There's a Time for Every Purpose Under Heaven...

Continuing where we left off last week…that finishing thing…

We are all busy.  My mom, who has been “retired” for a number of years, tells me she’s busier now than she ever was when she was working. That information (and the fact that Mom straight-up tells me like it is) does not bode well for what I want to do after my husband and I sell our business.

I currently work full-time in that business, do my own housework (someone tell my husband there is such a thing as maid service, please), and work part-time in my local quilt store to support my fabric habit.  I’m an active member of my local guild and am a board member of The Applique Society. 

Busy….that’s what I am.  And in many ways, I like “busy-ness.” It keeps me focused and off the couch, watching TV for hours. However, all of these activities require me to be fairly organized as far as my quilting is concerned. 

Teaching high school really, really taught me how to plan.  I found that a good planner went a long way in assisting me.  And I have tried almost every planner on the market – paper, computer—you name it, I’ve given it a whirl.  I’m old enough to appreciate a tangible, carry with you, paper calendar/planner more than something on my phone (gosh darn why do they make those screens so small?) or on my computer (who carries their lap top with them any longer?) or iPad (again with the small screen thing coupled with the small key pad).

So with the fact that I have years more than you’ll ever get me to admit under my belt dealing with planners, let me tell you how I use them in my quilting.  Everything in life is pretty much scheduled, right?  Work, school, dentist appointments…nearly everything has a time slot.  Quilting should have that, too.  Everyone has a thousand things to do and just so many hours to do it in.  If quilting isn’t given a time slot, projects are never going to be finished.

“But it’s just a hobby…and there are other things I have to do…”  Yeah, I can hear that all the way over here.  And while true, quilting isn’t as necessary as your job, spending time with your family, or getting that root canal you need, it is still necessary. Quilters quilt for a variety of reasons.  Quilting uses the parts of the brain that assist in problems solving and it helps prevent Alzheimer’s.  It keeps math skills sharp.  But most quilters quilt because it gives them a chance to be creative and it gives an escape from reality.  The time spent with beautiful fabric, wonderful patterns, and other quilters allows us to forget about bills and illnesses and that co-worker that absolutely drives us nuts. 

So yes, quilting is necessary.  And so is finishing.  If quilting is given a time in your day or week on a regular basis, projects will be completed – and remember finished is better than perfect.

I have found that this little planner currently fits all my needs at this time.  And I really, really wish it was around when I taught school. 

 

It’s by Plum Paper and it is fabulous. Scheduling is a snap and the calendars are big enough to write everything down. 

 

There is also a project section that I use each week to set goals about what I want to accomplish.  Each week I can check them off as I go and plan ahead for the next week.  As I’m planning ahead, I can consult my patterns to see if I’m at a point where I’m going to have some issues.  If one quilt project is going to need more time because it’s at a time-consuming point or the next part is just difficult for me, I can allot more time for that project. 

That way, every project keeps moving forward. 

And that’s important.

Love and Stitches…

Sherri

Please note that I am not on staff with Plum Paper and receive no payment or products from that company.  I use their planners and absolutely love them and the way they can be personalized.  The calendars can be ordered at any point on the  year and can run 12 or 18 or 24 months.  If interested, visit their Facebook page.

 

 

The Whole Enchalada

I love new projects…

There’s something about new fabric and new patterns that just put the creative juices into overdrive and sends inspiration and ambition down on angel wings. I can’t wait to get them home and into my quilt area and just…start.

Starting is the easy part.  Finishing is, well…harder.  I have great plans, great ambition, and great intentions.

Only sometimes to have all three melt away when I find newer fabrics and newer patterns.

So this year, in some of my blogs, I want to discuss finishing – the process, tricks, tips, and how I make it through to the end.  I have always had to be somewhat organized since quilting isn’t my full-time job yet.  I’ve always worked one or more full time jobs in addition to teaching, designing, and making my quilts.  I’d like to share my process with you.

It’s hard to pinpoint what inspires us to undertake a new project.  For me, sometimes it’s the fabric.  If there’s a line of fabric that just takes my breath away, I’m known for buying two yards of each bolt and five of the one that I want as the focus fabric.  That fabric may sit on my shelves for a while – until I find a pattern that works. 

