LaVieEnRosie

Block boards?

One of the best things about my "job" is that I get to meet a lot of amazing, talented, creative, innovative and just plain brilliant quilters.  They come to guild, retreats and classes with energy and knowledge, tips and tools, and they are so willing to share!

Don't they know I have never met a good idea that I wasn't shamelessly willing to steal?

In the years that I've been going to Quilt-n-Friends in Sterling Heights, Michigan, I have gotten to meet and spend time with Jan, Marlene and Sue.  Marlene is Mom to Jan and Sue.  Jan and Marlene came the first two years, they dragged Sue along to minimize the trauma in the following years.  Sue is a very talented long-arm machine quilter, Marlene is an amazing all-around quilter and well, Jan is just all-around amazing.  And no, she's not my favorite because she always understands my patterns and cutting instructions... though it probably hasn't hurt. 

Through another Sue -- Tuesday Sue -- I learned of a terrific little "tool" that Jan came up with.  I don't know if she devised this while making the Farmer's Wife quilt that Tuesday Sue was teaching, but it was through that class that Sue heard about it.  I think Sue only told me about it when she had to ask me where she could find poster board.  After hearing her explanation of what she wanted to make, I recommended foam core.  Por quoi?  It's stiffer and that will make a big difference.

It goes without saying that my next thought was... hmmm, do I have any foam core?  I'll check because I think I need to make a few of these for myself because when I'm piecing blocks for a quilt, I like being able to have the block laid out so that I can keep the parts aligned properly -- it helps reduce the need to un-sew.  I also like being able to match up the various parts and pieces for four, five or six blocks at a time, so that I can sew lots, press lots, sew lots and so on. 

Jan's idea was to make boards covered with batting that would let her lay out several blocks at one time, then carry a stack of boards to her machine without slipping.

I started with the following:  Foam core.

 
I bought my foam core at Office Max but it is easily found at art stores, office supply stores, JoAnns, Michaels, Hobby Lobby and so on.  I bought black because Office Depot was out of white and I knew I would get tired of the flourescent yellow, my only other option at the time.  The sheets I bought measured 20" x 30" and are about 1/4" thick. 

Using a rotary cutter and ruler, I cut each sheet into two squares measuring 15" x 15".  I chose that size because it will allow a 12" block or as many as four small blocks per board. 

Spray adhesive.

 
Any kind of adhesive will work.  Glue, glue sticks, double-stick tape, Steam-A-Seam... whatever you've got. 

Batting.

 
I had some Warm 'n White so that's what I used.  Since its needle-punched, it is quite flat, and it isn't too fuzzy so it works perfectly.  I cut my squares to measure 17" x 17" so that I could trim the edges after the batting was attached to the foam core. 

Using lots of newspaper and covering on a table outside, I sprayed each board with adhesive and stuck the batting to the foam core.  If you use an adhesive spray, it dries pretty quickly so  lay it down and smooth out the bumps as quickly as possible.  I also made sure that I had an even coating of adhesive along the outside edges.

When the boards were completely dry, I laid them batting-side down on my rotary cutting mat. 

 
While pressing gently down on the back of the board, I used the edge of the foam core to guide my rotary cutter and trim the batting right to the edge of the board.

 
Total time invested -- about fifteen minutes.

Total money invested -- less than $20.00.

Result -- six Block boards.

 
Thank you, Jan!  And thank you, Sue. 

I think I'll be using these this weekend. 

 

(Insert snappy title here...)

One of the things that slowed me down with blogging in the past month was not knowing how to start writing about something that has been noodling around in my brain for months and months.  Not having a picture was part of the problem, but I think I also just didn't know how to start.  But a couple of comments left on the last post and a lovely chat with a friend helped me figure it out.  I think.  This might be a little choppy but I hope you'll bear with me... it is still a work in progress. 

And don't worry, it isn't anything serious.  It's about inspiration and where ideas come from, and how I come to making the quilts I want to make.  It's also about choices, challenges, frustrations, pressure, acceptance, business, vision, creativity, integrity, being true to myself...  and a whole lot of other things.  Kind of explains why I wasn't sure where to start, doesn't it? 

Can I insert a not entirely random picture here?

 
I love this quilt.  The picture is from a Victoria and Albert Museum Datebook I gave my mother for Christmas.  I photocopied the picture and pinned it to the corkboard in my workroom, not because I want to make the quilt, but because I love the "feel" of it.  The colors, the mix of fabrics, and the randomness of the sizes of the pieces combine in such a way that looking at this quilt makes me happy.

