Sorting stabilizers

It's time to put my money where my mouth is. I've been harping about decluttering and organizing, but I found a mess yesterday that needs to be dealt with. 

I had collected all my stabilizers in one place, sorted them by type, and purchased large tubs to store them. 

Let's be clear that they need to be separated from batting (fleece), fusible webs, and interfacing. The "underground" world of sewing is mysterious. All four categories are needed to make our projects look amazing, but you never see them. 

I recently wrote some articles for QUILTsocial on a high-level description of the categories and then spent a week chatting about fusible webs. 

Yesterday, sorting was easy if the stabilizer was in a package or labeled. But what about the rest? Over the years, I've collected many odds and ends. When I initially sorted them, many were shoved into a separate container, and many unlabeled pieces were in the tubs. Sorted? Maybe, but it wasn't efficient, nor was the sorting complete. 

So I pulled everything out of the tubs. 

Sorting stabilizers

Then, I put everything back in the tubs according to the stabilizer category to which it belongs. Stabilizers are categorized by how they are removed: tear away, cut away, wash away, or heat away. Even the container with the blue lid contains stabilizers, as I do not have many heat-away products.  

My tubs of stabilizers

One of the tubs is currently empty because I have more stabilizers under my filming table. Once I finish them at the end of the month, I'll need to incorporate them into the tubs. They will go into the empty tub, and I'll likely have to use one of these tubs. Never mind that I have rolls of stabilizer in a tote bag that I'm taking to the retreat this weekend. Let's say it'll be a while before I run out of stabilizer. 

More stabilizer

One issue is that the rolls come in various widths, from 8" to 24", making them difficult to store. 

Then, there was an overflow basket, which was also a mess. It is partially empty in this picture. But the mess was so nasty that I wasn't using those stabilizers and would default to what was easily identifiable on a roll. That was just silly and wasteful! 

Unidentified stabilizers

These were all the odd bits that were not labeled. I have started to go through them. Some of them are easy to identify, while others are not. 

The rogue pieces of stabilizer

I'm putting the ones I should be using back into the basket, and I've sorted them by type and separated them with bags so it'll be easy to grab what I want. 

Some of the stabilizers were sorted into bags

Some are challenging to identify by eye, so I have my trusty little water container to test if they dissolve in water. There are two pieces in the water. Are they dissolving? 

Testing for water-soluble stabilizer

When I checked a few minutes later (my water was cold; otherwise, it would happen instantly), only one did not dissolve. 

This is NOT water-soluable

What is scary is that there was a label inside the folds of that one that is still intact. This was the label. 

OH -- it was mislabeled

From the feel, I suspected it was not water-soluble. I must have spotted a loose label somewhere along the line and stuck it in the folds. Sigh.

But no more—I am going to clean up this mess. I'll now have an easier time selecting a stabilizer for future machine embroidery projects, and at some point, that basket of odds and ends will be used up! And unless I need something particular, I will force myself to use only what is in the green basket! 

I still have this container to sort through, but at least it's all in one spot. 

A container of odd stabilizer pieces

This is an excellent example of what I mean by cleaning the clutter. You may have a lot of anything, and that's OK. But if there is "junk" amongst those items, you need to deal with it. That basket contains a lot of stabilizers, and I should use those up before I go into those tubs.

Remember those zippered bags for linens that I tried to get rid of several weeks ago? I found a perfect use for them. As I prepare for the machine embroidery workshop (hands-on) this weekend, I'm using the bags to sort the projects. 

The zippered bags are perfect for storage

So, I'm going to keep them. What I like about them is that they are 3-D, unlike the regular zipper plastic bags. Since they are cubes, you can put a good amount of stuff in them, and it doesn't bulge up in the center. Since the contents can be moved around, they can be stacked easily into a tote bag, which is perfect for traveling to retreats. Yep—thanks for not wanting those bags! I will always use them for retreats going forward. 

I measured these large pieces of fabric from Diane's stash, and they are now in the storage room with the other backings. I had sorted through a couple more bags of fabrics, and these large pieces have been sitting on the cutting table this past week. 

Fabric for quilt backings

I've still been puttering and trying to get things cleaned up in Studio B, but it's a challenge with time and mood. But slow and steady - that's all I can say. Do what you can when the moment hits. 

I have a few errands to run before I leave for the retreat tomorrow morning, and I want to make a few samples so I can take them with me. I also want to make a couple of samples for my final Zoom session of the week. It's been nice to have fewer sessions this week. For some reason, I've been tired and needed a daily nap. I don't mind, but why was I exhausted? I feel better today. 

