Our classes are all held in the shop. They are limited to 8 people and sold in semesters. We do not teach classes during the summer school holidays. Prices are set at the beginning of the semester based on the number of available dates. Coffee and tea service available in all classes. Our all-day classes include a snack. Due to dietary restrictions we will no longer offer a full lunch
• Payment of fees for each semester in advance. A deposit (equal to one class fee) on the last day of semester is required to secure your place for the following term.
• The balance of class fees for a semester is due on the first class date of that semester regardless of attendance.
• Payment of class fees is non-refundable unless we cancel the class. If you cannot attend a class and you give us reasonable notice, every effort will be made to provide a make-up class if a place is available in another class.
• Make-Up classes must be taken in the same semester as the class that was missed.
Kathy is the owner of Material Obsession, a place where quilters can explore creative aspirations, quality products and interesting techniques taught by generous, talented quilters.
She is the author of five books (so far), a fabric designer for FreeSpirit, a Quilt NSW Judge and an international tutor.
Working in the shop for over 15 years has provided a platform of experience that enables creating a space where people feel comfortable being creative.
Follow Kathy on instagram @matobsgirl, Facebook and her blog.
Be sure to sign up to our newsletter when visiting our website.
Taking Shape
2nd Sunday of each month;
10 – 3 pm, $65 per class.
This class is an exploration of the creative path in both thought and practice. The focus is on effective use of fabric using repeated shapes.
Each month has a different focus for conversation and making. Quilts can be from a pattern or a free form design. Experience necessary.
Wendy is a generous and talented artist with a background in teaching and design that she shares freely in her classes.Her days are spent teaching at Material Obsession, around Australia and the world while her nights are for creating new designs!Her popular patterns are loved around the world in staggering numbers.Her specialty is working with wool felt or felted wool and embroidery stitches but her skills extend through all patchwork techniques and all sewing methods including clothes, bags, and cushions.
Wendy is a multi-prize winning quilter, is widely published and has written one book so far, Wild Blooms and Colorful Creatures…a best seller
You can follow Wendy on instagram at @flyingfishkits.
New Traditions
2nd and 4th Monday of each month;
10 – 3 pm, $65 per class.
Join Wendy in her pandora’s box of tricks as she presents new and exciting ways to update the look of your quilts with simple to learn techniques. Each lesson includes a new idea that can work with or without the last but is guaranteed to inspire participants in the class. Piecing, wool embellishment, hand work and more are all options as you go adding skill upon skill and layer upon layer of interest in your projects.
Mixed Technique Wednesday
1st and 3rd Wednesday of each month,
10am – 1pm, $45 per class
1st and 3rd Wednesday evening of each month,
7.30pm – 9.30pm, $35 per class
Explore a variety of techniques in a range of techniques including everything from
squares, triangles and circles to machine or hand piecing and appliqué to foundation piecing, inset seams and curves.
These classes are suitable for beginners to experienced quilters. This class may include wool applique.
Mixed Technique Thursday
2nd Thursday of each month,
10 – 3 pm, $45 per class
4th Thursday of each month,
10 – 1 pm, $45 per class
Delve into a world of mixed techniques supported with great instruction and lots of ideas for making quilts, cushions and more.
Every session includes a lesson and making time.
Sue Ross is a master quilter with decades of experience that she shares thoughtfully in her designs and classes. For many years Sue owned a patchwork shop in the Southern Highlands known for a great mix of fabrics. As a result, she has a real gutsy affinity for fabric. Every quilt is an example of a fearless attitude toward fabric combinations and design elements. She has been teaching and designing quilts for 30 years and describes herself described as “not a minimalist”.
Spare Parts
2nd Saturday of each month;
10 – 3 pm, $65 per class.
If you are a fabric lover this is a class for you! Exercise every patchwork trick in the book from piecing to applique, papers to collage work.
Work independently with a variety of design ideas or follow a pattern on a path to unique quilts.
Use favourite or stubborn stash pieces, or any spare parts to create wonderful projects that allow your voice to be heard and process a road to discovery.
Some experience necessary.
Follow Sue on @suerosspatchways
Megan is a passionate,enthusiastic and considered quilter with a love of needle-turn applique and working with bright, contemporary fabrics. Megan’s latest applique quilt, Applique Sampler with a Twist, was awarded Best Contemporary Quilt (Professional) and 3rd place Combined Pieced and Applique Quilt (Professional) at the QuiltNSW Sydney Quilt Show 2017.Her time is split between family, teaching and guiding the quilt community as President of Quilt NSW.
You can follow Megan on instagram at @meganmanwaring.
Appliquè skill building
1st Tuesday of each month;
(10 - 1pm), $45 per class.
Bring along your favourite applique pattern or choose from Megan’s offering as she guides you through your applique practice while building your skill base. Topics include template preparation, fussy cutting, needle turn applique, turned edge applique, finishing options, including hand quilting. Megan will guide participants on effective colour and fabric selection working from the participant’s stash and suggesting additions to it as needed.
Beginners to experienced quilters wanting new inspiration are welcome in this class.
Technique classes
1st Thursday of each month;
(10 - 1pm), $45 per class.
2nd Wednesday of each month;
(10 - 3pm), $65 per class.
In these classes, Megan demonstrates a different technique including machine piecing, applique, string piecing, foundation piecing, using specialty rulers, free form piecing techniques, quilt setting options, finishing techniques and hand quilting. Guidance in regard to effective colour and fabric selection is also a critical component of the class.
