Who created the first fabric pre-cuts?

Some of you have been busy bees - even with knee and other surgeries!! It's great to get things done, and Torry seems to be accomplishing a lot in small leaps and bounds! All progress is progress!!!! We must celebrate the small steps as well as the big ones!!  

I'm having so much fun going through these magazines that I want to make sure I document all the cool stuff I spotted. Once I get past the next couple of issues (pre-2000), I'm sure I won't need to document so much because it's all "recent" at that point. 

As you can imagine, there were ads, and I bet that most of the products available were in those ads. So I thought I'd share some ads with you. 

Back in the day, Fairfield was a big batting supplier, and I remember my friend at the time who helped me when I first started was a staunch user of Cotton Classic. I think she made everything using that batting. Later, when I saw other battings, I wasn't such a fan - I found it quite limp compared to the stuff with polyester in it. Fairfield is still going strong, and you can check out their website. 

An ad for Fairfield batting (1987)

Hobbs batting was around at the time, too. But from the ad, I only see poly-down, not their poly/cotton blend. 

An ad for Hobbs batting (1987)

OMG—I just read the blurb, and you are not going to believe this. If you wanted a sample, you could send a SASE to them in Texas. The batting was made with Celanese Fortrel Loft-guard. Who knew!!!! To me, Fortrel was what other people call crimpoline!!!!

In January/February of 94, I spotted an ad (another first!) by Hobbs announcing their 100% wool batting. And look who is in the ad - Harriet Hargrave!! I believe she was the one who pushed the quilt world, kicking and screaming, I'm sure, to machine quilting. She was a master at machine quilting. 

Harriet Hargrave - a master machine quilter

I mentioned the other day that Quiltmaker was part of the Quilter's Newsletter family, and I have more to tell you about that story another day. But they advertised their magazine in Quiltmaker. Of course they did—they reached different audiences. Quiltmaker focused on patterns, while Quilter's Newsletter had articles of interest as well as patterns. It will take forever to go through those. 

An ad for Quilter's Newsletter magazine

Back in the 90s, quilters were using projectors to enlarge patterns and pictures. Many quilters designed small patterns and enlarged them. This was very common in art quilts, but in the photo, it looks like the lady is enlarging a pieced block!!!

The use of projectors (1987)

Keepsake Quilting was around and advertising swatches!!! Yep --- you could get up to five hundred 2" swatches plus their catalog, and who doesn't love scrap quilts!!! You could get 350 calico and small print swatches for $4.00. Who doesn't remember getting the Keepsake Catalog in the later years and browsing it like you were a kid and had just received the Eaton's Wish Book? My catalog was earmarked with so many things I wanted. BOTH the Eaton's Wish Book and the Keepsake Quilting Catalog!

An ad from Keepsake Quilting (1987)

Or you could buy a wide assortment of fabrics in larger squares. This picture is from a 1987 issue! There were no "pre-cuts" back then. WAIT—these are the precursors to pre-cuts as we know them. This was a pack of 5" squares that were die-cut. That sounds like a pre-cut to me!!! A quilt store was selling these. More on that another day. You got 286 5" squares (two each of 143 fabrics) all for the grand price of $28.00 US (ppd). I think that last means that the postage was included? 

A pack of 286 5" squares for sale - $28.00 USD

And then they had these "cute" ways of displaying fabric swatches. Imagine the person who was tasked with making ice cream cones from fabric swatches, but it does show off the gradations nicely! Yep—quilters and marketing people were clever even back in 1987. NO AI to generate that photo!

Ice cream cones to display fabric gradations

You could buy tote bags because you can never have enough tote bags or other craft kits. 

Tote bags and craft kits available for sale

And let's not forget about the books! I know that the earlier quilt pattern books did NOT have pretty pictures and the instructions may be a bit sketchy, but the ideas? Way more creative and flexible than patterns today. Give me an old quilt book any day over a modern one!! I happen to have most of the books in that top row!! I had to scrounge to find that scrap book on the far left, but I'll tell you the story of that another day. 

Highly coveted quilt books (at least by me!)

Who didn't get signed up for these craft book clubs? OK - Maybe Elle didn't! But I'm sure at one point, all of us belonged to one of those clubs. And what has happened to most of those books? They are gone! While I said that I liked the older books, most of the stuff in the craft series was different. More crafty than quilting. 

