Qubed with Our Friend Kaye England

Last night, several of us at Pine Needles got together and did our own test drive of Kaye England's technique for sewing together a quilt top. This process has always fascinated me because it is a chance to sew the quilt top together in one sitting...that is, one doesn't have to keep running to the design wall to pick up separate units. You pick up all the pieces at one time and then through a system of stacking the blocks and positioning yourself in your sewing space, you then pick up and sew the sets together into units of two. Then you sew into units of four and next into groups of eight. The goal is to cross-lock seams so that all of the seams are not all dragging in the same line. Sewing units in cross-locks will help our quilts hang more squarely as well as give a balance to the design of the quilt.

Each staff member selected a group of fabrics and cut them into 64 squares so that the layout would work as 8 squares across and 8 squares down. The quilts will be available for Kaye England's class on Saturday. We will also be using the kits for future classes on teaching this technique. It was great fun to see the fabrics that "spoke" to each staff member. We also challenged everyone to finish quilt their quilts using different techniques. We anticipate people will be using embroidery machines, BSR, applique embellishment and even fancy threadwork. This is going to be a lot of fun to see what blooms up in VIP, Very Inspired People. Free for anyone to attend with five different time options, you will want to look into joining us for this great time to learn. I ALWAYS learn lots in VIP from my Sew Inspired Pals.

We each used the floor as a design wall. Certainly if one had a design wall that is how we would normally put it together picking up each row. We watched Kaye's DVD, Qubed, for our coaching. It was fun to watch Vicki Tracy having a race with Kaye England on piecing on a serger vs. a sewing machine. What rollicking fun this was to watch. The whole DVD is an inspiration for one of my favorite quilt block techniques....squares and quadrangles. Simple? Indeed. But Stunning!

We eached finished our quilt tops and then went out for dinner and a good chance to laugh and talk through what we learned. This is not a technique that most will master the first time around. However, we all could see the great value in refining our sewing skills by working through Qubed Techniques. I posted a slide show of our progress on our web site. Check it out.

Last night when I came home and went to bed, I couldn't get to sleep thinking about the technique we had just experimented with, I drew out the blocks and played with the configurations. It came to me that this technique will work fabulously for blocks as well as whole quilts. I am also planning to work this through with charm packs for fun and simple quilts.

Most people don't really understand how we sewers can be so interested in putting a quilt together and not always so anxious to finish our quilts. It is about the process and not always the product. However, in this project (Qubed), I can really see that this is like creating a puzzle and getting good results regardless of how exactly the puzzle goes together. I don't do Soduko, but I do like to work my brain on puzzles like this!

If you can't make the Saturday event with Kaye England, look for the coming classes with our staff. Make sure you check into attending our Friday party with Kaye England. She is hosting our kick-off party for Be There, Get Your Square. Along with getting 28 fat quarters in Kaye's fabric collection, Back Home Again, those participating in the party and the Be There event will get the patterns for making Kaye's 12-blocks for Back Home Again and specials and fun.

Another great and fun event I have been participating in is a web site with a group of other shop owners, My Quilt Village. Presently, we have been working on a blog about our first quilts. I just finished reading all the posts to date. Treat yourself to a walk through the blog and be eligible to win a prize. Go to www.myquiltvillage.com

All the Best to You, jill
P.S. Do you wanna join my sewing puzzle?!

Denim Collars

I have been playing with sewing on a denim collar of a ready-made jacket. This was an incredibly rewarding experience in the learning phase. Even once I got it sewn out, I can say I learned a lot. I had a lot to show my friends about what to do and what not to do. Isn't this the heart of an artist...enjoying the process without having to count the final project!?

My first steps were to put the denim collar in a scanner. I scanned one half of the collar. I never knew that denim jacket collars are not straight across. This one has a wave in it. I imagine this is to accomodate for the bulk that happens when the collar turns in the back...whoa....what a great engineering detail by garment designers. One of my favorite alteration people taught me years ago how a hem may not be straight across on a hanger. That may seem incredibly obvious to those of you who are couture sewers, but it is real revelation to those of us who are novices. For me, this is a "WAY AWESOME" concept. How brilliant that a maternity dress would need a hem longer in the front than in the back. Okay...so I am way past maternity-wear....but didn't think you wanted to hear me say, "my dress to cover my beer belly would need to be longer in the front."

