thurs. 3 – 5pm: introduction to patchworking and textile re-use at Concordia’s Centre for Creative Re-Use (CUCCR) with Katie-May Arndt

Patchworking is a great way to extend the life cycle of small fabric scraps or worn-out textiles that are no longer usable. This beginner-friendly workshop will introduce participants to fundamental techniques for joining fabrics with an emphasis on textile re-use. Both machine and hand-stitching methods, fabric cutting, and a variety of pieced pattern-making techniques will be demonstrated and practiced. Choosing from classic patchwork arrangements or developing a design of their own, participants will leave the workshop with a small patchworked “block” they create from reclaimed textiles, and all the skills necessary to scale up to larger projects.

Katie-May Arndt (b.1989) is a textile designer and researcher working towards her Master of Design (2023) at Concordia University in Montreal, QC. With a professional background in handweaving, knitting, and slow clothing practices, and having previously studied Industrial Design at OCAD University (2021), her research-based practice works closely with textile materials and methods of production to seek alternatives to the fast fashion system. Katie-May’s current SSHRC funded research explores the increasing mediation of physical cloth and clothing through digital fashion images, and the material impacts mediatization has within fashion practice and everyday life.