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| LECTURES
Our lecture fee in the Chicago area is $375 + travel expenses for a single lecture by one of us. Out-of-town lectures are $600 per day + travel expenses. Please scroll down the page for information and fees for our workshops. Reduced lecture rates are available for libraries and schools. |
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| Transforming
Traditions : Modernism and Quilts
Early American quilts were born of necessity but have been transformed into a vibrant contemporary art form. We trace this transformation as it parallels changes in art, architecture, design and society. We will bring in a our quilts to show how our designs are expressive of the era in which we live and discuss our quilts Facility equipment
needed: Slide screen (we will bring a computer and digital projector)
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| Color in
a Supporting Role
Using examples of our own work as well as slides of art, sculpture, architecture, garden design, and product and package design, we will explain the role of color in design. We will show how great quilts, ranging from traditional to contemporary, use color to support a "Big Idea" or design intention. Facility equipment
needed: Slide screen (we will bring a computer and digital projector)
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| WORKSHOPS
Workshop fees are $700 a day for one of us. Both of us are available together on a limited basis for local workshops and lectures. Please contact us for fees. Travel and lodging expenses for out-of-town workshops are additional. |
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| The Role
of Color in Your Quilts
Using individual and group "color explorations" you will learn new ways of thinking about the role of color in your quilts. We will look at a wide variety of quilts as well as slides of art, sculpture, architecture, gardens, and images of daily life for inspiration and to better understand the role of color in design. In this workshop you will develop the analytical tools needed to use color with confidence. We hope that each of you will leave the workshop with a deeper understanding of the role of color in your quilts and with a renewed excitement about making quilts. Student supplies
needed: sewing machine, rotary cutting equipment, a wide assortment of
cotton quilting fabric (bring fabrics you love to work with as well as
others that have proved challenging to work with), extension cord, thread,
seam ripper, notebook or journal, and any supplies you like to have handy
when quilting.
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| From Idea
to Quilt
You have an idea for an original quilt but you need to figure out the details. What size are the pieces? Does the palette need some work? How are you going to quilt it? How would different binding fabrics change the look of the final quilt? This class is designed to coach you through the process of making an original quilt. Come with the desire to try new colors, techniques and textures. Bring a sketchbook and ideas. Student supplies
needed: notebook or journal, sewing machine, rotary cutting equipment,
an assortment of cotton quilting fabric, extension cord, thread, seam ripper,
and any supplies you like to have handy when quilting.
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| Left Brain
/ Right Brain Quilting
The left side of the brain is generally geared to analytical processes while the right side of the brain is responsible for creativity. Harnessing the energies of both sides of the brain is useful in quiltmaking as dynamic quilts can be a combination of precise and improvisationally cut pieces. Come learn how to piece a quilt using both sides of your brain and hone your composition skills at the same time. Student supplies
needed: sewing machine, rotary cutting equipment, an assortment of cotton
quilting fabric, extension cord, thread, seam ripper, notebook or journal,
and any supplies you like to have handy when quilting.
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The Luminous
Quilt
Student supplies needed: sewing machine, rotary cutting equipment, an assortment of cotton quilting fabric, extension cord, thread, seam ripper, notebook or journal, and any supplies you like to have handy when quilting. Ideal fabrics will include a wide range of values, from light to dark, of a variety of colors. Avoid fabrics with large-scale prints, fabrics with white in them, fabrics with high-contrast prints or novelty prints. Tone-on-tone fabrics, solids, and hand-dyes can work well. The explorations will use small scraps, so if you've got a scrap bag, bring it! |
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| About FunQuilts
Weeks Ringle and Bill Kerr are full-time professional quiltmakers and founders of FunQuilts, a contemporary quilt design studio in Oak Park, Illinois. They bring a modern twist to the great American quilting tradition with their 24 years of quiltmaking experience and graduate design degrees. They create innovative, museum-quality quilts which bring a warm touch to homes, offices, health-care facilities, and commercial settings. Their work has been featured in over forty publications including O: The Oprah Magazine, Metropolitan Home, TIME, The New York Times, American Patchwork & Quilting, Quilts and More, Interior Design, Home and The Chicago Tribune. Weeks and Bill are currently working on a new book, their fourth, of contemporary quilt patterns. It will be published by C&T publishing. They are authors of The Modern Quilt Workshop, The Quiltmaker's Color Workshop (originally released as Color Harmony for Quilts) and have designed more than 100 fabrics for FreeSpirit and RJR Fabrics. Weeks also writes the widely-read craft and creativity blog, Craft Nectar. Rather than teach others to copy their quilts, they view themselves as coaches, helping quiltmakers become confident designers enabling them to express themselves through their own quilts. |