When You Come To A Fork In The Road

As Yogi Berra used to say, “When you come to a fork in the road, take it….” It seems we come to forks and we know it is the time to make a change – either in activity or in attitude – and we sit there waiting for Gabriel to blow his trumpet and wake us to the direction we need to go. Sometimes cutting back certain activities gives us the space to move into a whole new playground or just to open up space. Recently I wrote a list of what is important to me in order of each item’s importance. No big surprises but I found I could focus a little better if I stuck to my list as a measuring rod for my decisions. In light of that I believe I have been spinning my wheels in certain areas so off they go! It is kind of like cleaning out the closet and the relief that comes with clean, open spaces. I feel better already!

Too Cool T-Shirt Quilts (my new franchise) is inching along as I work my way into the whole process of making quilts, working with customers, and working out the paperwork. Just like anything, there is an adjustment period and things are looking good! Send us good thoughts!

Bicycle Built For Two t-shirt quilt

Laggard Returns!

So sorry that I haven’t written much lately. Can I use cataract surgery for my excuse? Not entirely because, as you may know, that surgery (always with a few exceptions) is a highly successful surgery and the patient is recovered enough in a couple of days to resume normal activities. Both eyes are clear, I am seeing more details that I was surely missing and also noticing the unseen wrinkles as well. Oh well, each wrinkle has a history of its own and might just be quite interesting!

Yesterday and today I “got my feet wet” being a vendor for my new Too Cool T-Shirt Quilts venture. Talked to lots of people, surprised a few, but, in general, all went well. People would start to walk by, then stop and I could see their eyes just roaming over the family memory quilt I made. These quilts are so unique and a story in themselves – a sort of scrapbook in t-shirts. Overall, it was a great two days plus the church ladies” serve a mean lunch!

I continue to do my longarm quilting while we get Too Cool going and will determine later if I am able to find the time for both activities. Time will tell!

April 27, 2013
Miamisburg Quilt Show
Miamisburg, OH

This is Too Cool!

Today turned out to be a red letter day for Twin Creek Quilting.
We signed as a franchisee with Too Cool T-Shirt Quilts headquartered in Charlotte, MI. Our t-shirt quilt business is now launched and will be live probably sometime in May to June. I have the little item of cataract surgery to complete – I am expecting everything to go well – and then we will be ready to open as Twin Creek Quilting Studio DBA Too Cool T-shirt Quilts. My intention is to continue quilting for customers while we ease into the t-shirt area. I have met so many great quilters in the last few years and hope to continue the friendships made for a long time. Quilters are great people, in case you hadn’t noticed! Look for my page in the near future on toocooltshirtquilts.com under Too Cool T-Shirts – Twin Creek.

Business As Usual

Well, the ladies have left the building! I have a long-time friend in Indiana who has loved quirky little women for as long as I can remember so I sent the ladies to her for Christmas. It just seemed that they should be hanging on her wall.

The weather has been in the 40 degree range for a few days and I am thanking my lucky stars that we are in the Midwest and not the northeast today. Had a post from another quilter who said her town has been declared a disaster area twice now in a short period of time. She suffered through Sandy and now the winter blast they just got. Luckily she must have had power because her blog got out today! Stay warm up there!

Been busy getting a new aspect of business moving. Have you heard of Too Cool T-Shirt Quilts? Check them out at http://www.toocooltshirtquilts.com to see a preview of our big upcoming adventure with them. As soon as we finalize the business end with Too Cool, we will be joining them as a franchisee. Exciting! They are a great company headed by a very savvy woman who has produced “cool” t-shirt quilts for many, many, many folks around the country. More about this as it develops.

In the meantime, I continue to quilt and quilt just finishing up a stack for a local quilt shop owner. They will have a little trimming and binding to do when I deliver their 15 or so quilts in a few days. Quilts are still sitting, hanging and lying around the workshop so there is still plenty to do. Keep me off the streets for a while. I will be adjusting the load of quilts as we see how the t-shirt quilts come in.

Hope to see you again soon on the blog……

Fall’s Patchwork

Wow! No one can patch together a quilt anywhere as beautiful as what I am looking at out my studio window. I am one of those “fall color” people loving all the yellows, oranges, browns, rusty reds, and greens. Remember some years ago when everyone was being color-typed to see which seasonal colors you looked best in? Fall is me so I tend to gravitate to those colors when choosing fabrics and quilt patterns and I just love the Civil War reproduction quilts.

Occasionally a quilt just “grabs” you for some unexplainable reason. I feel sure you never saw a quilt in a magazine, in a quilt shop, at a quilt guild, etc., that just got under your skin until you had it in your hands, put together, and quilted. Never had that experience! Well, my current passion is to complete a Civil War soldier’s cot quilt so I gathered all the reproduction fabric I have which will almost complete this one, except for the borders. The fabric stack is sitting in a basket staring at me just waiting for a spare moment to get going! I can almost hear it calling my name……

All your Christmas quilts are done and off to the quilter, right? I know it is hard to think of Christmas in the middle of summer but that is the perfect time to get your gifts done and ready for quilting. Timing is everything for completing quilts so that they can be quilted and back to you for binding in plenty of time for Christmas. Important thoughts to consider………..