Oh dear—Joseph was not at spin class, so we had a substitute. I think people saw that when they went to reserve a bike because the numbers in the class were way down. I didn't like the guy as much as Joseph, but then I don't like change! 

Finding decent paths to walk on in our neighborhood (and I'm sure this is the same everywhere) is a challenge. This is the sidewalk across from the elementary school. I guess they cleaned out the schoolyard and dumped it here. Thankfully, there's another sidewalk, but this is also one of the entrances to the forest. We can clamber over the snow, although I didn't. What will happen when it all starts to thaw? It's going to be huge blocks of ice! 

A plowed path to nowhere

This is one of the sidewalks that were plowed. I swear their plow wasn't strong enough, or the blade wasn't high enough to do a good job. I hate to say it, but it would have been better if they had not plowed it. It's a challenge to walk on this sidewalk because the snow is very soft, and it's worse than walking on sand because there are three separate and narrow tracks. 

A plowed sidewalk

Thankfully, the owners shoveled all the sidewalks in front of their houses—well, most of them. So walking there is OK, and the multipurpose path is clear. The girls and I have a new route, but it works. Murphy is quite thankful that we're not doubling back, as she doesn't like that. 

So my challenge for you today is to tackle those stabilizers, fusible web, interfacings, and batting (fusible fleece) and get sorting. Separate them into those four categories, then sort them further within each category. I was shocked at how much interfacing (Decor Bond) I found in the stabilizers. Good grief -- at the time, I probably didn't know the difference or didn't have a home for it. But you will use it if it has a home. If it's a jumbled mess, you will not! 

How do I know? Because I'm living proof of that. The amount of stabilizer I realized I had but wasn't using is - well, there's a lot. Now, I have it mainly organized, except for that last container. This is going to make it easy to find exactly what I need. Think of all the time I'm going to save! 

I watched the live stream of the Quilt Con awards ceremony last night. If you want to see the winners, check this link. There were some fantastic quilts and a few repeat winners. Emilie Tahran from Quebec won four awards. Great job, Emilie! Several other members went home with many prizes—Heidi Parkes from Wisconsin won five awards! Check out the Best of Show. It depicts that beautiful sculpture from South Dakota, and I think it sends a quiet message to the world. 

On that note, I'm out of here. I have samples to make, groceries to buy, and photocopies to print! 

Have a super day!!

Ciao!!!

Squashing the quilting myths

Sometimes, I get asked how I do so much in a day. There are a couple of reasons:

1. I don't watch TV and try to keep my screen time (Facebook and Instagram) to an absolute minimum. 30 minutes daily is a good goal because it's a massive time waster. I don't do Pinterest, which I've heard is a black hole. I'm also highly selective about what I stream and attempt to avoid clickbait at all costs. That is clutter for the mind—I no longer cope with clutter. 
2. I can start work the minute I get up. I don't need coffee, and I don't need to wander around the house trying to figure out my day—I already know what I will do. I've already walked close to 1,200 steps since I got up about 90 minutes ago, and that was just in Studio B. 
3. I am super organized (well, almost) and am very anal about putting things back where they belong, so I'm not wasting time trying to find something. 

I'm sure there are other reasons, but those are the main ones. 

I only included that because I felt very productive this morning. After taking the big quilt off the long arm yesterday and trying to get my daily quota of applique in, I didn't have a chance to prep the next quilt. But this morning, I pieced the backing and the batting and loaded the quilt. 

Let's have a look at some pictures from yesterday. 

I have yet to dig into that fresh bolt of fabric that I brought out for the backings for this group of ten quilts. I decided that I needed to use up the pieces of fabric that had been set aside for backing first. It means more fiddling to get the right size, but I might as well do it now rather than later, as it helps to clean up that area. 

The bolt of fabric is untouched!

The pile of batting bits I pulled for these ten quilts is also dwindling. I still have three quilt bats to make from this pile, and I'm sure I'll have leftovers, which is OK. It'll go back into the closet for the next round of quilts. Remember, the batting bits are for my community project quilts; customers get batting off a roll! 

The pile of batting bits

Let's talk about that backing. I had this big piece of fabric that was for a quilt, but it never got used. Since it was a donation, it's been in the community project pile for a while. I already got the backing for one of the quilts from that piece and was able to get one more. 

The backing I made this morning

And I pieced it on the serger!!! Yes, the serger is ready to go, and it takes a lot less time to turn on than my sewing machine. Plus, it's way faster to piece and better at something else. 

