I Quilt Like I Drive

The closer I get to home, the faster I drive! Which is how I piece, bind, and quilt. Go figure! I'm just anxious to get home...

Anyone who knows me knows I am NOT a traveler. If you look up "homebody" or "hermit" in the dictionary, you'll find my picture. I don't like to stop and look at stuff. I don't stop at Buc-ees. I only take potty stops in sheer desperation. (I've actually thought about getting some of those astronaut diapers so I wouldn't have to stop at all!)  Okay, you get the picture.  This explains why I'm always so anxious to complete a trip and get back home. 

And so it often is with my quilting. I've noticed when quilting on my Sweet Sixteen that I start out with a 2-3 inch spiral but toward the end might have a spiral that takes up 1/4 of the quilt! Ha! Today I was sewing binding on a friend's quilt and I had to keep moving the needle back. "Nope, stitch is too long." Pull the thread, move the needle..."nope, stitch is too long." And when I spotted those last five wonder clips holding that opening down...whewwwwwwww..."nope, nope, nope, stitch is too long, stitch is too long, stitch is too long!" It became my mantra to hold myself in check. I could see my driveway. I was almost home. I couldn't WAIT to get there!

There are parts of a trip that I enjoy, like visiting with whomever I went to visit. Seeing the beautiful countryside. Pleasant unexpected surprises. And so it is with quilting. I love the fabric. I'm okay with the cutting (although I usually procrastinate doing it for fear of messing up). I enjoy the piecing. I enjoy the pressing. Then I start seeing a tiny light at the end of the long tunnel and I start getting anxious to see the completed quilt. I can't wait to get the pieces sewn together! I can't wait to get it quilted! I can't wait, I can't WAIT! 

My friend Beckey Prior's projects are just the opposite of mine. I prefer projects like a Missouri Star Quilt Company pattern that can be completed in a short amount of time with basic piecing and quilting. She prefers projects that may take her a year to complete, personally designed, with applique out the wazoo. She also likes to travel. Coincidence? LOL!!!

When I slow down I'm reminded how gratifying each step can be. One of my favorite things to do is sew on binding while watching my Fightin' Texas Aggies play football. It can be so soothing when I stop looking to see how much real estate there is between my needle and the last wonderclip. *sigh* (There are exceptions to this if the game is particularly stressful. I usually don't bind anything but my own intestines when A&M plays Alabama or LSU. Ugh.) I digress. Working on a quilt is my meditation. My creative outlet. My gift to someone. My purpose. My fun. 

As I discussed my project preferences with the friend mentioned above, we concluded that this is one of the things that makes quilting great. There's no right or wrong way to approach it, no judgement on which type of quilting you prefer, and the only quilt police involved are the ones in our own heads. All kinds of quilters are at Sew Day, with the key word being "quilters." Whichever way we go about it, we're quilters. Beckey might be drawing her next pattern or appliqueing some of those bazillion pieces onto her quilt, I might be sewing half-square-triangles together as quickly as I can. I'll work on one project, Cynthia will spend time on 3-4 different ones from her bag of WIPS. Mendy will zone out in the corner and finish at least one quilt top while someone else might spend three sew days on one top. I'll have fabric that attracted me with its pretty colors or cool design but that's all I'll know about it, while Janis will know the designer of her preferred fabrics or pattern! I'll be quietly focused on sewing since I can't walk and chew gum at the same time, while Rhonda will be carrying on three conversations while she sews! Just. Doesn't. Matter. What does matter is that we're doing it together! Sewing in a group of like-minded friends is incredible. It inspires me. It invigorates me to work on my projects to completion. It ROCKS.

Come sew with us. Come make friends. And enjoy the journey...

-Angie Clemons

Choose Kind, Be Kind 

Failure

I heard a talking head on tv the other day publicizing his podcast about failure. Pretty sure I could be a guest on THAT show. What piqued my interest was him saying, "Failure is the new success." WHAT? So I googled it. 

We all learn from failure, and when you learn about how something doesn’t work, you can eliminate the idea, narrow it down and continue to find out how it really works. - from Quotivee.com

Oh. Well, okay then. I can certainly relate to this concept as evidenced by the WIPs in my sewing room. The older the WIP, the more likely I was in the process of failing to get the results I had in my head at the beginning of the project. Like the thread-painted cat I made. It looks "okay" but not amazingly fantastic as intended. But I learned so much by just trying the technique. I now know that stabilizer is my friend, as is a hopping foot. I "get it" now about different thicknesses of thread and using it with appropriate needles. I watched video tutorials but I didn't truly understand until I bulldozed ahead...and failed...and then tried other things. Instead of giving up, I learned. (Perhaps a little begrudgingly because I hate to admit I don't know what I'm doing.) 

