Introduction to Quilt-Making: Half Square Triangles with Sarah Silk

Introduction to Quilt-Making: Half Square Triangles with Sarah Silk

8-Part Series

Dates: Tuesdays, January 13 - March 3

Time: 6pm-9pm

Description: Begin or continue your quilt-making journey this winter with artist Sarah Silk, as they guide you through the process of making a quilt using triangles as the basis of your patchwork pattern.

Sarah will share ways to design your quilt using the versatile "half-square-triangle" which allows for infinite patterns, both traditional and contemporary. Each student will design and plan their own piece. You can create something individual to you that suits your time, skill, and needs, from a table runner to a throw blanket.

You will learn to cut and piece triangles into your patchwork pattern. After your quilt top is pieced, you will learn to finish your piece with binding and hand-quilting.

Following the deep commitment that Sarah has to sustainability in fashion and textile work, you are encouraged to bring used textiles, such as clothing or sheets, to create your patchwork quilt. This will also open up the opportunity to include personal narrative and memories into your quilt.

There will also be a selection of cloth in the studio that you can work with. Batting will be provided, as well as a selection of sewing thread. Students can use the tools and sewing machines in the studio during class.

Open Studio access is available to students in Series classes at a 50% discount, enabling students to work on projects between classes (and maybe even have time to start new projects too!) Available studio hours vary from week to week.

Cost: $295 + $25 materials fee

Materials: Participants are encouraged to bring used and worn textiles to work with, however materials are also available in the studio.

Note: We really want you to join us in the studio! Full and partial tuition scholarships are available to offset some of the financial burden of attending a class.

Please fill out the application here! You can expect to hear from someone on the CC staff within 2 weeks.

If you have any questions, email Jamie Boyle, Fibers Program Manager, at jboyle@contemporarycraft.org, or leave a voice message for them at 412-465-1639.

Location: Contemporary Craft, Timmons Studios (5688 Butler St., Pittsburgh, PA 15201). Note, this workshop will take place in the Fleischner Family Fibers Loft, which is on the second floor of the building.

There are 2 entrances to the Timmons Studios.

• One entrance is facing Butler Street. To access the Fibers Loft from the Butler Street facing entrance, there are a total of 32 stairs to ascend.

• One entrance is facing 57th Street. This entrance is accessible by ramp, with no stairs to ascend. There is a lift inside the building to access the second floor.

If there are accessibility accommodations we can provide, or if there is anything you would like us to know before you arrive, please feel free to call Jamie Boyle at 412-465-1639 or email jboyle@contemporarycraft.org.

Cancellations and Refunds: Workshop cancellations are decided three business days before the start date. If workshops must be cancelled due to insufficient enrollment, the entire class fee will be refunded through Eventbrite, or you may leave your workshop fee in your Contemporary Craft account for future workshops.

Sarah Silk (they/she) is a Pittsburgh artist working in a range of mediums including textiles, movement, and performance. They learned the art of quilt making and fiber reuse alongside their Mom Louise Silk, a Pittsburgh fiber artist for over 40 years. The two of them started SilkDenim in 2012 as a response to unsustainable 'fast fashion' and one-time use products. As SilkDenim, they deconstruct used clothing by hand and re-make the materials into quilts, home goods, accessories, and garments. Sarah is an active member of the Rustbelt Fibershed, which is a bioregional textile community growing hope and resilience through local fiber, local color, and local labor. Among a variety of engagements with the fibershed, Sarah participated in all 3 of the "One Year One Outfit" projects, in which volunteers are challenged to create a 3-piece outfit that is entirely locally sourced and made over the course of a year. Sarah is also a theater actor, a somatics teacher, and the only Pittsburgh area teacher of the Feldenkrais method of somatic education. You can learn more about their work at silkdenim.us, feldenkraispittsburgh.com, or sarahsilk.net.