Enrollment for Season 2 will open in September 2024!

But please join my newsletter to stay in the know for next year!

SIGN UP FOR THE WAITLIST

Other courses you might enjoy in the meantime

  • $25.00

    $25.00Creating Color Palettes

    Join me as I share some of my approaches to pulling together dynamic color palettes. Building on the previous talk, we will explore the importance of value, the role proportion plays in a successful color palette & solve the mystery of why a beautiful color palette can fall apart when you start to sew. Attendees will also leave with practical exercises to apply to their palette building process.
    Buy Now

  • $25.00

    $25.00Value Creates the Design

    Value is one of the most essential design tools in quilt making. We'll explore how value plays a key role in creating movement, tension or flow in your quilt design. Attendees will also leave with practical exercises to apply to their quilt making process.
    Buy Now

What folks have to say about learning with me

“I've learned more from [Tara's] classes and making two of [her] quilts has impacted me more than any other quilter for 30 years. [Her] color choices and creativity are outstanding..”

Joe

“I’ve been quilt-making a long time.  I was drawn to Tara to learn about how she uses color so successfully.  Then I found out how well she does her techniques and patterns.  I don’t think there is anyone better at this.”

Paula

“Taking classes and participating in the Color Collective with Tara has transformed my relationship with color and value. I am more confident building and playing with my own color palettes, and am comfortably uncomfortable with colors that I usually avoid. Tara's teaching style is encouraging and full of details that make color feel tameable and help make block constructions easier and approachable. It's a supportive environment that allows learning without taking oneself too seriously when one strays off the path or makes a little oopsie. Every class or video has useful little tips to pick up on and many of the techniques she teaches are ones that I continue to use in my quilting projects. You can never take too many of her classes, there's always something new to learn. ”

Kristine

“I participated in Color Collective for five years, and it was challenging but easy and very informative. Using combinations I was unsure about, colors I would shy away from. I also learned fabulous techniques and I enjoyed learning from Tara in a pattern free environment with lots of visual support in addition to any written instruction. My way to learn.”

Jana

Creativity in bite size pieces

Are you ready to learn new sewing techniques, explore the power of colors, and create stunning small quilt studies?

Calling all sewing enthusiasts and creative minds! Get ready to dive into a world of colors, techniques, and beautiful quilt studies with the Block Studies Collective. Explore vibrant colors, learn new techniques, and let your imagination run wild as you create beautiful small quilt studies.

Block studies are not just about creating beautiful pieces, they are about tapping into your own brand of creativity and developing ideas that can become the foundation for larger quilts. I hope you’ll join me on this 6 month adventure!

Membership runs from October 2023-March 2024

Why Join the Block Studies Collective

This is the perfect place to practice techniques, experiment with different colors, and create your own unique designs

  • YOU LOVE PLAYING WITH COLOR
    and would like to explore new palettes

  • YOU LOVE TO SEW
    but need some smaller projects you can actually finish!

  • YOU WANT TO EXPERIMENT WITH NEW TECHNIQUES
    and having videos to learn from is a great way to see how its done

  • YOU ARE AN EXPERIENCED QUILTER
    and want to spend time exploring your creativity

  • YOU ARE A NEW QUILTER
    and want to spend time exploring your creativity AND learn new techniques!

THE DETAILS

6 months of creative fun, block patterns and creative prompts delivered on the 1st of each month from October 2023- March 2024.

What's in each month's membership?

MONTHLY BLOCK PATTERN
Every month you will receive a technique focused block pattern and various creative prompts. The blocks are designed to grow your skills and can be made with precision or ruler free! The creative prompts are to help you practice the technique and play with different color and block variations. Techniques we will be exploring range from traditional piecing, to improv, no tear foundation paper piecing, curves, hand piecing and more!

CURATED COLOR PALETTE
Each color palette coordinates with the block pattern for the month. The palettes might range from just a few colors to more complex palettes focused on color interaction and value contrast.

THE FABRICS -USE YOUR OWN STASH OR PURCHASE FABRICS ONLINE
Use the fabrics and scraps you have on hand, purchase charm packs or order fabrics from the monthly palette. Whatever works for you!

VIDEO TUTORIALS
Every month Tara will take you step by step through the block, giving you insights into the colors and values in the palette, tips and tricks for the block and ways to take the block of the month forward.

TWICE MONTHLY ZOOM MEETUPS
Get together for presentations from Tara and guest speakers. This is a place to connect in real time to share your thoughts, questions and progress. All meetings will be at 4 pm Pacific time

GUEST SPEAKERS
Heidi Parkes and Victoria Van der Laan will be coming in to chat about their sewing practice and share their work!

A SUPPORTIVE COMMUNITY OF LIKE MINDED QUILTERS
There is nothing quite like being with a group of creative folks to get inspired and make new friendships! This is one of my favorite aspects of a membership- these are your people!! There will be a members only community on Thinkific, a private space to share our work, ask questions and cheer each other on.

