Happy Holidays!
"A day patched with quilting seldom unravels."
Greetings Quilter -
Quilting daughter, Stephanie, and engineering son, Bubba, are now home for the holidays. Bubba took a little extra time getting here to sunny Southern California from Midland, Michigan. His flight was canceled on Friday, and then Saturday, he barely missed his connection from Chicago to San Diego. After an hour on the phone, he was finally able to get a flight to Orange County where Stephanie could pick him up. A night in LA with Stephanie and now both of them are here in San Diego for the week. It's great to have them home, as we get ready for the upcoming days of fun and frolic. We wish your family Happy Holidays and Great Memories!
Defining the Grainlines of Quilting FabricAs you bind your quilt, it helps to understand the difference between straight grain, cross grain and bias cuts of your fabric. It is a topic during the Binding Webinar, but I thought it might be helpful to explain it here as well. Here is a brief description of what it all is and what it means in the quilting world. When fabric is woven, manufacturers place the lengthwise threads (warp) tightly in their loom, to prevent stretching which would cause the fabric to be mis-shapen. The crosswise threads (weft) are then woven into the lengthwise threads. However, they are not stitched as tightly as the lengthwise threads, allowing some "give" in the finished fabric. Selvedges are created as the crossgrain threads are woven back and forth through the straightgrain (lengthwise). The selvedge is extremely tightly woven, and often has the name of the manufacturer printed, as shown in the picture below.
The bias is usually a 45º angle cut between the cross grain and the lengthwise grain of the fabric. Although it may look somewhat confusing in the photograph above, bias can be cut in either direction. A true bias is cut at a 45º angle, however, cutting at a 30º or 60º angle to make triangles or diamonds will also result in a bias cut. The bias has the most stretch, and fabric cut on the bias frequently used for binding and decorative fabric. Bias can be easily used for making circles, squiggles, and zigzags. Eavesdrop on a Telephone Conversation - Quilt as You Go Project
Our recent webinar Eavesdrop on a Telephone Conversation featured video along with the telephone conversation, and the subject was how to do a Quilt as You Go project. During the webinar, two different methods for Quilt as You go Projects were demonstrated and explained. The call was extrememly popular, and by request I will be hosting a repeat call on Sunday, December 28 beginning at 5pm Pacific Time. By then, maybe your out of town guests will be on their way home, your house will be back into its routine, and you will be ready to get for some quilting information. Get all of the details about the webinar (which includes internet video as well as the telephone conversation) here: Quilt as You Go Project You can also reserve a DVD of the step-by-step demonstrations for the two different methods discussed during the Conversation. You can participate in this call and internet video for free, except for any long distance charges your phone company might charge. Featured Block in Video
Our video demonstration this week is a six-pointed star, perfect for Hanukkah. This star is fairly easy to sew, although there are several bias edges to sew, so you'll need to be careful not to stretch them, otherwise your block will be sorely mis-shapen. If you head on over to www.QuiltBlockLibrary.com, you can get a free download of the pattern for this block, as well as several other quilt blocks. You also might want to sign up for the email series - "Understanding Quilt Blocks." This weekly email is an excellent resource for learning how quilt blocks are drawn, how to choose fabric for your quilt blocks, as well as how to sew
Penny’s Postcard Posse – is Rounding up fabric postcards to send to troops in Iraq for Valentines' Day Kudos to Diane Malaznik for handling our Roundups! She has been gathering the cards, taking the photos, posting them on the site, and sending the cards to the troops in Iraq. It is huge job, with more than 2000 cards gathered for our Halloween Roundup alone. The next Roundup is for Valentines' Day, and the deadline is approaching fast, so take a few minutes out now and make a card for a solider and send it to Diane: Diane Malaznik If you are looking for ideas for designs for fabric postcards, visit www.QuiltBlockLibrary.com All of the postcard patterns are free! New Deal for Eavesdropping Quilters :
We now have a new special level of membership in TheQuiltingCoach.com for the Official Eavesdropping Quilters Club. This level of membership gives you access to all of the same information Eavesdropping Quilters have gotten in the past – the Telephone Worksheet, the Transcript of each call and a copy of the CD recording delivered right to your snail mailbox. Now, with membership in TheQuiltingCoach.com, in addition to the special notices of telephone calls, telephone worksheets and transcripts, you will get the full unedited recording of the call online. This is the from-start-to-finish call and includes all of the questions from quilters. This recording is posted a few days after the call, so you can listen to it on your computer immediately and not have to wait until the CD recording comes in the mail. Members will still get the CD in the mail just has before. In addition, you will have access to everything in a special download area on TheQuiltingCoach.com. That is where the transcripts and telephone worksheets are posted, and in addition, there are hundreds of quilt block patterns and step by step instructions for quilts and other projects. Plus, there is a search engine on the site that makes it really easy to find things you are looking for. I'm sure you will agree that this is a great deal - you are getting more information for the same price, and still getting the CD recording in your snail mailbox. And, the first 30 days are free, so you can test it out. Because I want you to see for yourself how good this is, by signing up for membership in TheQuiltingCoach.com at this new membership level during November, you get the first 30 days to give it a try on our nickel. And, the current rate for membership in the Eavesdropping Quilters Club remains the same as it is right now - $24 per month. And you get the Telephone Worksheet, transcript of each of the calls, and the CD recording in the mail. But this deal is only for a limited time. After the first of the year, new members in the Official Eavesdropping Quilters Club will not get the first 30 days free and will be paying a higher rate. And, once you sign up, the $24 rate will be yours as long as you remain a member. It can never be increased. So, you'll want to take care of this soon, otherwise you will miss out on this deal, and end up paying more to get access to this information. When the Official Eavesdropping Quilters Club began, the plan was to have one interview a month. Because there is so much information and so many quilters to interview, scheduling them has resulted in having 2 interviews for most months. I love providing all of this information for you. But, as you can imagine, this means that the cost per month is double! And I have continued to maintain the cost to my loyal Official Eavesdropping Quilters the same low $24. By joining TheQuiltingCoach.com as an Official Eavesdropping Quilter today, you will guarantee that same low $24 with all of the extra benefits of membership in TheQuiltingCoach.com. Here is the special link to use for your Official Eavesdropping Quilters Club membership. Take care of this today, and you will be sure to hear every word Rosie says on November 19: http://www.thequiltingcoach.com/public/663.cfm
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