Put on Some Music and Sew/Quilt!

Posted on August 28, 2016 by Betty Jo's Blog / Posted in Ancient manuscripts, Food for Thought, quilt shows, Sewing Clothing / 4 Comments

I have a big list of sewing I am attempting between now and mid September, when I’m planning on going to the Pennsylvania National Quilt Extravaganza in Oak, PA, and sewing and quilting between now and December. I bought a robe, because I didn’t have the fabric for that anyway and needed a new one. I am planning on making a couple of shirts and an embroidered vest for the PNQE, and finishing Ken’s quilt and making a new overcoat by Christmas.

One night this past week I was eating dinner alone, because my son David was out. I made myself a pretty good light chicken dinner and put on “The Martian”. I love the way Mark, who faces impossible odds, solves problems as they come along and manages to stay alive long enough, and to accomplish the long trip on Mars he needs to in spite of everything in order to be rescued. It is immaterial whether it could really happen that way or not in real life, it’s the concept that is vividly presented of facing overwhelming odds and not giving up when setbacks occur. It’s the way my wonderful parents, who are both gone now, always urged me and my brother Pat to live our lives and it’s the way they lived theirs. It’s how I’m trying to approach my sewing and quilting and my life as I age now. Here’s the last of the border design tests I did for Ken’s quilt. This is the one I didn’t think I could make. I’m so happy with it. I hope it comes out as well on the green polyester satin I finally settled on for the green Celtic border.

I ended up digitizing this manually, because I couldn’t get the original ancient design, that had been scanned in and was blotchy, cleaned enough to auto digitize. I’m now through with the digitizing and the tests and have begun making the quilt.

I chose the three patterns I showed in my last blog post for the shirts that I am flat fitting (with only a few minor changes, I use Nancy Zieman’s swing method for fitting shown here and here and it works well). I’ve got one fitted and cut out. I’m going to make a bunch of shirts across the next year in between quilting from the same three patterns. My “uniform” for my studio work is a good pair of jeans and a pretty, but comfortable shirt. Then I can throw on a decorative vest or jacket for going out. I can even use the same patterns to make some dressier shirts by changing the fabric and adding some embellishments and wearing it with some nice slacks (I have a slacks pattern already fitted to me) and perhaps one of my silk vests. I’ve come a long ways from my days of making and wearing designer clothing or professional tailored suits, but I have a much more relaxed lifestyle now and I love it. I am planning to make a tailored slacks suit from one of my nice three-season suit wools I have laying around. But that might not happen until after winter sets in.

Sew happy everyone! Let’s put on some music and rock your projects out along with me, solving challenges along the way! Woohoo! Also, let’s practice FM and ruler-work quilting a little bit every day. I’m also spending a little time every day practicing work with my digital design software. I have a new quilt idea that requires that. Cheers!

Fall and Winter Sewing Time

Posted on August 20, 2016August 25, 2016 by Betty Jo's Blog / Posted in Uncategorized / 4 Comments

It’s time! After nearly four years since I retired from a serious government job to become a full time fabric artist, and with even a couple of years before that since I bought or made any current kind of work-a-day clothing, I must do something. My clothes are a little too big, are fraying around the bottoms of the sleeves and the fabric is thinning. They are still comfortable, however, and I don’t have to brief any high level officials, travel to a foreign country, or appear in office garb, and that’s probably why I haven’t paid too much attention until now. But I’m planning on going to the Pennsylvania National Quilt Festival in mid September and will be staying with a friend who retired to PA while I’m there. I am also planning to provide some quilting lectures and demos in the area in the next several months, and I DO go to church or shopping or a show occasionally. 🙂 So the clothing situation needs addressing, or is that “a dressing”.

MCall’s 7391…I like this one. It looks like it would make a great work shirt.

I looked around for things to buy. They are expensive and don’t fit well, since I’m built like an overweight ape with long arms and torso and short legs. LOL. The fabric does not appeal to the fabric snob in me. Sew it’s time to sew. I went through my fashion fabrics and patterns stash yesterday…spent the whole day at it. I found enough fabrics for fall and winter to clothe me for the foreseeable future. I also have the interfacing, linings, zippers, buttons, etc.

This one is also my kind of style…McCall’s 7365…but I also need something less tailored and open to additions of applique or other embellishments.