I don't know that I failed at art quilts, but by signing up for the art quilt boodle with our Guild I learned that I fail to have enough interest in making them to continue. I think that's more a failure of art quilts than me! Ha! I haven't totally ruled them out, but have for now. This is why I love the opportunities the Guild provides for learning and experiencing new and/or different styles, techniques, and processes. I had just cleaned and purged my sewing room, and I realized I should have kept a bunch of the stuff I purged if I was going to delve passionately into art quilts. You need a lot of bits on hand for art quilting. Mehhh...I don't want bits. 

Why are so many people are afraid of failure? Because failure usually creates a negative feeling, giving us the idea that we aren’t good enough or that we’ve done something wrong. We need to understand that with careful reflection, we can investigate the root of our failures and work towards avoiding them in the future.  The more you fail, the better chance you have at success in the future – it’s called experience. For experience to work, the most important thing to remember, is to avoid committing the same mistake twice. Otherwise, we are not any better off than our previous experience. - Quotivee.com

I like using "experience" instead of "failure". As inferred above, it's more socially acceptable. One of our Guild members, Cynthia Chaney, is the best I know at just jumping in with both feet and improv-ing her way through a project. She's kinda like a kid that doesn't know how to swim but runs and jumps in the deep end of the pool anyway - she'll either sink or swim but she'll have fun jumping no matter what! I've seen her grow so much as a quilter by doing it HER way. It's fun to watch, and I marvel at it, but I approach things more like the kid who runs to the pool, stops, and sticks a toe in to see if it's cold or not. Then I ease into the shallow end. The beauty of it is that neither of us is wrong in our approach to quilting. We're just different. Vive la difference! (I'm feelin' kinda French today since I had lunch at La Madeleine.)

My point is that we shouldn't let the possibility (which is often a probability) of failing stop us from making. No matter what we're making. Or doing. Or whatever. Keep in mind that you have access to some of the best quilters, sewists, embroiderers, and no tellin' what else by being a member of the Tyler Modern Quilt Guild. Just bring your problem project to Sew Day and somebody is gonna have a solution or, at the very least, a suggestion. Don't ask me...I have a tendency to make stuff up if I don't know the answer. LOL!

I hope all of you saw the recent video of Ellen talking about her friendship with former President George W. Bush. "Dubya". Paraphrasing, don't just be kind to people who think and believe like you, be kind to everyone. It's a good message, especially when it seems everyone in the world is looking for a reason to be angry, offended, or hurt. *sigh*

Fall is finally here and I hope it lasts more than a week or two. 

-Angie Clemons

Dog Days of Summer

Ugh. It's sooooo hot!!! I was binding a quilt the other night, meaning the quilt was piled into my lap as I sewed (I sew the binding to the back by hand because I think it looks better). The dog was piled onto the quilt. I was burnin' up, even with the air conditioner working overtime to keep us cool. Now, logically, it's just as comfortable in the house right now as it will be in January when it's cold outside and the heater is working overtime to keep us warm. But I'm crazy so, in my mind, I was much hotter under that quilt than I would be in the winter. LOL! 

If we wanted to, at this point, we could begin a huge discussion about whether to bind by hand or machine. Like political views, this issue will never be resolved. And, like politics, it doesn't matter much which is right and which is wrong because it's all about who is in charge and what they want to do. SO, it's your quilt, you're in charge, so however you want to bind it is the absolute right way! Enjoy your power!

The TMQG leadership and committee/volunteers have been busy getting ready for the quilt show/craft fair that will take place in November. If you haven't heard about it, contact Rhonda, Kate, or Mendy for information on showing your quilt, renting a booth, or volunteering your services to prepare for or work at the event. And stay tuned on the TMQG facebook page for information as the event gets closer.

The Acadian paper piecing group had our first sew day this month. I have my fabric, the pattern, and good intentions. Just like I did with the Gravity quilt. *sigh* What's the old saying? "The road to hell is paved with good intentions." I know myself, and I know I'm all about immediate gratification (which explains a lot), or at least "as quickly as I can get it" gratification - meaning I should probably stick to quick, Jenny Doan type quilt patterns instead of the more elaborate, time consuming patterns. But Acadian and Gravity are soooo pretty! We'll see how it goes. At my old job in athletics we would say I have "outkicked my coverage" which means I've probably bitten off more than I can chew. Ha! My goal is to hang in there and finish these projects. ACK! It's not too late if you want to jump in on the paper piecing group. Contact Kate Bynum for group/meeting info. 

I missed regular sew day but, judging by the pix, it was the usual fun and productive gathering. Hopefully I'll be able to make the September sew day. I miss my quilty peeps. It is said that one is "outta sight, outta mind" but I assure you that's not the case with me regarding my quilty buddies. I think about y'all all the time...fondly for the most part. LOL! 

