At one of the guilds I belong to (Assiniboine Circle) we had a guest teacher hold a Quilter's Academy today. It's like beginner school for quilters following the tips and techniques that Harriet Hargrave uses in her books. I figure that I'm a pretty knowledgeable quilter and I was positive I knew how to do the basics like piecing and pressing - wrong. Today we were shown the proper way to make sure our fabric was on grain, proper cutting tips, the right way to press, how to achieve accurate 1/4" seams and so much more. We were shown little 3 inch finished lemoyne star blocks that were perfectly flat with no lumpy seams and so accurate they were little works of arts. There were 9 patches where every square was exactly the same throughout the quilt.
When I came home I looked at my little 9 patch blocks and wasn't as happy with them. They just weren't treated right. At this point I have to warn you that if you are sensitive, you might want to skip the next paragraph.
Some of my seams and blocks were tugged and pulled into submission. They had been stretched, picked at, poked, ironed to the point of smoking and even mercilessly ripped apart at the seams. In fact at the risk of being reported to the authorities, I'm ashamed to admit that some were even verbally abused, then thrown heartlessly into the garbage.
Okay, you can read the rest, the abuse is over.
I'm going to take what I learned today and try to be a better quilter (notice I said better, not perfect). I will treat my fabrics and subsequent blocks with
Happy Stitching!
corina
14 comments:
My goodness Corina, you really take your quilting seriously. I'm sorry to read you were abusing your fabric. I think your little nine patches are adorable. I'm sure the Quilter's Academy was a wonderful learning experience and of course your projects will benefit from it.
A few years ago I made a chicken quilt using a 9 patch variation. Only problem was the piecing was done on four different sewing machines at stitch n bitch night. Sadly, I forgot calibrate the machines to be absolutely certain that all scant 1/4 inch seams were identical. Of course this was discovered after 16 of 24 blocks were complete. Unwilling to rip them all apart I resized the block from 11 inch squares to 10 and a half inch squares. The little nine patches are not precise. After it was finished I took it to Fabric Land to show it off. I asked several ladies what was wrong with it. One lady replied the only thing wrong with it was that it wasn't on her bed! I had to point out the sizing problem with the little nine patch squares. Another lady said that the Amish ladies always put a mistake or two in their quilts because only God is perfect.
I strive for excellence, not perfection. The chicken quilt lives on the spare bed in our guestroom.
http://tammyscraftemporium.blogspot.com/2009/09/chicken-quilt.html
I may have exaggerated a tad LOL. A few of my strip sets were off. I knew I would have trouble with them but instead of just redoing them to make life easier I was determined to make them work. They will still be in the quilt though, I feel sorry for them!
Thank-you for the laugh!!! I am ironing my blocks that are not laying flat, steaming them even, and they seem to be doing what I want! I hate to admit it, but sometimes, I - well, I don't want to fight with them, I just want them to listen!!
It's magic what you can do with fabric and block.... it must be magic because I don't always get mine to lay flat, yet others that I make at the same time lay as flat as pancakes!!
I would have loved to have seen what you were shown, but since I didn't, my blks are fine!! ;-)
And I love your blks by the way!! I have just made a brown quilt - well, I used alot of brown in it, and it's a great colour choice for this time of year when you want something that just feels like it would be nice to curl under. So, keep making the 9 patches and have fun with them!!!
Please don't be so hard on yourself. It really is just a healthy dose of enthusiasm that makes us forget to press our seams, cut on grain, etc. ann :-)
Ignorance is bliss. I have lots to learn!
The nine patches look great - it is going to be such a beautiful quilt.
We are always so much more critical of our own work than we are of others. But your post sure did make me giggle.
I'm envious that you got to have one of those kinds of workshops to learn new things and new ways of doing things. I'm hoping the next place we move that I can find something like that close by.
Corina you make me laugh! don't abuse your poor fabric anymore okay? take a deep breath and carry on. Or pick up your knitting for a while or smoother your doggies with kisses or ...
Ha! What a great post! I'm so glad to know that I'm not the only with wonky blocks! I do try to make them nice, neat & even. I just don't seem to have the talent for it. But I keep trying, I hope with more practice that I will get better as well. At least thats what I keep telling myself! Lol...
Good for you getting 22 blocks done for FNSI, and thanks for the laugh!! I'm applauding you!!! Yay!! I look forward to hearing how your new found way will go for you...
Happy picking, ahhhh...I mean stitching! wink!
Some days just don't go the way they SHOULD, do they? Great work on FNSI
You are so funny! I think your blocks look great.
Thanks for the smile this morning!
LOL.... you can't imagine how many sewing projects have hit the trash ....in my house:)
Have you taken a block and pulled it like taffy to try to stretch it so it fits in your quilt? Hehe, my poor blocks sound just like yours. I thought everyone quilted that way!
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