Home Sweet Home

And as John (Denver) says -- It's good to be back home again!!

It was a pleasant surprise to see how busy the fourth and final day of Salon Quebec was. Shows usually peter out, but this one kept going strong until almost the end, making the day pass quickly. 

Many people came to the booth, and I was pretty handy at presenting a sewing machine in French. I need to find a place in Montreal to stay for six months! Imagine how much better I would be. And I could offer my services (for free) at a sewing machine store and learn all the language! 

The biggest "issue" is what language I should speak! Is that person Anglophone or Francophone? ? Which language works best for both of us? Oh yes --- we had loads of fun, and whenever they tried to switch to English, I didn't. Why? I'm not perfect, but for not having lived in that dual-language environment for over 30 years, I think I'm doing not so bad!

I'm feeling much better today. I'm obviously still tired and dehydrated, but I'm OK. It's incredible what sleeping in your bed can do for you!

As far as a travel day goes, it was very unexciting! Except that my colleague and I had a lot of luggage. She had four personal pieces, and I had two, and then there were the elephants in the room. We had two suitcases of stuff that we usually ship via truck. Since it was only two suitcases, we flew it home rather than ship it. 

We were unsure of the weight of those big suitcases, but I have a status allowing me to check in three 70-pound suitcases. One was just under the limit, one was about 10 pounds under the limit, and the other was about five pounds over. They said nothing and checked the bags. Strangely, they did NOT tag the bags as heavy, which they usually do. 

But we got those bags checked, and we just had our carry-on. We arrived at the airport THREE hours before our flight. Since I wasn't the in-charge person, things were a bit more relaxed! I would have pushed for an earlier flight, but I didn't want to rock the boat, and we had a nice, relaxing dinner in a sit-down restaurant. Imagine that!

I wanted to try a "juicy" beer, so I got a small sample, which was good. It was almost like a Radler, but not. Look how small the sample was. Then I got the big glass as well. Having not eaten much all day, I kind of felt that. It was NOT the same as the Corona I usually have. 

My baby sample of the 'juicy" beer

Even though the flight was short, it seemed to take forever, and DH came so thoughtfully to pick me up! Because I was the one who was going to manhandle those two extra heavy suitcases to my house! They are still in the car. They are going into the garage later today. 

Of course, the girls were so excited to see me. And then I unpacked my small suitcase and left the larger one for later today. 

This welcome sight greeted me this morning when I went downstairs. Oh my gosh—I've missed this place so much. Since I don't have anything urgent, I'm going to try starting at one end and doing a clean sweep to get it back in shape. I have a few projects that I prepped for some of the events, and they are not finished, so my goal is to get them finished. 

Studio B

We always say that samples sell. Well, let me say that is true. I went into the Wonderfil booth to chat, and I spotted a sample. Oh my --- this came home with me—the entire collection of colors (60) of InvisaFil (100-weight) thread. 

Box of InvisaFil thread

The sample I saw was applique, and I know how to do impeccable applique, but this applique (by machine) was PERFECT. I've never seen a sample as beautiful as this one. It was absolutely perfect. I should have taken a picture of the entire thing, but I did not. 

Applique sample

Here's a detail of the stitching. I know—I looked MANY times to find the stitching. It's so perfect that you can't even see the stitches. 

Detail of the applique sample

But this is the back of the work!!! 

So I had to cram that box of threads into my suitcase, which barely fit, but I made it work. I usually use a 60-weight thread because that was what we had at the time. But this thread is even finer! Oh yes -- I'm in love with the stuff!! I can't wait to try a sample. 

I unpacked and put away some stuff this morning. Someone gave me this bag many years ago—many years ago! And it's the BEST foldable bag ever. It's made of nylon and is a snap to wash, which is important since a banana sort of exploded in it this past week. 

My folding reusable bag

It folds into a small bundle, making slipping into a pocket or my small waist pouch easy. 

The bag is folded up

I've used it to carry groceries, take trips to the thrift store, and take clothes to the shower when on vacation. It goes with me everywhere, and it's the best folding bag ever!

I got a chuckle yesterday. First thing in the morning, I got a plea for help with a serger. We had some help in the booth, but they couldn't get the serger to thread. I looked at it and threaded the needles. Well, that didn't make the serger work. Then I realized one of the loopers wasn't threaded properly. Then, when I got looking, I realized that one of the settings was not set correctly, which had disengaged the upper looper. Let's say that one year ago, I probably would NOT have been able to figure that out. 