I think we recently had this discussion in the Monday sewing group, but when you piece your quilt backing, do you piece it lengthwise or crosswise? Does it matter? Technically, it doesn't matter, but I remember years ago, there was a discussion (a BIG discussion) amongst the guild members as I prepped a backing for a raffle quilt. That seam could ONLY go lengthwise of the quilt. It was a NO-NO to piece the backing crosswise! Why? An old wives' tale, to be sure. What does it matter? 

Then there was the myth that that seam HAD to be pressed open. Why? OH -- if you were hand-quilting the quilt, this prevented you from going through one more layer at the center seam. OK -- I get that, but with a long arm? It doesn't matter. I press the seam to one side. And with the serger, that's a given. 

But then there are long-arm quilters who will only take quilts with "properly" pieced backings. I know one long arm who refused to quilt someone's quilt because the print on the back didn't match where she had joined the two pieces? Seriously? Life is too short for that!!!! And what business is it of the long-arm quilter? It doesn't affect her job!!!

Usually, when a quilt is loaded on the long arm, the seam in the back is parallel to the bars so the seam doesn't roll onto itself and create a big lump. I get that and always follow that rule as best I can. 

However, what does one do when there are seams in all directions, like on my backing this morning? There is one seam going the width of the backing, and the two pieces also have a seam in them, so we have seams lengthwise and crosswise. Oh dear!!!!!!

Seams in all directions on this quilt backing

Well, here's why the long-arm quilters want seams only in one direction. If the seam has ANY fullness in it—and there's a HUGE possibility that it will—I'll tell you why in a second—then it will create droopy backing on either side of the seam. 

Most backings are sewn together with two pieces of fabric and ZERO pinning. This results in the top fabric piece being stretched because of the presser foot pushing (stretching) the top layer. So, just like we pin borders, we should pin the backing to prevent this. Yes --- even when the seam is parallel to the bar, it can cause issues. But if you're a good long-arm quilter, you can work around this. And I have to say that I've learned and am good at it!

The larger the quilt back, the worse the issue. I do NOT have a picture of a droopy backing, but the next time I see one, I'll share it with you. 

Since my backing was pieced on the serger, that fullness issue isn't there - at least if you have the differential set correctly on your serger. 

No droopy backing despite there being a seam perpendicular to the bar

You can see how that seam wraps around the bar and is perfectly flat on both sides. Well, you can't see the wrapping on the bar, but it's all very civilized, and more importantly, that backing is FLAT. 

No droopy backing around the seam

So, if your long-arm quilter balks at how you piece your backs, perhaps you should find a new person to quilt your quilts! 

Anyway, the quilt is ready to be quilted after I walk the girls this morning. This routine is nearly killing me! Well, it isn't, but it's an intense schedule, to be sure. I have four quilts to quilt, and then the pressure of this group is off. 

I will do an overview of pre-wound bobbins later this week, but I still need to get all the pictures before I can share them. 

While babysitting the long arm yesterday, I managed to get the binding on this quilt done. 

Binding on the community project quilt

And the binding is on the last quilt that was quilted as well. 

The sixth quilt is bound 

So I'm all caught up with the bindings, and four quilts are left. I know—I already said that! 

I still have to clean up the fabric scraps and batting from trimming the last few quilts, but I'll do that tonight. It's like a little production line happening down there, and I'm quite happy because every quilt I complete is one more quilt done; there is less fabric for the backing, and the batting bits are being used. That makes me very happy!!!!

Here is the giant quilt. I guess I've quilted much larger ones, but it's big compared to what I've been quilting lately. It's for a dragon nerd!!!

Customer quilt - DONE

I thought it was fitting that I was listening to the final book in the Harry Potter series (I had never read it before) and listening to the dramatic dragon escape!!! I'm going to have to go back and reread the entire series. There is so much information that my brain is getting the gist of what's happening, but there is so much!!!! And I do NOT reread books, but I want to reread this series. 

The quilt was picked up last night, so the owner can start the binding process. That's another thing about long-arm quilters. Some people trim, and some do not. I always trim the quilts so that when the customer picks them up, they are ready to bind. I've got the space, which most people don't. I've trimmed hundreds of quilts, and it takes me very little time to do it. It's just a thing I've always done! 

In case you're wondering what was in some of those bags I brought home from our lunch -- there were three puzzles in one of the bags. Do NOT let me buy another puzzle for a while. I'd better get my butt in gear and start working on them!!!!

More puzzles

It's back to school—heck, according to the stores, it's been back to school before school even let out. I get that it's exciting to get new supplies and new clothes. But I see flyers like these, and it's all about buy, buy, buy. 

