Advanced Sewing, Fabric Manipulation & Embellishment Just North of Atlanta in Flowery Branch, GA
Small Details. Big Impact.
A 3-Day Hands-On Creative Workshop with Donna Cash
Limited to 6 students for maximum personalized guidance.
What takes a beautiful pillow from ordinary to bold, stunning, and one-of-a-kind?
Often, it’s not the fabric alone. It’s the details.
A beautifully placed curved seam. An unexpected combination of fabrics. Texture created with stitching. A zipper used as an embellishment. A few carefully placed beads. Even a treasured remnant that becomes the inspiration for something completely new.
In this three-day hands-on workshop, I’ll teach you how to use these small details to create unique custom pillow tops with personality and impact.
I’ll also take you inside my creative process. I’ll share what I’m looking at, what I’m thinking, and the questions I ask myself as an idea develops into a one-of-a-kind pillow design. You’ll see why I might turn a fabric, introduce an unexpected seam, add texture or embellishment—or decide the design is better without one more thing. My goal isn’t for you to design like me. It’s to help you develop the confidence to explore ideas and make creative design decisions of your own.
But what you learn doesn’t stop with pillows. The techniques you’ll practice—creative piecing, color blocking, quilting, topstitching, fabric manipulation, layering, and embellishment—can be adapted for bedding, home décor, handmade gifts, and future sewing projects long after the workshop ends.
The pillow is where we begin. The skills are yours to keep.
Is This Workshop for Me?
If you’re a DIY sewing enthusiast, home décor maker, or workroom professional, you’re welcome here. You don’t need professional experience or advanced design skills, but you should be comfortable using your sewing machine and have basic sewing experience. Confident beginners are welcome. I’ll demonstrate the techniques step by step and be beside you to guide, troubleshoot, and encourage you along the way.
SCHEDULE
DAY ONE — Transform Fabric with Seams, Shape & Stitching
- Create bold color-blocked designs with curved seams, tonal and contrasting fabrics, and unexpected proportions.
- Transform a simple solid fabric with quilting and decorative topstitching.
- Create dimension through fabric folding and origami techniques.
- Discover how the front and reverse sides of fabric can become part of your design.
You’ll create three pillow tops: a color-blocked pillow top with curved seams, a dimensional fabric-origami pillow top, and a custom-quilted pillow top.
DAY TWO — Discover the Power of the Details
- Turn ribbon, decorative braid, and zipper chain into striking design features.
- Add texture and interest with beads, French knots, and hand stitching.
- Use zipper chain to create a stripe, frame an overlay, or even form a dimensional flower.
- Combine remnants and limited yardage to create intentional, one-of-a-kind designs.
- Learn the 60–30–10 guideline for balancing fabrics, colors, and design elements.
- Develop your eye for knowing when a design needs one more detail—and when enough is enough.
You’ll create two pillow tops: using the techniques I’ve demonstrated, you’ll experiment with fabric combinations, piecing, layering, and unexpected embellishments to create two unique designs of your own.
DAY THREE — Bring Your Ideas to Life
- Pull together your favorite techniques and design ideas from Days 1 and 2.
- Consider proportion, color, texture, placement, and embellishment as you plan your design.
- Work alongside me as I help you refine your ideas, solve design challenges, and make confident creative decisions.
You’ll create your final pillow top: a custom design of your own that brings together your newfound skills and creative point of view.
You’ll leave the workshop with five to six unique pillow tops to finish into pillows at home, along with teaching samples, new techniques, and ideas you can keep using long after our three days together.
Build Your Skills. Create with Confidence.
You already know how to sew. Now it’s time to strengthen your skills, learn professional techniques, and gain the confidence to create work you’re proud of.
With hands-on guidance every step of the way, you’ll learn, practice, ask questions, and discover what you’re capable of creating.
Your next beautiful project starts here. Reserve your seat today.