Sister's Choice Quilts

Share? Or Keep It To Yourself?

 
Do you blog when things aren't going so great?  Or do you lie low and keep your problems to yourself?

Sometimes it seems false to prattle on about how lovely everything is, when, well...it isn't.  Please forgive my lack of substantive posting material this week, things are a bit rocky on the home front.

Still lots to be grateful for, but there are a lot of major issues still up in the air at the moment that are causing some stress here. 

Have a good weekend all of you, and with luck things will have perked up by Monday.

Improvements Being Made

This isn't actually me, measuring my own waist, but things have definitely improved in that area over the past six months.  Since October, I have lost 22 pounds!  I am just so happy about that! 

My secret?

Yup, that is pretty much it.  Lots of fruit.  Fruit for breakfast, fruit for lunch (along with a half sandwich or small portion of leftovers from the previous night's dinner), and a normal dinner at night (no second helpings!).  And every day I have had my wine.  Cannot give that up.  I may have even had more than one glass a day. 

The weight loss has been slow and gradual, but I am happy as can be.  I wasn't terribly heavy to start with, but now that 20 some pounds are gone, I feel so much better!  All my clothes fit better, and I am definitely down a size (almost two sizes) in pants.  Now that is a good thing!

Have any of you had a weight loss success recently?  What was your secret?  Share!  We all want to know!

Be sure to check out Cupcakes 'n' Daisies today for Thelma's day of the Fat Quarter Winners book tour.

 

 

Let's Talk About "Dumbing Down"

 
There has been much discussion in the past week about the "dumbing down of quilting".  I have been giving the topic a lot of thought and wanted to share my feelings with you.

First of all, what does "dumbing down" mean?  Basically, it is a negative term for things that are overly simplified, specifically to appeal to those of little education or intelligence.  In quilting, I believe it refers to a simplification of technique, a decline in creativity, a degradation of standards, and the overall undermining of the entire craft.

 
Whoa.  Them's fightin' words, Ma.  So, do you think it's true? 

Here's what I think. 

There is absolutely a place for simple patterns and easy, fast projects.  In today's economy, so many of us have very few hours to spend on an interest such as quilting (or scrapbooking, or embroidery, or basket weaving for goodness sake).  A quilt we can make in a weekend is appealing for a lot of reasons.  Some of us will take the Turning Twenty pattern and run with it.  My own daughter, who was working full time, made five Turning Twenty quilts--one for each of her bridesmaids, before her wedding!  She was an inexperienced quilter, but after making five of those babies, she sure had a grasp of a quarter inch seam allowance and the value of accurate cutting.  Were the quilts simple?  Sure, but the fabrics for each were especially chosen for each recipient, and the lessons in color placement, tone, and value were invaluable to a new quilter.  The quilts were quilted beautifully by a paid professional, and without exception, every one was received with joy by the recipient.  Does she have a desire to make another Turning Twenty quilt?  Uh, that would be a no.  But the experience served its purpose, don't you see?  Now she is ready to move on.

Will my daughter make more quilts?  You bet.  And you can count on any future quilts being more complex and involving more advanced techniques.

You see, the thing is, we all have to start somewhere.  Do you remember your first quilting project?  Or second, or third?  Remember the thrill you had going through magazines or books, searching for a project you thought you could tackle?  Back in the 80's, I used to love to browse Quilter's Newsletter.  I would drool over template cut, hand pieced, intricate designs that were way above my skill level.  I wanted to be Jinny Beyer when I grew up.  I had a list of quilts I wanted to make someday.  Rarely, they had a project that had a rating of one or two "scissors" that might be at the level of a beginner.  I even tackled a couple of them.  One, I hand quilted and gave to my beloved grandmother, and is one of my favorite quilts that I ever made.  Yes, that is Sohpie laying on it, chewing my favorite slipper.

 

In the mid 80's, I had the privlege of attending a lecture by the amazing Mary Ellen Hopkins.  Remember her book "It's Ok If You Sit On My Quilt"?  Her designs were ridiculously simple.   Dumbed down even.  But they encouraged creativity and originality in the quilter.  Get some graph paper and some colored pencils and design a quilt!  She really opened some mental doors for me.