Here’s where my new iPhone comes in handy.  I’ll take a picture of the fabric with it.  That way there are no fabric swatches to lose.  I can pull my phone out, go to my pictures, and have it with me at any quilt show or fabric shop.   I can compare the material that is there to those in the picture (in case I’m short a few yards) as well as see if the pattern I’m considering will work with the fabric.

 

Sometimes it’s the pattern that drives me to start a new quilt.  If this is the case, after I purchase the pattern, I use my iPhone to take a picture of the front of the pattern and the sheet that has the fabric requirements on it. 

Lovely in Lavender by Debbie Beaves

 

 

 

My iPhone also has the option of turning the picture from color into a black and white photo.  I frequently use this option to study the color structure of the pattern – this allows me to see the darks, lights, and medium values used without being influenced by the colors the designer has chosen. 

 

That’s how it starts.  I think that’s how it starts with most of us.  Fabric or pattern…sometimes both…often dictates what we’re going to do next.  And I think this where a lot of quilters make errors.  We tend to think of this as the first step, instead of thinking through the quilt process in its entirety.  In fact, unless you are beginning quilter, I don’t think you should think in steps at all.  Beginning quilters have to, because they are learning and every concept is new.

However, if you’ve got three or more quilts under your belt, the time of thinking in steps as you pick your project is over.  I believe the reason a lot of quilters “hit the wall” in their quilts is that they can’t see beyond the excitement of new project.  Regardless of whether it’s the pattern or the fabric that has driven a quilter to start something, you have to see beyond this. 

For instance, take this little quilt top I finished this weekend.

 

This is Spring Bertie by Bonnie Sullivan.  I love Bonnie Sullivan’s patterns and the wooly flannels that have been designed to go along with them.   I decided I wanted to make this pattern, but there were a couple of issues I had to determine how to deal with before I committed to the project.

The first issue was that a lot of applique is involved.  I love applique, but I’ve already got two handwork projects going, and I really did not need another one.   I had to make a decision to be satisfied to machine applique it.  The background was not a firm cotton, but a soft flannel, so I had to make sure there was a stabilizer I could use that would allow the flannel to evenly feed through my Janome but not impede the quilting process.

All those half-square triangles were the second issue.  I love half-squares and their design possibilities are endless, but you’re dealing with bias edges no matter how you make them and bias edges can get a little wonky if you’re not careful. Couple the bias edges with the fact that this quilt is flannel and you could develop serious trouble with them.  Cotton fabrics can be starched to stabilize the bias, but flannels can only be starched so much.

So I did a test drive with the flannels and Thangles.  Worked like a charm.  Half-square wonkiness was avoided.

 

It’s important that as you consider a pattern, you look at its entirety, and not just its beauty.  If there is a block in the pattern you’re not fond of or that gives you serious construction issues,  meet that issue head on before committing to the project.  How will you get over your construction problems?  Can you possibly paper-piece them?  Can you get a quilting buddy who has mastered the block to show you how he or she does it?  Are there tutorials on YouTube? If applique is involved, do you have the time to commit to it by hand?  Is it a good candidate for machine applique?

If it’s a block you can construct just fine, but you’re honestly hate making, can you live with making several of them if the fabric’s pretty?

Don’t let the lovely pattern dictate your project.  Carefully look at it.  Open it up.  Read the directions.  If you love it, but there are a few things that may give you issues, can you develop a plan to deal with those to push your project forward? I think that’s the reason so many of us (me included) have so many UFOs.  We start the quilt and then run into an area that gives us problems and we haven’t come up with a plan to deal with it.

So we set it aside and start on the next project that catches our attention.

Other quilting areas should be considered and dealt with before rotary cutting one strip of fabric for a new project.  I’ll talk about those next week.

 

Love and Stitches….

Sherri

Happy 2016!!!!!

Happy New Year!

While I thoroughly enjoyed Christmas and the granddarlings and seeing family and friends, I am just as thoroughly happy that the Holidays are behind us and life is getting back to normal.  The tree is put up, the halls are undecked, and all the outside Christmas decorations are down. Now if I can lose the five pounds I picked up over the Christmas break, life would be almost perfect.

