May Newsletter
In May, Studiospace will continue to focus on further research and the development of various educational formats for textile art and related crafts. I am constantly expanding my offerings: new content is added regularly.
This coming Saturday, May 9, 2026, I invite you to the next Quilting Bee – Making Session.
From 2:00 to 4:00 p.m., my studio will be an open workspace and gathering place for everyone who loves patchwork, quilting, and hand sewing. You can work on your own projects, exchange ideas, share knowledge, and make new friends—just like in the historic quilting bees. Knitting and embroidery projects or other handicrafts using textile materials are also welcome. Sewing machines are available if needed, but they are not the focus.
Please feel free to sign up; I’m very much looking forward to seeing you there!
The next masterclass, from June 26 to 28, 2026, will focus on Hawaiian quilts. They inspired my “Hosen Quilt,” “Jiun Pants,” and “Osho.” It emerged from the “Adam and Eve Journey” that I undertook together with Felicity Brown to New Mexico, USA, in 2017.
Hawaiian appliqué gives us a tool that organically expands our repertoire of working with cut-out fabric pieces. I find the design process both wonderful and practical. The execution requires patience and a bit of skill. The more time we take for it, the more beautiful the results.
In the masterclass, we’ll also touch on the basics of wool processing for the wool batting we’ll use in the quilt samples.
It’s always possible that I’ll have to reschedule workshops or add new ones.
Here’s an overview of the current schedule through the end of the year:
June 26–28, 2026 – Hawaiian Appliqué Masterclass
October 11, 2026 – The Sewing Machine as a Creative Tool – Sewing Workshop and Improvisational Patchwork
October 25, 31, and November 8, 2026 – Sashiko – Unshin, Moyozashi, Hitomezashi, and Your Project
My Pants Quilt, Jiun Pants, Osho is on the road!
I am delighted to be part of the Textile Art Biennial again this year:
Scythia – 16th International Biennial of Textile & Fiber Art
June 3–17, 2026
Ivano-Frankivsk, Ukraine
April Newsletter
I’d love to invite you to the studio workshop again this April. Here, you can share your expertise in making sessions like the Quilting Bee and learn more about the diverse methods of creative textile work in workshops. Or just stop by for a chat.
My new masterclass, “Trapunto and Marseille Quilting,” will take place from April 24 to 26: You’ll learn quilting techniques inspired by trapunto and Marseilles quilting, and create a monochromatic, tactile, and relief-like textile composition. We’ll sew by hand using wool from the Schmidt sheep farm in Maibach. The workshop is open to anyone who wants to draw inspiration from textiles and historical techniques and discover them as a form of artistic and creative expression.
The next Quilting Bee will take place on Saturday, May 9, 2026, from 2:00 to 4:00 p.m. We’ll gather in a small group to continue working on our textile projects and engage in inspiring conversations.
You’ll have access to an extensive library, featuring books such as Sofi Thanhauser’s groundbreaking *Worn* and Elizabeth Wayland Barber’s *Women’s Work*, which explore the making and significance of textiles throughout history. You’ll also find literature on embroidery, dyeing, shibori, ribbon weaving, felting, pattern drafting, and craftivism, as well as on patchwork from Florida, England, and Italy; Viking sails made of spun wool; and woven fabrics from Iceland that served as currency until the 19th century.
I look forward to exploring the diverse possibilities of textile art with you, celebrating small gestures, fostering community, and slowing down.
March Newsletter
I wish you all a wonderful start to spring. It's a great time to offer my favorite workshops: English paper piecing with its Grandmother's Flower Garden, or in other words: EPP – dimensional stability through paper-backed geometry.
With the paper piecing method, we can give our deeply buried fabric remnants a new lease of life and transform them into simple to super-complex compositions. And we can do this anywhere, in the garden, in the living room, on the tram...
A well-known hexagon combination reminiscent of flowers is called Grandmother's Flower Garden, also known as Hexagon Quilt or Honeycomb.
EPP is a hand sewing method in which pieces of fabric are pinned (or glued, which I don't do) around paper templates and then sewn together. In addition to reusing beloved pieces of fabric, the idea of dimensional stability through paper-supported geometry is central. After sewing the individual elements together, the paper is removed and can then be reused as well.
The method is suitable for complex geometric patterns as well as difficult and slippery fabrics, which is hardly feasible by machine. The result is textile surfaces whose logic is based on structure, variation, and manual precision. Individual shapes are also possible—as we did, for example, with Radus Quilt. Based on the figurative representations on the ties from Nicoletta's student days, she constructed corresponding geometric patterns and transformed the pieces of fabric into a new composition. At that time, I helped Nicoletta sew a quilt for her son Radu, and Nicoleta helped me learn more about EPP and the history of patchwork and quilting.
I love English paper piecing because I can transform all the little fabric scraps, even the slippery and difficult ones, into all kinds of shapes without feeling stressed or inefficient. It's simple and varied at the same time.
I love English paper piecing because I can transform all my little fabric scraps, even the slippery and difficult-to-handle ones, into all kinds of shapes without feeling stressed or pressured to be efficient. It's simple and varied at the same time.
For Spectrum Flower Garden, my tribute to my friend and mentor Hassan Sharif, I painted a simple canvas and then cut it up according to my own cardboard template. For the paper hexagons, I used prints that I created for the Paradise Lost work group. At first, I wanted to leave them in the finished work. But it felt too contrived and inorganic, so I decided against it.
Today, English paper piecing also stands for a conscious, sustainable use of textile resources, is one of the sustainable crafts, and offers great opportunities in combination with creative freedom.
The Quilting Bee is coming back to the studio.
The next Quilting Bee – Making Session will take place on March 22, 2026, from 2 to 4 p.m.
You can register here without obligation, or send me an email or WhatsApp message.