Y'all hang in there. We're getting closer to Fall, pumpkin spice, football, pretty leaves, and cooler temps. For me, that's REAL quilting weather. Others would argue that ALL weather is REAL quilting weather. LOL!

Choose KIND. And be the person that makes it easy for people to treat you kindly.

-Angie Clemons

The Tyler Modern Quilt Cult, errr, I mean...Guild

www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/cult

A situation in which people admire and care about something or someone very much or too much. 

Whoa. I laughed when Kate’s (Bynum) daughter called us “her mother’s cult friends” but I think she may have hit the nail on the head. I mean *insert nervous giggle* we reallllllly like making quilts and all that entails. 

We have meetings...to talk about quilting.

We have retreats...to quilt.

We have workshops...to learn stuff about quilting.

We have programs...to learn stuff about quilting.

We call each other...to talk about quilting stuff.

We have sew days...to make quilts.

We invite people to our houses...to make quilts.

We shop...for fabric to make quilts.

We watch tutorials...about quilting.

We have additional sewing gatherings for...quilted bags, art quilts, and paper piecing quilts.

We read books...about quilting.

We recruit...more people to join our cu.., I mean, guild.

By golly, I believe we’re a secret handshake and matching tattoos away from being an actual, full fledged quilt cult! 

If you have a need for all things quilt, you should join us!!!

Who gets to design the tattoos? 

-Angie Clemons

Choose Kind

P.S. And don’t drink the KoolAid if anyone serves that for refreshments. Just sayin’. 

I. Hate. Basting.

Of alllllll the steps in quilting, basting is the WORST! In my opinion, of course. My longarming friends don’t have to worry about basting, which makes me more than a little jelly [jealous]. I’ve spent hours watching youtube videos about basting, searching Pinterest for different ways to baste, and have asked just about every quilter I know how they baste their quilts. Most people I’ve asked tape their backing to the floor and then layer everything on top, then pin or spray baste. I have limitations which makes floor basting difficult. My house is small so laying everything out on the floor would be a challenge. When I do lay things out on the floor (i.e., my batting when I’m cutting a piece off the roll) the dog (my sweet, perfect Cookie) has to sit on it. This doesn’t bother me but the possibility of her deciding it’s a giant piece of doggy toilet paper and dragging her “self” across it does give me pause. The main limitation is that, while I’m able to get myself onto the floor, it would take a tow truck with heavy-duty wench to get me back up. My back and knees speak to me, “what on earth made you think we were gonna help you with this?” Ugh. I have settled on a three-pole, long table, and glue basting system. I roll the backing, batting, and top onto 8-ft poles (none of my quilts have even been close to that size but I dreamed big when I purchased the dowels) and then use washable school glue sticks to stick ‘em together. The youtube video showed a lady unrolling all of them at the same time as she worked her way down the quilts pinning the layers together. Since I glue instead of pin, I like to do the top first and then flip it over and attach the backing. That pinning business wasn’t for me. I’ve also found that the glue, once dry, holds the layers together more securely, or tighter, than the pins. This is way easier for quilting on my Sweet 16 (aka Sweetie) and I can begin anywhere as opposed to having to start in the middle as with the pin basting. I’m considering switching from poles to 1”x3”x7’ boards. It’s hard to keep the layers straight as I roll them onto the poles and a flat board might be easier. I hope. They definitely wouldn’t roll off the edge of the table unwinding as they go making me lose my religion. OMG!! Did I mention that school glue is way cheaper than a can of spray? I also prefer the purple gel glue stick as it shows up on the batting and also smears onto the batting much smoother than the pasty glue sticks. I’m researching for a formula to dilute plain ol’ white school glue with water so I can spray it on instead of smearing on the glue sticks. That will make the process even more cost effective. Hey, you there with the skeptical look on your face! You need to be willing to try new things! LOL! I’m sitting here looking at three quilts that need basted. I cut the batting to size yesterday after I vacuumed my neighbor’s dog’s hair off the floor. Cookie doesn’t shed but her friend does. I understand now why my parents didn’t want certain kids coming to the house when I was a kid. LOL! I’m currently in the procrastinating/psyching myself up phase of the basting process. *sigh* First I’ll put up the table in the living room, followed by more procrastinating, then bringing in the 8’ poles hitting the ceiling fan at least once before I remember to be careful, then more procrastinating. I’ll eventually get these bad boys basted. And then it’s quilting time! Woohoo! What’s YOUR least favorite part of making a quilt?
Angie Clemons Choose Kind (and remember, just saying it or posting a meme about it doesn’t actually make a person kind - LOL!)

