The entry fee is $5 and show hours are 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. today (Saturday, March 12) and noon to 4 p.m. tomorrow (Sunday, March 13).

I recently got a chance to meet some of the guild members and they’re a lot of fun. You can read the column I wrote to preview the show for The Grand Rapids Press here.

Little Amelia assisted me in my role as one of the guest judges for the quilt show. It’s always difficult to pick just one favorite, but we ended up settling on the lovely quilt at the top of this post.

The top was pieced in the 1930′s by “Great Grandmother Bessie and Grandma Belle” and then quilted by Wilma Miller. I’m a total sucker for a quilt with a history, so this one got my attention. I love the bright fabrics that were used and the way the simple squares create such an interesting pattern.

I absolutely LOVE Grandmother’s Garden hexagon quilts, so I almost picked this one. But then I remembered that I picked a Grandmother’s Garden quilt at the last show I judged and forced myself to branch out beyond my personal bias in favor of hexagon quilts. Plus, Amelia and I reached a consensus on the first one.

The vibrant quilt below caught our attention, too, as did many others.

If you go to the show and have a loved one in the military, be sure to get ask for a Blue Star Banner.

The banners were first displayed in windows during World War I to indicate that a family member was serving in the war. The quilt guild is making and distributing banners as a community service project.

Kudos to the guild members for hosting an enjoyable first show. Amelia and I had fun checking out the quilts and recommend that West Michigan quilt enthusiasts go have a look.

And if you go, be sure to stop by the Sister’s Fabrics vendor booth if you’re looking to snag a copy of CraftSanity Magazine Issue 2. I’m thrilled that Sister’s is stocking the magazine at the quilt show and at their shop located at 218 E State St., Hastings.

The 75″ x 84″ quilt didn’t receive any awards from the professional judges, but Mary Lou won me over with her story. She wrote: “This quilt was started in March 1988 and was finished on May 30, 2009. I have quilted for 64 years and have given away all the quilts to family, so I finally made a quilt of my own.”

What a beautiful accomplishment. Congrats, Mary Lou!

If you’re local, check out the show. There are many stunning, award-worthy quilts on display.

Quilts on the Grand 2010 is Saturday 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., Sunday noon to 5 p.m. at the DeltaPlex Arena, 2500 Turner Ave. NW, in Grand Rapids. Admission is $8. Quilt show proceeds will benefit The Tie That Binds Fund at the Neonatal Unit at Spectrum Buttterworth and the Covenant Enabling Residence, Faith House. Visit wmqg.org for more info.

If you’re local, here are a couple other events you might be interested in:

* Chris de Longpre, a local knitting pattern designer, will be signing copies of her new book, “Timeless Knits for Kids (Size 4 to 14.),” at Threadbender Yarn Shop in Wyoming, Saturday (Oct. 2) from 12-4. You can read the newspaper column I wrote about Chris here. You’ll be able to hear her story on the next episode of CraftSanity.

* Drew Emborsky, aka “The Crochet Dude” will be signing copies of his new book, “Crochet it. Love it. Wear it!” and showing off his new product line from 1 to 4 p.m. at Needle in a Haystack, 417 Pheonix St. in South Haven, Mich. Go meet Drew if you can. He’s very nice. You can hear the story of his rise to crochet fame on CraftSanity episode 15.

Okay, that’s it for now. Check back soon for a new podcast and more ArtPrize photos.

Finishing this quilt project came down to the wire as expected, but boy am I happy to be done. Crossing the finish line was very unceremonious and that was expected, too. I just left the quilts in a pile on a table at the David D. Hunting YMCA and went home. If I had not been exhausted and suffering from a massive sinus flair-up at the time, I probably would have high-fived a stranger on the way back to my car to celebrate the end of a very long artistic journey. It feels very strange to work on a project every day for days and then abruptly stop.

It’s important to note that I would still be working on the quilts without the kind assistance of the awesome people listed below who helped me take apart ties and stitch hexagon blooms in the early stages of this project. Thanks to all of you!

Anneke Benison, Julie Benison, Breanna Bush, Jamie Bush, Lois Carpenter, Cydney Colvig, Mel Creager, Deb Dieppa, Sarah Eggebraten, Beverly Gapczynski, Jennifer Fretz, Jessica Keller, Suzannah Knust, Gloria Kirk-Hanna, Susan Halteman, Abby Haywood, Amelia Haywood, Holiday, Bethany Levandowski, Nathan Levandowski, Susan Mills, Peggy Patterson, Cheryl Rendak, Dianna Thompson, Laurie Vance, Valerie Vranish and Joy Upper

I was disappointed to learn Saturday that I will not be allowed to post the names of these volunteers on the wall with the quilts because they are not officially registered ArtPrize collaborators. But all the volunteers and necktie donors will be named on a flier that Safe Haven is producing to explain the project. This flier will be available at the venue.

Thanks again to everyone who helped stitch blooms for the quilt. We did it!