If you have read my blog for a while or researched my archives, you know that I do not make New Year’s Resolutions.  That just sounds too stressful and life is stressed enough as it is.  I do, however, make New Year Suggestions.  This is sounds less threatening and if I don’t follow through, I don’t carry around the guilt. 

It’s kind of like eating chocolate without worrying about the calories.

I celebrated New Year’s Eve by attending a surprise birthday party for my daughter-in-love.  After I got back home, I hit my quilt room because I had at least two hours before the ball dropped and 2016 ushered itself in.   I stood in the doorway and reflected on what I had done in 2015 – I have 20 tops ready to be quilted, three completed syllabi for classes, and a half-a-dozen works-in-progress.  I do need to re-visit Jane this year as I have had to leave her hanging by her border triangles for far too long. 

And hopefully in 2016, I will be able to re-possess my big quilt studio, as the daughter and son-in-love will be moving out on February 9.  So my tiny quilt room looks like total chaos right now.  I’ve taken this transitionary opportunity to go through my stash and sort, fold, and bolt material.

I’ve also reflected on just what kind of quilter I am…

I do like to take classes and teach classes.  I love to share with other quilters and learn from them, too.  So I am a “joiner.”  Guilds, bees, groups --  I have membership in at least eight quilting groups.  For years, by necessity, I functioned as a “lone quilter.”  When I started quilting in 1988, there were no groups that I knew of and instruction was few and far between.  Those logistics, coupled with the fact I had two small children and was working made either option almost impossible even if I could find them.  So I am  a “Social Quilter.”

 

I’m also tend to quilt some each day.  Ideally, I like to do some piecing, applique, or quilting before I go to work.  It settles and centers my mind and thoughts.  Regardless, it’s a rare day that some fabric doesn’t find its way between my fingers and my needle. 

Those are two things I don’t want to ever change about the quilting me.

However, I do hope this year to be more like this…. 

 

Organized and on point…. 

Instead of like this…

 

Which is what is seems like most of 2015 has been like.

I did finish one top and several squares over the two weeks I’ve been away and will be posting picture of them on next week’s blog. 

Until then…

Love and Stitches…

 

Sherri

So On The Way Home I Bought a Lotto Ticket.....

Let me start this week’s blog off by stating two things.

First, Thursday, December 17, was my Guild’s Christmas party.

And second, I never win anything.

I don’t.  I can buy a dozen lottery scratch-off tickets and won’t win a dime.  I can buy dozens of raffle tickets and get nada in return.  This has been my life since I was old enough to play BINGO in kindergarten.

Until Thursday night at the Christmas party. Besides being just the normal Christmas-party-type-event with the food, desserts, and fun, we were drawing tickets for the guild’s 2015 raffle quilt and the 2015 charity raffle prize.

I loved the raffle quilt.  I really did.  What wasn’t to love about this?

 

I had purchased two envelopes worth of tickets and crossed my fingers and toes and bra, but my name wasn’t drawn.  I wasn’t shocked, given my history, but was placated with the thought that I did have the instructions and could make my own.  After all, I had helped construct the 2015 raffle quilt and now knew the ins and outs of the pattern and a few very strategic short cuts.

However the prize I really, really wanted to win was the crafting accessory bag that the Charity Quilt program was raffling off.

 

My good friend, Linda, had made one of these a couple of years ago and I had lusted after hers ever since.  I even strongly suggested that the guild make one for me as the outgoing gift at the end of my presidency.

Instead they gifted me with a gorgeous purple and white signature quilt that not only has every guild members’ name on it and my years as guild president, but also acknowledges that I was the founding president.  I cried when I received it and cry nearly every time I look at it.  It’s perfect. 

A few months later I purchased the Craftsy class for the bag and the zippers and vinyl to go with it.  I already had the fabric and had pretty much decided that as soon as cold weather set in so I couldn’t be beckoned outside, I would put in the hours on the bag. 

So when my name was drawn for the bag, I didn’t believe it.  They had to show me the ticket.

Hot damn!  Oh boy!

This. Is. The. Most. Wonderful. Bag. Ever.

Just look at all the compartments! 

 

But my good luck didn’t stop there.  We were instructed to bring four fat quarters with us to the party.  The first-vice president then led us in a great game of Dirty Santa.  If you’ve ever played this game, one of two things will happen.  Either everyone will be very nice and accept whatever is in their package without dissent; or there will be that one present everyone wants and it’s nearly a free-for-all until it’s claimed for the last time.

