Spring Market - Day Three

Wow - Spring Market is over for another year. The time seems to fly by and next thing I knew we were tearing the booth down. I seriously did NOT get a chance to really walk the floor. I finally took a quick run through late in the day yesterday, but I don't think I managed to walk all the aisles.  Next time, I schedule my appointments with a big gap to walk the floor.

And why is that? Well, I had appointments and I had a fair number of appointments with various people. I also helped out the sales team if they needed questions answered about some of the projects hanging in the booth. You know - I never even took pictures of the booth.  Oh my goodness - what is happening to me?  I barely took any pictures at all. I must be slowing down!

And of course, if you had an appointment and they were a tad late, then you had to wait for them. I did miss chatting with one person. I think we got our times mixed up. I missed the text that she was at the booth and then we never did connect. Oh well, we'll go it via e-mail or next market. I already have a lot of stuff in the pipeline, it may be just as well that I didn't get a chance to chat with this editor.

We actually had a steady stream of people all market, but around 2 PM (show closes at 4 PM), everything just went dead.  The attendees were finished with their classes and wanted to get out of there. It didn't take long to tear down our booth although we had to wait a fair amount of time to get the crates to our booth. If only they would let us move them ourselves. They are on wheels!  However, all convention centers come with very strong unions so best not to step on toes.

We locked the final crate - 2 hours and 45 minutes. I had to laugh because, at one point, we're all sitting around waiting for the crates. The moment the crates arrived, it became a beehive of activity as everyone scurried around taping boxes, rollling quilts and shoving it all into the crates

I must be mad because I went back to Sugarfire for the THIRD time while I was here.  Call me adventureous!   Seriously, I don't mind eating at the same place - it's really good.  I loved the brisket and that's what I wanted. However, there was just an end left by the time I got to the counter. The lady wasn't going to sell it to me - policy I'm sure.  Finally I convinced her that I was OK with that piece (I like well done).  She said something and then cut up the hunk into chunks and slapped it on my butcher paper on my big metal tray!  It was great and so was the company as a couple of us had some good conversations and recapped the show.

Back to the hotel where I finished up some work that I had to do.  For some reason, I haven't been sleeping as well as I normally do. Not sure what the situation is, but I seem to be awake more than I sleep. But one more night out and then I'll be home tomorrow.

You see - while most of our crew goes home today, some of us are going on an adventure. Just wait! It's exciting.  To give you a clue, just remember we're in St. Louis and what state is St. Louis in? Think about it!

On that note, I'm out of here to finish packing.

Have a super day!

Ciao!!!!


It's also the first day of my week of posting for QUILTsocial.  Check it out.  Even if you don't have the Husqvarna Viking Designer Topaz 50 (which is the machine that I reviewed this week) or even if you're not in the market for a sewing machine, check it out as there are lots of tips in the posts that will make it worth your while to read.

Spring Market - Day Two

If you're a keener, there are one and a half hour classes (make and takes) that occur before Market opens each day. I like to take these classes for a couple of reasons. First off, with the time that I get up, what the heck would I do with myself until the show opens at 9:30?  By 9:30 back home, I have half a day's work done. And there is always something new to learn.

I went to the class yesterday on cutters. You see, I have a cutter - I have a Scan n Cut (the first edition) which I have to confess has never been taken out of the box. Guess what brand of cutter they had in the room? Yep - the Brother Scan n Cut, although it was the second edition. How different can they be?

We didn't cut fabric. No, we cut various styles of vinyl which was super fun except that the motif that we got was for the good old USA so I likely won't be using that anytime soon.  We did make a logo for a small tote bag which was fun. Very easy to use and I love that it scans where your stuff is so no need to be super careful on the positioning.  It's when you're cutting fabric that things get tricky and I learned about SVG files which I really didn't understand until they got going. It's never too late to learn. But I must pop over to Alex Anderson's booth (who is right beside us) to chat about a couple of supplies - software and stabilizers.