Thanks to you, dear blog readers, for posting words of encouragement. Reading your comments kept me motivated and inspired. Thank you!

And an extra special thanks to my husband, Jeff, and our two daughters who lost me to this project for a while. It’s done and we made it!

I will post more photos of all the quilts soon. In the meantime, I’m scrambling to catch up on sleep and all the work that piled up while I was sewing.

If you’re local or headed to Grand Rapids for ArtPrize, you’re invited to stop by  the David D. Hunting YMCA to check out the quilts and art by 21 other artists. There will be an opening reception from 6 to 8 p.m. Wednesday. I’ll be passing out English paper piecing sample packs from PaperPieces.com, so stop by if you’d like to learn how to paper piece. Surprisingly, I still LOVE paper piecing. I guess this means my love for this quilting technique is true.

Either that or I have completely lost my mind. :  )

More soon…

I have five days to finish hand stitching the bindings and hanging sleeves on this stack of ArtPrize quilts. Five days until life returns to normal. Almost there…

I’m headed out to shoot a photo for next week’s art & craft column. You can read today’s column about Alban Fischer, editor of trnsfr magazine here.

More soon…

Even in the busiest times, while in the thick of the most involved projects it’s important to stop and soak up nature’s wonders. The other day I snapped this picture of a rose past it’s prime but still quite beautiful. It’s so important to pause every now an then, especially when your plate is full and your feeling overwhelmed.

Work on the ArtPrize quilts continues. There are more thread tails to weave in and finishing work to do. Today I got together with a friend to make several yards of bias tape and solidified a plan for making the hanging sleeves. Everything went great until I bent down to pick up a spool of thread and whacked my head on the edge of a table. I’m okay, but it was totally ridiculous. I’m thinking that sleep deprivation seriously compromises depth perception. I know it definitely compromises math skills.

I’ll be resuming work on the quilts tonight after the kids go to bed. It feels good to have the major work behind me. Very soon I will be done. Until that point, I’m revisiting the idea of wearing a helmet as everyday wear just as a precaution.

Tomorrow I’m going to take a break and head over to Lakeshore Sewing, 1011 Gezon Parkway SW, in Wyoming, MI. I’ll be there from 1 to 3 p.m. for the Meet the Teachers Open House. If you’re local and interested in learning more about my classes and others offered by the shop, please stop by. All the teachers will be bringing show and tell. (And I would love it if would bring your projects to show, too. I love seeing what you all are working on.)

Class signup discounts and other sales will be going on during the open house, so stop in and say “hi.” You can read all the class offerings and print coupons from the shop newsletter.

Also, I’m looking to interview artists who are entering ArtPrize and racing the clock to finish their work, so please contact me if you’re in this situation or know someone who is. You don’t have to be local, you just have to be on an ArtPrize deadline. I’m writing a column for the newspaper about the making art on deadline. If you want to share your experience please contact me ASAP. My deadline is 5 p.m. Sunday.

In other news, the next podcast is going to be about knitting and self-publishing and will be out soon. Everything seems to take longer than I want it to lately, but I’m working on it.

Thanks to all of you who have posted comments and emailed words of encouragement as I have been sewing like crazy in a haze of fatigue. Your support really has helped me.  Thank you so much!

I have delayed by big giveaway announcement until the weekend. So check back for that or follow me on twitter (@craftsanity) if you want to make sure you don’t miss the boat.

More soon…

Doodle, doodle almost done. I love scribbling on fabric with thread.

I machine quilted panels four and five of my charity ArtPrize quilts late Wednesday. High five, everyone!

Later today I’ll be picking out fabric for the binding and weaving in thread tails. I can’t quite believe I’ve been working on this project every day for the last month and it’s still not done. But I’m getting there.

Check back here later for another exciting post. (Hint: I’m going to be giving away some cool loot, so it will be worth your while to stop back.)

The dish washer is whirring and Abby’s lunch has been packed. Time to sleep. More soon.

I finally finished quilting the beast that was panel three of my charity ArtPrize quilt project. I had some thread tension issues in the wee hours of the morning that cost me some valuable time and sleep, but I’m back on track and a little more in tune with my machine.

If I’ve learned anything from this morning’s rip-out session it was to pay attention to the sound of my machine and any changes in tension I feel. After I dropped in a new bobbin last night, I noticed that the machine sounded different and the quilt started to glide a little too easily. But I was tired and very anxious to wrap out work on the panel three so I kept sewing…. for miles. And then when I finally flipped the quilt over to check my work, it was clear that I had made a serious error. Thread was bunching up and the stitches were too loose. I still can’t believe I kept sewing when I knew something was off.

After wasting about 2.5 hours of my life ripping out stitches, I’m happy to report that all is well with panel three. I ripped out the stitching on the section I goofed and quilted it again. I’m paying very close attention to tension now because I think I will need to be institutionalized if this happens again.

