Lecture Topics

I am available for one hour Guild Programs (see topics below) and for 3 hour and 6 hour Workshops. I have made hundreds of quilt samples for magazines and fabric companies for 29 years, so I have a LOT of quilts to demonstrate in my programs! Please contact me for fees, availability and scheduling. I am able to offer Zoom classes, too. Lectures are already fine tuned for many of these topics below. 

One Hour Programs - Visit my blog to see dozens of quilts that represent many of these lecture topics. Type in the "Search" bar for any of these mentioned below to see samples.

(Because a PowerPoint lecture offers so many more possibilities, I "bring" many more quilts to see than in person.)

Tight Knit Circles, a modern version of the vintage Roses of Picardy!

• Modern My Way: Traditional Roots, Today's Colors. As a published quilter for 29 years, I have taken my creative cues from a variety of sources (floor tiles in old buildings, shower curtains, nature, and vintage quilt blocks – to name a few). I START with traditional blocks in traditional colors and then show my updates. Dozens of quilts tied together by design. As the author of the Gee’s Bend interpretive quilts for Windham Fabrics, those 8 quilts sent me on an improvisational adventure that pushed my envelope beyond the matching of triangle points!
  • Seven Sisters (both traditional and modern)
  • Hexagons in Today's Colors
  • Baby Blocks
  • English Paper Piecing with Pentagons, and with Hexagons
  • Improvisational Piecing
  • Log Cabin
  • Dresden Plates
  • Double Wedding Ring . . . and many more were transformed with just a design tweak and today’s colors. I share a LOT of eye candy and ideas and process shots on how I went from predictable to “aha.”

Double Hexie Star with NO y-seams

• Turning 60 - The Joys of Hex: What's that - gasp? For the better part of 22 years I have revisited my favorite angle and 60 degree ruler (which I call my Power Tool) and have created DOZENS of traditional and innovative quilts.
• Twisted Hexagons
• Bubbles and Hexagons (with no y-seams)
• Double Hexagon Stars
• More Hexagon Stars
• English Paper Piecing
• Half Hexagon Braid Strippies
• Circles of Hexagons
• Traditional Sugarloaf
• Sparkling Diamonds
• Traditional Honeycomb in today's colors
• Thousand Pyramids
• Even Dresden Plate quilts featuring both the 30 degree (Buzz Saw) and the 60 degree angle as shown in Orange Crush.
• I will explain how to cut out many 60 degree shapes with ONLY your generic 60 degree triangle ruler. I introduce working with border prints, fussy cutting motifs - and share a LOT of quilts and samples to check out up close. Be prepared to be surprised, and enjoy every minute of it! Oh, and did I say that we don't use "no stinkin' y-seams"?

Blue and White Off Center Log Cabins

• Strips, Logs and Scrap Buster Quilts: The Log Cabin still remains the perennial favorite of all quilts. But, this is not your grandmother’s Log Cabin Quilt in my presentation. I begin with tradition and my quilts progressively demonstrate variations on the basic block.
• The Greek Key is a spiral log cabin and takes on a personality of its own in traditional red and white and then scraps.
• How about String Piecing? Now THAT'S a scrap buster!
• Off Center Logs can be butterflies and even pointed palm leaves! Or feature a beautiful motif.
• Strips don’t have to be the same width, which results in a visual dance of logs and colors as seen in Debby’s Pixie Sticks.
• Stars have log cabin blocks as their center as well as houses and yes, birdhouses!
• And sometimes log cabin blocks are just a frame around traditional appliqué (can you say Sunbonnet Sue and Overall Sam?). Or a simple Elephant?
• And pairs of squares will really make a dent in your scrap bag!
• I also created 8 patterns in partnership with Gees Bend and Windham fabrics. Several are log cabin variations, like Courthouse Steps, which I will also talk about. Come ready to be inspired and encouraged to dig into your own scraps and strips and make something vintage become contemporary.

New York Beauty - from templates to paper piecing

• Shortcuts From a Short Woman: This is a trunk show bursting with tips, tricks, shortcuts and a variety of innovations that will satisfy any quilter. I demonstrate traditional blocks made with non-traditional methods. This blog has featured hundreds of these quilts over the years. Take a look around!
• Converting traditional blocks to paper piecing (Palm Quilts)
• Tricks with fool-the-eye color placement (Royal Star quilts)
• With 3-4 dozen quilts I show quick ways to create otherwise difficult blocks and finishing techniques: taking out the y-seam on Lone Stars
• Dresden Plate units become Butterfly wings!
• No hand sewing of quilt labels, rod pockets and binding - no kidding! 
• From 12 patches to only two with my Winding Ways quick technique.
• Simplified Double Wedding Ring quilts.
• I am always making new samples, so every time I give this trunk show I have at least a dozen new quilts using the latest fabrics. I am the Queen of Tips and Tricks and I love to share these things to make your quilting life easier and more fun.

Orange Crush using a super-sized dresden ruler

• Tips and Tricks With Tools and Templates: As the Queen of Tools and Templates, I rule my sewing room with my magic scepter. I have a trick to just about any difficult block, to make it bend to my command. I have tools for making:
  • Eight Pointed Stars (without any hand work or set in seams) using your standard rulers
  • New Dresden Plate designs (have you seen my Vortex quilts?)
  • EZ Double Wedding Ring creations using a simplified tool and raw edge appliqué.
  • I use Coffee Filters for paper piecing
  • Freezer paper as template material for appliqué (Easy Winding Ways)
  • Fold one shape to create another, and streamline even the most cantankerous of fussy quilt units. This is a trunk show filled with quilts, blocks, samples and fun tips that even the most experienced quilter will learn something new.

I am happy to supply more details on any of the above to interested guilds or shops. Contact me: kratovil@his.com