Quilt Seminars
 

I love them. Fiber/Quilt Art classes are hard to find locally. My favorite, Empty Spools at Asilomar Conference Grounds in Pacific Grove, California on the Monterey Penninsula has been canceled for 2 yrs d/t Covid. The Catalog for 2022 just arrived. First sign up is 8:00am Pacific Time. I'm ready. Anyone want to attend?
My choices, 2 sessions max
Session 1 Katie Pasquini Masopust
Session 3: Sue Benner, Katie or Marianne Williamson
Session 4: Sue Benner or Andre Brokenshire
Session 5: Hilde Morin

There is a wonderful quilt store in Pacific Grove called Back Porch Fabrics. Well worth a visit.

Ok can you explain how this particular event works? All the other quilt festivals and conferences I've attended had classes that you could sign up for individually, this one looks like you sign up for a particular session and you get the 5 classes that are assigned to that session? What if you only want to take one class in Session 1, three classes in Session 2, and so on?

Back Porch Fabrics is worth the trip. Arriving several hours early is so much fun. It's so popular, there's a continuous shuttle during free time.
Also, there's an on campus quilt store during the seminars. It's the LQS in Livermore. They stock for the classes as well as wonderful stuff. They're open most of the time.
Peckish: this started as 1 session with several instructors. It was so popular that it's grown to 5 sessions. The student spends the 5 days with one instructor. Several hundred people attend each session. It's like an extended family.
In the evenings is show and tell, often from a class taken the previous year(s). Then several of the instructors each give a virtual and/or real trunk show. The last evening is "walk about". Each class is set up with progress displays by each student. It's a great opportunity to meet the artist/instructor and decide what to take next year. It's open to the public and way better than many quilt shows.
The food is very good. You'll hear complaints, but there's always someone who must complain about food. Vegan and other diets are accommodated.
Accomodations run the gammat from homey to 60's modern. All are very nice. The origional architect was Julia Morgan from Hearst Castle fame. It was built as YWCA camp. The campus is very large. Usually your accomodation will be near your class, unless you asked to room with someone who's class is across campus from your's.
Classrooms are ADA compatibule. There's a shuttle to get around campus. Moving your car around isn't real affective.
Asilomar State Beach is fabulous. A short board-walk across the dunes. The sunsets are fabulous.
The Monterey Penninsula is a year round vacation destination. I love the winter and spring time there. Summer is crowded. Winter is the rainy season. Storms are usually very mild. Think Mediterranean climate.
Classes fill fast. The most popuar instructors may fill the first day of registration. There are world class instructors. And they're actually nice. You can even sit with them at a meal.
If space is available, rooms can be booked apart from the seminar to come early/stay late. There is a good airport in Monterey, think vacation destination. There's PGA tournaments on the Penninsula. Many famous persons have homes there. Military has a presence with classroom training. Fort Ord is closed and now a University and housing.
I could go on and on, but I'd better stop.

These are your choices, or these are who you've picked?

I took at 1 day class at Paducah with one of those listed and it was so unsatisfactory that some of us didn't even go back after lunch. When they asked for feedback, I gave it and they apologized (I don't think I was the only one.) and sent me the instructor's video to try to make up for it.

Watson

I still don't understand. If you spend 5 days with one instructor, does that mean you can only sign up for one class??

I've been to several over the years but non were more instructive or fun as Jenny's Doan's quilt lecture. It wasn't a class but I learned as much from it as any class I have taken.

You have one class per session.

I'm not locked in to an instructor yet. Registration starts April 26. I'll do more research before I decide.
None of these instructors have I had before. Katie, Hilde and Sue have been teaching for years and repeatedly at Empty Spools. Marianne and Andrea I know nothing about. Both of their classes appear to require a lot of backgroud experience.
There are some people whose personality is very strong and easily hard to get along with. And sometimes teachers have a bad day. I'm rambling trying to determine if I'll take the risk. It's $$$$$, my week and my sanity. I've had a very bad 5 day experience. The seminar organizers gave me personal help. Those instructors have never been back. Which is sad because people with more experience seemed to be enjoying it. It was the first time that topic had even been touched. And the first time for team teachers. And first time for those instructors. Later, a husband/wife team taught with good results. Subject overlapped what my class was. They were both very experienced teachers.

Another experience was the instructor I'd chosen became terminally ill. Students were advised of a replacement and offered to change classes. That turned out to be one of the best classes.

Another bad experience was with a well known instructor. I've got several theories and not all only involve the teacher, but from the participants she got all the blame.

And then sometimes the class is just a dud. But then Asilomar on the Monterey Penninsula is a wonderful place to spend 5 days.

This give you time to dip your toe in the water, paddle and then swim. Usually I come home so excited I want to make another and feel like I could. Most of these classes are advanced. It appears that every session has at least 1 intermediate level class. This seminar is meant to be a place for challenge and get you out of your box with stellar teachers.

Another of my favorite venues is Art Quilt Tahoe in November. I've had excellent teachers and excellent experiences there. Again a challenging experience. They also have an onsite quilt store well worth the shopping experience. I must remind myself, I'm downsizing.