Take a gander at these fat quarters….

 

Nearly everyone wanted them…they were possessed by so many people I thought we were going to have to call an exorcist before someone would be able to take them home.

But guess who they ended up with at the end of the evening?

That would be me.

I had never had that much luck in one night EVER.

So when my good friend Nancy laughingly suggested that with the run of luck I was having, it may be a good idea to buy a lotto ticket on the way home, I kind of shrugged off her idea.  After all, how long of a good run of luck could I have? 

Then I began doing the math.  I’m 54 years-old.  I’ve never had this much good fortune in one sitting in…well, forever.  Mathematically the odds were in my favor.  And it would only take a few minutes.

This was my reasoning as I eased my SUV into a brightly lit convenience store that sold scratch offs.  I made my way inside and purchased a single scratch-off ticket…

And won ten bucks.

It has been a very Merry Christmas so far….

Love and Stitches…

 

Sherri

 PS...There will be no blog next week, as it's Christmas at my house.  I wish those who celebrate this holiday, Merry Christmas.  For those that are celebrating Hanukah, I wish you Hanukkah Sameach.  And for those celebrating Kwanzaa, Habari gani?   If you don't celebrate any of these, have a great few days off and get some rest!

 

 

Marking Your Territory

Most of the time my quilting blog has lots of pictures of quilts.  I find that quilts and quilters are my biggest source of inspiration.  They spur me on to finish my projects and try new ideas and patterns.

However, often I write about the basics of quilting.  No matter how complex and beautiful a quilt is, it really is only as good as the attention paid to the basics.  If quarter-inch seams and color selection are largely ignored, then the project, no matter how wonderful it seems to be, is never as good as it could have been.

So…today is one of those back-to-the-basic blogs.  I’m talking about how you mark your territory.

In other words, how and what do you use to mark the fabric in your quilt blocks?  I’m not talking about what you use to mark your top in preparation for quilting.  I’m highlighting (get it…highlighting…it’s a marking joke…) what you use to mark blocks for half-square triangles, or that quarter-inch mark for set in seams, or the background for your applique piece. 

A glance at the notions wall of your local quilt shop or fabric store, or at notions page in a quilt catalog will almost overwhelm a person.  There are so many choices…how do you know which to use?  All of them are generally broken down into markers, pens, pencils, and chalk.  There are a couple outside of this range, but not many.  I haven’t used all of the marking tools, but between nearly 30 years of garment sewing and quilting, I have used a number of them. 

Wash Away Pens

 

The wash-away pens are one of the marking tools produced by several sewing notions companies.  These generally come in blue and will fade away when misted with water from a spray bottle or iron.  They resemble fine-tipped markers and are wonderful to use.  However, just like a bad haircut can come back to haunt you, the marks can re-appear over time.  It’s very important that if you decide to use these markers, make sure to wash your quilt top in cold water after it’s completed.  And take care not to heat-set them.  The quality of the wash-away markers varies with manufacturer, so a quick Google search may be a great idea to do before purchasing.

Air Soluble Pens

The first cousin to the wash-away pens is the air-soluble pen.  These usually come in purple so you can tell them apart from their blue relatives.  The marks left by these pens disappear over a period of time.  That time frame can be 24-hours, 48-hours, or even less, depending on the brand.  Be sure to read the back of the packaging to know exactly what’s your deadline.  Like the wash-away pens, be sure to wash your quilt top in cold water and don’t heat set.  Normally, since I never know if I can get back to a project in 24-hours or less, I don’t use the air soluble pen unless I’m heading directly to the sewing machine or cutting mat.

Pink, Blue, and White Fabric Pencils

 

If you purchase a pre-packaged bundle of beginning quilting or sewing supplies, invariably it will come with a blue, white, or pink marking pencil.  These also work very well; again just make sure you wash them completely out of your fabric.  One word of caution, don’t sharpen them to a really sharp point.  This may put a hole in your fabric.  A rounded-tip works just as well.