Did anyone sign up for the craft book clubs?

Don't forget the magazines were peppered with ads for hand quilting frames. I bet most of them were designed by some quilter's husband, and he built them. There were many brands. 

Hand quilting frames

How about a hanger for your quilt? I used to have one of these (of course I did!) - you didn't need to put a sleeve on the quilt. I got rid of it a number of years ago, and I believe it went to someone's cottage. 

Quilt hanger made from wood

And let's not forget the binders you could get with the magazine name on the front. It was for storing magazines. I never stored magazines in these binders. 

Binders to store your countless magazines

And the quilt calendars. These used to have beautiful quilt pictures in them, and Quilter's Newsletter published them. 

Quilt calendars

OK—here's how far we have come in the world of sewing machines. This ad is from 1994, when Janome didn't exist - it was called New Home at the time. I wonder if that's why some people say Janome (rhymes with HOME)? I call it Janome with a long e at the end. WAIT -- that is supposedly a computerized EMBROIDERY machine. Seriously? How big was the hoop? 

Look how large that throat space is? 

I love that they encouraged flexibility in the pattern sizes. You can vary the patterns by adding or subtracting rows or varying the borders, and they offered multiple color combinations so people didn't make the exact picture in the quilt. We were encouraged to think outside the box!! Not so much today, as there is one size and no mention of getting creative with the pattern. 

Instructions to get creative with the pattern size and color!

Although many patterns back then were quite repetitive, it was easy to change the width of the sashing and borders and play with the blocks in each row to make it bigger or smaller. But still—they encouraged people to make the quilts their own!

An example of a quilt pattern from 1987

They used a spool symbol to show how easy or hard the pattern was. I'll go into this a bit more, hopefully tomorrow. This symbol system is still used today. Different time, different symbols, but a good way to indicate the complexity of the pattern. 

A symbol system to show the degree of difficulty

Wow --- this is fascinating stuff. I know—it's only me who is fascinated, but I think learning that nothing is new today is a great lesson. For instance, the pre-cuts. One fabric company spearheaded the pre-cut movement (their clever marketing department), and now we have pre-cuts in all sizes, shapes, and fabric counts. Many companies have followed suit, but because those pre-cut names were copyrighted, other companies had to scramble to find something equally catchy! 

On that note, I've already been to the gym and worked out on my own. My upper arms are going to be jelly later today! I also came up with a clever assignment for my machine embroidery group while I was pumping iron, and I need to send it to them today. I swear if people STOPPED scrolling, they would have time to think up creative stuff and would actually get stuff done. I am shocked at how many women (it's mostly women) were on their phones today as they walked to the gym, to the locker room, around the workout floor, and then back in the locker room. It's insane!!!!

Have a super day!!!!

Ciao!!!!

Let's find a hobby - hurrah for craft kits!!

It's amazing what you can learn by asking perfect strangers! And even complimenting a perfect stranger is amazing. I've run into two instances where I saw someone wearing a garment that looked custom-made for them. The fit and the color were perfect. And I told them both - one in line at the grocery store, and the other in a restaurant. I think both were a bit taken aback that I would approach them until they realized what I was saying! 

Funny how we are reluctant to interact with a stranger even when they have good news! 

Well, I survived the time change. However, I had the most bizarre dream. I was dreaming in my dream - does that ever happen? DH woke me up to tell me to turn the electricity back on and set the clocks or something to that effect! 

Thankfully, we only have two devices that need to be set manually - the stove and the microwave. Easy peasy - it's already done. The rest change automatically, so if it weren't for those two appliances, the time change would be a non-issue in our house. I don't think "old time" or "new time" - I just think current time! 

I grew up in Saskatchewan, and I had a discussion (I believe I mentioned this on the blog) with someone and was shocked to realize that Saskatchewan stopped changing the time in 1966!!!! Who knew? 

I have more stuff from the magazines, but I have other stuff to share as well. It was the Family and Friends version of the virtual puzzling. It was NOT a competition and was not timed - thank goodness for that- but the first team to finish did so in 33 minutes!!! But there were about 5 of them, so that makes sense. 

The puzzle was cute and YES - it was a Halloween puzzle. But when I opened the box, I knew I was in trouble - the pieces were huge, and I didn't have enough space on my table. 