Back to the booth to get ready for the day. I had a lot of appointments for the day which was good, but we were short on space which was also very good. Let's just say that I'm super flexible and I can set up and chat pretty much anywhere!  So good to chat with the editors. Always lots to catch up on - fabric collections, quilt submissions and a whole lot more. Super exciting stuff for me. Oh gosh, and one more pattern picked up!  I didn't have many designs with me as I just didn't have time to get more done so I'll be working hard when I get home.

I barely got out of the booth all day. Between my appointments and helping the sales reps with customer questions, the day flew by. I did manage to get out later in the day and walked about 1/4 of the show. I have to laugh because the way that I walk the show (as a quilter) and the way a non-quilter walks the floor are two completely different things. I look for new, I look for people that I have a connection with (yes - more talking!)  

I had a long chat with Deb Tucker about the advantages of using her rulers. The last couple of quilts that I had made for the magazines and my Sesquicentennial quilt had a lot of flying geese.  I promised Deb that when I got back home that I would dig out my Wing Clipper ruler and I would use it! I have no choice now but to get my butt in gear and do that. A promise is a promise! Deb is a wonderful person and always a hoot to have a chat with.

I only have two appointments today and the show ends at 4. I would imagine by noon that it will be pretty quiet and I should have a chance to fly around the remainder of the show so I can at least say I was everywhere!  And I remembered to pick up the pattern that I had purchased from a designer. I bought the pattern in Paducah, but it wasn't  finished at that tine so I got it now. See - I do remember things!

I've got my work cut out for me when I get home. Not only do I have quilts to make and finish, I've got to get out the Wing Clipper ruler, I've got to crack open that box for the scan n cut and I've got a tool that was given to me to review.  More on that when I get home. All super exciting things to say the least.

Well, I see it time to get ready for the day.

Have a super day!!

Ciao!

Spring Quilt Market - Day One

Yesterday was the first official day of Spring Market. I had several meetings booked with editors and customers and always exciting to show off the new collections.

I have my favorite collections from the new release and it's always fun to see which ones are liked by others.  I did get another quilt picked up by a magazine. Yeah - but there isn't an immediate rush on that - fabric isn't even made yet. 

I have another round of appointments today.  I did manage to get out and see a little bit of the show. Hopefully, a little bit more tomorrow and then tomorrow which is a shorter day, but I only have two appointments so I should be able to get out and see the rest. 

I've run into shop owners from back home and we've had some good visits. I think that's what I'm best at. I'm a talking head. I love talking - just like my dad and his dad.  The gift of the gab!

Oh, shoot - just realizing that I haven't posted any pictures on Facebook/Instagram (except for my food) so I'll try and do that today so you can see what I've been working on. 

The day passed by in a whirlwind and next thing you know - it's time to go back to the hotel. I had yakked about the BBQ place so much that Shirley wanted to go and so the two of us were off to the BBQ place.  The line was even longer than the previous night but it went quickly. The food looked equally messy but was very good. And I ran into several people there from Market. One group was there because of my picture I posted the night before!  

We had a good chat and a good catch-up since we don't get to see each other that often. Back to the hotel where it was only 8 PM.  The rest of my group was just going out. I just can't do that anymore.  OK - it's not so much that I can't, as that I don't want to be eating at 10 PM.  Too late.  

I see that it is raining this morning and there have been some spectacular claps of thunder and lightening. I will have to make quick work of getting over to the convention center which is about a 1-minute walk so I don't get too wet. I have a class at 8 AM so I'll be there for that. I don't even know what it is - I did sign up for two and I can't remember either. That's why we have schedules and agendas!

On that note - I'm off to get ready and have breakfast!

Have a super day!

Ciao!

Spring Market - Schoolhouse

I had finished my booth set-up responsibilities the day before so that left me with the day to check out Schoolhouse. That was super exciting. I've been to Schoolhouse before but always felt guilty as I went back to the booth to help out.

I went through the class/demo listings and picked what I thought would be interesting (in my day job capacity), not personally. There is a difference! I had a lot of fun checking out various projects/collections etc that are being introduced here at Market. Lots of block of the months (maybe some I can teach when I get home), saw lots of people I know, met up with a few people from back home.