Scan the collar, upload it to my Bernina Designer Plus software. I then drew a line that would be sewn FIRST onto Stabil-stick. The line would give me the placement for my denim collar. Next, when my sewing machine prodded me with "Color Finished. Attach New Thread," I took that nudge to tell me to add new medium...sticky glue to hold the collar in place. I love playing tricks like this on my sewing machine. She doesn't know I am now inserting a totally challenging project. Then I dampened the stabilizer to stick the collar down. The important part here is...LET IT DRY COMPLETELY. While I was working on this project, a friend showed me a project she had stitched on Stabil-stick. The thread gummed up on the back. She was confused until I asked her if she had let it dry completely. This stuff is like glue and if you won't let it dry completely, that glue is going to force through and catch thread or bobbin thread or (perish the thought) get into the mechanisms of the sewing machine. I am sure the technicians wouldn't be wild about that.

At this point (dry stabilizer and solidly placed collar), my sewing machine doesn't know it is stitching through a 3-D piece. And my Bernina doesn't care that she is stitching through several layers of denim. I used a denim needle on my project which may seem obvious but I was concerned about the density. Had I had thread breaking, I might has switched to a top-stitch needle as it has a larger eye on the needle. I didn't have that issue.

I did find that I would have had a better result if I'd have used a cut-away in the Stabil-stick rather than a tear-away. I always seem to forget that denim has a fair amount of stretch to it and would get better results on more dense stitch-outs if I used the cut-away rather than tear-away. Also, after watching Ashley's presentation at Embroidery Secrets, I would like to try changing the stitch density on designs that I stitch out on denim or other heavier fabrics.

When our friends come to Embroidery Secrets, it is always GREAT learning for everyone. I am so incredibly amazed at how much improvement I have seen in peoples' stitch outs. If you come to (or want to come to) Embroidery Secrets, it is always free to attend and is held monthly on the first Tuesday of the month and the same session is repeated on Wednesday morning. While we use Bernina machines, the designs and the teaching we provide are good for all machine embroidery.

This next month we are starting our Embroidery Challenge of the month. Just stitch out something with the circles that Roxanne has digitized for everyone. While she introduced hers for quilting, there are so very many things you can do with circles...embellish denim, sew with bobbin work, create trapunto, twin-needle, shadow applique, texture layers... Then everyone who brings their design work to May's Embroidery Secrets will be eligible for a drawing for a $50 gift card. This isn't a contest. You just have to stitch them out and bring them to E-Secrets. If you want to participate, email Roxanne at roxanne@pineneedles.net. Be sure to tell her what format you need for your sewing machine and she will email it back to you.

Have a Happy Easter....Hope you get lots of happy eggs in your basket...jill

My Real Office

For all of my work career, I have never had a real office of my own. I usually shared a closet we called an office with a couple of people or whatever space I could carve out for a card table and a file cabinet. When we planned our new space in the new store, I really dragged my feet on a place of my own. Fear that I wouldn't use it. Anxiety that it would become the great dumping grounds all stopped me. Finally, it was clear that the builders and my husband didn't understand the sense of my reluctance and they carved out a space for my office. I tried several times to give it away but now after a year of being in it, I am finally accustom to my own office. I am even slowly letting it become my place. Getting furniture took a long time. Putting files in the cabinets is definitely a work in progress. I get lonely sometimes and have to wander out. I am likely a more social creature than I think I am....as I would much prefer to be in the main office where I could be in the "happening place."

However, from my office, I get to talk to all of you. Keep up on the details in the world and work on plans for your sewing, for my vision for the store and meet with the Amazing Team Pine Needles as they push on to be inspired and to be inspiring.

Occasionally, I share the office with my pet and Therese's, Macy and Olive. They seem to think they own the world....even my desk!! They took to trying to send emails out via my computer. Dogs with attitude!

My office has grown on me and it looks more like me everyday....scary in a way. However, as with all of our pet spaces....they need to be a sanctuary for us to collect our thoughts and find our creative best. To that end, I am very grateful to my husband for keeping on me to embrace this office! He still thinks there needs to be a place for a recliner (augh) that he can take an afternoon nap. Recliner and my space just don't go together. So sometime I would imagine I will find him curled up on the floor with a quilt or two.

jill

Art Quilting

Some of you may know that my dream as a child was to move to Paris, live in a flat and create art...paint, draw...roam the streets. While other girls were writing out their name as "Mrs. Jane Smith", I was trying to figure out how I was going to muster up the resources to fly myself to Paris. Doesn't sound like most visions of a young girl, but I can tell you it was heady stuff for me. I am sure I emerged into this world dazed and amazed by the visions of the world around me. Yes, I can even find splendor in the texture of places that most people find distracting. Urban images are very powerful to me.