There's the box wrapped in the shipping label, and before we started, we were able to open the box and remove the plastic wrap. 

The wrapped puzzle

I think this was about the 33-minute mark when the first team was done! I was still working on the border. 

After 33 minutes

At 90 minutes, they called the event done! I think many people were finished, but then again, they were working in groups, and I was working alone. It would have been nice to work with a friend or family member, but hey—at least I was there. And the host said it was fun to work on a surprise puzzle. I agree, but you don't need to buy them this way - get a friend to give you a puzzle wrapped up, and then you have to work on that! 

After 90-minutes

After the Zoom closed, I removed all the pieces from the inside of the frame. It was driving me nuts. 

AH -- some room to work - this is better.

Later in the afternoon, I went back and finished the puzzle, and it took me 2:18 minutes. I timed myself, just for fun! That was 20 minutes faster than the cat puzzle. Both were 500 pieces. It was a Cobblehill with all the crazy shapes, which helps, and yet it doesn't!

The puzzle is done! 

I would have been much faster if I had clued into the picture. Most people started by working on the individual rooms, which I sort of did, but not with the vengeance that other teams did. Imagine if you have five people working on the puzzle and they each take two or three rooms—of course, they are going to be done way before me!!!

I also bought a third puzzle for a virtual event this coming weekend, but I won't be able to attend because of work. I'm glad I participated in the events, and I'm glad I finished the puzzles. It was interesting to learn the times, and I might do some timed "events" myself - perhaps redo these puzzles to see how I do. But speed puzzling? I don't think it's my thing. I love being able to spread out the pieces, take time to do the border, and enjoy the process. 

But I tried, and that's what counts!!

I had to pop out to Michaels for some paint, and while I was there, I browsed the shelves. They have tons and tons of kits, which is great if anyone is looking for a hobby. Everything you need is in the kit. They have their brand - Loops and Threads and seem to be ramping that up. Probably since Joann's is no longer around, they are filling the gap. 

Felting kits

They had all kinds of kits - felting, embroidery, punchneedle, etc. 

Other types of kits at Michaels

They also had some crochet kits. 

Crochet kits

Knitting was a huge deal several years ago, and I think it still is. But crochet seems to have stepped up its game. 

When I later went to Chapters (didn't buy anything), I spotted more crochet kits. 

Crochet kits at Chapters

I spotted this at Michaels - a banner bar. How cute for dressing up a room. So even if you can't "make" things, you can buy the components and make something. 

The Banner Bar at Michaels

And here are some of the components. 

Some components of the Banner Bar

Back to Chapters where diamond art is big, as are those 3D models. Diamond art is huge these days, and Michaels had a ton of it as well. 

Diamond art and 3D model kits

Chapters also had an "adult activity " table with adult puzzle books. And I spotted this sign in Chapters somewhere. 

Why we love hobbies

And this is why we have hobbies!!!! I love it, and it's a shame that some people never experience that. We NEED to encourage young people to get involved. STOP scrolling. 

Someone mentioned in a comment that I must have 30 hours in my day. Nope—I have several things that save me time. No TV- I haven't watched in over 16 years now, although I will watch some movies and mostly learning tools on YouTube. I was watching videos of this young couple rebuilding their house, but in the last video I saw, I think they were still putting the roof on. They have now been living in the house for ten months. Oh -- I guess I'm behind! 

This is a motto that I found in my tea yesterday that I love, and it helps me to be more aware of how I spend my time. 

A great motto to live by

Other areas where I gain time—STOP SCROLLING. I do scroll, but I do it consciously. I don't let the hours pass by. I get that it's fun to watch all the stuff and you can get sucked down a rabbit hole, but do I really want to live my life watching strangers make money because I'm watching them? 

While these people make videos for fun, they also earn a decent living from the number of people who follow them, like them, and watch their videos. I spotted a video the other day of a man posting about his wife who had some health issues. He was "pleading" for people to sign up so he could get 350K followers, so his wife could make some money and buy some things she deserved. 

At what point will that bubble burst? It will! And then what will all these content creators do? How will they earn a living if no one watches? 

While I enjoy scrolling, I keep it tightly controlled and am happy not to be watching the most up-to-date video. I don't care. 

