Upcoming Classes, Shows,
Festivals and Events

In addition to teaching classes at Quilt Festivals, Val also periodically teaches at local community colleges around Seattle (e.g. Bellevue College, South Seattle Community College). Classes will be listed here as they become available. Ask your local community college to contact Val about teaching a class. Small hands-on classes in our Sea-Tac studio will be available soon.

International Quilt Festival / Chicago
April 16-18, 2010
Donald E. Stephens Center, Rosemont, IL
Please note: All festival classes require enrollment through International Quilt Festival.
I am not able to sign up anyone or get them into one of my classes. I will provide links to the enrollment form and instructions when they are posted to the IQF website. Lodging and airfare discount rates have been specially negotiated by Quilts, Inc. You MUST mention Market or Festival when making reservations in order to get the rate if available. Please contact the hotel directly via phone and do not use the general web site. However, please be advised that these rates are good only to the capacity of Quilt Festival's reserved room block in each hotel. Festival is open to the general public. More information is available on the IQF website.

These are the classes I am scheduled to teach in Chicago. More information and pictures will be added soon.

Digital Fusion - Combining Techniques for Fabric Art - This class is FULL.
9 am to Noon, Thursday, April 15, 2010
Rosemont, IL

Learn how to combine inkjet printing with other art making processes while you create beautiful, one-of-a-kind textile creations to quilt, frame or use in some other creative way. The instructor will provide images and products (e.g. Blending Pens, Brayers, Transfers, Stamps, Silkscreens) for class use that we will use to create one layer at a time. Have fun experimenting and learn how these easy and versatile processes can add to your creativity. We will create two art pieces in class (one utilizing a digitally printed fabric sheet, and one on a piece of recycled kimono silk with a jacquard pattern).

Kits will contain tools and information on where to obtain materials for the methods students want to use at home.

Fabric fusion is usually defined as a technique in which a fusible product is utilized to apply pieces of fabric together with a hot iron. However, digital fusion involves combining digital textile printing with more traditional surface design techniques. By combining modern and traditional techniques layer by layer, students will learn how fun and easy it is to create a very unique art piece that can be used in many ways.

We'll have samples to inspire ideas on ways the unique finished art pieces can be displayed.

Creating Fine Art on Fabric with Your Inkjet Printer - This class is FULL.
2 pm to 5 pm, Thursday, April 15, 2010
Rosemont, IL

Benefit from the instructor's research and experience printing on fabric using an ink jet printer. We'll discuss printers, ink, fabric sheets, digital cameras, scanners, all-in-ones, software, and more. Examine samples designed to inspire new ideas. Learn to make fabric images soft, colorful, washable, and permanent. After-printing techniques like tea staining, and dyeing will be demonstrated.

The beginning of class will be lecture style with some demos and lots of information being provided. Students will have an opportunity to ask questions. Then we will divide into small groups and create a collage which we will print on fabric using an inkjet all-in-one printer.

Students will receive silk and cotton fabric sheets to use in class and/or print at home.

Utilizing Photoshop Elements 7 - This class is FULL.
9 am to Noon, Friday, April 16, 2010
Rosemont, IL

Adobe Elements retains the core functions of Photoshop, but simplifies the interface (and costs a lot less). This is a presentation-style class with detailed take-home handouts. The Instructor will use a notebook PC with overhead projection to demonstrate for the class. Most of what will be demonstrated will also work on earlier versions of Elements.

We'll cover the basics, like red eye removal, resizing and cropping images, repairing faded or damaged photos, diminishing wrinkles and blemishes, removing dust and scratches and learning how to optimize higher resolution images for printing and lower resolution images for monitor viewing.

Learn the differences between the various file formats, how to use the tools in Elements, create a duotone, add spot color, utilize layers, create soft edges (vignettes), Notan and more.

Val will tell you how to set up your digital camera to get the best image you can, give you the scanning basics for getting your old photographs into Elements, and show you where you can obtain some Photoshop add-ons and tools not included in Elements, many for free. Students will receive inkjet printable fabric sheets to print at home.