Surprises!!

I just bought the most amazing $5 purchase.  Hint...it has something to do with both sewing and quilting.  I can hardly wait to show it off and get your comments.  Just need to do a little dusting and change out some parts!!!!  Keep watching!

Another Enter to Win--From Fons and Porter Love of Quilting

Win prizes valued at $400 in the

Easy Quilts Fall 2013 Contest!

http://www.fonsandporter.com/contests.html?utm_source=LOQI&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Newsletter20130827

Fall Easy Quilts 2013 Contest
PO Box 171
Winterset, IA 50273

Entry is free and must be received before 11/1/13. One entry per person. Winner will be drawn at random from all entries received.

Kaffe Fassett North America Tour

I am over the moon excited!  I've registered to attend a Kaffe Fassett Color Lecture in Rogers, Arkansas on October 21.  It doesn't get much better than this.   Sometimes I just want to crawl into the colors of Kaffe and Brandon Mably's fabrics.  They are so rich, saturated with color and intense.

To see the Kaffe Fassett and Brandon Mably calendar for their North American tour, visit http://www.kaffefassett.com/Calendar.html.

The Quilt Orchard How-To's and Tips

The Quilt Orchard will soon be featuring How To and Tip videos.  Check back on our blog http://TheQuiltOrchard.blogspot.com and on our Face Book Page https://www.facebook.com/pages/The-Quilt-Orchard/482654488470144 to catch our videos.

Visit me on Facebook and Like

If you want to see what's in development and completed quilt designs, visit my FaceBook page, The Quilt Orchard.

https://www.facebook.com/pages/The-Quilt-Orchard/482654488470144

Have an awesome weekend!!

Giveaways

Once a week we will start featuring giveaways and contests that surround a very special topic....QUILTING.  Here's a couple for this week:

Sew Incredibly Crazy has a little give-away going on for Aurifil Threads, which are marvelous.  Go to http://sewincrediblycrazy.blogspot.com/2013/08/hexie-licious-giveaway-1.html?showComment=1377264883726#c8836797006454361369 to find out the details.

and here's another

Machine Quilting with Angela:

Check out the Quilters Dream Batting sponsoring Hopes and Dreams Quilt Challenge for ALS page to see how you can donate a quilt to help those affected by ALS!

Happy contests.

The Joy of Giving

Quilters are givers. There is something about creating that special design and letting it find it's way into the hands of someone you feel deserves it. Whether it be a charity quilt, an opportunity quilt, or a surprise quilt it's all about offering what you've done to someone else. Be a giver, make something special then give it away!!

Tip of the Week--Quilt Storage

Is it okay to store quilts in plastic bags?

No! Plastics should NEVER be used for storage as these have harmful vapors, which contribute to the deterioration of the fabrics. Plastics to avoid:: dry cleaner’s bags, heavy-duty garbage bags, garment bags and Styrofoam.

BE COMMITTED TO YOUR PASSION!

I love quilts!  I love quilting quilts!!  I love designing quilts!!!  Most of all I like to see other people's quilts!!!! So recently it occurred to me that my passion about quilting has taken a strangle hold on my life--and it's okay.  I'm not a drug addict or an alcoholic but I truly am consumed with all things quilt.  So why is this a good thing?  It is my desire to be a star in the world of quilting.  Not a day goes by that I don't study quilting from fabric to technique, design to layout strategies.  It's expanded my way of thinking, made me better at what I do.  Someone said to become an expert at a topic you must faithfully spend one hour per day studying aspects of that topic.  I'm putting out a challenge to all my creative soul mates.  Put in an hour per day on your passion and let me know how this changes your perception about that passion in 30 days.

Quilter's Prayer

Lord forgive me when I sew
There is so much that I don't know
Gadgets, rulers, and special tools
Sometimes make us feel like fools
When I acheive that special look
Then I will write a nice big book
But for now I continue to grow
My ever changing talents as I sew.


Original poem by Jillian Grant

Never Create When Your Heart Isn't In It!

I love creating...actually I live for it.  My daughter who is a wizard at marketing tells me ideas fall from my lips like I have rolodex full just waiting to be used.  While I may not totally agree with that, I do tend to have a head full of creativity and I do take advantage of it often, however.....I've discovered something.  Never force yourself to create when your heart isn't in it.  Not long ago I tried for two days to finish a quilt top.  It was going fairly well and I stopped to take time out to run to the store.  Two hours and a tow truck later, my car was at the shop and I was back home.  My heart and mind weren't thinking about sitting down and concentrating on this creative bit of stuff I had been working on earlier.  I was determined to press on and pass procrastination so I took a short nap and then went back to sewing.  Lo and behold, the next morning I looked at what I did and it was a mess.  I had sewn things together that made no sense.  Later, I sat down to finish my project and discovered this time I had added rows where none existed.  In short I had done about an hour of sewing that had to be taken apart before I could complete what I was doing.  My eyes got blurred and my mind was mush.       

 

The moral to this story is to not put yourself on such a tight time constraint and to not force the creative juices to flow when they are running low.  Since the ability to create is usually there always remember that sometimes you need to give yourself a break and fill up your creative tank.  The project will wait until tomorrow, go take a long nap!

Welcome to the Quilt Orchard

Hello all from The Quilt Orchard...where ideas grow into heirlooms. This blog is for sewers, quilters, and crafters alike and is a place to share ideas and information with each person who visits.  It is also a place for me to talk about latest quilt designs from The Quilt Orchard and talk about what's going on in the marketplace.  We will feature tips, new ideas, contests (when we find them) and much more.