As luck would have it, I had a box of review samples from Simplicity sitting in my dining room when this quilting debacle unfolded. When I realized I was going to have to rip out about a bobbin’s worth of meandering stitches, I ran to the box to retrieve 4 1/2″ Curved Blade Snips by Simplicity.

Little did I know that these little snips that retail for $17.99  would be my tool of choice when I needed to rip out stitches fast. I was beyond exasperated when I pulled these babies out and started carefully ripping out the mess I made. I pinched the blade shut and used the tiny points to get under small stitches and loosen them up before clipping. In the past I’ve used a seam ripper to remove machine quilting mistakes, but I find the snips faster and more effective. From here on out I’m going to keep a pair of snips on hand for situations like these. I put the snips to a serious test and they passed with flying colors.

One of the pitfalls of scrambling to finish a project on deadline is not thinking things through. I was unthreading my machine and winding bobbins as I needed them because I was tired, it was very late and this seemed like a logical thing to do. I know. Sewing while sleepy leads to silly mistakes.

Another product that I busted out is Simplicity’s new Deluxe SideWinder, a portable bobbin winder. I admit that I was a woman of little faith when I opened the box because I own a smaller version of this product by Wrights and never got it to work quite right.

But I needed a way to wind a bunch of bobbins without disturbing the tension of my threaded machine. So I fired up the Deluxe SideWinder today. I didn’t set the tension disks correctly the first time in my haste to get on with my quilt project, but that was definitely a case of operator error. Once I tightened the disks correctly I was good to go. The bobbins wound fast and spared my sewing machine motor that seems to be performing at its limit.

This winder contains two storage compartments to keep the power cord and assortment of spindles sized to hold bobbins from a variety of name brand machines. You can adjust this machine to wind threads of varying weights and control speed and how much thread you want to go on each bobbin. You can also use this machine to wind bobbins from 1200 yard cones. I have yet to try winding thread from a cone, but I like the results I got today.

If you sew a lot and want to wind a bunch of bobbins without taxing your machine, this is a quality product to consider. It retails for $99, so it’s a bit of an investment. But after the events of the last 24 hours, I’m wishing I would have had the clarity of mind to open the box and try out this product sooner.

Ok. I have to get back to work. I’ll be weaving in the ends tonight and then moving on to panel four. Just two more to go.

What is your favorite quilting tool?

My Artprize deadline is less than two weeks away, so I’m in continuous work mode and really looking forward to taking a serious break in a couple weeks.

I worked until 2:30 a.m. this morning free-motion quilting the first quilt panel. I thought I was done when I went to bed only to wake up this morning and see that I needed to do a more quilting on the applique part of the quilt. Shoot!

I’ve since moved on to panel two and hoping that one goes faster than panel one. (So far it is!) Weaving in the thread tails is the most tedious part of this process, but I’m getting super fast at that part, too.

And a big thumbs up for Fusi-Boo fusible batting. It has saved me a ton of time and is very easy to work with. Don’t turn on me now, Fusi-Boo!

Time to quilt. More soon.

P.S. Here’s today’s craft column that I previewed earlier this week. I will post more about how to weave with pine needles after the quilt marathon is over. In the meantime, check out the links in my previous post.

]]> http://craftsanity.com/2010/09/one-down-four-to-go/feed/ 2 http://craftsanity.com/2010/09/fusi-boo-a-quilters-friend-or-foe/ http://craftsanity.com/2010/09/fusi-boo-a-quilters-friend-or-foe/#comments Sat, 04 Sep 2010 23:38:47 +0000 jennifer http://craftsanity.com/?p=5074 I know it looks like it I’m wearing a discount Snuggie in the photo, but relax. I just decided to wrap myself in Fusi-Boo for dramatic effect. And it’s actually way more expensive than buying one of those discount sleeping bags with sleeves.

If you quilt, you may know that Fusi-Boo is fusible quilt batting. And after much deliberation and Googling, I’ve decided to use it for my ArtPrize quilt.

Even though the name of the product is kind of silly, I’m starting to warm up to it because it allows you to baste your quilt WITHOUT using pins which is fantastic because I seem to have misplaced the curved safety pins that I normally use for this purpose.

This batting is thinner than the natural cotton batting I usually use, so I would probably double it up if I was making a quilt for a bed. But I’m working on quilts for the wall, so I’m good to go.

Fusi-Boo puts up a little fight when you take it out of the package. Because it sticks to itself, I had to wrestle with it a bit get it unfolded and smooth. But I think we’re on the same team now. Let’s hope we continue to get along when I fire up the machine in a few minutes.

The fact that my blog posting has become more frequent the closer I get to the ArtPrize deadline is an indication that I truly excel at one thing: the fine art of procrastination.

OK, it’s time to get down with the Fusi-Boo.

P.S. I recommend Barbara Weiland Talbert’s book, “The Quilting Answer Book.” It contains great tips and makes me feel like I have an expert right in the room with me.