Flyers

Do people ever use up the old? What about the "old" shampoo? The conditioner? The fancy soaps? The whatever? That is what is causing so much clutter in your house. I have very little stockpiled as far as supplies go. When something is near to running out, I pop out to the store and buy more. But I don't stockpile the darn stuff. The small savings I might make is not worth the hassle in my head of storing it. 

I'm not going to blame us, the consumer, entirely. The marketers are having a heyday with us. They just want us to buy, and it doesn't matter where you look; there is an advertisement. It's everywhere. It's our job to resist and buy only what we need. I don't care if the economy tanks! I'm not buying junk. And anything I won't use is junk - I don't care how expensive and fancy it is. You need to think VERY CAREULLY about what you give as a gift as well. I would bet that at least 50% of gifts end up regifted or thrown out. 

Something bad happened in Studio B yesterday, and I'm very worried. While I was cutting something at the cutting table, I heard a POP. I turned around and noticed this entire ballast was dead. A bit earlier, I had noticed that it was slightly dimmer in the room. 

Two dead ballasts

What's troubling is that this is the SECOND ballast that has gone. Both of them are side by side. I could manage with one gone, but now two in the center of the room? It might be time to get the electrician here. I have a list of other electrical things that need to be done in the house, so I might as well dig out that list and make a call. 

We used to have big issues with lights in our house. Light fixtures would just die. We were certain it was a spike in the electricity coming into the house. We had them check the box outside our front door (on the boulevard), and it seemed OK. It was just replaced last week. But we also had a big surge protector put on our panel box. 

This dead ballast could be worn out but still brings back many memories of dead lights. 

And what are the girls up to? A rabbit is hiding or making a nest under the deck, and they are NOT happy. Usually, the darn thing is under the gazebo, but it's under the deck this time. Knowing two hunters live here, you would think the darn rabbits would pick a different house. I'm sure they will only leave the thing alone once - well, you know. It's the circle of life -- I wish we had more coyotes in our neighborhood!!!

MOM -- we're hunting!!!!!

So, today is going to be another intense day of quilting and applique. Breaking that applique down how I did (and should have before) has made all the difference. I'm making progress—leaps and bounds of progress—and I should easily hit my September 18th target. Should I say that out loud? Don't I want to keep my UFO group in suspense? Well, it's all about making a decision and sticking with it!!

Remember that we have a virtual retreat this weekend. 

Saturday, August 24 - Starts at 6 PM

 Join Zoom Meeting
https://us02web.zoom.us/j/89816483795?pwd=Mjc3M3pvVmZPdjdsQzlHS3Zhck52dz09

Meeting ID: 898 1648 3795
Passcode: 248667


Sunday, August 25 - Starts at Noon

Join Zoom Meeting
https://us02web.zoom.us/j/82983517671?pwd=ODdsa1FJenQwdFNaQWFTNGd4bEhPZz09

Meeting ID: 829 8351 7671
Passcode: 117636

And on that happy note, I'm out of here to get the walks in and then back to work!!!!

Have a super day!!!!

Ciao!!!!!

The "to be quilted" pile

Yesterday was the complete opposite of the previous day. I accomplished lots, and I went to bed, exhausted but happy, after walking over 20,000 steps.

Quite a bit still needed to be put away, so I got out my audiobook and got to work. I also had to start packing for Quilt Canada in one week, so as I was sorting and putting away, I pulled out the samples I needed for that show. 

Stuff to put away

Of course, my faithful companion was right there with me, lying in the middle of the floor space. It doesn't matter how wide the opening is; she knows to plunk herself right in the middle, so I can't miss her! That table on the left needs to go once I get it and the cutting table clear, so we won't have this issue going forward!

MOM -- can you see me? 

Although this was NOT on my priority list, I tackled the "to be quilted" tubs. Some quilts needed to be put away in the correct tub, others were not necessarily in the correct tub, and a couple of tubs needed to be inventoried. 

A mess in the "to be quilted" area

So, with the help of my inventory list, I tackled the tubs. I went through every tub (21) and checked off the quilts. Almost everything was in the correct spot, so that was good. The ones I removed for the last filming were returned to the proper place. The final two tubs were inventoried. I'm happy to note that at least five quilts were removed from the list because they were quilted, given away, or sold. 

I have removed SIX quilts from the tubs I want to quilt in the next few weeks. I must also type up the new inventory lists and update several other pages so my book is up-to-date. Making that inventory list was one of the best time-savers I've done in Studio B. 