And again, I like this shirt…can you see a pattern here? Butterick 6376

Now I don’t want to stop forward progress on my current quilt and book projects either, so I am planning on slipping in the sewing of a new garment every so often across the rest of this year, and probably throughout next year. Summer is just as bad, but I’m concentrating on fall and winter and four season tops for now. Fortunately, I do have a nice supply of jeans in good shape, so for workaday I just have to concentrate on shirts and nice tops that will also work for quilt shows and demos. I also want to make up at least one of my fabulous pieces of wool into a nicely tailored slacks suit (I don’t wear skirts anymore), and one of my four pieces of coating into a new overcoat. Then I also want to make a couple of bags. It’s going to be fun, but I’m beginning to think I need a clone or two. Afterall, my studio would probably work for three sewing people. LOL.

Well, I know I said I don't wear skirts anymore...but if they cover the legs....I might make an exception. :D

Well, I know I said I don’t wear skirts anymore…but if they cover the legs….I might make an exception. 😀 This jacket might look good with slacks. Would that shock the early twentieth century folks? Butterick 6337

Sew happy everyone! Make yourself a garment every now and again, even if it is just a simple piece, before your wardrobe gets into urgent need like mine. You know you need it.

Encouraging Enthusiasm in Quilting and Sewing

Posted on August 14, 2016September 11, 2016 by Betty Jo's Blog / Posted in Food for Thought, Quilt Journal, quilt shows, Sewing Clothing, Teaching Kids / 4 Comments

Woman sewing

Gloomy feelings are prevalent in the quilting community recently at the announcements of the closures of several quilt-related magazines and businesses, or parts of businesses. I was recently talking with a close friend of mine about this. These things have a way of being self-fulfilling prophesies by making people hesitate to dive in and do things because they think the industry is closing and they don’t want to invest their time and money in a failing pursuit if supplies, or when fellow quilters might not be around. Linda Thielfoldt captured it well in her blog post in which she ends up by calling on us to mentor a child.

Sew let us think about this a bit and brush the dust off of our dreams for making that piece of funky or pretty art for your wall, a well-tailored jacket, a set of decorative pillows to spruce up your living space, a really nice outfit to wear to special occasions, some new pot holders, or how about that costume for your favorite fun festival or party. Sewing and quilting can be calming and also a fun adventure.

I’ve actually seen recent comments from quilters or sewists criticizing other sewists for the way they shop or buy a class, or blaming problems on the “aging” quilters, who, they assume, don’t buy anything anymore (WRONG!!!); or on young sewists and quilters who have very little time and not so much money so they pull learning and patterns from where they can. Such comments are not helpful.

I call upon these naysayers and those who are worried to welcome all manner of quilting and sewing into our folds…the costume maker, the art quilter, the modern quilter, the traditional quilter, the tailored clothes maker, the hat maker, the bag maker, the doll maker, the sewist who makes items for charity, the ten minutes-at-a-time stitcher, the incredibly talented hand stitcher, and those who do all of these things just because they can.

man sewing 1912

Sewing and quilting is an adventure, an occupation that takes our minds off of the difficulties of life, the politics, the horrible things happening in the world, and gives us the opportunity to think about how to construct that tote bag, or make that art quilt, or tailor that jacket to wear to work. In the end, moreover, we often end up with something truly wonderful.

I do also hope we can stop categorizing the sewists of this world into preconceived ideas in a way that may limit opportunities. The younger quilter is not always interested in modern quilting. The older quilter is not always interested in traditional quilting. The middle-aged quilter is often ignored in discussions of this type. The art quilter is often as committed to excellence in their craft as the traditional quilter. Some people have jobs or other responsibilities that don’t allow them time to take half a day to shop or go to that show. Sew, wonderfully, they download classes (some of which are wonderful and thereby they support that teacher), they order on the Internet (maybe even from their local fabric store)…but they order and they take classes, they buy that fabric and thread and machines. This activity will keep the industry alive even if it doesn’t help our neighborhood fabric store with the owners who have been in business for decades and are ready to retire to do their own sewing.

Red, my favorite color, is not as plentiful in my home as I would have expected. I staged this in my studio using the red things I could find that seemed to go together. Interesting challenge. Shot with my Nikon D200 on tripod, no flash, f14.

I hope we will continue to support each other and encourage the “ancient quilter” making something spectacularly different, the middle-aged man sewing a vintage costume, the college student making something for their dorm room, or the twelve year old boy quilting. Let’s keep this industry alive with enthusiasm even as it changes to encompass the new methods of communication and shopping!

DSCN0129

Sew happy everyone! I loved Linda Thielfoldt’s blog about mentoring new young sewers. This is important. Might I suggest, also, that it does not just have to be a young person (though, again, this is important)…an older person with a little more time and money on their hands might also want to get in on the fun and then pass it on to their young person.