Participants are also welcome to bring their own projects to work on using the classes for technical and colour guidance.
Beginners to experienced quilters wanting new inspiration are welcome in this class.
Beginners class
4th Saturday of each month;
(1 - 4pm), $45 per class.
Start your patchwork experience on the right foot learning about patchwork techniques as well as tips on color and design.The class includes simple machine piecing, triangles, specialty rulers, simple applique, English paper piecing, curved piecing and foundation piecing.
No patchwork or quilting experience necessary.
Rachael, a multi award winning quilter whose awards include Best in Show at the Sydney Quilt Show 2016 and the Australian Modern Quilt Show 2015 and now 2016. Her quilts state that she is a collector, visionary and talented textile artist grounded in her experience as a florist.Rachael describes her style as traditional with a twist and is not afraid of bending the rules and trying different ways of doing things. She is a champion of folded point blocks, yoyos, denim, trims, applique and liberated piecing. On top of it all she is a happy and generous tutor that fills the room with her smile!
You can follow Rachaeldaisy on instagram at @bluemountaindaisy.
Simple but effective!
2nd Tuesday of each month;
10 – 1 pm, $45 per class.
Sometimes we focus on the tricky techniques and designs available these days and loose sight of how much fun simple squares are for making quilts!This class is designed for you if you are just starting or simply looking to relax and enjoy your quilting practice.Join Rachael to enjoy sewing with her quirky style and endless imagination to maximise the impact of your fabric without busting your brains.
No experience necessary.
Whizz Bang and beyond
4th Friday of each month;
10 – 1 pm, $45 per class.
Have an adventure with fabric in this class that is an explosion of creativity.Mix con
temporary color and design with tradition in a wide array of projects that include folded fabric, yo yo’s and piecing strategies. Layering of colour and design is always on the table in this class.
Beginner to advanced.
Cath is a pillar of design at Material Obsession. She has been involved in every creative project in some way since she first walked through the door.Not one to brag or show off, Cath has an innate sense of style that she brings to quilting be it art, contemporary, traditional or scrap.
We have invited Cath to join the teaching staff at Material Obsession this year to bring her strong skill set to the masses!Her history is long, her patience endless and her determination to use fabric strong!
Follow Cath @cbabbo
Make Do - resourceful use of fabric
4th Wednesday of each month;
(10 - 1pm), $45 per class.
Why not join us to explore the humble, honest techniques of “make do” using string piecing, collage art and made fabric. You will be delighted by the originality that comes from making your own fabric with your own scraps. No two quilts will be the same. We will explore the many ways to use the made fabric, incorporating it into most, if not all, available patterns from pieced to applique.
Some books to explore and own if you, like us, become a fan:
Liberated String Quilts by Gwen Marston
15 Minutes of Play by Victoria Findlay Wolf
Improv Patchwork by Maria Shell
Grace, a teacher by trade, has earned herself a series of awards for her quilts based on her own designs and long practiced techniques.
Her quilts exhibit an understanding of piecing and design elements. Grace’s quilts are much loved for their unique approach to using elements of geometry or wool. Her experience as a machine quilter adds an element of awareness to the best methods for construction of quilts.
Grace’s patience and gentle nature make her the perfect leader through the maze of options to great results.
Follow Grace @gracewidders
Beginners-Evenings at MO
2nd and 4th Thursday evenings;
(7.30 – 9.30 pm), $35 per class
Join Grace to learn a technique or progress your skill base.Grace is never short of an idea or a suggestion for your next project.
Fine tuning: Cut - Sew - Press
3rd Saturday each month;
(1.00 – 4.00 pm), $45 per class
This Saturday class is wide open for those that want to learn to fine tune their skills in regard to cutting, sewing and pressing for beautiful results.
We start our patchwork experience in a rush to get things done.
After a while we realise we have some good habits and some bad ones as well.This class is geared to help you fine tune the areas of your quilting that you fear let you down.
Cut, sew, press accurately for perfect piecing and beautiful borders.
Sue is a legendary teacher with an impressive body of work.
Her quilt designs spring from tradition but reflect an active imagination and an awareness of contemporary styles.“Applique is all about preparation,” is her motto and the test is in the results of her students.
Her quits reflect a serious intent for detail and carefully planned and executed techniques with methods that stand the test of time.
Sue is a multi award winning applique artist and a class with her is an opportunity to grow creatively as well as in practice.
Design Studio
1st Sunday of each month; 10 – 3 pm, $75 per class.
3rd Sunday of each month; 10 – 3 pm, $75 per class.
Follow Sue @dragonflystudio
Marg George has a dedicated tribe of loyal followers earning her the nick name,“the pied piper” of quilting in Australia today.
Her quiet but delightful personality disguises a determination to encourage and support her students to reveal their true spirit.
Her style is built on the foundations of English quilt traditions but reflect the colour and dynamics of the best on offer today.
The result of working with Marg in class is a quilt to be proud of…not a quick project but rather one that shifts and changes from adding elements of design and technique to each step.
Take an element
3rd Tuesday of each month; 10 – 3 pm, $65 per class.
4th Tuesday of each month; 10 - 3pm, $65 per class.
1st Friday of each month; 10 – 3 pm, $65 per class.
1st Saturday of each month; 10 – 3 pm, $65
Follow Marg @msg247