Recently, our family went to see RENT. I loved it. I squirm in my seat at the thought of the visual and auditory and emotional splash of it all. I am not a linear thinker. My life rarely has gone in a straight direction...more an emergence in multiple directions. So, I think something like RENT fits my brain well. I don't need to know the whole story when the show is done. Don't have a need to have everything resolved, neat or tidy. While I look like I am pretty predictable, those who know me well, know that I am definitely a Bohemian artist in my soul. Not that that should cause anyone to worry. I just want to make sure you understand my next rambling about a new explosion of vision at the store. I loved the texture and color that emerged on the stage, especially of the costuming. I was born to express myself in fabric and thread. It just took me a little longer to embrace that as my medium of choice.

Ashley and I are likely kindred spirits and we have long been talking about venturing more into art quilting. This isn't a linear path and we wanted to make sure we weren't leading people into thinking there were right and wrong answers. After a lot of dreaming and talking, we developed a series of classes that Ashley started presenting recently called Art Quilting 101, 201 and 301. These are classes that are journeys.

Of course, in my job, I must practice some semblance of order which means I get to pay the bills, order the products, keep staff on task and keep our communication with our visitors consistent and fairly reliable. Other than making sure that my shoes are in the right place in my closet, this is about the limit of the organization I can stand.

Then when I am tempted by a class such as I witnessed recently at the store, I just want to escape my little office and go play with the other people who are busy reaching inside their minds for inspiration and expression. We had some very brave and inspired people emerge from the store after our first segment of Art Quilting classes.

Trudy recently returned from a Carribean vacation. She selected fabrics for her vision that represented the sunset and the flora from photographs she brought back with her. This just made me happy to see the fabrics sprayed out on the ironing board. Actually, I think Trudy was so inspired that just selecting and playing with the fabrics was a delight to her. I think Trudy is moving along the ironing board with a hot set of dance steps as she is remembering the waves beating on the beachfront. Take us back with you, Trudy!

Kay was busy interpretting fields from an overhead view of the world. A true gardener and artist of floral and greenery, Kay leans towards landscapes of fields and their subtle but distinct shading. The look on her face speaks volumes.

Valerie joined our Art Quilting class recently and did her own version of an undulating horizon of taupes and grays. Valerie often refers to herself as a novice of sewing. Yet, she constantly dazzles us with her adventuresome spirit. Recently, she purchased camisoles from the intimate apparel department and made them into Cami-totes for her family members. Complete with lace and embellishments, these were stunning versions of art that combined her garment skills with quilted pieces she has been exploring in War of the Scraps. Truly and artist with a new kind of paintbrush.

Mary is always open for a new adventure. While she typically works in structured piecing and is incredibly skilled at taking the tiniest bits and pieces and meshing them together into powerful graphic interpretations, Mary embraced this exercise wholeheartedly and explored the variety of stitch options her machine offers. A close-up of Mary's work introduced this blog.

Thanks ever so much for sharing a bit of your journey with our readers. I hope this is just the beginning of your new journey and anticipate that each of you will have more to share with us as you continue your trek into your own imagination.

All the Best to You,
jill

Design Wall...AKA: Pool Table

When we moved to our current home, there was a large room in the basement that screamed "Sewing Room" to me. Of course, it also was large enough to accomodate Henry's pool table and the air hockey table. After some wrangling where I tried to figure out what other rooms the pool table could go and live, I forfeited "some" space. Of course, the space I had calculated was a corner. However, the only real place for it to go was centered under the lamp/fan in the room. So the pool table moves over to encroach upon "my space." Henry feels a little bad about that and we agree to disagree on the space.

I have to give him a LOT of credit because he has been a great sport about this. Both the pool table and the air hockey table are more often covered with our sewing stuff. Even when we move the stuff off the table, no one growls that the table is sporting errant threads and remnants of our projects. They brush it off and play pool happily.