I was planning on going to Victoria Findlay Wolfe's schoolhouse, even saw her, said HI and see you later and then I was called into a meeting and that just killed the rest of my day!  The meeting was interesting and worth attending so I can't complain.  I had also thought of going to Sample Spree, but by the time we finished the meeting, I was too hungry and tired to go to sample spree.  And probably just as well as I really do NOT need any more fabric or rulers or whatever.

I decided to jump ship and have dinner on my own.  While I like my co-workers, there comes a point when I need my peace and quiet. I'll explode without it! I asked at the front desk for a recommendation for a restaurant and they gave me the same one that we had been to the night before. Nope - I would like something else.  How about BBQ?  Perfect even though I'm not a huge meat fan.

Sugarfire was not far away from the hotel so I walked over.  Whoa - this is a popular place. It was about 8 PM by the time I got there - and the place was packed and there was a line.  ACK!  Do I want to wait?  I had no choice - I wasn't going to wander around and find something else. I'm not a big meat eater so what am I going to choose?  I settled on the Big Muddy (I wonder why it's called that?). Sides?  Nope - wasn't into potato salad or coleslaw so I thought I could have a milkshake. Live it up a bit.  Nope - they were long sold out of ice cream. The cashier said they must have made over 1,500 milkshakes that day!!!

This restaurant is cafeteria style. You get a big metal tray with a sheet of paper on it.  They plop your meat choices right on the paper. The salads are in small paper trays - no dishes to wash. My big muddy was actually a burger with a sausage and some brisket.  Lots of other stuff got thrown on and it looked like a huge mess, which it was. But it was AMAZING and that's from a very fussy meat eater.  Tender, tasty and well, I just ate the meat!!!  The rest of the mess, I left on the paper!

Seating was home style. Long rows of tables with old kitchen chairs. It was pretty cool.  I met up with a person who was here to help a friend with their booth for Market and an educator for heart valves.  An interesting dinner conversation and I laughed because if one ate all their food, it was a heart attack waiting to happen!

Back to the hotel and to bed. I had to shut the A/C off last night. Just can't get it controlled, I hate it and I was just fine without it. No headache this morning.

I see that we had a big thunderstorm this morning but I was busy on the computer. It appears to have settled down which is fine since I need to get my butt to breakfast in a few minutes.

Have a super day!!!!

Ciao!!!!

Spring Market - travel day

Here I am in my hotel room in St. Louis!  And yes all my quilts got done.

I finished the quilting on the big quilt (after I had a small ripping out session). The lesson here is never attempt something that you're not 100% sure of especially when there is a deadline! The binding got put on (I'm getting super fast - did you know that I sewed the binding on by machine and it probably took less than one hour.  Both sides and the quilt was 80 inches square!  The sleeve got made, but not sewn on. I was leaving that for when we got to market. A big thank you to Shirley and Hania who sewed my two sleeves on!

I was up super early so I could pack. I know - there literally was no time to do it before.  Then I was off to the airport. Our flight was uneventful except for the landing. It was windy in St. Louis and I swear that plane tipped upon landing. Thankfully it was righted before any damage was done and we were at the airport.

There was quite a contingent of us (thankfully the plane did make it or well you wouldn't be getting new fabrics from us!), so we rented a bus to get us to the hotel. Very efficient way. Did you know that St. Louis is a city divided?  Apparently, there is one street that sort of separates the high income and low-income sections. I must say that there is a lot of abandoned buildings here.  Hmm - could buy one, fix it up and have an amazing loft space!

We arrived early in the day which was a treat as we don't usually get to our booth until the afternoon.  However, I discovered that our crates had not arrived!  Yikes, that's not good.  A little investigation and it appears that our truck driver was a little bit delayed but everything was good and soon we had those crates open and rushing around like bees to get everything set up.

And I'm already scouting out, chatting up people, working out deals and arrangements for future events. I love coming to these shows and it technically hasn't even started yet!

But around 5 PM, I said, "that's it for me".  I was tired and just not functioning anymore.  I had to pop out to pick up a quilt from someone anyway. Once I had walked down to the hotel where they were taking a class, I thought I'm very close to the Arch so I'll just walk on over there.  Wow - that is such a cool feature/sculpture/structure?  It's huge and you can go crazy looking up at it.  Apparently, you can go up in it, but as I was on my way there, a lady told me that the tickets were all sold out for today.  No worries - I didn't have time, nor did I want to. But I took a few pictures.