The Dreaded Yellow Marking Pencil

However, beware of the dreaded yellow marking pencil.  Some of you may remember that I caved into peer pressure decided to try wool and flannel applique this year.  The backgrounds for these were very dark, so I grabbed the yellow-leaded pencil in my sewing basket that had probably been there since high school and used it.  To my complete and utter horror, it didn’t wash out.  It faded a little, but it did not go away.  Some clever embroidery hid it well, but that yellow is for all means and purposes, a permanent part of those projects. 

Since I have found myself working with dark backgrounds, the next few marking pencils also have the option of either white lead or white lead refills.

There are several types of mechanical marking pencils on the market and I honestly can’t say which one I prefer.  I like all of them, but my two favorites are Fons' and Porter’s and Sewline’s.  Both products offer white and gray lead and erasers with the pencils.  Sewline even offers green lead and pink lead and more eraser options. 

Fons' and Porter's Mechanical Pencil and Refills

 

Sewline's Mechanical Pencil Set that I would love to find in my Christmas stocking and their eraser refills

 

To my knowledge, Roxanne has not introduced mechanical pencils, but does offer their own line of pencils which, like their sewing needles, is wonderful.  They come in silver and white and are ph balanced – which means they are guaranteed to wash out and not leave any remaining marks at all either now or in the future.  I have found the lead to be softer in these pencils and would recommend using a hand-held pencil sharpener (Roxanne has their own brand, but any kind will work) instead of an electric or rotary pencil sharpener.

Roxanne's White and Silver Pencils with Sharpener

Chalk has always been an option to use as a marking tool.  And as a former teacher, I can say I pilfered many chalk stubs away from my classroom before white boards became the rage.  The tiny stubs were far too short to use on a blackboard, but were the perfect size to file down with an Emory board to a point and use on my quilts.  It was free and it washed out – what more could I ask for?

Now there are chalk wheels and chalk pencils that come in different colors and are perfect for light or dark backgrounds.  Clover even makes a liquid chalk marker that is fine-tipped and works great with wool applique.  Again, make sure you wash it out completely – especially blue chalk.  For some reason, that color is the most difficult to rinse away.

Clover's Liquid Chalk Pen

 

The last few two marking tools are not really made for fabric – and you really need to keep that in mind.  Prisma makes colored pencils that I have used in a pinch when nothing else has worked.  These pencils are generally not found in quilt or fabric stores but can be found in art supply stores and hobby stores.  The pencils will wash out.  Please do not confuse the Prisma pencils with the Prisma pens.  The Prisma pens can be found in quilts stores, as they are fine-tipped and used to mark templates and to sign quilt labels.  Once heat set, these will not wash out. 

Prisma Pencils

 

Frixion Pens are the new kids on the block.  These are found in office supply stores and I have seen them in local quilt shops.  And they have stirred up quite a debate – to the point that the manufacturer had to finally state that they were not made to mark on fabric. 

Frixion Pens come in a wide variety of colors and the ink disappears with heat – from an iron or an eraser.  They were manufactured in such a way that the ink disappears from paper by way of the heat from the friction of an eraser.

Frixion Pen Set

They were never meant to be used on fabric and the ink disappears with the heat of an iron.

Do I use them in quilting?

Yes.  For certain tasks they are ideal.  I mark half-square triangles (most of the mark will be cut away anyway), quarter inch seams, and centers.  These are tiny areas that even if the ink does come back, it won’t be noticeable – especially since I mark centers and quarter-inch seam intersections with tiny dots. 

Would I mark the background of an applique block with them?

Absolutely not.  Too many marks that may come back and haunt you.  And if the fabric is exposed to cold, the marks will return.  So I would not use them to mark applique backgrounds, applique pieces, or quilt tops.

But to have a marking tool I could pull out of my purse and use to write my grocery list or mark a half-square triangle at quilt bee?  Frixion wins.

However, I have to admit, my very favorite marking tool of all times is this little guy….

 

A #2 pencil.  Especially the mechanical ones.  Easily found (even if you’re traveling), easily washed out, and easy on the wallet.  You can’t beat it.


Please note I am not employed by any of the above mentioned manufacturers nor do I receive any type of payment or product for my endorsements.  The products I mention in my blog I have used myself and either like them or dislike them due to my own experience.  Your experience may be different -- and if it is, I'd love to hear from you.

