2026 DATES:

Sunday Small Group, 12 noon - 3 pm Central: 1/11, 2/15, 3/1, 4/12, 5/3, 6/7, 7/12, 8/2, 9/13, 10/4, 11/8, 12/6

Monday Small Group AM, 11 am - 2 pm Central: 1/12, 2/16, 3/2, 4/13, 5/4, 6/8, 7/6, 8/3, 9/14, 10/5, 11/9, 12/7

Monday Small Group PM, 7 pm - 10 pm Central: 1/12, 2/16, 3/2, 4/13, 5/4, 6/8, 7/6, 8/3, 9/14, 10/5, 11/9, 12/7

Optional large group, 2-hour co-working sessions 1-2 x’s per month: times and dates will vary, and will be shared as they approach. *Alumni access to these co-working gatherings will continue for as long as I run this course.

🌎 🌍 🌏 This link to World Time Buddy will help you easily understand the times. (Class meets in Chicago Time)

Course Description:

Monthly course structure:

1. Robust pre-recorded video learning in monthly modules, according to our curriculum—about 6 hours per month.

2. Meet once a month, in small groups of 11 people each (Sunday, Monday AM, or Monday PM), where everyone will give an open-ended 10-minute presentation with an update on their work. (The presentation is for YOU, to share your work, ask questions, and connect, it isn't expected to be a professional lecture.) We use a time to stay accountable and fair with time.

3. Optional large group co-working sessions, once or twice monthly—with alumni! Usually once early afternoon, and once in the evening.

4. We will engage with each other to share photos & updates via an exclusive Mighty Network platform, including a personal ‘article’ serving as your virtual studio

5. Students will be matched with each other for 1:1 monthly conversations

*Within a few days of registering, you will receive a welcome email with an invitation to the Mighty Network, where you can view a welcome video, add the events to your calendar, and prepare for class.

*Mighty Network access will continue beyond 2026, giving you lifetime access to this network as an alumni, including continued access to the optional co-working sessions, your virtual studio, the studio community, and the pre-recorded curriculum modules.

Curriculum:

Quiltmaking: Under the umbrella of artmaking, this course relates to the skill, study, and practice of making quilts with any collection of techniques or materials—as desired by the maker.

Aesthetics: Cultivate your personal style and the recognizability of your work. Become an expert in your niche.

Curiosity: Ask yourself compelling creative questions and build resilience in critique settings.

Efficiency: Grow skill and speed while you structure your making to work with your life, aesthetics, and goals.

January: Introducing ourselves

February: Defining our aesthetics

March: Refining our conceptual interests and doing research

April: Technical skill, how to improve

May: Economizing/resource management

June: Small studies and working in a series

July: Investing in and being generous to your quiltmaking practice

August: Photographing your work

September: Writing about your work

October: Troubleshooting roadblocks

November: Location goals: Instagram, galleries, guilds, home, gifting, selling, exhibits, residencies, etiquette, vocabulary, sewing/studio space

December: Pleasing yourself, grounding your practice, graduation, and next steps

Is this course for me?

This course may be a good fit if:

1. You've loved taking classes with me before

2. You're looking to nurture your personal sewing style 

3. You're eager for a rigorous program to keep you accountable and sewing for an average of 5-7 hours a week

4. You can join from a computer (not a tablet)

5. You’re already familiar with a Mighty Network (like the Nook, Brave Patch, Sew Squad), or you’re able to navigate spaces like Facebook and Instagram with relative ease after an introductory tour

6. You’re excited for live, personal interaction with me in an intimate setting, where we’ll know each other

7. You're eager to build community with other curious and engaged quiltmakers

8. You can attend most of our small group meetings live, at least 9 of the 12

This course may not be for you this year if:

1. You’re brand-new to my work

2. You can’t make the small group times

3. You don’t have at least 300-hours to sew in the coming year

4. You don’t have 6-hours to engage in the learning modules each month (Many people watch them while sewing, cleaning, exercising, eating, etc.)

5. You don’t have a computer (laptop or desktop is required; tablets will not work unless you are already VERY savvy at Zoom and screen-sharing with a tablet)

6. You often need extra help with computers including Zoom, Powerpoint, and logging in with a password

7. If it isn’t in your budget. *There are many free and low-cost pre-recorded options from me on YouTube and Creativebug. I offer this course annually, so saving for next year could work too. Join the 2027 pre-registration list.

How Rigorous is this Course?

• Think of this like a single college course.

• In commitment, effort, and transformation this class is comparable to a yearlong yoga certification training.

• Sewing:

  • Plan to make 3-8 quilts, and a collection of small studies.

  • You will not have monthly quilts due at each gathering. Instead, there are lots of monthly prompts for you to consider, but you will not be told what to sew and how to sew it.

  • You will be expected to maintain your sewing practice, to make progress on current projects, and to share images of your work throughout the year. You’ll be asked to connect your work with the learning modules, as listed in the curriculum above.

  • You might begin by sewing patterns and working with my on-demand classes. Then, throughout class, you may transition into more independent work. If you already have an established quilting practice, this class will work with that practice, and will offer you critique, insight, and a ‘stirring of the pot’ to invigorate your work.

• Absences:

  • For a planned absence, you have the option to pre-record what you would’ve presented, and we can view it in small group, as though you were there with us!

  • If you get behind, it is possible to catch up. All class sessions are recorded.

  • Sometimes life gets busy, and you’ll be able to join class on Zoom, but won’t have a slideshow. We’ll be glad to have you there! You’ll still have time to share with us, and you’ll be expected to have your Zoom camera on.

  • Students have given birth, moved, and fought cancer all way staying engaged in class. On the other hand, students are most likely to drop out because they can’t keep up with the 300-hours of sewing and thus, have nothing to share about when we meet in the small group sessions.

• This course is intended to grow and transform your practice: this can be a private or public quilting practice, and this important choice is entirely up to you.

  • Students will have an opportunity to share their work in optional public Zooms. See the presentations from the current class

Personal Style:

• You are welcome to include techniques and ideas from my work and classes in this course: visible hand piecing, Diary Quilting, framed quilts, mending, etc.

• You are welcome to work with techniques and ideas from other classes, contemporary teachers, and quilting traditions.

• Hand and machine techniques are both welcome.

• In class we will discuss ways to balance inspiration and innovation. We will learn about etiquette and best practice for crediting others.

• There will be space to grow, change, innovate, learn, and practice throughout the class and into the future.

• This class is designed to nurture YOUR unique style, whatever we discover that to be!

• All people are welcome in this class. Age, gender, nationality, sewing/art/technology experience, etc

Additional Info:

• This is an intimate yearlong class. Your presence in ‘small group’ sessions is important and you should plan to attend at least 9 of the 12 sessions LIVE. (They will be recorded, and available through March 2027)

• Watch your mailbox! All students will receive a special gift from me.🎁 *International students have the option to get a matching gift for a small fee, to cover shipping and handling.

• Students will receive a 50% off discount code for: one-on-one consultations with me, my on-demand classes, and live Zoom classes for the year. This is an optional benefit, and not required additional study. Valid from purchase through the end of 2026. (Thus, the discount also applies to Diary Quilting: Manifesting & Spellcasting fall 2025 🎉)

• All purchases are final. If you have questions about the appropriateness of this class for you, please email HeidiParkesINFO@gmail.com or DM @heidi.parkes before purchasing.

• ⭕️ TAKE NOTE AFTER CHECKOUT: You will receive an emailed receipt directly after purchasing access to this class. Within about a week, you will receive a welcome email to join the Mighty Network and add the class dates to your calendar.