Then, I discovered Lynnette Jensen, of Thimbleberries fame,  My friend Carrie reminded me of her the other day.  Lynette is brilliant.  I loved her designs!  Simple?  You betcha.   Gigantic large pieces?  Oh yeah.  Nine hundred thousand other women making the exact same thing?  Why not?  I embraced it.  I remember making one of her sampler quilts.  I made a block that was the cutest little house, another one that was a sunflower, one that was a bird house.  So cute.  I was thrilled at my little blocks, and madly in love with her pretty fabric.  I was EXCITED about the process, the fabric, and the results.  My sister Trish made the exact same quilt and you couldn't tell hers apart from mine if your life depended on it.  So what?  They gave us pleasure and taught us techniques and gave us practice.

Then there was Eleanor Burns.  By the time I became aware of her, I felt I had moved on to more advanced techniques and designs, but the message is the same:  get some fabric you love, invest in a weekend and make a quilt.  Excitement, materials, time= a finished project you can be proud of. 

In my mind, there is absolutely nothing wrong with this.  You have to start somewhere.  If you are excited about the craft, the materials and the process, the results will please you.  And then you have gained the confidence to move on to more complex, more creative and more dynamic projects.

I have plenty more to say about this, but my post is getting l-l-o-o-n-n-g-g.  More later.

XXX-OOO

 

Changing Directions? Eventide Design Crisis.

 
I had to work all weekend, and this is as far as I had gotten with my Eventide quilt as of last Friday.  Thanks to the miracle of my new design wall, I have had three days to walk past it, sit and contemplate it, and generally let it sink in with me.

And I am not sure I like it.  Love my Ohio Star blocks, but the larger star pattern is just so In Your Face Pink and Blue.  It is very 80's looking to me.  Remember that color scheme?  I bet you knew someone who had a blue sofa and pinky mauve carpet.   It was an innovative and fun color combination then, but I am not ready to embrace it again just yet.  Now that I have made that connection in my mind, I am thinking it is a No Go for my quilt.

Not that this color scheme doesn't work.  I am just not sure it is going to work for me, right now.  During the mid 80's I had some things going on in my life that were making me very unhappy.  There were some very serious and sad conversations that took place on my blue, rose, and cream checked sofa.  When I see that particular combination of colors, I have associations, you see. 

So, I switched things up.  Now the quilt seems more about the Ohio Star blocks and not the big secondary pattern.  And of course the Pink and Blue is gone.

 
What do you think?  I am interested in any and all opinions.  Please weigh in and let me know your thoughts.

What Sort of Blog Do You Like?

 
First of all, this is not my Christmas tree, not my mantel, not my house.  Pretty picture though, huh?  Thought I hadn't better reveal too much about my personal situation.  My husband said to me at dinner yesterday,
"Say, you don't get too personal in your blog do you?  I mean, you don't talk about us, do you?"   He would freak out if he knew what I told you guys.

Yesterday I told the world that Sara was getting 10 presents and every one else in the family was getting 2 gifts each and that I needed to go shopping and get some gifts for the other members of the family.   Is that what you mean by too personal?  Lord, I hope I am not embarrassing myself by talking about such things.

Honestly, my blog is my personal life's journal, right?  I have to talk about what I am doing, don't I?  We all know life is about things outside of quilting.  How boring would it be if I had the sort of blog where I just showed "I made this, and I made this, and I made this."  (OK, that could be of interest--annoying though).  "Oh, and I bought this, and I bought that, and I am planning to buy that..."  Seriously.  I cannot abide blogs that are all about what someone bought, in particular.  Hello, are you ever going to actually MAKE something with that $6000 worth of fabric you are always telling us you have purchased?

I don't mean to be controversial, but really, come on now, what are these gals thinking when they just post on what they buy?  How interesting or creative is that?  Show me what you made, show me how you store it (!), show me at least some ideas you have as to what you think COULD be done with it.  Heck, tell me what you do for a living that lets you buy all that stuff.

What do you all think?  What sorts of blogs appeal to you?  Do you get tired of the ultimate bragging consumer type of post, as I do?  Do you like to feel as if you are getting to know the blogger and what her life is about, outside of what she buys?  Or, do you like to know that you have arrived at a quilting blog and that the blogger is going to stay on topic, gol darn it, come hell or high water?

