What Are Quilters Blogging About Today?

As I was lamenting the loss of my distribution lists with the sewing group, TWO people piped up that they keep theirs in Excel. Of course, both of these people are familiar with Excel from their working days. They were pretty adamant that I should use EXCEL to manage my lists. 

WHAT? I do NOT get that. The issue is: why would I enter the darn lists twice (Outlook and Excel), which would require duplicate management? I already struggle with duplication. Some lists are needed year-round; others are temporary for my ongoing classes, which last about 9 months. Then those ...

The good news is that when I looked at my Cherrywood Challenge in the morning, the chalk lines were pretty much gone, so I didn't have to do any further work on it. I trimmed the quilt top, made the two-color binding, and stitched it to the top of the piece. Then I settled in and watched some YouTube videos while hand-stitching the binding in place! 

All that's left is to touch up a few spots with markers where the lighter-colored bobbin thread peeked through during the appliqué process, take three pictures, and then submit the entry. I ...

I had a thought when I was out walking yesterday, and Tammy confirmed it with her comment. If you were a doctor and you wanted to help your patient, wouldn't it be great to see their sleep history? Or see their heart rate history? And other trends? 

I totally get that different brands track things differently. That was evident when I had the Galaxy Watch for a while, and I hated how it tracked steps slightly differently from the Fitbit. But it's all relative if you only look at your data! 

Speaking of data, I did NOT get ...

Here's an update on several situations. After a few messages back and forth with M, it seems that if I read her text correctly, the designer will make the veil; it's my job to embroider it!! OK -- I think I can handle that. Thanks for the tips from everyone. Now I just need to find out the timing --- and she's in BC, and I'm here! But that's no issue!

As for the house? We didn't have any leaks yesterday, even though the sun was out. My towel stayed dry all day. I spoke to ...

OH -- I need to get back to answering those blog comments!!! Tammy --- I NEED an ice scraper! I was the one who drove over the snow before it was shoveled, and that spot has niggled at me for weeks now! I'm chiselling away at it with the shovel, and it's almost gone, but for the future! That's hilarious, and I'm glad to know that I'm not the only anal person about the snow! 

It was a long, yet very productive day! The quilt top is in one piece!! I never thought that would happen! I ...

OH MY --- I LOVE the Christmas gift exchange idea that was posted as a comment on the blog yesterday. Give a recycled item in good condition to someone! Of course, you don't spring this on people - you ask first if they are OK with the concept. It must have been a hit because they are doing it again this year. An elegant way to recycle and gift at the same time. I love it! Imagine the conversations you could have about the items you are giving? That would be the best part! 

And I have several suggestions for fixing ...

I'm happy to report that I slept well last night. I even "slept in" so that is great, but I still have time to get this blog posted in the right time frame. 

I know I say it all the time when I'm at retreat, but this is truly the place to strengthen friendships. While I'm a Zoom person and happy with Zoom, there is nothing like an in-person event to make me very happy. You can't go for a walk with someone on Zoom! But you can in person. While I'm also a get-in-and-out ...

 And just like that -- it's a new week. So many ideas and so little time, but the important thing is just to do! 

Speaking of batting bits, it's amazing how many quilts you can quilt with those bits! I've pulled a few pieces from that stack I brought downstairs, and it doesn't seem to have made a dent. I calculate there is enough batting here for about 20 quilts! That should cover the remainder of my dog quilts, and the ten for the favour, and a couple more! This is the last favor job I do ...

If you're expecting to see a lot of finished work today, you won't! I spent the morning on the computer, catching up on some paperwork I needed to stay on top of, and guess what? I made a good start on the presentation for the jacket class. When is that? Next weekend. Can I actually be working ahead? 

So, can you tell me why I had a dream last night that DH and I were heading off somewhere, and it was a nightmare? I couldn't find my paperwork or my passport. We were still trying to work ...

Two curious things happened yesterday - well, one of them was a dream, and it just shows how our brains can twist so many details in one story. 

I woke up angry, which I don't think has ever happened before. I've woken up shaken, or with a racing heart, but never angry. 

Last night, as I was falling asleep, I was going through the list of people who will be attending the next quilting retreat. And I suppose my brain was also preoccupied with some of the global volatility. Please note that no specific individuals were in this dream ...

You guys say it best! When, as a retiree, you "complain" about not having time to do something, that becomes a problem. If you are retired, you are supposedly the person in charge of your calendar. 

And thank you for the excellent comment about my teaching style for Colour My World. I appreciate all feedback—good and bad —because that makes the next class even better. I have a couple of follow-up items to attend to later today, so please be on the lookout for an email later today. 

Do you have a friend that you could trust 100%? Yesterday ...

The week is done - but not quite. I have one Zoom this evening - an odd time, but all that would fit everyone's schedule. Be sure to check it out -- it's all about Free Motion Quilting AND thread painting, and my session is excellent. The store? Sew Productive in Acton! You'll find some valuable tips for those who want to up their game with free motion or just get in the game. 

So, I have almost a free day to do what I want. It's more like playing catchup than getting anything done! I've already tidied ...

I am reporting that I made those extensions work! But not the most efficient way, so I will continue that journey until I know I can easily replicate it. I struggled to find a program to convert the extensions and don't know if the program I found is consistent. I know that many of the issues are related to the content in the file. The goal is to turn around and teach others, and until I have it down pat, I will continue to work out the logistics. One of the best ways to learn anything is to try ...

And I'm home! It felt good to sleep in my bed, but I'm also sad. Retreats are so much fun! I accomplished a lot, making me happy, and the girls were beside themselves when I arrived. 

I was up early and trimmed my flying geese units for the 365-day quilt. I also trimmed some more of the half-square triangles. 

Pressing and trimming

Tomorrow, the second block in The Celebrate Quilt chunk of the month will be released. This quilt requires a lot of half-square triangles. You may already have a favorite construction method. If so, go ahead and use it to make your triangles. I give the finished size required for all of them. Just make sure that’s the size you end up with. If you don’t have a favorite method, continue reading for a few triangle tips and tricks.

If you have been here any time at all, you know that I am always looking for the easiest and ...

The “Use Fabric” Challenge for April is Half-Square Triangles. This is such a basic unit in quilting, yet many quilters struggle to find accuracy and consistency when piecing them. Next week I will start a series on various construction techniques for half-square triangles (HST) so you can get good results every time. 

It has become common for patterns to instruct you to cut oversize and then square up the HST to size. Since I specialize in efficient, practical, and time-saving techniques, this just breaks my heart. At my age, I don’t have enough time left to trim slivers from ...

Life is a whirlwind of extremes. Happy times; hard times. Miracles and loss. But as our hearts are stretched in a thousand directions, they sure do grow! 

If you’re anything like me, you pour your emotions into your quilts. And this week’s quilt is bursting with love!

Watch Jenny stitch up the wildly popular Exploding Hearts quilt by Laura Piland for Slice of Pi Quilts. This stunning heart quilt is a triumph of triangles with half-square triangles, hourglass blocks, and quarter-square triangles, too. (We love Exploding Hearts SO MUCH, we created a kit with the pattern and beautiful ...

You will need ...