Do remember the early days of being online, when we used message boards, newsgroups and e-mail lists?  Very few people had a website.  If they were online, they had a webpage on a site like Geocities, and most of the quilting information on the Internet pertained to techniques and quilt pictures.  It was on one of these webpages that I read a book review of a well-known, now out-of-print quilt book written by two very famous quilters.  While the reviewer praised the overall content of the book, she questioned how much value it had for quilters looking to challenge themselves since both authors were known for making accurate reproductions of antique quilts.  While "honoring" the quiltmakers that came before them by faithfully reproducing their quilts, how were the authors honoring themselves by making something that challenged them creatively, or expressed something about themselves?  She questioned how the book reflected the "artistic voice" of the authors.  

Artistic voice.

I'll get back to that... Let me switch lanes for a minute and tell you about the antique quilt I saw this past weekend, the one that has me planning to make 656 flying geese.   

The quilt that caught my eye was folded under the table while the presenter was showing other quilts.  I kept looking at the quilt, specifically at the flying geese block in the quilt.  The block isn't anything you haven't seen before but what I liked was the scale and how well it was framed by the setting of the quilt.  By the time the presenter finally showed the quilt, I had "adjusted" the setting -- an adjustment that would mean I needed to make twice as many flying geese as are in the original.  And while the original uses Civil War era fabrics for the blocks, I think mine will be inhabited by some French General.  So while my quilt -- should I actually manage to get it made -- will have been inspired by an antique, it will also be my interpretation of it, how I "see" it.  It will express my "artistic voice".

The idea of having an "artistic voice" is something I've kind of fought for years, mostly because I don't think of myself as an artist.  I cut up fabric and sew it back together... that's art?  I know, it is, but this is all tied up with that self-perception thing.  I've written before about how I think some words "fit" in much the same way that clothes do, and "artist" is one of those words that I've never felt fit me.  But the paradox is that I do think of myself as being creative.  Then again, I think everybody is, and I think everybody has an "artistic voice."  Whatever the medium, everything that you make or create speaks to who you are, what you value and what you want to say... about whatever.   

Time for another picture...

 
I took this a few months ago, they're the red fabrics I pulled for a quilt I'm teaching next week.  The fabrics were pressed and piled four-layers high for cutting so there are more than forty fabrics there.  The quilt was inspired by an antique but I hadn't gotten around to making it before now because I really struggled with the size of the block.  A 12" block would definitely be more appealing to many quilters but I liked a 9" block much better... the 9" block is what spoke to me, what had the look I wanted, what would give my finished quilt the look I wanted.  So why was I struggling to decide which size block to make?  Because I was letting "other" considerations make choices for me, I wasn't listening to my "artistic voice".   

Which is just another way of saying "I want to make the quilts that matter to me."

So why have I been wanting to write about this?  Because in talking to quilting friends and reading blogs, I know that a lot of us struggle with the same kinds of issues.  Are we making the quilts we want to make or jumping on bandwagons?  Are we doing what we love or making something to please others?  Are we listening to our artistic voice?

I hope you'll forgive me for yammering on about this, it's just something I've wanted to write about for awhile.

I'll be back tomorrow.  I have shamelessly stolen a clever little idea for helping you keep block parts together while you're piecing.  

Once upon a time...

I used to write a blog.

Historical records show that I did it with some frequency, though generally not with any particular or discernible regularity.  It was in this spot, or at least that's what I've been told.

I figured that Christmas and New Year's would pass in a little bit of a blur but half of January?  Yikes! 

 
You'll have to  forgive Rosie.  I couldn't sleep so I kept getting up to go do whatever.  She decided to just stay where she was and let me go off by myself.  Yes, she's forgiven me for the antlers, though you should know that it took her less than two seconds to figure how to get them off.  The elastic was pretty loose so one quick downward snap of her head and no more antlers for Rosie. 

I kept thinking about something to write about but never had a picture of any kind, and no matter how I tried to convince myself otherwise, my groceries just aren't as interesting as Laurie's.

Everybody here is fine, happy, well, rested and trying to stay warm.  While I am happily among the 30% of Americans not covered in white right now, it was still cold here.  It's warmer now but not nearly warm enough for me yet.  Soon.  At one point a few weeks ago, I heard from a friend in northern Michigan that it was warmer there than it was here in Phoenix!  That is just not right, especially because Kathy loves the cold.  The girl goes ice-boating! 