 

The Kindle

Do you have one?  Do you want one?   I am a huge reader, and have an ever growing library of books.  I think I like the idea of not having to store more books on my already groaning bookshelves.  I also like the idea of paying less for a Kindle version of a book than I would pay for a hardback.  Plus, the idea of being able to carry an entire library everywhere with me is appealing.  As is being able to get any book I feel like reading within 60 seconds.

What are some of the advantages of a Kindle over buying real books (besides the storage issue and cost of real books)?  Would you read newspapers and magazines on it? 

Most important, do you use it for anything other than reading a book?  Would you transfer your iTunes to it and use it to listen to music?  Would you frequently use the WiFi feature for anything other than ordering more books?

If you have one, what's on your Kindle right now?   I'd love to know!

Happy Fall!

According to what I read on the Internet, the official Autumnal Equinox is tomorrow, but it feels like fall today.  I got the binding on my little Roundabout Schnibbles, and it adds a rather festive accent to the kitchen table.  See that bowl in the center?  That came all the way from Ireland.  My son's girl friend carried it every step of her journey the first time she came to California to visit us.  This time she came out, she brought me a silver bracelet, which she laughingly said was far easier to manage.

I finished my stunt sewing project and got it into the hands of my amazing quilter, Debbie from Prairiequeens.  Now that I have ticked that off the TO DO list, I have been working on getting my projects ready for the three (yes THREE) classes I am taking with Carrie Nelson of Miss Rosie's Quilt Company in Illinois this coming weekend.  Tuesday I finished 100 four patch units for one of the projects.  I feel compelled to get as much prep work done in advance to for two reasons---1) it reduces the bulk of what I have to pack into my suitcase, and 2) it makes more efficient use of my class time. 

Have you ever gone to a quilting class or retreat and had some poor slob in the group be completely unprepared?  They spend the first hour picking out fabrics and the next hour cutting, while everyone else is ready to jump in and start sewing.  I don't want to be that woman.

I bet you are wondering what I am going to be sewing on while in Illinois at these three quilting classes.  Well, I am carrying my Singer Featherweight from 1947 with me on the plane!  My sister Kate travels with her Featherweight often and says she never has any issues with airport security.  One TSA agent had to ask her what the heck it was, but other than that, she breezes right though. 

My machine had not been serviced in some time, so I took it in to a Sewing Center in San Jose for a tune up.  Can you imagine schlepping that thing two thousand miles to use in a Miss Rosie class only to have some dumb mechanical issues?  I got my machine back, all clean and shiny, quiet and even stitching.  But, wait.  WTH?  What is that that THING stuck to the front of my antique sewing machine? 

OMG.  Someone slapped a *sticker* on my sewing machine.  Now, I don't mean to be unreasonably cranky, but don't you think they might have asked me first if I wanted that tacky sticker on my vintage equipment?  I absolutely, definitely would have said "NO!"  So, if you ever go to Ray's Sewing Center in San Jose, California, be sure and state your preference in advance regarding the whole sticker thing.  Honestly, what nerve.

Oh, here is a link you all have got to check out, speaking of outrages.  Just read what happened to Tula Pink, one of my favorite fabric designers.  If you design fabric, I doubt it could get much worse than this.

No Resolution

Thank you to everyone who commented on Sara's issue with the long arm quilter who switched the backings on her two quilts.  I was amazed at the response from so many of you Long Arm Quilters who said you would do ANYTHING to make the situation right again for your customer, including picking out all the quilting and re-doing both quilts.  I even got a phone call from MY long arm quilter, offering to re-quilt Sara's quilts for free.  (Haven't I been telling you that Debbie is worth her weight in gold?).

Unfortunately, the long arm quilter who did Sara's projects was not so generous. 

She said she was very sorry.

And that was that.

No offer to make it right by re-doing the quilting.  No offer of a refund on the quilting price.   No offer of a reduction on the price of the third, yet to be quilted quilt.  

But she was very sorry.

So, Sara asked her to mail her back the remaining unquilted top and backing.  She expressed her disappointment in the service, in the waste of her time and materials, and by the apparent lack of concern regarding the major error that was committed.  And her shock that no compensation was offered.

Sometimes, "sorry" just isn't enough.

Added later:  Sara has no interest in "outing" this quilter, as many readers have suggested.  She has no vindictive feelings towards the woman and her business.  The quilter lives out in the middle of nowhere, and probably doesn't have many customers as it is.  And now she has one less.   So, what have we learned here?