The "to be quilted" area finished

I seem to be very good at producing quilts but not so good at quilting them. My purpose is to make the top, as I don't really need another quilt. I already have a huge inventory of finished quilts. However, I did a quick tally. OH! Should I even tell you how many quilt tops there are? Let's just say that if, on average, it costs $100 per quilt, it would cost over $30,000 to have them all quilted! 

I know -- that number sounds totally incomprehensible, but it's right! I need to get myself together and try to get them quilted. That will be a slow process, but it can happen if I can focus. Let's not forget the 300 (totally random guess) that Diane made for community projects. It would take almost two years to clear the backlog if I did one a day! I need to take advantage of the long arm NOW, as I may not have one when I need to downsize! And then what will I do with them all? There are quite a few in my pile that I could donate, so I may focus on those. I'm not sure how I'll tackle the piles. 

Wait—what about those underneath the customer quilts? That's probably another 40, at least. Sigh.  However, the backing and binding are made for all of mine, so worst case, someone could just pay to have them quilted. 

Speaking of quilting, here is the latest customer quilt. I was working on the inventory while working on this quilt, and it's done!

Customer quilt - DONE

So today, I'll be quilting a community project quilt and I needed to make the backing. Hmm -- this backing took almost as long to make as the quilt top! 

The backing

But the back is loaded, and I'll load the top later today. It's tricky because the backing is not much wider than the top, and I suspect the batting will be the same. So, I'll be watching that one like a hawk. 

My list of quilts to quilt is set up, and I've got a plan! It includes customer quilts, community projects, and some of my own. Slow and steady, although the days when I quilt mean there isn't much time to do anything but putter. Thankfully, I have a lot of puttering to do, so I'll keep at that. That cutting table needs to be cleared!

While searching for some samples to pack, I came across a Trend Tex challenge piece from several years ago. This was when Quilt Canada was in Newfoundland, so that's about 10 years ago. The date on the back of the piece is 2008.

Quilting on the Edge!

It's adorable and called Quilting on the Edge! by Judy Morningstar. I had someone bid by proxy for me, and I had to pay a lot to get that one. So I should be enjoying it!!

I walked to the mall in the afternoon as I had some things to look for. I found part of what I needed but I will have to drive to Staples later today or tomorrow. 

There was a really nice view of the center of Mississauga, but part of that is gone now, as new buildings take over. 

The view from the mall

That's progress, I suppose! Housing for more people. The biggest problem with housing is the distribution of the rooms. If we were to count the number of bedrooms in this city, I bet it outstrips the number of people. The problem is that many people, such as myself, live in a four-bedroom house, and we use only some of those bedrooms. Or we use them for other things. So the rooms are there, although they are not available for those in need. 

The weather is pretty sketchy these days—will it rain or not? I took an umbrella with me, but I didn't need it, and the sky looked ominous—although there seems to be a more blue sky than I remember! 

Storm clouds

I see that Murphy has murdered another animal in the backyard. She has two bears out there, and one of them is probably a lot skinnier than he used to be! I wonder why she does that. Well, it's common for dogs to rip out the stuffing, but Lexi couldn't care less. She won't even touch a toy. That's beneath her! 

Murder by unstuffing

I have one software presentation this morning, so there's not too much to prepare. Then, the rest of the day is mine! But I have that quilt to quilt, bindings to put on, quilts to trim, some applique, and more puttering to clean up. It's a never-ending circle, and that's not even piecing anything. Yep—it's all this before-and-after prep work that takes so much time. 

And if I didn't have to manage my crap, I'd have a lot more time. So it's important that everything is dealt with, and once that's done, I suspect I'll have more time. But I also suspect that I'm my own worst enemy. I think as I see an empty space, I anticipate the next project so that it gets put out on display! 

I haven't really done that, but one or two pieces may have slipped through the cracks! Then, if I don't deal with it, it becomes clutter! So I must put a stop to that. I should only bring out something when I actually have the time to work on it. 

I must also finish off the spice drawer, and I brought out the label maker, so that can happen today as well. How many hours are there in the day? Not enough!!!

I marvel at people who can watch TV or video stream when they sew. I am never in the same place long enough to make that happen. I couldn't even listen to a radio or audiobook if it wasn't through headphones because I'm here and there all day. As a result, I can walk up to 5,000 steps a day or more in the studio alone.  

I have some drawers in Studio B that I could tackle, but before that happens, I have another area I should deal with. I won't go there yet, as it's going to make a big mess, and I can wait until I have a bit more time. 

On that note, I'm out of here! 

Have a super day!!!

Ciao!!!!

Row by Row Revisited

My readers are so intelligent. The flowering shrub is a weigela. I've never heard that name before, but it's pronounced wedge-eelia. I've got a lead on where to get more peonies, and the next thing I need is mulch—lots and lots of mulch. 