I'm not ready to call myself the serger queen, but I got it set correctly, threaded, and working. Was that a test? Or was that a lack of knowledge of the person who asked? She's not familiar with machines, so switching that setting could have been an innocent mistake. But part of me thinks it could also have been a test. 

Today is Monday sewing, and I can't wait to chitchat with the group while I putter to get things done in Studio B. It will take some time to get that place back in order, and since I'm not in a rush, it will be a luxuriously slow week. I have appointments on most days, but nothing that can't be worked around. 

I'm off later this morning to get DH to the hospital for his surgery. At least I feel he's taking this a bit more seriously. He might be a bit incapacitated for a bit, instead of attempting to jaunt off next week on a plane trip, and he has some serious physio in his future. I'm sure it will be a lot of fun and games as we get through it all! I get to be the chauffeur, which is payback for the times he's picked me up at the airport late at night! 

The one thing I'm thrilled about today is that I do not have to talk all day! Even though we have the Monday call, I might just sit back and let them all chat. My throat needs a break!

On that happy note, I'm out of here. I have stuff to get ready before I take him, and then the girls are going to want a walk, which may not happen this morning. As soon as I mentioned them, they both came into the office—one on either side of my chair! It's NOT time. 

Have a super day!!!

Ciao!!!!

 

Understand what you like and WHY!!!!

Copyright is a slippery slope—well, not so slippery, but remember that if someone designed or wrote it - it's copyrighted! You can't copyright an idea, but it drives me mad when I teach a class, and someone takes my lesson plans and reteaches the project to others. I hope my notes, which I generously share with the students, are not being used! I must remember to start putting a watermark on everything I send out. 

The bottom line is do not copy any published material you did not write or design. It is illegal to copy ANYTHING and share it with someone else, including articles in a magazine, information you purchased, books, etc. Copying is not good. If you are finished with it and sell it or pass it along, that is OK. 

Do NOT use someone else's materials directly to teach or inspire another class. I have zero issues if people use some of my teachings to share with others, but it's always a good idea to share where you got that information from. Be sure to WRITE YOUR own instructions. What I write is MINE!! 

So today is the final day of Salon Quebec. I know I'm excited to go home tonight, but it will be late, and I hope I can make it to the airport without falling asleep. I am NOT in charge of getting to the airport. The other person flying to Toronto with me prefers to arrive in plenty of time! I hope I did not jinx us!!! 

Claire and I went around the Salon yesterday and looked at tons of quilts, and I took tons of pictures. I'm not ready to post any now because I want to digest them, and we still have quilts to look at this morning. Walking around and seeing what we like (love) and are less than fond of is a great exercise. But it's not enough to say I like or do not like something -- one must identify WHY because that's how you're going to learn, 

There are so many reasons that a quilt attracts or repels you -- the pattern, the fabric, the workmanship, the thread colors, and so much more. If you don't like something and repeat that style on one of your quilts, you are not learning. So learn to dissect the quilts you like and don't like, and then you won't make the same "mistakes" on your own, and the things you like, you can incorporate into your quilt. 

I've done that for years. I don't badmouth a quilt I don't like, but I will say why I don't like it. It's not being critical but identifying my likes and dislikes. Anyone can make a quilt; if they are happy, that's great. But I'm allowed to not like someone else's quilts, and if I give a reason, it's better than saying, "I don't like it." 

I sound like I'm rambling this morning. My head is still asleep. 

I slept well, woke up a bit earlier than usual, and stayed awake, so that's a good sign. Thank goodness my meds keep me going. I probably will NOT go into the hospital tomorrow morning with DH—I'll do a drive-by for him and then the same to pick him up. 

I am really primarily dehydrated and tired. And at the end of this crazy marathon, there is just one more day!!!

Here's Mary, who showed up on a bus tour. Look at her Toddler Tote, a free pattern of mine on the AllPeopleQuilt website. The fabric matches the fabric in my quilt!!!

Mary at Salon Quebec

And here's Paul. I have to say he cleans up nicely! Yes -- we let him in our booth even though he's with the competition. 

Paul - who is everywhere

Claire is madly making a jelly roll quilt on the serger! 

Making a jelly roll quilt

And this is what happens when you wear black!! 

She had threads everywhere!

It's kind of hard to see, but there is all my crap spread out on the desk in the hotel! 

