Workshops & Talks with Joe

For details of Joe’s fees and equipment needs click here.

 
 

Talks

Post Modern Quiltmaking

60 minutes - PowerPoint plus Trunk Show

We all know what “Modern” quilt making is. Sort of. Now that Modern Quilts have been around for a while the world is starting to move on, or maybe it’s just me. In this lecture I’ll talk about Modern Quilts and how they have influenced the wider quilt world, explain how I have come to find my own style of “Post” Modern quiltmaking. With lots of examples and time for questions, this is a crowd favorite!

The Stories Behind the Quilts

60 minutes - PowerPoint plus Trunk Show

In this one-hour lecture I show some of my favorite quilts and tell the real stories about how they came to be made. Accidental cut? Check. Gifted fabric? Check. Memory quilt? Check. The whole story behind my quilts and how I made them. Fun and highly informative.

 

Workshops

New - Feather Edged Star, 1 day

Using my system of simple freeform piecing, which can create many shapes, we will make enough varied and wonky feather edged stars to make a small quilt. Using two highly contrasting fabrics, we can create a powerful and fun graphic design, or using a bag of scraps we can create an entirely fascinating field of stars. 

Supplies:

  • Machine sewing class, all standard sewing equipment

  • Rotary cutter, large mat, rulers

  • Either one yard each of 2 contrasting fabrics or quarter-yard pieces of various scraps to equal two yards.

NEW - Nature’s Kingdom, 1 day

You can piece anything freehand, including people and animals. One of my favorite things to do is to make wacky pictures like this, learning along the way to improvise freely and enjoy the process. All you need is a few techniques and some guidelines and you can make your own artistic interpretations of any kind of image you want! In this one-day workshop you will learn some basic techniques for this type of work and make people and birds galore.

Supplies:

  • Machine sewing class, all standard sewing equipment

  • Rotary cutter, large mat, rulers

  • Either one yard each of 2 contrasting fabrics or fat-quarter pieces of various scraps to equal two yards.

JOE ON DEMAND - TWO COLOR WORKOUT

For the first time Joe has made a workshop available on demand. Students can sign up at any time and then have access to the course whenever they wish.

Access the course here: https://joe-cunningham-s-school.teachable.com/

Supplies

  • This is a machine sewing class, for which you will need standard machine sewing equipment:

  • Extension cord, pins, etc.

  • Rotary cutter, mat and rulers.

  • 1 yard each of two fabrics, one dark and one light

  • This workshop can also be taught in-person or online.

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Rock the block, album style, 1 day

How can a quilt that looks so complex be so simple? It is how I rock the block with a simple process that leads to unavoidable originality. You can’t help it. Fun, easy, and yet deeply satisfying and eye-opening, this class will have you inventing your own ways to make block quilts all your own. 6 Hours. All Levels.

SUPPLIES

This is a machine sewing class, for which you will need standard machine sewing equipment:

  • Extension cord, pins, etc.

  • Rotary cutter, mat and rulers, including 6.5” square ruler

  • 1 yard each of four fabrics, one large print, contrasting small prints, one solid

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ROCK THE BLOCK, BLOCK STYLE, 1 DAY

In this workshop we will make a fractured landscape from a series of unique blocks, all created with my simple step-by-step process. Making these blocks is simple enough for anyone, but as challenging as you want to make it. All fun, all day.

SUPPLIES

This is a machine sewing class, for which you will need standard machine sewing equipment:

  • Extension cord, pins and etc.

  • Rotary cutter, mat and rulers, including  6 1/2” square ruler

  • 1 yard each of four fabrics, one large print, contrasting small prints, one solid

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Creative Design, 1-3 days

In this one, two or three day workshop I will demonstrate and teach how to develop a small idea into an abstract quilt. Along the way I will teach the techniques I use for freehand piecing, working with bias tape,  and creating memorable compositions. Under my instructions, students will develop their own designs and get them to a point where they can be completed. 

SUPPLIES

This is primarily a machine class but some hand sewing may be required. 

You will need standard machine sewing equipment:

  • Extension cord, pins and etc.

  • Rotary cutter, mat and rulers

  • Scissors

  • Bias tape and matching thread (3 packs)

  • At least six yards of fabric, including fabrics that contrast strongly.