My schedule for June looks pretty good—one five-day trip away and then a few classes here and there, but it's pretty quiet. I love quiet! I have some personal stuff to catch up on, and I will try to get that done! And let's not forget the decluttering! 

Does anyone remember when we drove around the countryside collecting license plates for the Row by Row Experience? I went mad that first year (2014) and in subsequent years to collect as many license plates as possible. They are printed on fabric and were quite a hot item. We swapped them like mad! 

I made a quilt from the 2014 plates. Here's a link to that quilt and how it was made. 

The rest of my plates are stored in a box. 

My By-row license plates

Here's a side view so you can appreciate the quantity. Yes, I know—there's nothing like excess! 

ACK!!! 

So why was I looking at that yesterday? When we went to Maui, I had purchased a license plate. They had leftovers from previous years, and I looked through them and picked this one. 

My license plate I bought this year in Hawaii

I spotted this one from the same store when I looked through my collection! I could have ended up with the SAME plate as I'm sure they also had leftovers of this one. I wonder if they are from the same year. 

Already have one from Hawaii

When I was searching for something else in a different location, I spotted this license plate, which I know is a duplicate. 

Crazy Quilter license plate

I hung this one on my design wall so I could enjoy it rather than it being stuffed in a box. 

It was so much fun to go through all those plates, see the stores where I personally went (some are now closed), and look at all the slogans. Great memories! 

There was a real run on this from 2014 to about 2018, and then people got tired of it? We all spent gobs of money as we hit each store, but had loads of fun swapping them. The pandemic took a big hit on this event, and I see they are trying to resurrect it again. You can check out this link, as several stores in Canada are participating again, but I don't think they have the license plate thing happening. It's like a big shop hop as you can get a pattern and buy a kit to hang a wall. 

I managed to fill those two plastic totes with novelty prints and stacked two cardboard boxes on top. It's much less precarious now, so hopefully it won't collapse again. Yes -- I need to be working on using that up, but there are a few more priorities to deal with first. The bottom line is that it's neatly organized and out of the way. 

Four boxes of novelty prints

I had to "wreck" my fun configuration in Studio B this morning. I have a Facebook Live on Thursday about applique, and I have a dry run for the cameras this morning to make sure everything is set up and connected. I think I got it all done to my satisfaction. This time, it took about 15 minutes. Last time? It took days because I didn't have the right bits and pieces, but I eventually connected everything.  

This is my last Zoom or Facebook Live, which required some reconfiguring of the space until the fall. So all is good, and I'll be able to enjoy all that empty space soon.  

OH - I found two more yardage pieces when I moved some of that novelty fabric, so those are labeled and on the shelf with the rest of the quilt backings. I'm sure there's going to be more that I find, but for the moment, all is good. 

Two more yardage pieces for quilt backings

Back to the wonky quilt - I had a look at the pattern. The pattern is called Adjustable Size - Jelly Roll Race Quilt. I totally disagree with that title because it's misleading. It implies you are making a jelly roll race quilt that you can make bigger or smaller. However, to me, the term "jelly roll race" means I'm sewing the strips together and then folding that long strip in half and sewing it together and repeating that 5 times, and voila - the quilt is done. Right? Isn't that what we all perceive as a jelly roll race quilt? 

This pattern has you sew all your strips together (with an addition between the strips). That's no problem. But then it tells you to cut a strip X inches long, cut a second strip (the same length), pin them together, and sew. That is NOT the jelly roll race method. It's a strip quilt made with jelly rolls, but the methodology is completely different. 

So, while the pattern tells you to cut the strips to the same lengths and pin them, it tells you to start at one side, sew the two first strips together, and keep adding the next strip to what you already did. It tells you to start one row from the bottom and the next from the top to prevent the bow, but that doesn't stop the multiple handling the first row gets compared to the last. Never mind the excess bulk for pressing and sewing. 

And finger press as you go. ACK!!!! 

Here's what I would do: 

• Join all the strips into one long strip, including the inserts if you want. The inserts are just spacers to increase the size of the quilt. More on that another day. 
• Once the strips are in one long strip, cut the first length. Then, cut the second length and sew them together. Set them aside. 
• Cut the next two lengths and sew them together. Always start these seams from the top. 
• Continue sewing until all the pairs are together. Carefully press the seams as you go, ensuring they are straight. Draw a line on your ironing board if necessary to keep the seams straight. 
• Then start joining the pairs and start your seam from the bottom. 

Let's say you have 24 rows or columns. After the first pass, you will have 12 pairs, and each strip has been handled the same number of times—ONCE. 