I also NEVER go into Pinterest, which is a rabbit hole! I won't touch it with a ten-foot pole. My version of Pinterest comes from my head when walking the girls. I look at things, and I use my imagination to dream up ideas. And a single picture can be the starting point for me. I may do some searching (consciously) to expand on the idea, but I don't scroll just to be inspired. 

I wanted to share a couple of other pictures - I guess the magazine treasures will have to wait until tomorrow. 

This was the floor number on one of my hotels. This is made of a felt-type fabric. It reminded me of a young girl (not sure where she lives) who cuts up old yarn and other fibers, adds glue, presses it flat to dry, then cuts it up. 

The floor number

So the "2" shape gets cut from the blue as well as the grey. Then the blue "2" is popped out, and the grey "2" is inserted. 

There is no seam

There was the tiniest gap in this one, so I knew it was the same technique as I had spotted on Instagram. 

The insert isn't quite in position.

I don't want to give you someone else to follow, but here's a short clip of her work, and it's fascinating. I love that a young person is interested in saving the world by making things with recycled textiles. I think she mostly uses yarn, but I've seen others use shredded pieces of textile waste to make the same thing. Can you imagine the insulation factor in that material? 

Speaking of glue, I had to glue some appliqué last night, and I realized that this container of glue I bought MANY years ago is finally empty. So I set it upside down on another container to get the last dregs (come on—you would have done the same). The empty container is now in the garbage, and I have a full container to work with in the future. 

Draining out the last bit of glue!

How about these signs on the bathrooms at Tim's? 

OK—so I recycled one more magazine, but while I was initially searching through the piles, I also pulled this stack out. Some magazines regarding machine embroidery. Seriously??? Why wouldn't I be reading those now instead of waiting until I no longer do machine embroidery? So that stack is also sitting on the puzzle table - hence the small space available to do that large-sized 500-piece puzzle. 

Magazines about machine embroidery

And did you know that PFAFF used to have a magazine? I love the title—especially since the whole thing behind all the connectivity with SVP (Singer, PFAFF, and Husqvarna Viking) these days is CREATIVATE!!! I couldn't find a date on it. 

A PFAFF Creative magazine

And in the magazine, I spotted a flyer for a PFAFF store just a few minutes from my house! Actually, I remember visiting the store - it was inside Bouclair when Bouclair sold fabric. I was not a PFAFF person at the time, so I probably only went there to buy fabric. 

That is all long gone!!!!

Here are my two beauties "begging" to go to the grocery store with me. They stayed home. 

MOM - can we come to the grocery store with you?

After Miss Lexi fluffed up her quilt, she lay in the sun. And now you wonder why that dog sheds like mad!!! I brush her daily, but it does no good. 

Fast asleep in her little world 

We haven't put out Halloween candy in a long time, as our street is mostly adults only now. But we have a couple of new families with kids, so I thought I'd get some mini chocolate bars, and since we were going out for dinner, I left them in a bowl on a small table. That was at 5:30 PM. 

Trick or Treat

When we got home at 7:30 PM, five chocolate bars were left. At 8 o'clock, someone kept ringing my bell because the bowl was empty. I grabbed the bowl and my tea towel and shut off the lights. There were hardly any lights on our street, so I don't know why there were so many kids on it. YES—I know most kids probably took way more than one! That's OK. 

But the houses with kids that I expected to have lights on did not. So next year? I won't hand out candy! 

October was a bit of a crazy month - the weekends just filled up so fast. And there was no time for a Virtual Retreat. BUT there will be one in November - the dates are November 28 and 29. 

And there is no time left to delve into the magazine treasures, so that will have to wait for tomorrow. 

Have a super day!!!!

Ciao!!!!

The virtual speed puzzling event!

I will confess that I didn't get nearly as much done yesterday as I would have liked. I was tired, but I managed to unpack all but one suitcase and am sorting for the next event, which is in a week. But it's only two days and close to home! 

Then I got all my expenses sorted out, which was good, since I typically leave it hanging around for a week or so. I chatted with my boss, which is always good for updates, but it may involve another short trip. 

I finished another book, and I managed to go through THREE magazines, which are now sitting in the recycling bin. And I have stories to share about it all! Of course I do! 