Making myself at home in the hotel

We'll return to the show early this morning to see the rest of the quilts. As I mentioned, it's been a fascinating exercise, and we still haven't seen all the quilts. 

One morning, we went downstairs, and the breakfast room was packed! It was apparent there were a busload of tourists—actually, there were two busloads. 

Last night, Claire and I were brainstorming in the breakfast area, and OMG—two busloads pulled up! They dispatched them quickly, as all the information had already been processed. I was in the elevator with a couple of the people, and they are from Korea. It's probably much cheaper to stay in St. Hyacinthe than in Montreal. I'm not sure where they are going or how they got here, but there are busloads. I would imagine we'll see them in the breakfast room this morning! 

That's about it for today. I can't wait to get home—I am so motivated to sew and can't wait to start. This coming week, I have some appointments and tasks to accomplish, and the first machine embroidery software class at Stitch by Stitch will happen tomorrow evening, so I'm excited about that. But then it's Thanksgiving, and I don't have much happening that weekend. I can't hardly wait!!!!

If you go to a quilt show - remember to look closely at what you like or don't like and ask yourself WHY!!! It's a great lesson. 

Have a great day!!!!

Ciao!!!!

Give credit where credit is due!

Copyright infringement on quilts is an interesting topic, and YES --- it is still a big deal amongst the designers, not the copiers. 

I won't go into the whole thing this morning, but here are a few things to remember.

 Some designers, especially those who haven't been around for a while, will freak out when they see a quilt similar to their own that someone made, and there is no credit given. Or perhaps they see another new pattern that is very similar to theirs. Well, a log cabin is a log cabin. That pattern cannot be copyrighted as it's in the public domain. But what you are protecting is your interpretation of it -- the setting, the color, the use of fabric, etc. But beware that there will be look-a-likes. That's a given, as it's one of the most popular patterns. 

I don't know if that paragraph made sense, but if you design a quilt with four-patch blocks and see another one, it's not necessarily a copy. The second person could easily make a four-patch quilt without a pattern. If your design is super easy, many people could easily duplicate it without a pattern. Don't freak out if you're the designer - you need to expect that. 

HST triangles are another very grey area, and this one makes me laugh. I designed a quilt for a US magazine that uses HST in an exciting way. I received a SCATHING email from a reader saying I had stolen a famous quilt maker's pattern. This famous quilt maker has been offering tutorials online in a huge way for years, and almost none of what they provide as tutorials is their own creation. That's a given. But just because someone does a tutorial on a block does NOT mean they designed it. This same person will do churn dashes and other blocks- NOT their designs. At least not always. 

And then you have those who will blatantly steal a pattern concept—take a picture, recreate it in EQ8 or graph paper, and then say it is theirs. All you have to do is say that you got the inspiration from that person—don't say you designed it. 

It's a very gray area, and it's almost not worth the time or effort to pursue a pattern copyright. The big issue is not copying a pattern and giving the copy to someone else. Sell or give YOUR copy, but making copies is a big no-no!!! If you are going to enter your quilt in a show, post, or repost a photo online, then you should list the name of the pattern and the designer. It's just common courtesy. 

I know that many places (museums especially) will say you can take pictures but for PERSONAL use only. They are not to be published on social media of any kind. That's why I sometimes go somewhere and do not post pictures of the quilts. I do not have permission to do so. And if I do post pictures, then as a courtesy, I should be posting a picture of the label or at least listing the person's name and pattern. Just posting photos from the quilt show is a big no-no and disrespectful of the artist's intellectual property. 

Think about a painter—would you post a picture without listing the artist? Nope—the same goes for quilts. 

We were pretty busy at the booth yesterday again, which is always good. The days are passing by quickly, which is also good. I get to go home tomorrow, which will be amazing!!! 

I haven't been out too much, but there is a booth near us that sells vinyl and zippers. Look at the zippers by the yard that you can buy. There are all kinds of colors and zipper pulls. I'll be over there later today to buy something. 

Zippers by the yard

A young girl runs the store with her mom - at least, that's what it appears to be, and she is so friendly and cute. The store is called SMT Boutique, and I've put the link to their shop here so you can check it out. The store is currently offline as they are at the Salon Quebec, but get signed up so you can check them out on Monday. I love to support the young and enthusiastic crowd. They are the future of our industry!!!!