Testing Border Designs

Posted on August 6, 2016August 7, 2016 by Betty Jo's Blog / Posted in A Little How-To, Ancient manuscripts, Art Quilt Techniques, Design Work, Embroidery, High-Tech Studio, Machines, Quilt Journal, Ruler work, Threads / 4 Comments

This will be the last blog post I write on making Ken’s special quilt until it is completed, and probably until after it has been debuted at some show in order to keep it for a surprise, but I wanted to tell you how I was solving the border problems. I will write the posts, but not publish them until then. I will, of course, continue writing blog posts about other topics.

I have been kind of concerned about whether or not I could get the border right for the quilt my son Ken designed for me. It uses complex Celtic knots and designs.

So this week I managed to get all but one of the corners digitized and tested to stitch in-the-hoop at my Bernina 830 LE (Gibbs). While working in the embroidery module, Gibbs rebelled over most of my gold metallic threads, finally accepting Superior metallic. With some testing and fussing with tensions and needles, coupled with slowing way down to nearly the slowest speed, it decided to stitch out my designs without any further tantrums. But I don’t much like the way the thread looks, so I am going to test some near-metallic colored threads.

After all, this is the outline for painting the design with Setacolor gold paint and finishing with Setacolor Gold Glitter Finish. I have used these paints for several years now on my show quilts and they are permanent once dried and heat set. I’ve even washed them with success. The glitter may need a little refreshment after a couple of years of shipping, folding, showing, folding, shipping, but the underlying gold stays solid and most of the glitter is still there even so. I’m fairly certain with ordinary hanging in one’s home or office, and an occasional light vacuuming with a cheesecloth over the end of the vacuum hose, these paints will last for decades.

This is my first test of stitchout 1...small right corners. Here you can probably see that I have only half of the block finished with glitter paint. It seems the right finish to me. But I am not happy with the metallic threads here.

This is my first test of stitchout 1…small right corners. Here you can probably see that I have only half of the block finished with glitter paint for comparison. It seems the right finish to me. But I am not happy with the metallic threads here.

My biggest problem was getting the long designs on the border that were too big to fit into a hoop and that I thought were too exacting to manage a good multi-hooping of the many hoops required. So I decided to see if I could get the outline stitching done with good marking and free motion/ruler work on my new sit-down longarm Bernina Q20 (Fritz).

Fritz is a dream. Fritz does not dislike any of my metallic threads. Neither does Gibbs, for that matter, if it isn’t working in-the-hoop. But I practiced on Fritz this time in non-metallics. Oh my….I set it up in BSR2, which Bernina recommends for ruler work. Using 7 of Lisa Calle’s wonderful rulers, I have done some practice work. While I need more practice, I am fairly certain by now that I can make these border pieces. I have found that Fritz can place each stitch where I want it…it will slow way down, work at higher speed, stop when I stop and start when I start, and all controlled only by how I move the fabric when it’s set on BSR2. I will note that this can also be done at most any sit-down sewing machine, although perhaps not as easily.

I am pre-stitching the designs, not quilting them in. I will quilt them after sandwiching the quilt, and will use either Superior’s monopoly or 100 weight silk matching the backgrounds. This will provide further definition to where the design goes over and under to make the Celtic knots.

So I starched and then backed my test pieces with my favorite stabilizer for embroidery (for that is what this is). That is Madeira Cotton Stable, which has a light fusible on it, and is 100 percent cotton. Thereby no hooping is necessary. This stabilizer can either remain in the border or tear out. I usually tear out most of it and don’t worry about getting absolutely everything before sandwiching.

The top corner design was done at Gibbs in the hoop and then painted. The lower left and right designs were done with rulers at Fritz and then painted.

The top corner design was done with Gibbs in the hoop and then painted. The lower left and right designs were done using rulers and the Bernina #96 ruler foot with Fritz and then painted. I left unpainted some of the stitching on the lower left so you can see how it looks before painting. It needs practice.

I still have to complete the digitizing of the one big upper left block, and when I finish and test that, and dye my PFD Radiance a dark green (which kind of makes me nervous, but they don’t make it the color I want), I will FINALLY be ready to start actually making the quilt top.

This is progress, though it kind of doesn’t seem like it since I haven’t actually started assembling the real quilt yet. But the time I’m taking to work everything out beforehand I will mostly gain back when I make the quilt and know exactly what to do each step along the way. 🙂

Sew happy everyone! I hope you are having a wonderful weekend. God’s blessings.