Sew your own Seam

I meet a lot of quilters.  It is one of the hazards of owning a shop and selling long arm machines.  One of the things I become acutely aware of when I am conversing with any quilter with a modicum of skill is how truly terrible I am as quilter.  When I say terrible I refer to my points (or fault there of), the lack of attention to the seams direction when I press,  the fact that any top that I piece uses no less than six different colors of thread in the bobbin.  My list of faults goes on, and I am sure there some I can't even think of, but who cares.  The one thing that do right when I am quilting is that I enjoy myself.  So here is a my list of things to remember to keep it fun.

Looks good even in the dark.

Sew your own seam:  Some people find joy in the exactness of the cutting and the  perfection of their points,  others find the joy in the combination of colors they chose,  I even know of a lady who finds joy in a perfectly pressed quilt.  What ever it is about the quilting process you enjoy embrace it.  There is no shame in never picking out your own colors but always piecing together kits with a robot like perfection.  Just like there is no shame in having a 1/4 seam that looks like a DUI conviction but you have a truly original color combo.  Most quilters enjoy a balanced mix of things, but figure out what you like, not what you think you are supposed to like.



Pick your colors:  Just because your friends can sew straighter than you does not make them the color
police.  Just because I stand behind the counter does not mean I know what you like best.  Don't be afraid to pick your own colors and go out of bounds now and again.  Quilts are art and part of the artistic expression is the color.  I have seen some interesting quilts come across my long arm through the years, stuff I would never do nor recommend but they all had their own kind of beauty and the creator always loved them.  As long as you like it no one else really matters.

Made from scraps?

Let it go:  Some projects just don't seem to work out right, so you just have to let them go.  If you pulled the seam out a dozen times and still does not line up right and you hate the colors besides it might be time to let it go.  There is nothing wrong with ditching a project.  I think somewhere long ago in the same book of quilting laws that tells us never to mix batiks with cottons it was written: "Finish everything you start".  This rule may have been instituted by the crotchety old ladies that also walked to school two miles up hill both ways in the snow.  Quilting is art, not every canvas gets finished, in fact it has been speculated that Mona Lisa was painted on a re-used canvas.  So what shame is there in donating those "ugly blocks" to the local guild and starting something fresh?

If you are not smiling you are doing it wrong and  yes, smiling on the inside counts.

Displaying Your Work

Benedict Cumberbatch

Most quilters do not have enough beds in their home to display all of their work and some of our work does not belong on a bed so I sometimes get the question:  What is the best way to display quilts?


Tacks: I know many people that actually just tack them to the wall, like a teenage girl hanging a Benedict Cumberbatch poster.  I am not a fan of poking holes in my quilts with tacks, and some of the thicker quilts don't leave enough of the tack on the back side to securely attach it to the wall.

Rod and Sleeve

Rod and Sleeve:  This is the method we used in the shop for years.  Sew a sleeve on the back of your quilt then use a closet rod or some other rod type thing  stick it in the sleeve then mount the rod on the wall.  Drapery rods will tend not to work as the sleeve does not allow use of middle support bracket and many rods are not strong enough to support a quilts weight with out that middle bracket.  The big down side to this method is the whole sleeve thing.  It is a pain to put on.

Cafe Clips

Draper Rods and Cafe Clips:  This is the method we like the best here at the store.  It looks classy and it is really easy to change quilts out.  The one thing to keep in mind when doing this at home is that drapery hard ware was designed to use on window casings so if you are going to mount a drapery rod in the middle of you living room wall be sure to use some drywall anchors and the proper screws.

I would love to here some other ideas for displaying quilts.  If you have one that works please post in the comments below.  Stitch on, and remember if its not fun you are doing it wrong.