Now, the TV is on my side of the room and Henry's chairs are on the other side of the room. After years of farming, his hearing has changed a bit. So, I get to be in between him and the TV when we are in the basement together. I am thinking speakers behind HIS chair might be the solution here.

I think it is great that as we age, we decide which battles are worth a battle and which just have a different solution. My goal is that when we get to the nursing home we can still share a room...wonder if the pool table will be coming with us. I know the sewing machine will be there!

All the Best to you.....jill
p.s. I think a pool table makes a great backdrop for spools of thread. YLI Vineyard in the left pocket!

A Bad Day Sewing is Better Than...

Therese and I spent the day sewing, actually machine embroidering. We think we can document every mistake in the book from our work yesterday. What I loved about it was that neither of us got discouraged. We just kept saying, "Our customers are going to love knowing we did THAT." "...and THAT" "...and THAT".

The more notable lessons we learned are as follows:













1. When using an embroidery machine, be sure to tighten the embroidery hoop before running the machine. My Bernina 830 is reliable enough to have stitched out most of the design before it finally decided stitching a design that wasn't tightened was quite enough. Funny thing about this error is that I did this twice!! (See how I salvage this one at Embroidery Secrets.)

2. When one leaves the sewing room to go to lunch, consider that your machine might run out of bobbin thread. (Note this design has stopped...all that empty space to the left was supposed to be filled with stitching.) While this seems obvious to most sewers, many of us enjoy the privilege of having a bobbin sensor that stops the machine when the bobbin runs out of thread. However the key to that is to engage the sensor. That would mean that the sensor is located in the DOOR of the bobbin case. To properly engage a bobbin sensor, CLOSE the bobbin case door. Good thing I can walk my stitches backwards to catch up with my brilliance!

3. I have always taken great pride in my grammar and spelling abilities. Having had a grandmother who drilled me on spelling and some of the most rigorous English teachers, poor spelling is a bother to me. After a full stitch out, I proceeded to letter this flap of a handbag without a spell checker! My students in embroidery classes are going to feel so much better about their own sewing experience. Perhaps we should just say we are sewing these mistakes so that our customers can see how to NOT embroider.
4. When operating an embroidery machine, it is very easy to get engrossed in the stitching process. After having gotten our hair caught in a needle bar from getting too close or (my personal favorite) trying to clip jump stitches WHILE the machine is running (good thing we are married to sewing machine technicians), we know how far away to stay away from a performing embroidery machine. Plus, our new Bernina 830 rocks and rolls along so fast and beautifully that we have real respect for her. However, that is not to say that we remember to wind up all our threads properly and keep them away from bobbin winders and fly wheels. Yummy...thread wads! I think we will quit calling it "wasting thread" and start calling it "collecting textures for our art quilting endeavors." To that end, I
think we will start calling fabric cutting "errors" and sewing "boo-boos" by different names..."creative launches"..."opportunities for expression." Rather than see these as shortcomings, we can look at our sewing fiascos as windows of opportunity. Whatever the direction of our sewing journey, Therese and I know we can always count on our faithful pets, Macy and Olive to monitor every step along the way. While the "girls" don't yet sew, we trust they have enough respect to not drag off important parts of our newest ventures into textile collection. And if one of them chews up a sewing project, we could just needle felt it into wool, knowing that the chewing made it a more pliable fiber to be used in a new developing art form.
For those of you who want to know the rest of the story of these poor-fated embroidery experiences, know that Therese and I rescued every one of these sewing experiences and in many cases took our learning and will help our students avoid these mistakes. If we can't get you to avoid our pitfalls, we will surely teach you how to laugh at them and to take yourself a little less seriously. Make sure you check out the calendar at our store and register for the free events such as VIP and Embroidery Secrets.
We are presently getting ready for VIP over the next three days. At lunch Therese admitted that she had little to share that was "finished" and she felt bad about that. However, I reminded her that "finished" is a relative term when it comes to artists. Further, finishing something doesn't mean as much to an artist as "being in process." We are CERTAINLY in process and having a grand time on this journey.
Stay tuned for more antics from my sewing room!
All the Best to You, jill

Grow Some Inspiration!

Whoa....thanks for commenting on my last blog! I didn't realize that I had readers. I thought this was my DEAR DIARY segment. But I also remembered that the real reason I write is because I love to write. I wanted to be a writer from when I was a little kid. I love the innovations in technology that have happened. I can be a writer without having to find a publisher.

