Tools, Tools, Tools

Dear Lola,
I just love how easy quilting has become over the last 10 years.  Even though I have only been quilting for about 5 ½ years - I know it’s become easier from just listening to all the long-time quilters who visit us at Wish Upon A Quilt; reading quilting books found on my public library shelf, and tuning into to QNNtv to watch old episodes of Fons and Porter.

Quilting tasks that used to be somewhat daunting are now easy, easy.  Modern ingenuity has helped quilters create their own personal quilting style.  By the way, I am not saying that the tried and true – hand piecing, hand quilting, hand applique, tracing templates and binding by hand don’t have a place in the bigger quilting universe.

That being said, in my own little solar system – it’s all about the tools.  Since I didn’t take up quilting until I was nearly 50 years old – I’m all about finishing projects, learning and the sisterhood of it all.  If I had to do it all by hand, I honestly think I would have given up before I started.  With virtually no sewing skills to draw from – I needed tools to give me confidence.  You could liken it to Peter Pan sprinkling me with Pixie Dust.   So I am immensely grateful that the modern world of quilting convenience exists.

As with any hobbyist, I have a list of the top ten tools I absolutely cannot imagine my quilting life without!  I’m happy to sing their praises here with the caveat that I fully expect to keep adding to my list as new and improved tools are introduced to the marketplace. 

1. Creative Grids Rulers – This Company and it’s products are the absolute bomb at giving quilters the rulers we need and don’t need  – but will want eventually!  Their non-skid technology keeps me straight and lets me focus on the fun of quilting.  I no longer stress about straight cuts or how to get the cuts I want.  All I can say is “Hallelujah” for Creative Grids.
2. Martelli Rotary Cutters – Bye, bye cutting fatigue!  With this amazing rotary cutter I am able to go the distance.  I think I have cut my way around the globe at least a hundred times by now and thankfully my Martelli cutter gets the job done without all the aches and pains I used to experience.  Yes, it’s a little pricey – but certainly worth every penny.
3. Aurifil Thread – Less lint, bigger spools, yummy colors, and awesome results.  That should be enough for any quilter – but Aurifil also comes with Alex Veronelli – Aurifil Guru and wickedly funny Aurifil Front Man.  Follow him on Pinterest and the artistic inspiration will take your quilting to lots of new places!
4. Best Press Spray Starch – I keep this miracle spray starch around by the gallon.  It smells yummy (I adore Linen Fresh ), eliminates wrinkles, never flakes and makes it almost fun to press!  Remember I said – ALMOST fun!!
5. Frixion Pens and Highlighters – Oh yeah!  Love these for marking HST (half square triangles), marking quilting lines, and any other sewing related marking.  The marks disappear with a little heat from the iron.  I use these pens as a hooping aid for machine embroidery too.  I love them for my Day Planner too!  I can write on the page and use friction to erase any changes in my appointments!  I carry Frixion pens with me at all times!  Just don’t write a check with them!
6. Clover Wonder Clips – No more pin pricks from pinning my binding.  These clips hold my binding folded over in the just the right place.  They slide down as I am working and my bindings have never looked better.  The little marks keep me lined up correctly!  Stepping on one in the dark will not result in a trip to the emergency room either!
7. Sewline Glue Stick – I use this glue stick for lots of things, but my favorite use is when I join my binding strips.  I have never been able to mentally retain the process of joining the strips.  I lay one strip over the other, dab a little glue in the right hand corner (it will be trimmed off), draw a line with my Frixion pen and stitch on the line.  I then trim ¼” from the stitching line and voila – I have a perfectly joined strip – every time. 
8.  Supreme Slider – Apply this baby to the bed of your machine and Free Motion Quilting is easy.  It’s like a magic carpet for quilters.  My project moves effortlessly and I avoid that tension I used to get in my neck and shoulders whenever I attempted to free motion quilt.  Be sure to line up the opening for your needle carefully – don’t ask me how I know this is important.
9. Grabaroo Quilting Gloves – another item that has made Free Motion Quilting something to enjoy.  These purple gloves are just what the quilting doctor ordered.  They help me keep a grip on the quilt without being clumsy.  They have little grippers on the end of each finger that allows me to shift my quilt in the right direction every time.  The purple color makes them hard to misplace and each glove fits either hand – another plus. 
10. Karen Kay Buckley Perfect Scissors – they are indeed just about perfect.  There are 2 sizes, I love the 4½ inch and keep them nearby to snip off threads during piecing and applique.  They have a comfort handle and a micro-serrated edge.  I’ve attached a little lanyard to mine so they don’t travel to destinations unknown.