Sewing Room!

Or, as Cynthia tries to get me to call it...My Studio. Sewing room sounds functional. A room where "stuff" gets DONE! At least it does sometimes. Studio sounds more artsy, an adjective to which I can't relate. My dad taught math for 50+ years; my mom was a real-deal artist and taught art. Oddly, I didn't inherit any of those genes. Having them sure would make quilting easier for me. I've said several things in my youth that have come back to bite me in the butt. "What's the point of exercising when we're all gonna die anyway?" And now I need exercise just so I can get outta bed in the morning. And, "I won't everrr use math so why do I have to study this mess?" Sure would be nice to be able to accurately calculate the blocks and fabric I need for a project. Ugh. Doubly troublesome for Daddy as not only did I miss his genes but he was also my math teacher!

Back to my sewing room... About a year ago (already?!?) I purged and cleaned, got new shelving, wrapped fabric on magazine boards, sorted by color and collections, and designated drawers for fat quarters and precuts. It looked like a fabric store. Allll the pretty colors!! It looked great! For about a day. Then I began a project. Then I acquired more fabric. And more fabric. (It was on sale!) Then I saw Jenny Doan make a wonky star quilt so I needed to get the right fabric for that, right? And there's no room for the new roll of batting. *sigh* It doesn't help that I'm a lot like Pigpen from the Peanuts comic strip from Charles Schultz.I'm messy, to say the least, and probably have my own dust cloud. There is now a healthy stack of fabric that needs to be wrapped and shelved. Dangit! Sew? Or straighten up the room? If you know me at all you know which I'll choose. Haha!!

Kaffe and Tula have their own shelves. They'll probably be there from now on because I can't make myself cut 'em. I just hold them and love them and talk to them about what pretty quilts they would be if I could cut them. Then back on the shelf they go. There's also a grunge section but I'm able to cut grunge, so I get to (I mean, have to,  - oopsy!) restock that shelf.

My sewing room is my happy place. Well, my sewing room and my recliner. My favorite thing to do in the world? Rainy, cool day...Aggie football on tv...sewing...Cookie on her doggie bed under the ironing table. Man, oh man. Heaven! [Oh my. My favorite thing to do sure has changed since my twenties! Lol!!!]

The way I see it... if the sewing room is clean you ain't sewing. So, get in there and make a mess. Have fun! And remember, life is short/buy the fabric.

-Angie Clemons

[Some days it's more difficult but always trying to] Choose kind

Snobs

I realized at the last guild program that I'm in a group with a bunch of SNOBS! Yeah, that's right! Snobs! Thread snobs. Fabric snobs. Ruler snobs. Notions snobs. Machine snobs! Pattern snobs! Seems we all have our favorites that we swear by and are willing to defend to the death. Well, okay, maybe not to the death but we really like what we like.

I feel bad. You see, I played along...but I was afraid because I have a secret. I agreed, "Yes! Superior thread! Woohoo!" At other times I have said, " Yes! Moda fabric! Kona! Mostly Freespirit! Yes yes yes! " And when we're discussing where to buy fabric I'm nodding my head in agreement that we should ONLY buy quilt shop fabric. Then I go home to my secret...discount fabrics, cheap thread, off brand notions, and free patterns. *gulp* Don't get me wrong, I have a ton (too much!) of the good stuff, but I'm definitely guilty of trying to save a nickel. I understand the premise that you should only use quality fabric if you're putting in all that time and effort to make a quilt. I also understand being thrifty. I like to splurge on fabulous print fabric but then use Hobby Lobby or Joann solids to stretch it. Lol! I like to piece with Coats&Clark but quilt with Superior.

My goal when making a quilt is to make something that someone I love will love. My quilts aren't for hanging in a museum but for covering someone I love to keep them warm. The show quilts are fabulous and I am in awe of my friends who are that talented and committed to the art. I just don't have that kind of dedication. The beauty of quilting is that there's room for every kind of quilter. Beginners, competitors, art quilters, modern, traditional, and me (a combination of the labels). The quilting community is, for the most part, a welcoming and encouraging group of people.

The thought of one of my quilts being judged in a show freaks me out. Show & Tell gives me the vapors. But something one of our members said last week gave me pause..."If you don't enter your quilts in shows there won't be quilt shows. " (Cheryl Moore) Yikes. That would be awful! All that beauty and inspiration no longer available? Noooooo! Something to think about fo sho.

I hope you're enjoying this perfect quilting and sewing weather! It's too hot to do anything that doesn't involve air conditioning and being indoors. I look forward to seeing what you're working on...either at a meeting or...dare I say...at a quilt show!

Choose kind...

Angie Clemons