The rest of the gang was meeting up soon and so I walked back to the hotel to meet up with them.  It was super windy and I was certain that I was going to get caught in the rain. But nope - no rain. It's a bit humid here, but not bad.

We went out for dinner but again, I didn't linger.  I mean really - don't these people get tired of being with each other all day?  I need a break! I like my solitude!

The temperature in my room is bizarre. Of course, it's set to FREEZING when I arrive. I turn the fan down and make a couple of adjustments, but it's cold when the air conditioning is running and HOT the moment it stops. It's crazy.  I didn't sleep well last night and usually wake up with a headache the first night in a new room. My head is pounding right now which isn't fun. But hopefully once I get up and moving and have breakfast, I'll be OK. Oh and the sheets are so tightly tucked in, I can barely get them out!

Anway on that note, I'm out of here to have a shower and get on with the day.

Have a super day!!!

Ciao!!

Motivational Monday (on Tuesday again!)

Hmmm - there seems to be a trend happening here. I should have thought twice about posting a motivational blog on Monday. Monday morning is not a good morning for me to blog and well sometimes, it gets missed!  I was at the gym, pumping 25 KM out on the bike in one hour.

There is NOTHING like a deadline to get one moving!  As I mentioned, my magazine quilt was finished last week (just in time to get into a FedEx box).  It arrived yesterday and they love it!  Are they just saying that? or do they really like it?  I have to admit that it's a nice quilt and I'm quite happy with it.

I'm lying in bed yesterday morning contemplating my day and BAM! I realized that I was supposed to have pieced a block that technically was supposed to have been in the US yesterday.  I had called and got an extension to Tuesday. That meant that darn block had to be made - again before the FedEx deadline.  Thankfully the block was designed and I quickly grabbed some appropriate fabric and whipped up that block as I visited with my Monday group. I designed a quilt using the block and now the block should be arriving at its destination this morning. Yes - it's worth it for me to set up the machine for ONE hour and sew. That's how restrained my time is these days!  (Don't worry though - I did sit in the backyard in the sun for a week bit yesterday with the girls and enjoyed the sun and I had a nice nap on Sunday afternoon in the gazebo with the girls lounging beside me on the floor!)

I seem to be plowing through the projects, minus labels, but that's OK.  That list is long, well longish - I think there are 20 items on the deadline list (NONE of them have anything to do with my UFOs).  A couple will disappear after tonight and while I'm away, I'm going to have to be brutal with scheduling to see how the rest of the items can get accomplished in the time frames allowed.

I'm madly quilting that 80" square quilt that needed custom quilting. I worked until 9:30 last night and I made good progress.  Part of it was a royal pain as I needed to change thread colors up to 10 times in one row!  That was brutal. Thankfully I'm over that part and now down to about 3 color changes in one row and every row, it gets easier.  I was hoping to get the first pass completed last night, but at 9:30, my brain and body said ENOUGH!   The next pass is with ONE thread color and is the lesser half of the quilt so that should go quicker. Then to bind it and it looks like sleeves will be sewn on during setup day A job for anyone sitting there with idle hands.

I have a quilt to bind this morning when it comes in from the long arm quilter.  The QUILTsocial blog posts are almost completed - I've no idea how those happened!

The 3-D object - not going to happen!  That's OK. I'll finish it and show you cause it's so darn cute.

The other "would like to have" - it's done enough to show the concept.  That's all I care about.

Then to pack which means throwing a few clothes into the suitcase, take a few photos of quilts and I'm ready to go.  Thankfully the next show is local so no need to travel to that one, but there is a ton of stuff to prepare for it (all items are on that deadline list).

And did you know that practice makes perfect? The more I quilt, the better I become.  And I think I much prefer to quilt my own quilts than customers.  I'm not afraid to make mistakes!   I'm quite happy with the quilting on this quilt, my same old signature design. I can't get away from that. Putting on bindings used to be a horrible job, but I don't even know how many I've done by machine and each one is better than the previous one.