You will undoubtedly notice that I did not put a seam ripper on this list.  That’s because I absolutely hate my seam ripper!  Using it means I have probably made a mistake!  I am only happy to use it when I am doing a “Swirling Seam” on a pinwheel block or a four-patch block.  Since this is my least favorite tool, I can’t for the life of me explain why I own so many of them!

Hugs and stitches,

Modern, New - Where Do I Fit Into Quilting?

Dear Lola,

I recently attended the Sewing and Quilt Expo held in Raleigh, NC from June 21 – 23, 2012.  It was a new event to the Raleigh area.  Wow!  It was “sew” much fun.  I took 5 fabulous classes; watched countless in-booth demonstrations; viewed the Quilt Alliance’s travelling competition and exhibition Home is Where the Quilt Is; saw lots of my favorite sewing sisters; and walked until I practically wore out my shoes! 

How fun that my friend Sandi Shover won a really nice embroidery/sewing machine from Brother!  The event seemed to be well attended and the planners of the Original Sewing & Quilt Expo promise to return to the Raleigh Convention Center next year.  Yippee!

There were vendor booths inside the main Expo Hall representing far away places and local favorites.  The displays were inspiring and thought-provoking.  Anyone who attended would be hard pressed to say there wasn’t something for everyone!  I saw many new-fangled sewing tools displayed along side the tried and true.  It was great to meet new people and see local friends like Elegant Stitches.  The classrooms were filled with fancy new machines, video presentations and enthusiastic students from all walks of life.  The class topics covered a broad range of sewing and quilting including heirloom techniques, handwork, garment construction, traditional quilting and art quilting. 

I particularly loved and ultimately purchased some of the really cool rulers from Studio 180/Deb Tucker.  The demos are what really sold me on these rulers!  It was great to learn that my local quilt shop Wish Upon A Quilt carries these rulers too.  I know I will want more than just the two I purchased.  If I had only owned the Wing Clipper Ruler, I might had a much better time with my flying geese that I blogged about a few weeks ago! 

I broke down and bought myself a really good cutting mat from Martelli that was an excellent price for the show.  I have already noticed my cutting is “sew” improved by using it! I came home with a bundle of bright batiks that were graduated in color to use in my projects that I learned from Frieda Anderson.

Friday evening, I attended an event “Quilters Take Raleigh” to benefit the Quilt Alliance and won a gift bag from Free Spirit/Westminster Fabrics.  I got to meet some of the “Rock Stars” of the Quilt World including Jodie Davis, John Adams, Tula Pink, Beth Hayes, Christine Zoller, Holice Turnbow (sorry to call you a “Rock Star” Holice), and Pepper Cory.  The event launched a new project – “Go Tell It At the Quilt Show” and showcased stories of quilters, family quilts and the personal importance of these quilts.  Janice Pope's BFF Round Robin Quilt Story brought tears to my eyes.  The quilt is stunning and so colorful just like Janice!

John Adams of Quilt Dad moderated the panel in the discussion of “Trendspotting Across the Quilt World”.  While this seems like a fairly benign topic - This is when the conversation got heated and interesting. 

As someone who reads whatever I can about sewing and quilting, I have seen many articles and books lately regarding “Modern Quilting”.  I had no idea however, that there appears to be debate about the methods used by “Modern Quilters” to piece their quilts together; choose their fabrics, and ultimately quilt the sandwich. 