Next, you'll sew the pairs together, giving you six groups of four strips each. Press those seams and repeat the process, remembering to start sewing from the bottom. 

You should now have three groups of 8 strips. Sew the first group to the second and then add the third. All the strips will be handled pretty much equally. You never have to deal with the entire bulk of the quilt until you sew the final seam, and it makes it a lot easier to press with only a small portion of the quilt at any given time. 

I haven't had a chance to watch the video. My friend mentioned that she did not read the PDF but went by the video, and the video is different from the pattern. I'll check it out for tomorrow. 

So here's the moral of this story - just because you can, doesn't mean you should. And just because someone makes a video does not make it right. There are too many poor-quality (filming and techniques) videos on YouTube. Everyone wants to be a star and earn money by creating videos. I went back to check that $8K monthly. I don't know where that came from because I spotted another piece of information about this company: they only earned $1K monthly from their videos with almost 1,000,000 subscribers. So PLEASE be careful --- not every video is worth doing! 

If in doubt, double-check with someone else. There is so much wrong with this particular pattern (the name, the pressing, the piecing) that I can only imagine the "fun" when I watch the video. 

YES—I know I'm opinionated, but my friend was all excited because they made a jelly roll race quilt when, in fact, they did not. They made a quilt from jelly roll strips, but the method was NOT the jelly roll race. Am I being too picky? The methodology is so different. 

And if you want to resize the quilt using the jelly roll race technique, I know how to do that, and I'll share that later this week. Yes, I spend loads of time thinking about this stuff! 

On that note, I'm out of here!!!

Have a super day!!!

Ciao!!!

Squaring up a VERY WONKY quilt

Although I didn't have solid plans for yesterday - there was a quilt to trim, applique to cut, etc. —I got none of that done. 

Instead, I was repaying a favor, and someone came to use the long arm, so I spent the day helping with that. WAIT—that was the easy part. She also brought a wonky quilt that we attempted to square up. Hmm—that was quite the mental exercise, and before we knew it, it also turned into a physical one. 

I will say (and I told her) that I disagreed with the construction method, and something strange happened in this instance. When you take one strip of fabric, add a second strip of fabric, and then continue in that fashion, the result (after adding MANY strips of fabric) is that the end is usually longer than the beginning. Not so with this one - the end was much shorter (or narrower by at least 11 inches) if you want. And it had quite the bow in it! 

The task of the day was to try to salvage the quilt. Of anything I've been asked to do, this one stumped me. 

We started by clearing off one work table to see if we could square it up. Hmm—that wasn't working well, so we tried folding the quilt in the opposite direction, parallel to the seams. Then, one side of the quilt was trimmed. We tried using that edge as a guide to cut the other edge. 

To our horror, that first cut did NOT look good at all. One half of the side was straight, and then at the fold, it took a crazy angle. 

So we laid it out again and tried to square it up—again with it folded in half, but in the opposite orientation. But NOT before I gave the darn thing a good press with steam. This is what it looked like. 

Trimming a quilt by folding it

You can see how the end on the bottom was significantly longer than the top edge, and it had significant bows in it (I wish I had taken a picture), which resulted from sewing row after row in the same orientation. I believe this was a tutorial online! Sigh.....

That wasn't working, so I moved more furniture so we could lay the quilt top out flat. Oh boy—this is pretty wonky. What to do? 

Then, I decided to use a floorboard as a guide. So we lined up one side with a floorboard. Then I took MANY rulers to continue that straight edge on the quilt top. Once I was happy with that, I marked the line with chalk. The ends aren't going to be square—the ends of the strips, that is, as some of them have a bit of an angle. But the edge of the quilt was STRAIGHT. The mat went on the floor, and she trimmed it along the chalk line. Ignore the pink tape measure - it makes the side look wonky, but it was just lying there at this moment. 

Trying to get a straight edge

We used THREE long tape measures in our journey, as well as many rulers. NO—the quilt sides are not 90 degrees to the top and bottom, and I'm hoping that can be fixed when it gets quilted. 

It took a lot of finagling to get the other side parallel to the first. Do not ask me why this wasn't a simple task, but it wasn't. I think the curved seams gave off an optical vibe that was very distracting to work with. 

Attempting to square the other edge

However, we persevered, and the second side is now parallel (more or less) to the first one. This quilt ended up being 73 inches wide or somewhere in that range, and it's much longer than the width, so it was a challenge to deal with, not just the wonky seams but the optical illusion from the curved seams and the size. 

But here it is - more or less trimmed and ready to be quilted. 

