Judith Dahmen http://www.judithdahmen.com/ needles and lemons on Flickr @needlesandlemon on Twitter http://twitter.com/needlesandlemon on Facebook

Photography Class by Judith Dahmen (3 hour Workshop)

Ever been unhappy about the images you have taken of your wonderful handmade quilts, cushions, purses and bags? In this class we will cover:

• Preparation of the item to be photographed
• Location: Where to photograph your finished products
• Time: When is the best time to take a shot of your finished quilt (or other craft item)
• Technical aspects such as aperture, speed, exposure
• Some points on lighting conditions
• Advice on compositional aspects
• How to achieve perspective
• Post-processing techniques

Depending on the weather the class will either include a practical session outside or a post-processing mini-workshop. Bring an item which you would love to take a good photo of but haven’t managed so far.

Photography Talk by Judith Dahmen (Table Top session)

During this table top session we will talk about lighting, location and compositions aspects as well as some simple post-processing tricks.

Brioni Greenberg http://www.flossyblossy.blogspot.com/ http://fatquarterly.com/ http://www.flickr.com/photos/flossyblossy/ on Flickr @flossyblossy on Twitter

Cathedral Window by Brioni Greenberg (3 hour Workshop without machine)

Cathedral window quilts take their inspiration from stained glass windows and are contructed differently to a usual quilt. The technique involves folding fabic, folding back sections of fabric and then stitching them down by hand. This is easier to make than it looks as there is no quilting involved, just patchworking. The hand stitching makes this is a great portable project so put your English paper piecing down and come and join me!

Fabric Bag Charm or Brooch by Brioni Greenberg (Table Top Session)

This bag charm is pretty instant gratification and can be made as either a bag charm or a brooch, so if your bag or cardi needs a pick-me-up or you need a last minute gift then you can whip one of these in about an hour using up your scraps!

And with another round of voting under our belt, we’re down to 16 of the year’s favorite fabric lines — and one of our contenders made it through by one vote!  After totaling our 485 votes, we’re excited to announce who’s moving on to compete again for a spot in our 2013 Final Four.  And for your reference, updated brackets can be found here.

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Pearl Bracelets (311 votes, 64%) def. Cuzco (174 votes, 36%)

Comma (275 votes, 57%) def. Bella (210 votes, 43%)

2wenty Thr3e (350 votes, 72%) def. Simpatico (135 votes, 28%)

Simply Color (258 votes, 53%) def. Salt Water (227 votes, 47%)

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Noteworthy (300 votes, 62%) def. Shelburne Falls (185 votes, 38%)

Constellations (243 votes, 50%) def. Sew Stitchy (242 votes, 50%)

Field Study (252 votes, 52%) def. Mama Said Sew (233 votes, 48%)

Oh Deer! (259 votes, 53%) def. Bloomsbury Gardens (226 votes, 47%)

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PB&J (267 votes, 55%) def. Lucky Penny (218 votes, 45%)

Marmalade (333 votes, 69%) def. Curious Nature (152 votes, 31%)

Chicopee (281 votes, 58%) def. Color Me Retro (204 votes, 42%)

Architextures (336 votes, 69%) def. Honey Honey (149 votes, 31%)

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Glimma (324 votes, 67%) def. Stamped (161 votes 33%)

Madrona Road (303 votes, 62%) def. Indie (182 votes, 38%)

Summersville Spring (277 vote, 57%) def. Tsuru (208 votes, 43%)

The Birds and the Bees (264 votes, 54%) def. Les Amis (221 votes, 46%)

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Congratulations to our 16 finalists!  Who’s going to make it through to the Elite Eight? It’s up to YOU!  After checking out the match-ups, please vote below …

Pearl Bracelets by Lizzy House (Andover Fabrics)
vs.
Comma by Zen Chic (Moda Fabrics)

2wenty Thr3e by Eric & Julie Comstock (Moda Fabrics)
vs.
Simply Color by V and Co. (Moda Fabrics)

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Noteworthy by Sweetwater (Moda Fabrics)
vs.
Constellations by Lizzy House (Andover Fabrics)

Field Study by Anna Maria Horner (FreeSpirit Fabrics)
vs.
Oh Deer! by Momo (Moda Fabrics)

–

PB&J by BasicGrey (Moda Fabrics)
vs.
Marmalade by Bonnie & Camille (Moda Fabrics)

Chicopee by Denyse Schmidt (FreeSpirit Fabrics)
vs.
Architextures by Carolyn Friedlander (Robert Kaufman Fabrics)

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Glimma by Lotta Jansdotter (Windham Fabrics)
vs.
Madrona Road by Violet Craft (Michael Miller Fabrics)

Summersville Spring by Lucie Summers (Moda Fabrics)
vs.
The Birds & the Bees by Tula Pink (FreeSpirit Fabrics)

** Voting is now closed. Thanks for your response! **

Laura Taylor http://www.needlespinsandbakingtins.com Laura @ Needles, Pins and Baking Tins on Flickr @laurajane7789 on Twitter

Granny Square Crochet by Laura Taylor (Table Top session)

Fancy trying your hand at crochet? This class will cover the absolute basics for absolute beginners. We will look at the 3 stitches used to create crochet granny squares – chaining, slip stitch, and double crochet.

