It's the class that never ends...it just goes on and on my friends.

Over a year ago I started teaching how to do fabric covered corded baskets, coasters, hot pads, table mats, place mats etc.

To say that it has drawn interest would be an understatement!  There is rarely a month goes by where another class is requested, and filled rapidly.  Both private classes and those held in my favorite quilt shop, Sew There Quilts and More in Angier NC.  Currently I have a class set up for March 6th at Sew There and a private class the following week as well.  

The finished product is what makes this so popular.  It is clean, not stringy, no loose threads hanging about AND they can be washed.  Further, the type of cording used makes them very rigid which allows them to retain their shape and hold heavy items without flopping or getting wonky.  Win, win, win!!

Since I'm sure I'm an undiagnosed ADD adult (confirmed by reading books on the topic and seeing the list of 'signs' and aligning with every.single.one of them), I've always taken something I learn and going to the wall with it, especially if I enjoy it!

This is no different.  I've made rugs out of this technique, I've made purses, I've even made keyfobs!  But the fallback love is baskets and coasters and hot pads.  Probably because those are great gifts and easy to accomplish in a short time frame.

With a little fabric and a lot of cord, creating a useful end product is something that makes it fun and rewarding to do.  I'm all about functionality and usefulness in most projects that draw my sustained interest, I'm sure you are no different.  Those of us who 'mess with' fabric, often find common ground in the purpose of our excitement in learning something new that checks off a few things on our list of "worth doing".

So the sustained interest in this art form doesn't surprise me, but at the same time makes me shake my head in amused wonder that while I have taught so many already, there are more people seeking to learn how to do this.  THANK YOU!  Because I get excited to see the "AHA!" moment when someone learns something new and is excited they did it.  That's what teaching really is all about, the joy of watching someone learn and be excited to know they can and did do it.

Many of those I've taught this technique to have gone forward with it and made gifts of their finished work, others have found that selling them feeds their habit of sewing more of them and the ripple effect reaches far and wide.

I often wonder where some of the baskets people have made have traveled to.  But I enjoy the feeling that because someone learned something new, they've made someone smile being the recipient of that new found talent.  

That's a comforting thought on a cold February day.  Stay warm my friends, and keep creating!