I also heard from a few of you who worried that I was out scavenging through landfills, looking for my ribbon.  Not to worry.  I don't want to get anyone in trouble by naming names but let it suffice to say that "someone" at a Pottery Barn store in Arizona saved all the ribbon left from the handful of remaining pre-wrapped packages when they did a floor-set change the day after Christmas.  While I still don't have any idea what I'm going to do with the ribbon, I've got enough bits and pieces to make me very happy. 

 

So what have I been up to?  I have been working on a couple of new quilts.  They're part of a class -- a mystery -- that I'm teaching next week in Utah so I can't show them to you until I get back.  This is what I can show you now.

 
That is the backing made with leftover pieces of a Layer Cake of Central Park.  It is at the quilter.  The binding should be interesting as I decided to cut bias strips from a half of a Layer Cake, they're about 6" long.  Wish me luck on that one. 

 
These were the triangles for another little quilt, they were cut from a fabulous charm pack I got from Primitive Gatherings.  It's called a Light and Dark Charm Pack and it contains 100 different squares measuring 5" x 5" -- 50 "light" and 50 "dark".

I also made this -- Primitive Pinwheels. 

 
While in Houston at Fall Market, I got a little kit and small Twister ruler from Lisa Bongean of Primitive Gatherings.  I had to make mine bigger, of course.  And change the border fabric.  I liked what she had included but since I had gotten kits for a couple of friends, I had to make mine different.  This is the coolest, most entertaining "instant gratification" project you can do.  Just sew the 3 1/2" x 3 1/2" squares together, cut them apart using the little ruler, sew them back together and this is what you get.  Primitive Pinwheels.  I don't want to start off the year by "enabling" you to break your resolutions but if there is one thing you really, really need... this is it. 

This past weekend, I went to a really nice presentation about Civil War Era quilts at Zoe's Trunk in Chandler, Arizona, with a friend.  The good news?  I learned a lot, saw some beautiful quilts -- most of which were were more than 130 years old, and I spent the day visitng with friends.  The bad news?  I saw a quilt that got me thinking and planning... by the time the presentation was over, I had come up with a block size, the required number of blocks, and the finished quilt size.  Now I just have to make 656 flying geese that finish at 1" x 2".  Okay, I don't have to, it's more of a "want to" sort of thing.   

What else to tell you about?  I've been making notes about the quilts I want to make this year.  Some are "complete" in that I know how big they'll be and what fabric I'll use.  Some are still chicken scratches that still need some fabric to get further along in the process.  I also "mapped out" my year a little bit, making sure that I hadn't agreed to be in two places at one time.  That's about as much planning as I do.  I think it's one of the cracks in my Type A personality, I still like to fly by the seat of my pants a bit.

Did you make resolutions?  I don't.  I think about the year and try to set a few goals.  The odd thing is that while I've never been good at making -- and especially keeping -- resolutions, I love reading about ahd following along while everybody else makes them.  I also enjoyed reading the "words" that some of you have chosen as your "plan" for the year.  That got me thinking about what my "word" would be and surprise, surprise, I couldn't come up with just one.  I know, you're shocked.  So I'll get back to you on the "word" thing.

I thought about signing up for the Stash Report.  I love the idea and I admit it, I love reading everybody's weekly tally.  True confessions that I can totally empathize without having to fess up my own indulgences.  Forgive me Sister but I have sinned... while I resisted the temptation of the apple in the garden of Eden, I couldn't resist all the new "fruit" from the Fig Tree...  But I just couldn't do it.  Never mind not wanting to tell you about what I bought, I'm not sure Ireally want to know exactly how much fabric I've got coming in the house.  Next thing you know, this kind of soul-searching honesty could lead to thinking twice before having three bites of last night's leftover casserole, two Frango mints and a Coke Zero for breakfast.  (I was in a hurry this morning, what can I say?)

So here I am.  It's mid-January.  I'm caught up on a lot of things and behind on others.  And that's all good because it means everything is right with my world.

Now it's time to go get dinner.  CostCo rotisserie chicken and some homemade mac 'n cheese.  And a Coke Zero.  Maybe my word should be continuity.  Or consistency.

See?  I still can't pick just one word.