with Angela & Chloe, that contains 14 quilting projects geared toward 8- to 13-year-olds including stylish bedroom decor, such as pillow covers, rugs and T-shirt quilts. The book also includes skill-builders and plenty of how-to photos to help kids bring their imaginative creations to life. Learn more about the book Get Quilting with Angela & Chloe.
The mother/daughter team also taped an online class with Jodie Davis showing some of these techniques and projects in action. View the full episode of “Get Quilting with Kids” on QNNtv.com.
As you can see, combining a maker mentality with traditional quilting techniques is really just a matter of approaching what you already know with fresh eyes and being open to unconventional ideas. So take a little time this weekend to tinker, to experiment, and to push your own envelope a little. Let’s make!