I'm hanging in there healthwise. Thank goodness for medication. I just need sleep, which I'm getting lots of. I managed to get more than 10,000 steps in yesterday as Claire and I walked to dinner again. We had dinner with some of her friends, and it was great. I don't have time to share the classes I signed up for, but I'll do that when I get home and have more time to explore the class. 

Here's the last post of the week for QUILTsocial. Oh my gosh -- if you like to quilt your quilts with your embroidery machine or have even thought about it -- check out the post. It's a good one - well, they are all good ones!!!!

On that note, I'm out of here!!! At least the weather has cooperated and been really nice, and I think there are some buses coming today!!! So it's going to be even busier at Salon Qubec. I renewed my membership for two years—it's the only guild that I belong to! 

Have a super day!!!

Ciao!!!!

Where credit is due

The first day of the show is over! It started with the awards ceremony, which was nice, as we got to see all the winning quilts on the slide presentation.

Waiting for the awards presentation to start

What I love about Coutrepointe Quebec is that they try translating everything into English. Not that I need it—although there are a couple of times when I miss what is being said, and it's primarily casual conversations. If I were to live here for six months, I'm sure I would have my French back and even stronger than before. 

Hmm. Is there anyone here that I can live with for six months? Based on my dream - I might need that. So I had trouble getting to sleep last night, and when I finally did, I had a dream. I was being graded on a written assignment, and how it was graded was terrible. So much so that I stomped out of where I was staying and left with nothing! It wasn't home. How do our brains twist the many details of the day into a dream? 

Anyway, I'm not going anywhere! We had a great day at the show. There were lots of people, and we had to laugh when a bus of people came up from Vermont. It used to be the opposite when bus loads would go down to the Vermont Quilt Festival. All in all, it was a great day! 

Claire and I walked part of the show in the morning, and we are very much alike in what we like as far as artistry goes. The one thing we noticed is that the show labels do not allow room for the credits of the original pattern maker or designer. I think the show organizers expected people to put that information in the quilt's description, but I don't think we saw one credit in that description. 

As usual, if the information isn't requested, people don't provide it!

And here's an interesting thing we saw. On one quilt (that won a ribbon), the owner admitted to seeing a pattern on Pinterest and went to EQ8 and reproduced it. They did not say that it was an inspiration, so we don't know that it was an exact copy, and no mention of who designed the original quilt. One thing I hate about Pinterest is that so many pictures get posted, and there is NO CREDIT for any of them. Sometimes, they are reposted and then reposted, and the source is lost. 

I know many people who put a watermark on the photos they publish for that reason. I don't do that on the pictures on my blog, so I'm sure there are photos of mine out there with zero credit. 

Let's face it --- we've all done the "copy" the pattern thing, but I would at least admit where the source came from or say it was inspired by. And I don't think I would admit that in a show - well, I wouldn't put the quilt in the show. Or I'd just make an original. 

Be careful—you do not want to copy someone else's work without permission. It is intellectual property! I could go on and on, but I won't. I'll write more about that another day. 

We did not see the entire show, but we're going over early this morning to hopefully get through the rest of the quilts. I don't think we will, so we can check them out later today, as I'm sure the show will be quieter. You never know. 

I love that the show closes at 5 PM. It's much less exhausting, and we actually have time to do something in the evening. We had a very late lunch, so we were not too hungry for dinner right at the end of the show. 

I felt pretty good, so I went for a walk!! OH my!! I decided to check out a geocache or two for something to do. I found this one, which was minus a container. That will hold up poorly in the coming months with the snow. 

A geocache minus its container

Then I decided to walk down to the mall, Galeries de St. Hyacinthe, where I found a five-part Adventure Lab (part of geocaching). So I had to walk around the mall and answer questions in French. I only had to translate one small phrase as I didn't know what it meant—a compass!!! And then, I walked back to the hotel to meet the others for dinner. 

Look what I found!!! When I lived here in the 80s (I know—so long ago), this gym was THE gym to go to. I guess everyone else thought so as well since it's still here!!! Nautilus Plus!!!

Nautilus Plus

We ended up going to St. Hubert, which has changed a whole lot since I was last here. It reminds me of a Moxie's and is quite upscale compared to what I remember. But what the heck is this? We could hear some singing of the Happy Birthday song. OH MY!!! It's a robot zooming around the restaurant!!! 

A robot in the restaurant

We spotted this on the way to the women's washroom. I love signs like this!!!! 

