Nicholas Ball - Sunday 25 January 2026 - 4.00pm to 7.00pm (GMT)

Online Interactive Workshop: Improv All Stars!

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As ever we're super-excited to welcome Nicholas Ball once again under the CraftyMonkies spotlight for our first live Zoom event of the new year, and what a way to kick start 2026! Nicholas is here with a BRAND NEW CLASS; this one is entitled Improv All Stars (it already sounds like fun!) Here's Nicholas to tell you all you need to know; take it away Nicholas!...

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Introduction by Nicholas:-

It’s been an absolute pleasure to offer a wide variety of improv related workshops in the five years I’ve been working with CraftyMonkies. Perhaps most rewarding is seeing what my students do with the techniques I teach, often adapting and tweaking them to create something truly unique. With so many ways to explore improvised patchwork, the possibilities are endless, and, as you may know from the pieces I make, the inspiration can come from anywhere – cabbages, fruits and even fish!

 

I’ve decided therefore to kick of my 2026 workshops with something new, but also very familiar. Welcome to my Improv All Stars workshop, featuring a liberating lineup of some of my favourite patchwork piecing methods! I hope you’ll use what you learn to explore your own creativity and perhaps set yourself on the path to creating something very unique!

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What You Will Learn in this Online Interactive Workshop:-

In this workshop you will learn the basics of some of my most-used and frequently-requested improv piecing techniques. In more focused workshops, I often begin by showing students the fundamentals of a technique, before moving on to explore the many ways variation and individualisation can be added. In this workshop, we will spend the time looking at a wide array of techniques, mastering their basic construction so that we have a toolbox full of improv piecing possibilities.

 

We will be looking at my techniques for basic improv triangles, edge to edge curves, inserts, rings, stacks and slabs. I’ll also share a little bit of my basic process with you – inspiration and where it comes from, how to choose colours and how to know when a piece is “working”. We’ll also discuss the “golden rules” of patchwork, which I encourage you to break!

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Skill Level for this Online Interactive Workshop:-

This workshop is perfect for anyone that has never attempted improv piecing previously, as you’ll learn a lot in the time we have. If you have taken any of my other workshops, this is a great opportunity for a refresh and perhaps learn a technique that you’ve not yet tried. As we’ll be focusing on the basics of each technique, even those with little or no experience will hopefully find the workshop both informative and rewarding, giving them the confidence to explore the learned techniques in greater detail in their own time.

 

Material requirements for this Online Interactive Workshop:-

Whilst not essential for the workshop, my books Inspiring Improv (published by Lucky Spool, 2019) and Use & Ornament (published by Lucky Spool, 2024) will expand upon the techniques shown and provide many more improv tips and tricks

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Fabric requirements for this Online Interactive Workshop:-

As this is a technique-based workshop, there are no specific sizes or quantities of fabric needed. My advice is to bring an assortment of scraps and larger cuts so that you have pieces to play with. Even those smaller scraps which we often have no idea what to do with can be useful, so too can those fat quarter bundles or pre-cuts

 

Please don’t stress about these requirements. They are simply a guide and Nicholas has yet to teach a class where something couldn’t be made because of the wrong fabric pieces. If in doubt, gather up a selection of prints and colours you like and you can cut during the workshop. Accuracy at the cutting stage is not so important using these techniques, so it won’t take long at all if you want to cut your pieces along with Nicholas. They also needn’t be perfectly square or straight, so feel free to use scissors!

 

This is very much a technique-based workshop. We will be exploring and won’t have a finished project in mind. Feel free to make as many or as few of the units as you like. You can combine them into a sampler or continue to work on the project after the workshop by adding more units. Don’t feel any pressure to cut up all your precious fabric!

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Equipment requirements for this Online Interactive Workshop:-

Sewing-Machine

• Good quality thread in an appropriate weight for piecing (Nicholas recommends Aurifil)

• Rotary Cutter - with a new blade

• Cutting Mat

• Patchwork Ruler (we can make any size work, but a small 1” x 12” is very handy, as is a 6.5” or 12.5” square.

• Fabric Scissors

• Paper and pen for note taking

•  A willingness to explore your own creativity

 

Pattern requirements for this Online Interactive Workshop:-

Not applicable for this improv class!

 

 

Tickets for this Online Interactive Workshop (via the Zoom platform) will be limited & allocated on a first-come/first-served basis! If applicable, any free pattern, or other information, relevant to this course will be forwarded to you after booking and approximately 5 days before the course date. The ticket price of £40.00 is based on ONE person attending this crafting class.

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This CraftyMonkies Online Interactive Workshop is being broadcast from the United Kingdom and the class time given is based on Greenwich Meantime (GMT). We advise you check via Google Search (or similar) to see corresponding start-time in YOUR location!

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Ordering MATERIALS/EQUIPMENT Online For Any Class/Workshop:-

Please ensure you book your place & order any materials/fabrics/equipment online in plenty of time ahead of course dates.

 

IMPORTANT!

This class is a live Zoom Workshop ONLY! Sadly, we are NOT able to offer a recorded Pay-On-Demand video for sale in our shop or a recording for ticket holders after this event.

The only way to enjoy this class is to book a ticket and attend the Zoom Workshop.