This last week I got to experience what I tell my customer friends to experience. I bought myself a Bernina 830 machine. This was like the birthday present that I always wanted...and she is a dream. She makes me happy everytime I see her. I invited my daughter Therese over to play in my sewing room with me. I don't think most of us played enough as children. So, we all need more play days. I love getting older because I live with less obligation and more freedom and give myself permission to play.

My play-date comes over and she takes over my new toy, the Bernina 830. I think I pouted a bit. But, I tried to play nice by finding other things to sew on. I took out my embroidery software and lined up things to sew out...that would be playing with other toys while letting one's playmate play with the prize toy. I even went to my other sewing machine and sewed up some things that I keep nearby. That would be playing nice.

We used the redwork florals and used the Endless Embroidery feature to place several florals. Then we worked with random designs and stitched out the designs onto sateen fabrics for projects that Therese is working on for Embroidery Secrets. That machine stitched fast and clean and beautifully. The Jumbo Hoop is secure and easy to maneuver.

At any rate, I enjoyed the experience of watching Therese play with the 830 and learned so very much. We had a blast. Our puppies (Schnauzers, Macy and Olive) romped around the sewing room with joy. Chewing on scraps of fabric and chasing each other around is their sport. The best part was that we learned all over again how much we love this machine. Not only is embroidery phenomenal but this is a very sleek operating machine. The bobbin system is amazingly clean and strong. I sewed for many years on a Bernina 950, a home industrial and find the new Bernina 830 has a hook system much like my home industrial. Fabulous stitch performance and reliability. Plus, this one carries 40% more thread than standard bobbins.

Over the weekend I had a chance to sew on my new machine. I digitized the Two Hour Tulip Tote in software. I then enlarged the design to fit into the Jumbo Hoop. Talk about amazing. I imported stippling in the bag. I also filled it with lacework stitching. In the next couple days I am going to create some other bases with fill stitches from the Designer Plus software. I am excited to be presenting these topics at our coming Embroidery Secrets and VIP. We love presenting at these sessions because they give us a chance to share our inspiration.

Sewing can be viral because inspiration is so contagious. This is my medium....and writing is my voice. Thanks for joining me on the journey. Hope to see you in coming VIP and Embroidery Secrets.

Be Sew Inspired....jill

p.s. Always seek new ideas and inspiration....keep looking for the sparklers in your day. Be a visionary. There is so much to celebrate!

Techno-Anxiety

Okay...I am just gonna say it. Either my posts are incredibly boring or my readers are terribly afraid to comment. Or perhaps...you don't really know how to post a comment to my blog. I suppose that might really make sense since the three of you who tell me you read my blog actually also tell me that you are terrified of your computer.

So, this one is for you...

There is no need to fear your computer because...it is likely under warranty. It also will not stalk you. Fear is incredibly paralyzing in this arena.

My precious husband HATES technology. He has figured out the DVD player and a master at VCR (even though that language is headed to extinction). But, he truly believes the computer is out to get him. I do understand his fear because I have had to listen to it the whole time I have been immersed in computer technology.

Was I born with this gene? Absolutely NOT. I am mathematically challenged...incredibly challenged. Since most computer core is mathematical, I knew early on that I was in disability zone for myself. The reason I am not afraid of computers is because I am incredibly humble about my ignorance. I will admit to anyone what I do not know.

I also am not terribly afraid of breaking the computer because I have always owned them myself and knew that if I broke it, I would pay to fix it. This sounds terribly simple but it is a learned behavior.

I do not give a persona to my computers. They are not out to get me. My computer does not send me a Viagra ad because it thinks I need spark in my love life. (My husband takes this very personally...howling at the computer "Who is sending that to me?!")

Fear stops us from thinking. My first computer that dumped my life out in no-man's land did it because I didn't appreciate the process of backing up my files. The anxiety of losing my files was so painful for me. However, I did not yell at the computer that it had intentionally gobbled up my files. Because by nature, I accept that I make a lot of mistakes, I tend to accept changes fairly well and am usually seeking out ways of upending protocols to improve. Next time you feel your blood pressure rise over your computer, stop and remind yourself that there is not a person inside that computer. The computer has no way of reading your emotions and deciding to irritate you. More important than that, READ THE MESSAGE on the screen of the computer and try your best to interpret it. Also, remember that if you push the wrong button, the computer will not explode...you will not suddenly turn to dust.

