Top 10 Things

Chanukah has come and gone.  So while most of you are getting ready for Christmas, I have some extra time on my hands.  I thought I would put together a list of the top 10 things I use most often as a quilter and designer, and give you a peek at my workspace. 

(As much as I tried to prioritize my list, it's really not in order.)

  Are there any tools I missed?  

Is there something indispensable or a favorite of yours that is not included.  Please do share.

Wishing you health and happiness in the New Year.

10.  Design Wall

Used for designing as well as my filing system.

9.  Hand Sewing Needles

Lots of assorted needles for lots of different  threads.

8.  Freezer Paper

Found in the grocery store with many quilty uses.

7.  Journal - I keep a journal that includes everything from ideas, thoughts, sketches and inspiration.  I look for the ones that are blank on one side for sketching and with lines on the other side writing.

Great personal reference.

6.  Printer/Scanner

An essential design aid for me.

5.  Threads

I use all types of threads as long as I can put it through a needle.

4.  Embellishments

This is my candy.

3.  Computer

How did we live without them?

2A.  Sewing Machine

I'm a Bernina girl.  I've tried others, but ....

2B.  Rotary Cutter/Mat/Ruler

Had to squeeze this in.  I remember making a quilt  composed of 4" squares in the early 1980's without one.  I have to choose this as a tool that revolutionized quilting.

1.  Fabric Stash

A quilter's palette. 

A Signature Quilt Filled with Love

I have so much to share since my last post.  I have been to Stockton, NJ and taped part of an episode of Quilt Out Loud with Mark Lipinski and Jodie Davis.  I have been to Phoenix to visit my brother and his family and now I am home tying to catch up.  But before I tell you about my exciting travels, I want to share with you a gift we gave a friend last night.

I have been making signature quilts since 1995.  They are a great vehicle to "share the love".  I feel so lucky that I can use my abilities as a quilter to create one as a celebration. The key to writing on fabric is first to stabilize the fabric.  I use freezer paper as a stabilizer and I iron the waxy side onto the wrong side of the fabric with a hot iron.  It is also very important to let the people signing the fabric know where the seam allowance is and that they must not sign there.  (If you put the block together fist, this is not an issue.)  The pen that I like the best is a Pigma pen.  It is permanent and has no bleeding issues.  Make sure that you remove the freezer paper after it is signed.  It should just peel off.

The very first one I made was  a wallhanging for wedding guests to write their well wishes for the bride and groom. The theme was their "stories".  This is a photo of the quilt before the wedding. During the wedding people  signed on any part of the white fabric.  Someone even signed under the ballerina's skirt.

Then I did one for my son's Bar Mitzvah. The signatures are in the light border rectangles. The blocks reflect his interests at the time.

The one I just worked on was for a very dear friend of mine, Sue, to celebrate her birthday.  I'm not supposed to say how old she is but I can tell you that it almost rhymes with heavenly! My friend Hattie and I got together and split the tasks.  She is an organizing wiz and took charge of getting the signatures.  Thank goodness for that.  That is definitely NOT my forte. 
She then pieced the blocks and put them together.  I provided the center, then quilted and bound it.

It was so wonderful when we gave her the quilt.  We had a small intimate gathering with a few of her closest friends.  She read every single inscription out loud and was so surprised to see some of the names and wondered how we got them.  The quilt was filled with love and she felt every single bit. The best part for us was watching her.

It was so gratifying when she told us that it was the best gift she ever received.  WOW!

Happy Birthday Sue!  We love you!