Where do my students find the inspiration for their fabric collage subjects? That would be quite a question to delve into! We find inspiration from so many people and creatures, places and things—it’s often hard to narrow down where inspiration comes from. Sometimes it’s just showing up and doing something, anything—just move in a direction and see what happens—maybe you’ll end up with a laughing goat such as JoAnne Lincoln’s, pictured above.
That’s what each of the artists featured in this Throwback Thursday post did. They showed up for a class, began a fabric collage, and let inspiration find them. And here are their finished quilts, in this Finish Line post—may you find them as inspiring as I do in their subjects, colors, and stories. Thank you again to all who have shared their artwork with us over the years.
This weekend, I’m off to teach a fabric collage class in the center of Santa Fe—a MISA West campus. It’s a full fifteen-student class, and while some students will be new to me and some returning, I will still recognize all their faces thanks to some pre-class coaching via Zoom. There, I can give some early feedback on those beginning questions such as subject, drawing and “What size?” to make it, and the often overwhelming question of, “What fabric do I bring?” I started doing pre-class coaching with students in my Live Online Classes (See below to register for the June class!), but when I saw how affective it was in preparing for Day One of class, I added it to my in-person classes as well. Here’s hoping for a smooth start, and certainly a lot of inspiration, next week in Santa Fe.
Remember, if you’re looking to increase your fabric collage skills, I have several opportunities coming up, including another Live Online Class in June. For more information, contact Tom or visit this link. Or you can visit my teaching schedule for more classes.
For now, here’s hoping you find some inspiration in one or more of the colorful, sweet, eye-popping, gob-smacking, inspired quilts in today’s Throwback Thursday. Enjoy.
Click on any of the images below, to see them larger and to scroll through the Throwback Thursday Preview Gallery. To read more about the making of the fabric collage quilts, be sure to check out The Finish Line: Completed Student Work Vol. 6 post link that follows.
Do you have a finished fabric collage quilt to share in a future Finish Line post? Click on submission button below—and thank you!
Submit Quilt for "Finish Line"
Upcoming Live Online Class
We are still accepting registrations for our June Live Online Class. This class will be held via Zoom over five consecutive days, June 23-27.
June 23-27, 2025
Live Online Class—All Levels, Animals Only
REGISTER HERE
Maximum Class Size: 12
Price: $995 $895
Through our online classes each student receives:
Pre-Class Coaching
Individual coaching sessions live with Susan to get you better prepared for class and to familiarize you with the Zoom platform.
Daily Class Videos
Pre-recorded videos of daily class demonstrations on the process of fabric collage are yours to keep and review both before and long after our week together has ended.
One-on-One Feedback
The bulk of the day is taken up with one-on-one feedback. I use Zoom to annotate photos that you send to Tom throughout the day.
A Fabric Pack for Fabric Collage
I have been curating special 10-fabric collections—mailed to every Live Online student since the week-long classes began in 2021—colorful and helpful designs that may come in handy during the week, or to horde for a later project if not.
Pre-Class Meet and Greet
Meet your classmates in a pre-class Sunday evening social. This meeting also serves to further familiarize everyone with our Zoom classroom format.
Mid-Week After Class Social Hour and Show and Share
On a chosen evening after class, we kick back with beverage and food to relax and get to know our classmates better. Usually everyone sends us extra photos to share some of their past work in fabric.
Daily Walkthrough of Student Progress
At the end of each class day we go back and visit the beginning and ending photos of everyone’s subjects—oohing and aahing at the great progress and lessons learned as we worked together.
Fabric Collage Online Master Class—Updated
The Susan Carlson Fabric Collage Online Master Class Manual is a multi-media resource guide to the process of fabric collage. Using video, photos, text, and links to my blog posts for further relevant reading and information, I take you from beginning to end in creating your own fabric collage masterpiece, following my guidelines in a step-by-step format. Lifetime Access. Suitable for all levels, including beginners.
Read all about the process of creating the Master Class—explanation of its genesis—the whys and hows Tom and I made some of the decisions we did in this post: Online Master Class Now Available: Some Reflections.
Click here for more information about the Fabric Collage Master Class.
Price: $199
Lifetime Access
Suitable for all levels, including beginners
Interested in attending a 2025 Fabric Collage class with Susan? Both in-person and online classes are scheduled and open for registration. Click the link below for more information, including dates, fees, and descriptions.
2025 Live Online and In-Person Fabric Collage Classes
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Special Notice: One space has opened in the May 28-June 1, 2025 Woodland Ridge Retreat, Downsville, WI—please click on link above or call Chris at 715.664.8220, for more information!
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Further Susan Carlson Learning Resources include: Facial Features eWorkshop, website, Serendipity Quilts, patterns, blog (in general), YouTube videos, Sea Turtle eWorkshop, Fabric Collage Online Master Class, Patreon. , and our February Fantastical Fish and Summertime’s Fascinating Bugs and Butterfly Work-Alongs
NOW AVAILABLE!
Susan Carlson Fabric Collage: Fantastical Fish eWorkshop I
INCLUDES:
• All four recordings from the four-week class.
• Extended 10-minute edition of piecing time lapse (see below).
• Over six hours of video instruction.
• Annotated videos with “jump points” to help find the information you need.
• Materials list
• Links to helpful blog posts.
• Free fish pattern of your choice.
Susan Carlson Fabric Collage: Sea Turtle eWorkshop
Learn fabric collage through a start-to-finish project—from pattern and fabric selection through quilting and binding. Each step is clearly written, illustrated with photos, and further demonstrated with videos. Learn the technique with a Sea Turtle then launch into any fabric collage project you wish. Lifetime access and suitable for all levels, including beginners. Sea Turtle Pattern included
Read all about the Sea Turtle eWorkshop in this blog post: Fabric Collage Sea Turtle eWorkshop Launch.
Facial Features eWorkshop
Designed as a supplement to the Fabric Collage Online Master Class, or for those who have a good understanding of the basics of Fabric Collage. Lifetime Access. Intermediate or advanced levels suggested.
The Facial Features eWorkshop contains 8 videos and over 8 hours of in-depth instruction for creating each feature of a portrait in fabric. The videos are annotated with “Jump Points” allowing you to scan forward and backward to the information you need. Facial features PDF templates are included as reference and basic designs to work along with. Like the Fabric Collage Online Master Class, membership in this eWorkshop is for life.
Book: Serendipity Quilts—Cutting Loose Fabric Collage
Full color throughout. Five projects of increasing complexity, four patterns to enlarge are included.
These books will be signed by Susan and can be inscribed to a particular person.