The more I write, the fewer errors pop up on Grammarly!  And on and on......  

So - get out there and practice something!


I see from the Facebook posts that you are all going gangbusters. Projects are super awesome and they are DONE which is the most exciting part of the whole process.   Imagine my progress if all my sewing was related to my UFOs?  I wouldn't have any!!!!   My last deadline quilt is July 20 and I will likely have two months with no deadline sewing - that's when I'm going to get caught up!

Have a super day!


Ciao!

Happy Mother's Day!

I guess I had better remember to call my Mom today or I'll be in trouble.  Funny how they sometimes seem so above the Mother's Day thing, but god forbid if you forget to call!  That's the same with birthdays and anniversarys!  Those dates are embedded in my brain!

It would appear that Lexi and Murphy were up to no good last night as I see Lexi has posted something this morning. Those two girls are just big trouble makers!

Speaking of being a Mom, my kid now lives in Vancouver and seems to be liking it there.  Just have to figure out a way to get all of her stuff that is in our house out to her (or pitch it!). Here's a recent picture that she had taken.

M

And Little Bear

Yep - that's her teeny weeny dog. Murphy would have a hay day with that little dog.

So I got a package in the mail this past week. I love how it was addressed. Can you see?  Didn't have my name on the package - nope - addressed to Mom!  I love it!!!!

Addressed to MOM

And this is the coolest card - Mother's Day card with a gold bike!  I love the card - thanks kiddo!

Cool Mother's Day card

 And I got a bike charm and bike napkins.

Bike themed goodies

Now those napkins will get used!  Again - what is the point of having this stuff if it doesn't get used!  Enjoy the moment and move on!


DH wanted to take me out for brunch, but there is NO TIME for brunch.  I don't know why people feel obligated to eat out on Mother's Day - I mean the brunch thing.  I don't really care, we have our weekly date dinner and I'm OK with that. What I want today is time to work on what I'm supposed to be working on!

Yesterday was a super productive day. I got the quilt top finished and loaded on the long arm, ready to get started later today. I had come up with some quilting patterns, but then thought of another one this morning. Whatever it is, has to be quick as this quilt is BIG  (80" square) and it has to be in a suitcase on Wednesday morning with the binding attached. The sleeve can be hand stitched or pinned when we arrive.

Quilt is loaded

 I also got the binding done for the other quilt that I will get back from the long arm quilter tomorrow so that one can be finished tomorrow.

Binding prepped

 I did get part of the next row on that "nice to have" project.  It didn't take that long so that was good. If I could get two more rows on, I would be very happy.

I zipped out for a couple of hours yesterday to buy supplies for that 3-D project.  It was funny as I ran into someone I knew at all three places.  That never happens!

Then back home and got most of the bits cut out and a wee bit of work done on it. It's still on the fence whether it will get finished in time or not.

3-D project - cut out

And last, but not least, I took a ton of photos, edited 57 of them and they are uploaded to the QUILTsocial blog posts. Now to fill in the text. That is the big job of today.

I was super happy with my progress and don't feel any stress. I'm wondering if that is a good thing or a bad thing?

I also decided to dump the photos from my camera card (all 6,058) of them (in one year) to the hard drive of the other computer. Yes - I'm typing this on the laptop!

They will need to be sorted and tagged and probably many of them need to be deleted as they have served their purpose. I might try to do a few every day - again there aren't a lot of topics and they can be moved as groups - dogs, quilt shows, blog pictures, etc. And since they tend to be in groups, that makes it even easier. Heck - I might even get the class photos done!

I have quite a few appointments during the Spring Market and as I'm working, I'm planning out those appointments.  There is one that is a bit different from the others and this is where keeping pictures of all your work becomes important.  As I was transferring some pictures from one computer to the other yesterday, I found some that I was looking for.  Now the key is to assemble them all in one place (iPad is preferable) so they can be shown. BUT this task would be so much easier if all my pictures were in one place, tagged and sorted.  Oh well - if life were that easy, where would be the fun?

On that note, I'm out of here to take a few more photos and get writing!

Have a super Mother's Day!!!!

Ciao!