What would you include?
 

As a fund raiser at my church I am thinking of putting into the auction a 3 hour basic quilting class, one-on-one in my home.

Of course it will matter whether the purchaser already sews or not, but I am trying to come up with an actual lesson -- shapes, color intensity, accuracy -- and ideally the person would end up with a finished project to take home.

I bought a 14" pillow form, but now am finding no simple blocks that large (and I am geometrically very challenged). I also thought of making some of those bowl huggies, but that barely involves quilting, though it does cover color, batting and sandwiching.

I am somewhere between advanced beginner and mediocre intermediate in my quilting skills, the worst of which is FMQ.

What would you expect in a short basic class? Thanks for any ideas you can give me!

3 hours isn't a lot of time, especially if a beginner wins the auction.

A thought would be make a completed project to display and a kit to use to teach with. Due to the 3 hour time frame your fabric should also be cut, but that won't teach them how to do it.

Maybe use Take 5 and just make 2 blocks for the front/back of the pillow.

You're going to have to explain how to choose fabric, cut, sew, and put together a pillow. I just don't see it happening within a 3 hour window.

Maybe two 3 hour windows giving the winner at the end of the first 3 hour class the kit/instructions on what to do at home. Then the second class teach them how to complete the pillow.

You can use any 12" block and add 1" sashing all around to get your 14".

Maybe you could offer the winner a couple of options:

1) Very basic - this is a needle, this is thread, this is a sewing machine, this is fabric level - I think a pillowcase would be about it for three hours - and it still takes me longer than that to do it well.

2) Maybe a very small table runner or place mat thing - you could get -

3) Maybe a specialized class - how to apply binding - how to do flying geese - different ways of doing HSTs

For 3 hours, for a beginner, assuming they know how to use a sewing machine but not much else... I would skip anything to do with color theory. Perhaps supply the fabric and have them make a couple of pot holders. Use simple designs with no angles - log cabin with wide strips would work nicely. You can teach a lot (including binding) with pot holders. And everyone can use them.

So far all your ideas are great! I think maybe I can whet their interest in 3 hours and offer a follow-up course if desired.

Why three hours? Why not a 6 hour Saturday? Or a day good for both of you? The winner would be able to cut and start sewing simple blocks to make a table topper that is turned. If you two hit it off then you have a new quilting friend! If the person doesn't seem to get it or is whinny, then she has completed the project and you are done.

A word of caution, make sure you have a quilting glove. Don't need any accidents with rotary cutters. That could be something to take home along with the project. Try to get a coupon or go to a bait/sports store and get a fileting glove. They're about the same price.

This is what I teach in my Beginning Piecing Workshop: rotary cutting, sewing accurate 1/4” seams, quilting tools, thread, machine set-up, pressing, 4-patch, half-square-triangles, sparrow block, “twist and shout,” snowball corners, flying geese, square-in-a-square, matching points and diagonal corners, squaring-up, chain piecing, block construction, “needle down and stomp your foot,” “steering with the pin,” and borders. But we take 5 weeks to do it, and machine quilting and binding are separate classes.

Maybe a Friendship Star hot pad would be more appropriate. That may take more than 3 hours, though.

How about the disappearing four patch (Jenny Doan) made from 10 inch pre-cuts? You could let them choose the fabrics and how wide to cut the strip. then they can cut the block down to size. It's super easy but has a really complicated look to it. Would cover all the basics. Good luck to you!