The quilt is salvaged

So here's some good advice - just because someone posts a video on how to make a quilt - don't believe it! If someone thinks they have a better method for making a jelly roll quilt, don't believe them. While I think this was to emulate a jelly roll quilt, with the goal of making it larger, there are better ways to make a larger jelly roll quilt. Speaking of jelly roll quilts - the construction method dictates that the quilt is a specific size. You can mess with that to some extent, but you will run into significant issues if you're not careful. It's a simple mathematical formula to resize a jelly roll quilt. I should explain it one day. 

The second thing is NEVER just take one strip of fabric and, without measuring it, add it to another piece of fabric and then repeat that process. The lengths will NEVER be the same, and they will skew, as happened here. I'll equate EACH new strip in this quilt as a border, and one should NEVER just sew the border onto a quilt. It needs to be measured, cut to the appropriate length, and PINNED. 

How would I have done this? I could have measured the first strip, and then I would have cut the next strip to the EXACT SAME length, and I would have sewn a pair of strips together after pinning them. Then I would have sewn the next two pairs and so on. Then, when I had a pile of pairs, I would have started to join (always pinning) the pairs. Continuing to sew to the first row (column) means that the strip gets handled a LOT, so it tends to stretch, while the final row was handled once and didn't stretch. 

By sewing in pairs, each strip is handled the SAME number of times - zero stretching! 

I want to find the instructions to see if this was, in fact, how the instructor said to sew this quilt because EVERYTHING about the construction, as I understand it, is WRONG!!! This is from a YouTube instructor, where I saw in a short video this morning, earns about $8K monthly from her videos. I hope the others are better than this one. I'm missing out on making a lot of money! But I do NOT want to be tied to making videos. I have better things to do! I could make videos on decluttering! That would be entertaining. 

Happily, the quilt on the long arm turned out beautifully. 

The quilt turned out amazing! 

I did accomplish a few things. I sorted through two of the boxes of novelty prints and removed FOUR large pieces that can be used for quilt backings. They were measured and moved to the quilt backing area. 

Four quilt backings are measured and on the shelf

I removed a couple of fruit fabrics as I have a separate storage area for them. 

Fruit fabrics

And those new plastic bins hold much more fabric than the cardboard boxes. It was a fun trip down memory lane as I went through all those prints. Gosh, I seem to have everything on fabric. Do you see the matches?

A bin of novelty fabrics

The next quilt is loaded on the long arm and ready to go today. I have some applique to do, and it's Monday Sewing, so it'll be the perfect day for that. 

Here are some photos of what's in bloom in the backyard. Two lilies have appeared in the pond. 

The first two lilies in the pond

Oh dear -- I need to find out what this flowering shrub is. Gardening was never my strong point. Where are the bees? This one is also quite fragrant and beside the gazebo, but it has been a few days since I've been there. No time!

Another flowering shrub

My one peony is starting to bloom. I had a better picture than this, and I think I should plant a few more plants (bushes) behind this one. It seems to thrive in that area, and there's a lot of empty space there. OK—where do I get peonies? I want colors that are different from the fuchsia I have. 

My peony

After our water issues were resolved, I could get the pump to the pond going, and Miss Murphy was again fascinated by the waterfalls. Oh, and you can see the remains of our irises. We have yellow ones. I'm surprised they are still living because they are right where Murphy likes to tramp. 

MOM -- there's water flowing!

Meanwhile, Lexi just watches. She's so calm compared to Murphy. She's my "hero" and will save the world. Do you see the resemblance? 

MOM -- I'm on watch duty!

On that note, I have a ton of follow-up emails to complete today. I'm a tad behind in that, but I also have stuff to do in Studio B since I didn't get much of my stuff completed yesterday. And I was OK with that. I'm glad I could help with those two quilts, and now she can move forward on completing them. 

And I'm off to spin class and want to find those instructions! Just because you can doesn't mean you should! 

I managed to get a bit more put away in the kitchen, and the spice drawer is almost finished. Why is it taking so long? I have to wash the little funnel after every use, and rather than take the time to dry it, I let it air dry. When I have a minute or two or just pass by, I grab the funnel and fill another jar. I thought of a great idea to store the excess spices. If I had ripped through the process, I wouldn't have time to mull over the ideas, so slow and steady is how I work because I'm problem-solving as I go. 

This method has worked for me for years - I will NOT change it, despite all your "protests" that I move faster. 

I hope you are all tackling your drawers or some areas of your house. It doesn't need to take hours - a few minutes well spent in any area can start to make a difference!! 

Have a super day!!!

Ciao!!!