First, let me share one more item that has been on the Pony Express for a while. I had purchased a book from a used bookstore many months ago, and a friend of mine picked it up, but our paths never connected, and if they did, the book was not with her. 

We met up on the night I drove up north, had dinner together, and I got my book. 

My book finally arrived by Pony Express.

By the way -- Happy Halloween. I have my Halloween socks on today in honor of the day! 

Halloween socks!!!!

I told you about participating in the Virtual Speed Puzzling event that happened on the day I had to leave. I really, really wanted to stay, but it would have made me much later and more driving in the dark, so I pushed the time as far as I could. I participated for one hour, and then I left. 

This was the status of the 500-piece puzzle after one hour. 

The puzzle status after one hour

When I got home from the trip, I had time on my hands, so I decided to time myself to see how long it would take to finish the puzzle. 

This was how much I got done in the next hour. It's certainly different working to the clock. I was struggling with those green bits where the hummingbirds are, and then I said to myself, "Don't panic - just look for a connection," and I did, and then the pieces flew together. OK—they didn't fly, but I started to see the color patterns more easily. 

The puzzle status after two hours

I had to chuckle, because I had heard someone, somewhere mention the topic of FUR in puzzles. Some people start with the fur, and some people leave it to the last. I guess I'm one of those who leave it to the last!!! I got an even bigger laugh when I was comparing notes with my SIL, who happens to be working on a puzzle with multiple cats in it. All the pieces around the cats were done, but there was a bit of an opening where the cats were! 

It took me 36 minutes to assemble that darn cat. That's just slightly under the time of the person who completed the puzzle in just over 41 minutes!!!!

The puzzle is complete!

So my unofficial time was 2:36:33!!! I am tempted to take it apart and redo it, but I think I'll wait a bit. I might do that several times, and then I can give this one away. At this point in my life, I think I'll be happy to put jigsaw puzzles together, but I'm not interested in speed puzzling. I have another virtual event today, and I suspect it'll have a Halloween puzzle. So we'll see how that goes since I don't have to go anywhere. It's also a 500-piece puzzle, still sealed in its plastic cover. It's a family and friends event, so very casual, and with helpers for the others, I'm sure it'll go fast. 

This is the book I finished yesterday. It's a short read—five short stories, but they interconnect. At first, I didn't really know what to make of it, but it has some VERY important lessons. The book is called "What You Are Looking For Is in the Library" by Michiko Aoyanna. 

A fast but excellent read

It's about life and finding your passion. It's also about finding solutions to problems in life that feel overwhelming. I'm not sure how to explain it, but it's a good read. If something in your life isn't the way you want, there are ways to fix it!!! Every retired man without a hobby should read the final story. It's quite an eye-opener- maybe not for us with hobbies, but for them, whose lives were attached to a job where they were someone. Now they are retired and are a nobody! 

It truly is a fascinating read. But two sentences from the last story stuck with me. 

"Things happen as a result of our points of connection, in the past, and in the future." 

I could go on and on about this sentence, but if you are a person who doesn't connect with someone, even the person in line at Tim's, or the teller at the bank, or the cashier at the store, you are missing out on some potentially important connections. If we shop online, we lose a huge part of society!!! -- the connections of society!!!

Here's the second sentence: "Whenever people interact, that is being part of society. And the things that happen as a result of these points of contact exist in the past and the future."

We are all connected, and if we don't interact with others, we have nothing!!! So make sure you have your connections, and don't be afraid to take time to stay connected!!!

Better yet, read the book! 

I took some pictures when I was out walking the girls yesterday. The way the sun hit the trees at the end of the street was stunning. It's like an explosion of color. 

The fall leaves are still hanging on!!!

And this one tree was amazingly spectacular. It almost looked like the tree was on fire!!!

A blaze of color

I was on the sofa reading my book, and the girls were hanging out next to me on the floor. This is about as close as they get to sleeping together. 

MOM -- we love you!!!!

But Lexi also likes to sleep in her raised bed, and I love when she puts her head on the side. 

MOM - I'm so exhausted! 

Murphy just loves playing in the leaves in the backyard, and there is huge evidence of that in the house. I swept the floor in the morning, and by lunchtime, it was covered with leaves. Am I freaking out? Nope --- I don't care - it's a few leaves. I'll sweep again today, but what's the point of sweeping every time she comes in? I'll get myself in a tizzy for no reason! 