Time in a Bottle...Time after Time...Let's Do the Time Warp Again....

There are twenty-four hours in a day and seven days in a week.

That’s 1,440 minutes….and 86,400 seconds.

So…how many of those can you spend quilting?

It varies from person to person.  Most of my quilting friends are retired.  I envy the amount of time they can spend piecing and quilting.  But realistically most of us do work about an 8-hour day somewhere else and then have to come home to laundry and dishes and housework.  Once upon a time, I had to throw the mix of school in for both my kids and myself.  That cut even more into the time I had to work on my quilts.  I can be quite honest and say at that point in my life I did not  have more than a couple of quilts going at one time.

While everyone may have the same amount of time in a week, how that time can be structured to make it available to quilt can vary.  I can offer some suggestions…some of which I’ve used myself and some that my friends have proffered.

The first thing that I’ve learned to do is keep all my quilting supplies for a project together in a project box.  Office Depo sells these really neat clear, plastic boxes with lids.  They vary in size, some deeper than others, but they are wonderful to keep projects in. Quilt shops also sell these, but they are less expensive at an office supply store. I put fabric, pattern, thread, stabilizer…everything that I’m using with that project in one box and label the box.  That way when I do have a few minutes to sit at my machine, everything is all together and ready to rock and roll without having to play hide and seek with all my quilting supplies.

The second idea that I always have utilized is to keep my hand sewing projects out separately and in sewing basket together.  I purchased a large sewing basket from one of the big box fabric stores.  It has a tray in the top that I can keep all my hand applique supplies in and the bottom is large enough to keep two or three hand applique blocks tucked away.  If I had a day where I knew I would be running kids from Scouts to dance to tee ball practice, I could put the basket in the car and work on a block or two while waiting on the kiddos to get out of whatever meeting they were in. 

As they out grew Mom’s Taxi Service, and I was able to join additional sewing groups, I found that this still worked for me.  I rarely bother to take a sewing machine to a bee or sewing night.  As a matter of fact, I really don’t like to break down any of my machines to take out of the house unless I’m using it for most of the day wherever I’m at or it’s a class.  Presently I have three quilt projects I’m working on that involves handwork.  I can simply grab this sewing basket on the way out the door and have my choice of projects to work on at whatever bee I’m at.  This is also handy when I go out of town on vacation.  I can simply put the basket in the back of the car with my luggage and have it to work on at nights away.

Something else that works for me personally is getting up early to piece and quilt on the machine.  I’m definitely a morning person, and found pretty quickly rising as little as a half an hour early was really productive for me – especially after I had kids.  That time was uninterrupted and quiet.  It is amazing how much work I can get done in a quiet half an hour.  While Meg and Matt have long since moved away from home, I still like to get up a little early to work on an especially complicated pattern.  A fresh mind and a hot pot of coffee can work wonders!

Another motivating factor for me is a class.  To be sure, like most of the quilting-obsessed, I have a list of quilts I want to make before I’m called away to that Great Guild Meeting in the Sky.  But if I can find a class that offers instruction in that quilt…it does tend to move that pattern off my wish list and onto the long arm.  To be honest, at this point, I may not need the instruction from the teacher to make the quilt, but that teacher usually gives homework and I’m still way to much of a school nerd not to do my homework.  And if I do all my  homework, then the quilt will be completed (or mostly completed) by the time the class is through.  Plus it offers a great time of fellowship with other quilters. 

Some other suggestions include:

Clean and organize your quilting area after each quilt – that way you know where your supplies are.

Clean your machine and change your needle regularly.

When you get down to your last sewing machine needle, go ahead and purchase the next pack.  You know you’re going to eventually have to replace that last needle and buying the new pack now will save you a trip to the store later. Or having to wait until the store opens, since needles invariably break at 11 p.m.

Try to purchase all your supplies before starting a quilting project.  I can kind of agree with that…to a degree.  I often put off buying the backing, batting, and sometimes even the outer border fabric because I can’t find something I like when I’m purchasing everything else.  I do purchase as much as I can, but sometimes waiting just a little while can afford finding the perfect backing or border fabric you were looking for. 

Always have an extra rotary blade….see the suggestion about sewing machine needles.