Judging these “Modern” quilts in shows and events creates some friction in the “Quilt World”.  It appears from the discussion that the “Modern Quilt Movement” is viewed by “quilt purists” as something that is not truly a representation of “real, authentic quilting”.  The simple, clean designs used by “Modern Quilters” were criticized by some members of the audience for failing to meet “standards” that have been used for judging quilts in shows for years.

As a relative “newbie”, I cannot speak to the rules of quilting, showing quilts, and the history of quilts, I can however let you know that I was disappointed by this heated debate about what really makes a quilt a quilt!  The whole event was intended to celebrate quilts, encourage documenting quilts and share the history of quilters and their quilts.  The Quilt Alliance is a non-profit organization looking for new members to help their mission.

I realize that quilters who enter their quilts in competitive shows need rules and regulations to make the contests fair for all the entrants.  All competition requires fair play, but when you add elitism to the mix – the competition stops being fun to watch!  The foundation of competitive quilting starts with the “newbie” or people like me.  While I doubt I will ever enter a serious quilt show, each quilt I make is competing with the quilts that came before it.  I am looking to improve my techniques and increase the overall technical difficulty.  Although I am sure there will always be some “quick” quilts in my mix for gift giving or charity.  I am, however, looking to compete – at least with myself!  I am sure there are other newbies out there who will eventually compete for “real” in shows and contests.

An oversimplified correlation to the heated discussion of the evening would be comparing and contrasting a painting by Michelangelo against a painting by Picasso - comparing a painting by Andy Warhol and Leonardo DaVinci.  These artists and their works all have a place in the history of art. Hanging them in a gallery next to one another helps us understand the entire spectrum of art.

Why not make our mutual journey into all that encompasses quilting inclusive?  Why not create a world of quilting that celebrates the simple beauty of creativity without animosity?  The collaborative spirit that is at of the core of what art represents should encourage all comers to leave any elitism at the door. 

I thought it was really amazing to have someone like Holice Turnbow in the same room as someone like Tula Pink.  I loved seeing the antique North Carolina “Cheddar” quilt presented by Brenda Brickhouse that has been in her family for generations right along side my dear friend Cathy McKillip’s very modern, Perfect Ten Quilt.  There is a place for both of these quilts in the same room at the same time. 

I am so happy that there are so many choices for me to make as a newbie.  I can learn traditional quilting, modern quilting, art quilting, and all the mutations in-between.  I can choose to do it by hand, or machine, or a combination of both.  I can dye my own fabrics, purchase them, or repurpose clothing items. 

Since, I am in my fifties, I don’t really meet the definition of a “Next Gen” quilter.  Some people seem to think “Modern Quilters” are “Young Quilters”  – so that rules me out of that category.  To be honest – do I have to fit neatly into a category?  Do I have to choose one type of quilting over another?  Can’t I appreciate all of it for the joy it brings so many others and me?  Quilts aren’t just for hanging in museums to be preserved; they are for covering our loved ones in beauty and warmth.  Quilts and quilting are reflections of creativity, self-expression, devotion to craft.  I don’t think anyone should ever act like quilting is some exclusive club that only allows perfectionists to join.  I’m guessing that even Michelangelo and DaVinci were beginners once.  Their art may have even been thought of as “Modern” once upon a time!

I am giving myself permission to love it all, encourage it all and learn from it all.  I’m glad we aren’t still sewing with bone fragments for needles and catgut for thread.  Thank God, we continue to improve and modernize.  As we expand our horizons, we can still embrace and revere the past.  We can keep one foot in the past, our heart in the present and our eye on the future.

Sew to sum it up – As opposed to being a Modern Quilter - I am a quilter in a Modern World – and I am NEW quilter as opposed to a YOUNG quilter AND it’s ALL GOOD!  Be kind to each other, being part of the collaborative spirit of sewing and quilting is good for the soul.  Every quilt can be a masterpiece to someone and every quilter can create their own personal masterpiece.  Quilting - ONE SIZE FITS ALL!

Hugs and stitches,

Lori