More goodies for members

  • Scrap Exchange

    This is a great way to reinvigorate your scrap stash!

  • Access to purchase Color Collective Patterns

    Exclusive access to unreleased patterns from The Color Collective archive.

  • Stash Management

    Tara will share lots of ideas on how to use and organize your scraps, including making use of those UFOs!

FAQ

  • Do I need to buy fabric each month?

    No, you can use the fabrics and scraps you have on hand! You can always purchase charm packs or order fabrics from the monthly palette!

  • Can I cancel my membership at any time?

    Of course!
    Pay in full memberships ($185 one-time fee level) may be cancelled at any time and will be refunded at the $35/month rate.

    Pay as you go memberships ($35 monthly fee level) may also be cancelled at any time.

    Once you cancel, you will lose access to all content at the end of your current billing cycle.

    All refunds will be less any processing fees incurred by the payment service providers.

  • How long will I have access to the content?

    You will have access for an entire year-until the end of September 2025. If you cancel your membership, you will lose access to the content on your renewal date.

  • Will I be making a quilt each month?!

    You can make the block for each month, and if you love the technique, guidance will be provided for creating something larger or a finished product like larger quilts, pillows, zip pouches, bags and wall hangings.

  • Will the Zoom sessions be recorded?

    Yes! It will take about 3 to 24 hours to make the recordings available after each meet up.

  • Still have a question?

    Email me at [email protected]

Zoom Schedule

OCTOBER: Tues the 3rd & Tues the 17th

NOVEMBER: Wed the 1st & Tues the 14th

DECEMBER: Fri the 1st & Tues the 12th

JANUARY: Tues the 2nd & Tues the 16th

FEBRUARY: Thurs the 1st & Tues the 13th

MARCH: Fri the 1st & Tues the 2th

Join in on 6 months of sewing joy!

I'd love to see you there

Meet the Instructor

About Tara

Tara Faughnan

I am a professional textile designer and quilter living and working in Oakland, CA. I started to quilt around 2001 or so, using a reprint of the 1931 edition of 101 Patchwork Patterns by Ruby Short McKim as my guide. I had no idea such things as rotary cutters, rulers or plastic templates existed, and spent many happy weeks tracing around cardboard templates and cutting out pieces with a pair of scissors. Somewhere along the way, my love of quilting led to school and on to a career in textile design, with clients including Michael Miller Fabrics, Riley Blake and Pottery Barn Kids.  I find inspiration in forms, shapes and the place where 2 seams meet. Color interaction is the key inspiration that drives me. It's that intuitive moment when you put two colors together, and then two more, and two more after that that I focus on. The explorations are endless and  I strive to try to walk the line of discomfort and still make everything work together as a whole.     I draw a lot of inspiration from the simple bold geometry of antique quilts, the gorgeous bright colors from textiles around the world, and freedom and spontaneity found in unconventional and improvisational quilts.  When I look at my current work, I see all 3 of these aspects represented.  I like to use simple geometry, complex color interaction and find the line the exists somewhere between harmony and discord.

Meet the Guest Speakers

Victoria Van der Laan

Guest Speaker

Victoria van der Laan is a textile artist working in Albany, NY. Victoria's heritage is quilt- making and she carries this knowledge and tradition forward in her sewn works, echoing the work of her forebears while innovating new possibilities for the form. She has been awarded multiple residencies including the Elizabeth Murray Artist Residency, Millay Arts Residency, and Weir Farm Artist Residency, and has exhibited her work widely throughout the Northeast. A self/generationally taught artist, Victoria makes work using traditional techniques learned from her Grandmothers while also deeply informed by a love of abstraction and a painterly approach. She deliberately maintains the quilt form: three layers connected by running stitches, bound and finished with hand stitching. Her intention is to champion women's work broadly and quilts specifically as dually powerful: encompassing both function and art and embodying the ingenuity and artistic voice of marginalized folk, and her distinct voice among them. A strong proponent of the Solidarity Economy and passionate about equitable access to art, Victoria increasingly offers her work for sale with a pay-what-you-can model.

Heidi Parkes

Guest Speaker

Before Heidi Parkes was born in Chicago, IL in 1982, her grandmother organized a collaborative family quilt to commemorate her birth. Now based in Milwaukee, Wisconsin her quilting and mending celebrate the hand, and her works tug at memories and shared experience. Often using specific textiles, like an heirloom tablecloth, bed sheet, or cloth tea bag, Heidi adds subtle meaning and material memory from the start. Engaging in the worlds of art, quilts, mending, and social media, Heidi is an advocate for the domestic realms, slow stitching, and mindfulness. Find her on Instagram and YouTube. She was a 2020-2021 ARTservancy Artist in Residence, and a 2005 graduate from The School of the Art Institute of Chicago.