While you take in the beauty of God’s handiwork this season, give thanks for the time you spend with your favorite occupation – quilting!

Back from wandering the southern shores of Lake Michigan

Lots of quilting going on here before our long weekend to celebrate my cousin’s birthday. I made her a quilt, of course! I won’t tell her age but she will always be four years older than me and will always want to give me family advice! She is a great lady and it was a pleasure to see her – quilts are a great mystery to her so I do have a little edge in that area. Just finished customer quilting on a recent quilt pattern called The Generals’ Wives – honoring wives of Civil War generals. All reproduction fabrics with stars and more stars and wonderful colors.

Am working with a business coach currently to clarify what it is I really want to do when I grow up. Ha! She is helping me be accountable as I go through the process of discovery about the shape and purpose of my business. We are fresh into the process and I feel that I have generated some new thinking already. Time will tell!

Speaking of time, it is late and tomorrow is a busy, busy day for quilt business. Coaching call in the morning and local quilt guild tomorrow night – The Material Girls. Friday I teach a class at a new local quilt shop and Saturday I meet with other Statler owners for a review of our latest Creative Studio version. Sunday I think I rest a lot! Until next time………

Summertime, Summertime, Sum..Sum…Summertime

Remember that oldie but goodie? We have had hot, hot weather but currently in my neck of the woods we are getting a break. My quilting business seems to be getting a big boost along with the weather right now. I guess people are getting those quilts ready for all the gifting seasons repidly approaching. I have lots of lovely quilts waiting to be finished. Just finished a BIG custom job for a quilt shop class. Custom quilting is a long process of selecting patterns that seem appropriate to the theme of the quilt as well as changes in thread colors and the actual time it takes to do the job. It is finally done and will be delivered tomorrow.

I posted pictures of another BIG BIG custom job in my last posts (a while ago) and guess what!!! The quilter won a blue ribbon in her category at the local county fair!!! I was present for the judging (a first for me) and the judge liked the quilting so the blue ribbon belongs half to me as I like to think. What a great experience for the summer!

Trips and a vacation to Virginia have taken up some of the calendar – some educational and some for pure pleasure. Visited with relatives in Virginia that I hadn’t seen for a while and my cousin took me to a local quilt show! She is not a quilter but she and her husband paid a lot of attention to the quilts and asked me questions so I was very gratified.

In the ongoing saga of my husband being pulled gently (I hope) into the world of quilting – he actually voted in a popular category vote at the quilt show in Virginia. He has learned enough by osmosis to be able to make some judgement on what is well done and what is not. Isn’t that great?

OK, since it has been a while since I ventured on this blog, I will spare you the details but we have been working on some new plans for our quilting business – TBA later. Good night for now!

Current quilt with a nautical theme

Just a short post with pictures of a customer quilt I am currently working on.  The theme is nautical and is sort of a sampler-type arrangement with lots of wonderful blocks – appliqued lighthouses, mariners’ compasses, flags, and other great stuff!  Using more lines and geometrical designs to enhance the nautical theme and because it needs to look more masculine.
  

The Weekend was a “stitch”

I attended the annual Statler Stitcher Days in Zanesville, Ohio, this past weekend. As anticipated, the teachers were awesome, if you were hungry it was your own fault, and the hosts were as gratious as always. Our classes were spectacular and I picked up lots of pointers and new stuff – now if I can remember anything! There are lots of talented longarm quilters out there! Just hanging out with them is pure inspiration so I hope some of that creative magic rubbed off on me.

The photo at the top is a friend’s snowmen with a country flavor that was done this past Christmas season. My only regret on this type of quilt is that I usually don’t get to see the total finished product – the snowmen with eyes, for instance.

Learned a new term for “stitch in the ditch”(part of our quilting quiz) – it is just “DITCHED.” A quilting verb!  Love it! Next time……

Off and running

I titled this blog “off and running” because I am packing up to attend Statler Days in Zanesville, Ohio, for my fourth year. People literally come from all over to attend. We have great teachers, great attendees, and great hosts. They keep us well fed as well. The first thing I packed was my seat cushion. Those seats can get like a rock after a few hours of sitting!

I finished yet another of my jelly roll quilts – this time in a batik. Tried to go for an artsy flavor. I bought the Blueberry Moda Bali Pops set, held it up against the bolts of batiks at a local shop looking for a contrasting color to light it up and chose lime green. This jelly roll has little strips of lime green sewn between all strips (cut 2 1/2″ x 1 1/2″) and a lime green sashing. The batik border offsets all the colors in the quilt and is bound with another batik that is one of the fabrics in the jelly roll.