Balls!”, an Intro to English Paper Piecing

In this two-session class, students will learn the easy-to-master technique of English Paper Piecing, and get started by making balls.The balls can become toys, tree ornaments, accent pillows, pincushions, juggling balls, sachets, and more.

This is an ideal class for true beginners, but experienced EPP-ers interested in exploring spherical projects are more than welcome.

Required Supplies:

• Students will need to purchase the “Balls!” Paper Piece Kit (This kit will contain all the paper pieces you’ll need and will be available on the first day of class)
• Straight pins
• Needles for hand sewing (I recommend appliqué sharps)
• Fabric scissors (small ones are nice for this)
• Non-fancy thread for basting (whatever you’ve got laying around)
• Filling (stuffing will happen in the second class, and we will discuss options at the end of the first class – cotton or polyester stuffing, dried lavender and pellets are all good options depending on what your ball wants to be when it grows up).

Fabric and Thread:
If you have a bunch of thread and scraps and fat quarters and random fun fabrics in your stash, go ahead and bring as many as you don’t mind carrying! The more the merrier! If you do not have a stash like that, fabric and thread color selection will be discussed in class, and there will be time to shop, but ultimately you will want 1/4 yard of at least 2 fabrics that look nice together.

• For fabric, quilting weight cotton is recommended, but pretty much anything that isn’t stretchy is fine. (Small-scale novelty prints are lots of fun for this!)
• For piecing thread, I recommend 50 weight cotton in colors that either match the fabric you’d like to use, or are slightly duller. (Medium-dark greys are especially handy.)

Location directions:

If attending class outside regular business hours, buzz #603 to be let into the building, then proceed to the back elevator (to the left and behind the first one you see). Once you get into the elevator, we will call it up from the 6th floor to bring you up to the location.