Crochet Flower Pillow by Laura Taylor (3 hour Workshop without machine)

Fancy taking your basic crochet skills to the next level? This cute pillow is easy to achieve using some of the basic stitches. It’s striking, modern, quick to hook up and looks great in different colourways.

Trudi Wood http://trudi-quiltingprolifically.blogspot.co.uk/ Trudi-quiltingprolifically on Flickr

Free Motion Quilting by Trudi Wood (3 hour Workshop)

Join Trudi in a hands on class to learn (or build on your) free motion quilting skills. Focusing on technique, will share tips she has picked up over the years, which will enable you to finish a project without unpicking or throwing it out of the window! We’ll also look at the choices you make for thread, needles, wadding and speed, and how they can affect your quilting.

Free Motion Quilting Design by Trudi Wood (Table Top session)

A happy hour of doodling! We will look more closely at quilting designs to identify how they are formed, learn how to execute/progress designs and also how to adapt existing designs to make them your own. Free motion quilting is very much like hand writing as basic shapes, once mastered, can be built on to create patterns and designs of your own.

Lucie Summers http://blu-shed.blogspot.com http://www.flickr.com/photos/lusummers/ on Flickr @lusummers on Twitter summersville.etsy.com

Improv by Lucie Summers (3 hour Workshop with machines)

Get out of your comfort zone for a few hours with this really informal relaxed class where I will be teaching a few of my favourite improv techniques. The aim of the class is to create a mini (12 – 14 inches square) quilt ready for quilting and you’ll create a truly unique piece of patchwork art. Learn how to create chevrons and curves (*really* drunk drunkards path) done my way!

Portholes by Lucie Summers (3 hour Workshop with machines)

Portholes is a techniques/experimental based workshop rather than a taking-home-finished-item workshop, so expect to head home with 3-4 samples for finishing at a later date. If you want the pieces you make on the workshop to be the starting point for a new quilt, please bring fabrics that will work together. I shall be teaching the basic technique of a round porthole to begin with, then you can get fancy schmancy with the other shapes.

Hand Quilting by Lucie Summers (Table top session)

I am not an expert hand quilter, but I love to stitch my mini quilts using thicker thread than usual, mimicking the look of Indian Kantha quilting. This informal class is not aiming for perfection, it’s a more organic way of quilting using different coloured embroidery threads to create a striking mini quilt. If you have made a mini quilt in my improv class, you might like to join me for a relaxing chat and quilt!

Kerry Green http://verykerryberry.blogspot.co.uk verykerryberry on Flickr @verykb on Twitter http://sew-ichigo.blogspot.com

Fantasy Fabric Shop by Kerry Green (Table Top session)

The ultimate fantasy for the fabric lover, imagine you have your own fabric store and you need to display a range of fabrics to tempt the eye, this workshop is all about fabric and colour. Annie from Village Haberdashery is providing a huge selection of fabrics for us to work with and we will be putting bundles together using a range of techniques from a colour wheel to story telling.

If you struggle bringing different fabrics together combining colours, prints or creating a ‘look’ this is the workshop for you. You can create your perfect bundle, bring fabrics from home that you struggle to work with and we can trouble shoot any specific requests. I will set a series of bundle challenges to bring a range of fabrics together in different ways. There will lots of opportunity to buy fabrics at the retreat including bundles that you make in this workshop.

P J Pants by Kerry Green (3 hour Workshop with machines)

If you have always wanted to sew a garment but were too nervous to try, this is the class for you. The pyjama bottoms are made with one main pattern piece. We will be using an easy Simplicity pattern with which is available free to download as a PDF or is widely available to buy as a tissue paper pattern. The pattern is sized XS to XL and is suitable for tween/teenage children, women and men.

I will be showing you how to follow a clothing pattern including alterations to leg length, the option to add contrast cuffs to the hem and an alternative waist finish with an elasticised back and a drawstring front. You can trace the pattern in your size and bring to class or do the whole process- trace, alter, cut and sew in class. The aim is to make PJs from start to finish in class!