You did WHAT at QSDS?

I’ve been thinking about all the slightly strange and truly wonderful things that we do at QSDS.  It all depends on which classes you sign up for. This past year, we stenciled and stamped with thickened dyes, stitched delicate sheer fabrics, stitched gesso-coated fabrics and papers, grated watercolor crayons through silk screens, burned small holes using sticks of incense, and drew on big sheets of paper using very, very long brushes. Debra Danko saved all of her gloves as the week progressed. Tinted with the paints and inks she used in Fran Skiles class, she created a sort of “installation” that accompanied some of her class work. That was a first for QSDS. What “Strange and Wonderfuls” are on the bill for next year? Check back soon for more about that!

Tools of the Trade Tuesday: Bead Storage

We know NOT to throw away metal Altoid containers. They can become the perfect little sewing kit, a tiny watercolor set or a way to carry beads and embellishments. This smart student brought her color-coordinated batches of beads, ready to lay out and then safely snap closed after a day of stitching. Designate one for each color, then toss in the last few buttons or beads. Soon you have your very own mixes of “bead soup,” an ingredient for creativity. 

Bring your beads to Lisa Binkley’s class, "The Hand-Made Stitch on Hand-Dyed Fabric," or embellish your quilts in Rosalie Dace’s classes, "Here and Now" or "African Motif in Design." You can also add your beads to the huge selection that Becky Hancock will bring for her weekend class, "Beadification of the Universe." After all, you can’t have too many beads. Click here to read the class descriptions: qsds.com

Instructor Spotlight: Cynthia Corbin

Would you like to come to QSDS but don’t feel the need to learn new techniques or try new styles? Are you ready to start on a series or set off in a new direction? Then Cynthia Corbin’s seven day Independent Study may be just right for you! Expect a productive week with plenty of work time, individual critiques and thought-provoking group discussions. Cynthia is your calm, collected go-to woman for helping you focus on what will make your work better. Check it all out here.

Instructor Spotlight: Lisa Binkley

Lisa Binkley loves beads and she loves hand embroidery. She creates everything from quilts to elaborate box-like assemblages, all embellished with beads. 

I’ll bet you’ve got beads in your stash. But do you know how to do anything other than sew them on, one at a time? How about using them to hold cabochons onto a quilt, or build into 3-D designs, or create an elaborate beaded edge?  Spend a wonderful weekend learning how to really use those beads in fabulously creative ways, and have fun with the rest of us at QSDS. Check out Lisa’s class, "The Handmade Stitch on Hand-Dyed Fabric" here. But don't delay- there are just four spots left!

Instructor Spotlight: Rosalie Dace

 Look at how nicely Rosalie Dace’s dress and necklace coordinate with her quilt! Who else has the perfect outfit to wear when getting photographed in front of a particular quilt?   

Rosalie lives in Durban, South Africa. Her globe-trotting will bring her to QSDS for two weeks this year. Spend five days with Rosalie in her “Here and Now!” class, getting a great dose of design basics. Or, if you only have a weekend, come for “African Motif In Design.” 

Here is a genuine quote from one of her students: “I would pay good money just to sit in the room and hear Rosalie tell stories.” I’ll bet you’re interested now, aren’t you?? Rosalie will also lead the Independent Study class during Sessions 3 and 4. So if you already have found your path but want a good mentor, critiques and class atmosphere, come spend a week with Rosalie. Find all of her classes here.

Tools of the Trade Tuesday: Machine Sewing Basics

A look at what we use, what we bring with us to QSDS and what we need for our creative life.

What do you really need right there by your sewing machine? Scissors, thread and bobbins. Probably pins unless you are a wild and confident machine piecer. Circles abound in our lives. Look down at your own work table and I’ll bet you see them. There are more than tools here. There is an interesting composition: it's the same shape repeating in clusters and varying sizes. Get back to sewing or stop and make a sketch, a reminder for the future when you need an idea. 

Where will we find you with your own machine this year, when QSDS begins? How about in class #17 or #24 with Cynthia Corbin, or the Independent Study #18, or Rosalie Dace’s guided classes, #5 or #11? Check them out here, but don't delay- classes are filling fast! 

