Time to get to work.
My first class on Wednesday afternoon was an Introduction to English Paper Piecing using the perennial favorite, the hexagon. There was a great turn out to get to grips with the cutting, basting, whip-stitching and appliqué required.
Everyone got a kit with everything required, apart from cutting tools, which took away some difficult decisions on fabric choice.
And here’s what the intended destination was…
I hope people went home and stitched?
Jenny Doan from Missouri Star Quilt Company was speaking at the Carson Center in the evening so perhaps that was the reason for the small enrollment in my beginning hand embroidery class?
Where was everyone?
There were some students… but they were all shopping at the thread table! Who can blame them?
Shopping is good?
We were using my printed circle sample to learn our stitches. 
I slept well on Wednesday evening before my all day, full to the gills, Walking Foot Quilting – Beyond the Ditch class on Thursday. Just two seams to cut, sew and press.
Then it’s quilt, quilt, quilt.
There was still time to chat and compare notes…
The class worked as hard as any I have ever had. Dorothy from Calico Country Sew and Vac kept all the Babylock Soprano machines humming.
We had a one and a half hour lunch break and I took the opportunity to visit the Pavilion Dome, just a couple of blocks away from the Convention Center.
Inside the air conditioned and carpeted space there were more vendors and quilts to look at. 
I resisted a t-shirt and was back to the class room for the afternoon session. Lots of stitching… lots of fun!
A full day class wasn’t enough for the day. Time for the sold out Thursday evening session of the All-Star Review.
Liz Hammonds, Director of Education got the evening started.
There were six teachers on the schedule.
Multi national award winning quilter Bethanne Nemesh went first to demonstrate how she makes her trademark beaded piping.
She made it sound so straight forward…
Robin Long showed us her rulers, books and patterns for Mariner’s Compass Blocks.
I must admit I’m more likely to be found doing beaded piping than Mariner’s Compasses.
I was teaching embellished folk-set stitches. Ten minutes went past very quickly.
The demos were followed by a shopping opportunity… Four boxes of beautiful House of Embroidery thread are on their way to Australia!
That was Thursday.
On Friday morning I was back with a small EPP clamshell class. This mother and daughter pair set to work together.
The template was very handy for cutting our fabrics for basting.
Just keep smiling ladies!
No one finished their top but here’s a reminder of what they were working towards.
I had a full class booked for the afternoon’s class and made sure to set everything up before I went to lunch.
After an initial chat and basting demo using luxury wool batting supplied by Hobbs, I split the class into four and visited each row of tables for the stitching demo.
Here’s my sample. Not just a utility style, running stitch…
Five classes and an All-Star Review. One more post from Fall Quilt Week tomorrow…
Catherine, I wonder if you would tell me the the names of the various stitches you used in your circle sample, and what thread is used?
Thanks
Lynn