For sewers, I can explain this to you best in these terms. If you are sewing along and you see that your top thread is not connecting and making stitches, you check your bobbin. If you are sewing along and the machines makes a loud crack and no stitches are going in, you look at the needle, see that it is broken and you replace it. If you are having trouble figuring out why a loop forms on the back or front of the fabric and you have tried tension adjusting, you would then bring your machine in to our store to have the technician help you sort out the problem. These are all the same processes as one would use with a computer. Each of them have to do with NOT giving a persona to the sewing machine and deciding that it has taken on the personality traits of your former junior high enemy who is embodying your technology and coming back to haunt you. (Notice how you knew just what I was saying in that statement and felt the same anxiety!)

To be inspired to create, we each need to be free of self-doubt, anger and fear. I give you permission to face your computer or sewing machine or big project at work or worst problem at home and realize that it can only control you if you personify it and let it take you by the ear.

So, there's my pop-psychology on technology and creative inhibition. If you post a comment to this blog, you will not suddenly receive dozens of emails. You will just add your voice to the collective wisdom of blog-dom.

All the BEST to you, jill

p.s. The fabric show I am sharing with you is from the collection FLOWER SHOW from Benartex. The top one is my John Deere tractor combination. The next is my personal favorite that I like to call Vibrant and Vital. The last is my Sunrise collection.

The Bolt is Over

Super Bolt Sale at the store is over...in essence. The soldiers of empty bolt boards haunted our office when we got in to work today. It was a good reminder of a lot of fun we had. There are some fabrics left in the back room. The staff and I went and perused the remainders. We were shocked at the very useable fabrics that are still waiting to go home with people. In fact, a couple of them started buying again for themselves. It is so interesting what discount fabric can inspire in people. However, when I say discount fabric, I really mean good fabric that is on sale.

When I first started quilting, I didn't have choices for fabric. I bought the fabric for my first quilt at a chain store and made a monster queen sized bed spread from a double Irish chain pattern called Quilt in a Day. (What a sense of humor!!). Nine years later, my daughter's friend had spilled nail polish on it before I even had finished hand quilting it. Yes, I was taught to hand quilt it in a frame. My kids would lay down for their naps and I would go in and sing songs to them while they dozed off and work on the borders of the quilt. Being a garment sewer, I used my new (then) favorite gadget....Threadfuse and attached the binding. I didn't have anyone to show me and thought that made sense.

I had actually started in the business of making quilted items for sale before I ever finished that quilt. As a garment sewer, I created this same way. Usually I started Easter dresses on Good Friday....often night. I am not condoning this. I used to make all the Christmas presents. Now...I have rules. I only make things I want to make and when I want to make them. I create because it makes me happy not because my sister wants a quilt for Christmas. In fact, if someone asks me for a quilt (which rarely anyone does---I have understanding and appreciative family and friends), I suggest that they cook for my family for at least a month and consider cleaning my house at least four times in a month as that would be about equal share for the energy I would put into a project-on-demand. As I have aged, I have now added a one hour massage once a week...by a professional. Suffice it to say most think I am kidding. I am not.

Create because you want to create....not because you have to! If you have to sew of obligation, set a timer, call it your job and be sure you reserve space for your better creative energies.

All the Best to you, jill

ps.....How does this inspire you? I love morning glories and this piece is really speaking to me. So, try a blog and give me your opinion. This is Benartex's new fabric line called Flower Show. The staff is teasing me about it, but it is metaphorically growing on all of us.

The Artist in Me...and You

I always loved art class. Fortunately I grew up the 60s (there you have it…I am old in the blog world but very proud to be this age…I had to work hard to get here and would never want to be 20 again). Most of my art teachers in high school and middle school (the 70s) had come through Woodstock and Peter Max and the Beatles. What a privilege this was to work with art teachers (who the other teachers thought were a little wonky) who really understood that creativity will come out of everyone in the right environment. The more one liberates themselves to embrace that creativity, the more rapid the growth in our brain and very soul to not only find creative solutions but to express them.