When you first try a new quilter, ideally, it should be based on the recommendation of others who have used her services, not sight unseen.

Be very clear as to what materials are to be used with each quilt.  Perhaps make an inquiry as to how the quilter stores the customer's materials so they do not become mixed up.

Have a detailed conversation with the quilter regarding thread, quilting design, batting, etc.  If she isn't writing down some notes to keep with the quilt top, encourage her to do so.

To start out, just give the quilter one project and see how that goes.

A Tailor In the Family

Do your friends and family ask you to do sewing chores for them?  Do they think that since you own a sewing machine and use it often that any tailoring project will be right up your alley?  No sweat, easy peasy?  Yeah.  Me too.  And in general it is a huge drag. 

I don't mind the occasional request to sew up a split seam, but most of the requests I get are honestly beyond me.  The Halloween costume that involved a hat?  A real hat, with something called buckram to hold the shape of the brim?  Please.  Although I have to say I rose to that occasion, and five hours later, had a fairly decent hat to show for my efforts.

The padded computer case made out of my son's favorite sweat shirt?  I totally ruined the sweatshirt and he ended up with no computer case what so ever.  A botched job for sure.  He hasn't asked me to do any more sewing jobs for him since.

I dread the requests from my mother in law the most.  She is the sweetest lady, and to her, asking me to hem a pair of pants for her seems like the simplest of simple tasks.  I should be happy to do such a small thing for her.  And I would be.  Only, here's the thing.  She is 89 years old and only wears stretchy knit clothes.  Stretch terry, stretch velour, stretch everything.  Fabrics that fray and ravel and practically disintegrate when cut into.  Fabrics that require a serger to sew.

I know I am behind the times and may be the only person out there who doesn't own a serger.  But that is the truth.  So what do I do when she gives me her tailoring jobs?  Why, I let it sit in my sewing room for at least a month, and then I break down....and take it to a real tailor.  $30 to hem a pair of terry cloth pants she got at WalMart for $6?  So be it.

My Life

Hello Friends.  I am just back from a very fun weekend in Southern California.  Want to hear about it?  I almost hesitate sharing, as I have been recently criticized by a reader for sharing my interests that are outside the World of Quilting.  Man, that has really been bugging me over the past week or so.  However, as my "About" page clearly states,  "My passion is quiltmaking, although decorating, cooking, entertaining, reading, and matters of style interest me greatly".  So, that being said, and the fact that this is my blog, I guess I can tell you what else I have been up to!

Some friends and former business associates invited me to join them for a corporate training and fashion show at the Anaheim Convention Center.  It was such fun to see all the stylish attendees in their most up to date and fashionable attire.  The actual Fashion Show and Trends Update was almost secondary to the parade of outfits the women who attended were wearing.  If you would like to get a taste of what is to come in the Fall, check out www.cabionline.com or www.cabicanary.com to see what I am talking about!  Lots of jeans (dark wash, skinny, trouser, classic) floaty tops, and tons of black with pops of color pretty much sums it up.  Cute looks that just about anyone can carry off.  The thing I enjoyed most was that in the fashion show, they had models of every figure type-including Plus Size gals, who wore the clothes, rocked the looks, and seemed to be having a blast.  Think you are too old or too fat to be sylish?  Uh uh.  Not. 

I picked up my Elizabeth quilt from the quilter on Friday.  I think this may be my favorite quilt EVER.  I took the picture above around 9:00 in the evening, and seriously, I think my bed looks so darn inviting.  Anyone would have a good night's sleep under that baby.  And doesn't the other quilt, folded on the lower right coordinate nicely?  The fabrics in both quilts are Rouenneries by French General for Moda, but look so completely different.  Even so, they look wonderful together in the same room.  Can you tell that is my side of the bed there on the right?  I am so ready to fall in, snuggle under, and pick up my book and doze off with it on my chest.

Oh, and you have got to appreciate the quilting design.  It is of a bird--a Dove of Peace I think--in flight with an olive branch or bunch of berries in its mouth.  Isn't it amazing?  Love that.  It was done by Debbie Thornton at Prairie Queens in San Jose, CA.  I consistently put myself in her hands as far as choosing a quilting design goes, and she never disappoints.