My quilting space is a jumble of mishmash-ed old furniture and make-do tables. My cutting table is, in fact, our old dining room table. But it is really low and uncomfortable for me to cut at. I have to bend my 5′8″ back practically in half to reach across the table when I am cutting long strips. Definitely not a lot of fun when you are cutting 4+ quilts at a time!
So the options are to either buy a new table or find a way to make this one work. Being a thrifty Yank, I decided there had to be a way to make this one the height I needed and more ergonomically correct.
Viola! Place 4 bed risers under the legs and I get an added 6″ to the table leg height. Not only do they do the trick, but I got them for 1/2 price, with a gift card! He he he – I didn’t pay a penny for them!
I wish I could claim total credit for this clever idea, but it was at the suggestion of my friend Gerry that I try this. Thanks, Gerry!
The song goes something like this:
“Over the river and through the snow, to the photographer’s house I go. The car knew the way, to carry the quilts, but didn’t count on the icy road!”
On Friday, I made my way to Williston (about 45 minutes down the interstate) to Jeff Schneiderman Photography so I could have photos taken of some of my newest quilts. Jeff does such an incredible job photographing artist’s work for jurying, promotional purposes, and sheer bragging rights that it is well worth the drive. I have recommended him to several of my friends and fellow quilters and would recommend him to anyone wanting photos taken – for any reason.
Anyways, I get to his home and tun into the driveway. Being a transplanted Vermonter, it did not dawn on me that I may want to reconsider the decision of trying to get up the driveway, but I forged ahead. The driveway is quite steep with a sharp turn (almost 90 degrees) at the top and was coated with a lovely, slippery, thick layer of ice. As you have no doubt already guessed, I got about halfway up the driveway before my tires started spinning. I tried to brake, but that did not help – I kept sliding backwards and turning sideways. After about 10 feet of sliding, I finally stopped when my rear bumper plowed into the snowbank.
So, I grab my cell phone and head up the drive to meet Jeff coming down. I am all set to call the tow truck, but he just says “Nah, we can get it out!”. Bah humbug. This means work. Lots of work. Possibly sweating. Eeeew!
One and a half hours later, my jeans are soaked, sweat is running into my eyes (ouch!), and I am breathing like a horse that should be shot, we finally get the car out! Yippee!! Needless to say, I will not be going up his driveway to pick up the quilts when they are ready. I’ll meet him at the bottom. 
First, I must thank my Grandmother who has been so very patient in waiting for her Christmas present. Yes, I said Christmas present. So you now know exactly how patient she is. This year I wanted to give everyone handmade quilted bags for the holidays, but I ran out of time. Grandma (or Gigi as her 7 great greandkids call her) unfortunately drew the short straw.
Now that all of my commitments are done with, and the new bobbin casing I needed finally came in, I get to work on her gift. First, I found this really cool fabric at one of the local quilt shops and thought that doing some bobbin work in a complimentary design would be really fun. I have never tried bobbin work before and have always been really interested in it.
I took some deco bond and cut it to the size of the body of the bag and fused it to the background - a really yummy dark blue with rain-like speckles on it. Then I drew the design I wanted in pencil on the deco bond. Last night I started the bobbin work on all of the green thingies and I say it looks awesome! Using pearl cotton, I have outlined all of the leaves and grasses and will go back when I do the quilting and fill them in.
I decided to do the bobbin work first, without the batting, so I would be able to better hide the thread ends. Using a tapestry needle, I pulled the long tails of the pearl cotton through to the reverse and knotted them off. Then I coated the ends with permanent fabric glue to make them stay. The person who taught a guild workshop in this did her bobbin work on the finished piece and used Elmer’s glue on the ends. I totally do not like this idea as I am a big believer in the power of the washing machine. Why wash by hand when you have a machine to do all of the dirty work? (The same rule applies to dishwashers). Also, I hope my way will hide all of the mess of the loose ends to give the completed piece a better look.
Here’s a little list I put together when I was supposed to be working. Ah, well.
You might be a quilter if…
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ONE of your sewing machines is worth more than your car.
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You spent more on your stash last year than you did on groceries.
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Your husband does most of the cooking and you eat it.
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When you moved your quilting magazine collection, the sag in the floor went away.
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Your children see you outside your sewing room and yell “Stranger! Stranger!”.
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The last time you ate at the dining room table was when you finished packing for quilt camp.
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Your sewing room walls color coordinate with the buttons on your sewing machine.
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You can design a quilt, calculate the yardage, and teach others how to make it but can’t help your child with math homework.
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You have more UFOs than you have had birthdays.
And finally…
10. You talked your husband into a time share in Paducah because it would be cheaper.
Please feel free to add to this list if you can think of any other “You might be a quilter if…”