Being pegged as the dreamer type of kid who liked art and reading, I had the privilege to like what I wanted because artists and dreamers don’t seem to be on a fast track, and we seem to resist being corralled. Most people don't think we will make much of anything in the world; so we are (for the most part) left to our own means. Relatives and friends keep pushing us to do something constructive with our time and our hands. Mind you, I learned how to sit in my seat, not be seen and try to stay out of the teachers’ radar (all likely reasons I became a teacher myself as a need to free those creative souls in the world). And I enjoyed my years as a teacher immensely. I wasn't big on a lot of rules. My biggest peeve rule was teachers who expect kids to ask to go to the bathroom. I always told the kids if you have to go to the bathroom...don't ask my permission....just go. So suffice it to say, I loved the other teachers who taught me how to bring out the big ideas in kids and help them find the biggest dreams and visions. See my p.s. at the end of this blog and you will get an idea of the kind of teacher I am....that's the kind of person I am.

In art class, I learned color theory not in a dry way but rather by painting and listening to my art teachers lavish over curious color explorations. I was especially drawn to pop art and studies of shapes. When I was a kid, I wanted to be an author and illustrator. I remember writing a book when I was around 7 that I was so very proud of. I showed it to my teacher who taught me the word plagarism—big word for a little kid but I got the picture real fast. Indeed, the book was written about a cartoon I had seen. While it didn’t stop me from writing or drawing, it made an indelible impact on my life as far as observing and respecting the creative efforts of others.

So, why didn’t I become an artist? My real dream growing up was to move to Paris and live in a flat and be an artist and roam the streets studying great artwork. I don’t have real knowledge of any of this but I suppose someone told me Paris was the place to be if you're an artist. Or maybe I was affected by the guys wearing the beret and the paint palette on their hand in the cartoons (see a pattern here?!). Have you ever seen the movie “Christmas Story” where the kid is told he can’t have a bb gun because he’ll shoot his eye out…I suppose that is what happened to my dream of being an artist? It didn’t seem like a logical way to support myself and I knew I had to do that (a very clear message since I wouldn’t likely ever want someone else to support me).

Now before you get sad for me, let me tell you that I enjoy the most creative life and always have even though I didn’t get to Paris or have a degree in art history and a minor in painting. I have had the privilege of expressing my creativity in finding creative solutions and interspersing whimsy and inspiration in every walk I have had the privilege of journeying.

But the best part is I now play in a medium that has all kinds of flexibility and expression…FABRIC!! Recently, we got the trunk show from Blue Underground. Talk about an explosion and exploration of color. What a fun time this has been to study these quilts. Some of them I like to call two-steps. Taking two complementary colors and matching them singularly. Then there are the ones that do a bit more of a color dance. And some throw all abandon to the wind.

They were so inspiring that I finally bought myself a couple of bundles of batiks that have been crying out for creation. I made Modern Thinking and then took the leftovers and made up Circus. These are my sun room quilts….comforting and the colors of nature. I love it, love, love it. Some days I just wander around to the corner where they are displayed at Pine Needles just to stroke and enjoy them.

The designers of Blue Underground are brave and inspiring. An artist knows they really have reached the viewer when the viewer launches off and expressees themselves in their creative venue. Perhaps that is why sewing is contagious and so affecting to so many of us!

All the Best to You
jill

p.s. This last note is tribute to a quilt after my own heart. See the back of the Jester's Court quilt. Black and white....fabulous finish to a bright expression. I think if I were a quilt, this is the quilt I would be....a clear and concrete side and a playful side. But even the clear and concrete side of my life is whimsy and play.

Thread...thread....thread

What did we do with those piles of thread? We experimented and played with it. We captured the thread and packed it down in layers. What I did was process this. I thread played. I didn't finish anything, I played. I had a great time.

As a child I know I didn't get enough time to play in a play room. I didn't get enough freedom to play. Those comments aren't an indictment (yep, my mom reads this). They are a fact of my personality and my role in our family. As an "adult" (I use that term loosely) I play so much more now. I don't get all wrung out over finishing things as finishing doesn't make me nearly as happy as discovering.

I think that is why I so loved the work that I do. I get to see so many people who are in all stages of creating. The fun is in the process. The product is usually an expression of the freeing process of creating. My favorite gifts are those quilts and garments and home decorating that brought me a good deal of joy to create. However, I often need a deadline to finish things...maybe it is the wedding coming up or the baby coming or the show coming up. I think I often don't finish things in a timely manner because I am the kid who just wants to keep playing outside while the sun is setting. I just don't want to come inside even to have supper!

