Hello, I'm a quilter and I have an addiction[s]. Well let's face it, we all do! The problem? There's only so much $, so much time, and so much room in my house so I'm working on reining myself in. I've got the fabric purchasing under control...pretty much...most of the time, unless I give in to the Siren call of that one piece of fabric that calls my name no matter which LQS or JoAnn's I'm in. I've cut down on the quilting magazines and will let some more go as the subscriptions run out. Have got to be more choosey. I've let QNNtv go because of Utube and the shows I have available on my PBS station [in the Tampa Bay area of Florida we are very fortunate], and instead I am keeping my subscription to "The Quilt Show". I have found this to be a much better use of my spendable $$s. I really learn so much from the shows, the classroom lessons and the special videos. The forum is okay, I access from time to time, but that is a small part of The Quilt Show. I'm joined at the hip here, there is never a day I read the QB that I don't learn several tidbits, and the tutorials, picture gallery, and everything else is amazing here. This is my guild. Thank you to the Site Admins and the advertisers so it's free!
Yesterday I was home not feeling well, and was able to watch Ricky Tims' "Grand Finale" video. It is amazing! He teaches so much in 2 hours! The best thing though is I was able to watch it and put it on my Wish List, because I know there are parts I will watch again and again. So I know it will be a good investment. I made the decision when I first started quilting I would learn free motion quilting on my DSM, and there is so much on this video. I have a long way to go, but getting better.
I really like the format of their show, as there are teaching segments in it, and even if it's something I don't think I will try, I love learning what other people love about a specific type of quilting, applique, fabric dying, embellishing, etc. etc. I also discovered the classroom section yesterday on the website, and it is included in the subscription cost. Not the same as Craftsy.com [another area of my addiction, but 3 of my 5 classes are free so I'm good!], but some very informative things that I learn better in the video class format than reading a book. Which is quite an admission for a librarian, but since we are "Information Specialists" now [says so on my diploma!] I don't think the Library police will come after me.
So what choices are you all making to manage the plethora [love that word] of "Quilting everything" out there?