The fact is that what works for me, may not work for you.  Getting up a half an hour early may not be something you want to ever contemplate, but staying up a half an hour after everyone in your house has gone to bed may work just fine and dandy.  You may not like hand sewing at all, so you have to be more creative on the  time you have at your machine.  It may mean being very judicious about what quilt projects you choose.

We make time for what is important to us.  Quilting is no different.

Love and Stitches,

 

Sherri

What was I thinking? Or Otherwise Also Known as a Quilt Only Its Maker Could Love....

Every once in a while, I have to pause and wonder, “What in the world was I thinking?”

I  had one of those moments last week…as I was struggling with my Round Robin for the guild.  I’ve always participated in the Round Robin and have written several blogs about it and why I think every semi-serious quilter should participate in one at least once.  It stretches your creativity and your skills….blah, blah, blah, blahhhibity, blah, blah, blah.

It was for those reasons that when Linda decided to give up leading our guild’s Round Robin, I jumped right in there and said I would do it.

That was the first  “What in the world was I thinking?” moment in this little experience.

Not that this leadership position was especially demanding – not after being president for three years.  And not that I didn’t have a few new ideas.  I did.  I knew there were enough people that wanted to do the Round Robin, but were just a tad intimidated by working on someone else’s quilt.  So I came up with the idea (admittedly borrowed) for everyone to make a center square between 12- and 18-inches out of gray and white fabric.  The gray and white fabric could be used in any round of the Round Robin, but in addition to the gray and white fabric, we would pull two crayons out of a bag each month.  The accent fabric had to be any shade, color, or hue of the crayons.  And everyone would work on their own Robin.

The crayon idea had to be the second “What in the world was I thinking?” moment. 

Seriously?

I just figured that I’d go into the drug store below  my office and grab a pack of 8 crayons off the shelf, toss them in a bag, and I’d sucker one of the guild visitors to draw the crayons (so no one could blame me for rigging the color choice).

Let me categorically state here that my youngest child is 26.  Do you realize how long it’s been since I’ve had to buy crayons?  I naively assumed, since it was September and all the back-to-school items were still out, that an 8-pack of basic color crayons were easy to be had.

So one day during lunch, I ran into CVS, grabbed the first pack of eight crayons I saw and purchased them.  Two weeks later I opened them to dump them in a bag…and saw the horror of my reality.

For sure, there was the red crayon…and the blue crayon….but no orange, or black, or white.  I had a green and a brown…and a teal?  Seriously?  Teal?

Oy-vey.  I had pictured the ease of primary and secondary colors with the grays and whites.  It was too late to get another pack, since I was already almost late for guild meeting at that point.  So I had to go with what I had…which was not what I had thought I had.

And at this point let me add in the third “What was I thinking?” moment.  Along with the border width specifics I gave everyone, I also gave required blocks.  Half-square triangles.  Square-in-a-squares or flying geese.  Rectangles and circles. 

The first round wasn’t too hard.  We pulled red and blue crayons and had to use squares or half-square triangles.  The second round was a little harder.  This time we pulled brown and green crayons (I had several threats of mutiny over this) and either flying geese or square-in-a-square. 

I was pretty good with everything until this last round.  We pulled that teal crayon and a purple one.

Again…seriously?

Top that color choice with the fact that this round was rectangles and circles, and I hit a quilter’s block as big as Paducah in April.  I stewed over this for days. 

The stewing was definitely not me.  I’ve always been that guild member who brought her Robin home, immediately laid it out on her cutting table, and sketched out two or three ideas.  By the end of the week, I had something thrown into EQ7 and had printed out my pattern.

But not this time.  Between the really odd color choice and the rectangles and circles…I had hit a quilty roadblock.  I. Had. No. Ideas.

None.

So…I measured the width and length, divided it up, cut out rectangles and sewed on circles. It’s basic and to the point, and admittedly I could have done yo-yos or something more creative, but I was bumfuzzled and not ashamed to admit it.

I had just reached the point I wanted it done.

We have one more round to go on this little adventure.  But I am afraid I’m creating a quilt that only I can truly love.  It’s not attractive.  I doubt I will ever quilt it.   But you can bet I’m keeping this little sucker around to remind myself that if I ever come up with another bright idea like I did this time –  to pause and seriously ask myself “What are you thinking?!”