Murphy enjoying the fall leaves

DH is away for a couple of days, and Miss Lexi is missing her Dad bad. She hung around me at the kitchen table, looking for attention. He never gives her attention, so I don't know why she expected to get any from me!!!!

MOM -- where's my Dad????

We had also spotted some beautiful flowers on the walk. 

Flowers still beautiful

What's amazing is that they are still very perfect. I guess we call these the late bloomers! 

The rose is perfect!!!

So are these flowers

As I was unpacking, I remembered that I purchased this fabric, which will give me another option for My Kinda Town. Who knew there were so many fabrics in this style? I now have enough to finish the remaining five blocks. 

Fabric for My Kinda Town backgrounds

I won't be giving you a blow-by-blow of all the magazines I go through, but some of this older stuff is fun, especially if you lived through that era, and if you didn't, you can see where things came from. 

My next issue jumps to Fall/Winter of 1987, and now the cost is $4.75 per issue. This was the 12th issue of Quiltmaker. 

Fall/Winter 1987

The magazine started out as being published twice a year, but by 1990 it had gone to four times a year. Then at some point, it went to 6 issues a year, and now it's back to 4 issues a year. This issue is the 12th issue of the magazine, and I checked - the most recent issue of Quiltmaker is number 226. OK -- so I'm a nut about numbers. I can't help it! 

I love the instructions page, which still has the good instructions for pressing, and includes instructions for hand and machine piecing and appliqué. The first issue (1983) did as well. But still nothing about machine quilting.  

Notice, though, in the machine piecing that they are still talking about templates!!!! 

Hand appliqué had a seam allowance. 

While machine appliqué was all about raw edge! 

I find it fascinating to go back in time to read how things evolved. Yes—wouldn't it be fascinating to make a book from all these nuggets of information in the magazines? But you know what? I'll leave that to someone else! Notice: I did not propose taking that on!!! What do I care once I stop quilting - there are probably dozens of copies of these magazines around, and I'll leave it to someone else to discover and write! 

I'm writing about it here, and that's good enough for me. 

I discovered a ton of other very interesting information, but I don't have time for it today. 

I take a lot of pictures and keep the magazines by the computer so I can refer back to them as I write the blog. Then they will go in the recycling bin. I'm not even sad! But I do feel like this information needs to be documented, and since I am doing that here, I can be happy. 

As I go through the magazines, I see the myths, rationale, and reasons why certain things are done the way they are today. And that makes my little heart happy. I love to know why, and these magazines, which were the predominant teaching tools back in the day, are the reason why! 

What bugs me to no end is when you ask someone, "Why do you do it that way?" and they respond, "Because we've always done it that way!" 

I found that over and over again in my dealings with any guild, and frankly, it would drive me mad. Actually, that is one of the reasons I won't be part of a guild in the future - ever. People didn't like what was happening, yet certain people could not break out of the mold. If you can't handle the heat, get out of the kitchen! And I did, and I have ZERO regrets!!!

I'm happy to report that my aunt is now completely out of her house!! She will have to bunk with family until her new place is complete, which has been pushed back. But that's OK—she has a roof over her head, a nice place to stay, and company! 

But here's one thing I have learned from personal experience, and this involved moving family members. If you store things on your property for your children, they are the ones who take the longest to remove them. And I would bet part of that is because they don't know what to do with their things, and they don't have time or whatever. 

So here's my advice - if you are storing things for your kids or you have things that you think your kids want, deal with it NOW. Don't deal with it during a stressful time like the actual move, because they will NEVER work at the speed you want them to. Except for a few boxes, and I mean very few (less than five shipping boxes), M has dealt with everything in our house. I'm OK to store them temporarily, and trust me, the day we decide to downsize, I don't care where she lives, but those will be in UPS boxes on their way to her house. 

Well, on that note, I need to start tackling the mess that is Studio B. I still have three days of events to prep for (mostly packing) and a Facebook Live, which I have to rearrange Studio B to film and to make the samples. So it won't be until early December that I can really dive in and fix things up. But I can at least put away the things I no longer need, and I must keep working on the Visual To-Do list and the samples for the classes. 

Have a great day!!!!

Ciao!!!!