Originally Posted by Sadiemae
Originally Posted by MistyMarie
I have learned more from fellow quilters and from just trying it on my own than I ever learned from a class. That is why I rarely go to one. I do believe a LQS would give you a better beginner class than a chain store. Most chain stores do not worry about return business like a LQS does. If you have a good experience at a LQS, you are much more likely to sign up for more classes and purchase fabric from them, so they work harder to make sure your experience is a good one.
This can be a matter of who is teaching.
Agreed. I have taken a LOT of classes from my LQS, mostly for the opportunity to be with other quilters, see what they are doing (color combinations, new fabrics, etc) and have some quality time with one of my quilting gal pals. It's well worth it. There was one class, however, that was a total disappointment. And I never finished the quilt. She probably wasn't a bad quilter, but she was a horrible teacher. It was a while ago, and I can't recall the specifics, but I do remember it wasn't worth what I spent on the class.
So what to do? I check the names of the teachers and only take classes from those I know have a lot to offer. (I haven't taken any in a few years due to low finances)
As an aside, one of the other stores in town was offering a BOM deal, had to be there on a certain day at a certain time, show your finished block from the month before, yada, yada, yada, but the worst part was sitting for an hour through her infomercial-de-jour! It was maddening, to say the very least. I made two of the quilts and they turned out beautifully, the price of the blocks was well worth what she charged, but the sitting through her presentation was so painful, I never signed up for another.