Instructor Spotlight: Fran Skiles

 What is Fran Skiles doing here? More importantly, what does she plan to do with that cheesecloth that she just painted? Being a mixed media artist extraordinaire, she might print on it with other designs, layer it over or under something else and turn it into...art!   

At QSDS this year, Fran will be teaching “Fabric & Paper Collage, Printing and Painting.” Doesn’t that sound like a combination of techniques you’d love to try? How about having five whole days (June 1–5) to experiment? That's plenty of time to get up close and personal with gesso, gel medium, paints, papers and a sturdy base of cotton duck. Fran knows her way around a photocopy and she always knows what to do with some cheesecloth.  Check it out and see some images of Fran’s artwork here (scroll down to the end of Session 3).

Better yet, sign up for Fran's class! Don't delay, there's just two spots left! Sign up here. 

Tools of the Trade Tuesday: Cardboard Boxes

Artists are good at repurposing things. So why does noted shibori artist and teacher Sue Cavanaugh need a cardboard box? This is where she measures out her powdered dye, mixing it into a solution. The box acts as a portable hood,  keeping the fine powder from drifting all over the room. Then Sue and her students will be ready to add color to their carefully stitched and gathered shibori fabrics. And now you know that those coffee cup holders can be used for holding jars of dye. Just don’t stick your Starbuck’s cup in there too.

Check out Sue’s QSDS class here:

Do you like playing with dye? Check out these other classes too:

Kerr Grabowski's "One Screen, One Image, Many Variations" (click link and scroll down to find) and Sue Benner's "Expressive Dye Painting" (click and scroll down)

Tools of the Trade Tuesday

Welcome to our guest blogger, Diane Herbort, and the first edition of her weekly contribution: Tools of the Trade Tuesday!
 
We use so many tools in our creative work. Some may seem mundane or not beautiful, some might be a little bit mysterious. Some may be repurposed or recycled from their original jobs. Check back every Tuesday to see what I have here to share with you.

Let’s start with fabric—gorgeous hand dyed cottons, in every shade of the rainbow and then some.  I’ll bet you’ve taken a class on dyeing fabric or have done some on your own. Have you used it?? No? Well, what’s stopping you? Does it seem too beautiful to use? If you don’t get it out and use it, that beautiful fabric may moulder on your shelf for years and then finally end up in a yard sale someday. Get it out, fondle it, iron it and get ready to use it. Bring it to QSDS this spring and we’ll get you started.

If you like beading and hand embroidery, Lisa Binkley is teaching a weekend class focusing on learning to respond to the unique markings and colors of hand dyed or hand printed fabrics. Read more about it here.   (Scroll down to find the class.)

You could also bring your beautiful fabric to a design class. Rosalie Dace’s  “Be Here Now” will give you five days to play with your fabrics. Don’t have five days? Cynthia Corbin is teaching a weekend’s worth of in-the-cloth design, “ABCs of Composition.” 

So don’t just hoard the hand dyes, use them!  See you next Tuesday!

See Quilt National at QSDS 2015

Need an extra incentive for coming to QSDS this year? It’s a Quilt National year! This biennial exhibit debuts at the Dairy Barn Arts Center in Athens, Ohio, just days before we gather in Columbus.

Each Wednesday the QSDS bus trip will visit the Dairy Barn to see this innovative collection. Seeing this inspiring and thought-provoking show in its home venue is always a fabulous experience. When Quilt National travels it is usually split into two sections, so this is a unique opportunity to view the entire exhibition in one place.

The jurors for 2015 Quilt National were museum curator Judy Schwender and two renowned fiber artists, both members of the QSDS faculty: Ann Johnston and Rosalie Dace. Rosalie will be teaching at QSDS again this year. View her upcoming classes here.

The bus trip leaves each Wednesday at noon and returns around 7 p.m. Snacks are provided. The bus trip costs $70. 

QSDS is always a true “art immersion” experience. Work in the classrooms as early or late as you like, see evening presentations from faculty members, enjoy the mini bazaar each Tuesday and for heavens’ sake, be sure to go on the bus trip!  

TO ADD THE BUS TRIP TO YOUR ITINERARY: email education@ohiocraft.org to sign up.

Photos: The Dairy Barn Arts Center (top); QSDS team member Diane Muse hands out snacks on the Wednesday bus trip (bottom)