So, while it sounds like I missed out on playing when I was a kid, I think I get to play every day. I love it. We say SEW INSPIRED at Pine Needles. My blog title Jill Inspired expresses what I hope for my life work. I want to inspire you. For the store, I want to be the place that inspires you to sew. We have done a good job if we inspire you! And what better happiness can one derive from from their playtime than to know that you inspire someone else to enjoy the child inside of them.

Enjoy the work of the thread artist, Cathy Franks . She is the great inspiration that came to Kaye England's College with us and taught us how to mess with thread. And...yes, they let us use a razor to shred the thread! It was fun. Will you see a coming class on it? Sure. Ashley and I have been brainstorming how we can make this work for you. But remember to put your play shoes on to come out and play with us. (Do you remember your play coat and your play shoes?) Perhaps you should have play clothes for when you go to sew. Perhaps you should adopt a play time when you go to your sewing room. If you can't do this for yourself, I will be the mom that authorizes you to go and play and not to have to finish. I also give you permission to not have to clean up your play area. While there is a time to clean up and sort out, some of you don't need to do it every day.

As the mom of five kids, I started off with putting their toys away every day. I also thought I would not raise responsible people unless I taught them to tidy up every day and to sort their things out. Funny thing is that having five kids, you learn that your sanity is at stake when you start thinking like this. One of my kids favorite winter past-times was making a tent that covered our whole family room and encompassed the dining room. While it was easy for me to remember when they did this, I now am reminded by them that I let them leave the tent up for many days at a time. We even juggled the dining room around so that we could still eat as a family and not disturb their tent. They also tell how we would set places at the table for their imaginary friends. This is the kind of playing we all deserve. We all deserve to play with total abandon and to have friends who encourage healthy play times. If we are happy and healthy in our play, our worlds are less stressed. We don't take things so seriously as to drain our creativity.

It is bitter winter in the midwest....time to play and set up your tent and burrow in!

All the BEST to you, jill

My "Free" Time

What I sew in my "free" time (like I can gauge that anyway!) is usually a mystery even to me. Some days I like to sew like a robot...triangle to triangle, square to square, miles of machine quilting. Actually my favorite is machine quilting. I am not the greatest skier on my feet but in my mind I ski like I machine quilt, swooping and soaring across the canvas of my work. Of course, with my BSR (Bernina Stitch Regulator), I just do my thing and it does its thing keeping my stitches in similar length.


While I was at Kaye England's event, Kaye's College in Indianapolis, we had a checkerboard challenge. That was a lot of fun. While I didn't "win" the top viewer's choice, my option was popular. More importantly it was a lot of fun. The circles in my challenge piece were designed for people who like to make yo-yos. I don't really like to make yo-yos so I re-designed mine into fun circles that I appliqued. So, what do you think?
At our next VIP at the store, we will be having a challenge you will want to participate in. Make sure you register to come to VIP. It is the most fun you can have for FREE just about anywhere. At this month's VIP, we are going to be announcing WHO our guest presenter is for Be There 2009. Plus, we will be offering up our Challenge for February. You can find out the details about VIP at our web site.

The other thing that we did this last week that amazed me was to DESTROY traditional threads and made them amazing. We worked with fiber capturing and slash and trash techniques. It was fun just trashing the thread and fabric but even more fun to use it for embellishing. Working with Cathy Franks, she taught us these fabulous thread techniques. Ashley will be working on a new event in February and March, and I have to show her how we did this! Cathy has fabulous work that goes beyond traditional thread painting. Yes, we did machine quilt over this stuff. We were working in a hotel banquet room. You should have seen the cleaning staff come in and study the carpet after we worked this technique. Mind you, they didn't vacuum up after us each night. However, after this particular day, I think they were concerned as to what their machinery was in for over the next few days. The room sparkled everywhere. If you were wearing black this day, you look embellished like a Christmas tree!

Now, I understand that lots of you are reading my blog but some of you don't know how to post a comment to the blog. I know it might feel like you are giving life blood to know how to post a comment. That said, please know and trust that you aren't too old or too computer-shy to post a comment. It may take you a few screen readings, but you CAN do it. Let me know you are listening in.

All the Best to You, jill