The ladies' room sign

We made a quick stop at the grocery store (in the mall) for some fruit, and then we walked back to the hotel. Yesterday, I walked over 13 km. When has that happened? But I was feeling great, so why not walk? 

And then I couldn't get to sleep. I tried reading, I tried just relaxing, and nothing. So it was late when I got to sleep, and I might even still be sleeping except for the person in the room above me has a heavy foot, and I think they got up to go to the bathroom!!!

I'm feeling OK. Those day and night meds are great at masking anything. At least they work for me. And it's not so much that I'm sick as that my throat is so tired of talking! Thankfully, the talking is less here than when doing an all-day event. So, while I'm a bit tired today, my throat feels a bit scratchy, and that's it. 

I went back to chat with the ladies from the recycling place—I have more to tell you tomorrow, and I signed up for something pretty unique—more on that tomorrow!!!

Be sure to check out QUILTsocial this morning. There is some great stuff that I accomplished using the mySewnet Embroidery Software and the Husqvarna Viking DESIGNER EPIC 3. 

On that note - I'm out of here. 

Have a great day!!!

Ciao!!!

Set up day at Salon Quebec 2024

It was quilt show set up day! My body and my Fitbit are going into hibernation mode. I have NEVER walked as little as I've done this past month, and I don't see that changing in the next few days. I'll be able to get back into my routine next week. Usually, I'd be up early as I would at home and have a long walk already in. I've slept in again. 

However, I know I'm fighting a cold and need my rest, so the rest forfeits the walk. It's not surprising that I'm fighting something with all the travel and long days. I stopped by the pharmacy yesterday and stocked up on some supplies, and I'll take it easy!

There are MANY quilts at the show—I think someone said there were 350 quilts, and OH MY—there are some beautiful ones. I can't wait to take a few minutes to study them rather than zipping around on the way out or to the washroom. 

There are many vendors. All the major sewing machine brands are represented, some through dealers and some through corporate booths like ours. 

We have prettied it up, and this is what it looks like. Here's the Husqvarna Viking side. 

Husqvarna Viking booth

And this is the PFAFF side. 

PFAFF booth

This is the Singer booth with sewing and embroidery machines and the Momento. 

Singer booth

So what's your preference. If you're looking for a sewing or embroidery machine - do you want to see samples of what the machines can do? We are the booth with the most samples, which has always been that way. I find it's even the same if you go to a dealer to do an event. I've been to several competitor events, and they take very few samples. We take suitcases full of samples. I want to be inspired by what the machine can do!!! 

And here's Paul!!! I told you he is everywhere! 

Paul and I

I'm not even sure how I met Paul or how many years I've known him. I wonder if he remembers? Anyway, Paul and I both write for QUILTsocial, and one year, we even made the same quilt (along with Claire, who designed the quilt) in three separate colorways. Drat—we should have each brought our quilts and had our pictures taken with them, as Claire is also here. 

Well, Paul just knows a lot of people, and as mentioned, he's everywhere! He stops at our Virtual Retreats and is a nice guy overall! 

I'll try to figure out how long I've known him or where I first met him. 

OK—so this is the booth across from us, and I was intrigued, so I went to look. At first, I thought they accepted old clothing to be recycled. Well, in a way, that's what it's all about, except they take the clothing, cut it up into squares, and then resell it! 

Recycled denim cut into squares

I've checked out their website, and they are an actual recycler of many products. They accept donations, or you can drop your stuff off, and they find a new life for it. Interesting -- this is the first time I've seen clothing cut up for resale like this. I didn't check the prices of the fabric squares, but the prices on the website are reasonable. I'm guessing that the squares they have here at the show are advertising in a way and also a way to show people that they can reuse clothing in this way. 

I've met lots of people that I know, and quilt shows are always like old-home week—getting reacquainted with people you haven't seen in a long time. I love these shows even though they are a lot of work—all the setup and then putting on the happy face for hours at a time. 

However, I am happy with the hours of this show. Today, it opens at 11, as there is a presentation of the winners this morning. The judges have been hard at work for TWO days judging all the quilts. The show closes at 5 PM on all days except Sunday, when it closes at 3 PM. It opens at 10 on the other days. That's a doable time frame. I never liked the shows that stayed open late at night. 

Be sure to check out QUILTsocial today- there are more great things you can do with the Husqvarna Viking DESIGNER EPIC 3. 

Well, it's time to organize myself for breakfast, and then I'll be off to the awards ceremony. 

Have a super day!!!

Ciao!!!!