How does Jenny do it.
05-31-2014, 10:43 AM
#51
Super Member
Join Date: Jul 2012
Location: Vancouver Island, Beautiful BC
Posts: 2,090
I will be the first to say that watching Jenny's Videos brought me to quilting. If I have not seen them I would still strictly be a garment sewer.
And the very first quilt I made way back in the mid 80's was a Quilt in a Day pattern brought through Canadian Living Magazine. In that pattern Eleanor has you rip the fabric for the Around the World pattern. It was tied and although it took me more than a day it has held up for 30 years.
So my quilting experience went like this:
1985 - Eleanor Burns Quilt in a Day Around the World
2002 - a few rag quilts, flannel on one side, denim on the back
2013 - a quilt based on a Jenny demo video
2013 - a Jelly Roll bag based on a Jenny demo - This was my mother's Christmas present and she was thrilled to receive some useful. It is meant to be a beach bad.
2014 - a Jelly Roll race quilt, Pattern Review had a Jelly Roll Race online, this one is still a quilt top
2014 - My first pattern from a quilting magazine, this is still a wip and simple rectangles. This is for my mother's 80th birthday
2014 - my next project a red black and white quilt for my son who graduated this month, pattern will probably be https://www.byannie.com/media/images...s_patterns.pdf
So I am still a rank beginner, but without ladies like Eleanor and Jenny, I would not be quilting at all.
I can appreciate the work that goes into intricate accurate quilts, just as I can appreciate ballet. But I love lots of colour and quilts that make me smile more like modern dance. I guess I like the freedom of expression more than the accuracy of the work.
And the very first quilt I made way back in the mid 80's was a Quilt in a Day pattern brought through Canadian Living Magazine. In that pattern Eleanor has you rip the fabric for the Around the World pattern. It was tied and although it took me more than a day it has held up for 30 years.
So my quilting experience went like this:
1985 - Eleanor Burns Quilt in a Day Around the World
2002 - a few rag quilts, flannel on one side, denim on the back
2013 - a quilt based on a Jenny demo video
2013 - a Jelly Roll bag based on a Jenny demo - This was my mother's Christmas present and she was thrilled to receive some useful. It is meant to be a beach bad.
2014 - a Jelly Roll race quilt, Pattern Review had a Jelly Roll Race online, this one is still a quilt top
2014 - My first pattern from a quilting magazine, this is still a wip and simple rectangles. This is for my mother's 80th birthday
2014 - my next project a red black and white quilt for my son who graduated this month, pattern will probably be https://www.byannie.com/media/images...s_patterns.pdf
So I am still a rank beginner, but without ladies like Eleanor and Jenny, I would not be quilting at all.
I can appreciate the work that goes into intricate accurate quilts, just as I can appreciate ballet. But I love lots of colour and quilts that make me smile more like modern dance. I guess I like the freedom of expression more than the accuracy of the work.
05-31-2014, 12:32 PM
#52
Super Member
Join Date: Feb 2014
Location: Davenport, Iowa
Posts: 3,809
Personally I think she does a wonderful job in her demo's....granted using precuts does speed things along. She's known for having the largest array of precuts in the Midwest. For me, her demo's are the perfect length to see if I'm interested in making quilts as she does. When I get stuck it's easy to view again and again. Ok....so I really like Jenny!!
05-31-2014, 12:57 PM
#53
Super Member
Join Date: Sep 2012
Location: Homosassa, FL
Posts: 2,267
Going way back to when most of us were little girls we we taught about perfection and it has really hampered a lot of us from being able to just enjoy the doing.
I am always hearing in general conversations about how grown women talk about how imperfect they are. Much damage has been done over many years of striving to be perfect. Jenny Doan and Eleanor Burns are great examples of how much fun any endeavor can be. Be it quilting, cooking, gardening, etc. Hurray to them for making it less stressful and more fun. We can take their inspiration and fly as high as we want with it. The methods they show us only help us to get more creative in our own lives.
peace
I am always hearing in general conversations about how grown women talk about how imperfect they are. Much damage has been done over many years of striving to be perfect. Jenny Doan and Eleanor Burns are great examples of how much fun any endeavor can be. Be it quilting, cooking, gardening, etc. Hurray to them for making it less stressful and more fun. We can take their inspiration and fly as high as we want with it. The methods they show us only help us to get more creative in our own lives.
peace
05-31-2014, 01:07 PM
#54
Power Poster
Join Date: Feb 2011
Location: Lowell, MA
Posts: 14,083
I love Jenny and her light hearted attitude about quilting. She may use a lot of precuts, get to do retakes of anything that goes seriously wrong, and she gives us permission to be human, maybe make mistakes occasionally, but learn from them and keep on quilting. I love Jenny, because, like Eleanor Burns she injects humor into quilt making and they both teach us the shortcuts they have learned along the way to make quilting fun for us. I give both ladies credit for getting to where they are from humble beginnings, and to keep smiling.
05-31-2014, 01:12 PM
#55
Senior Member
Join Date: Feb 2013
Location: Texas
Posts: 983
I too Love jenny & Eleanor's video's they make me feel like I can do anything I set my mind to and have fun doing it. I will be making a lot of Jenny's quilts because they are easy and I have 5 more kids to make quilts for then on to my 9 (so far) grandkids quilts. Then I'll be able to play around with wall quilts & some harder patterns because I'm sure by then I'll be a lot better at quilting.
05-31-2014, 02:15 PM
#56
Super Member
Join Date: Oct 2010
Location: Florida
Posts: 1,135
IMHO - I think she's presenting an idea; a concept; introducing a new pattern. I don't think her intent is to focus on precision and accuracy because that's up the the individual quilter. Her objective is to generate excitement, hold your interest ((our attention spans are much shorter than they used to be)) and drive traffic to her site, which she does quite well.
Personally, I like watching her videos.
Jane
Personally, I like watching her videos.
Jane
05-31-2014, 02:34 PM
#57
Super Member
Join Date: Oct 2011
Location: Timmins, Ont. Canada
Posts: 4,683
IMHO, Jenny is as much an entertainer as she is a quilter & entertain she does. She makes things enjoyable & fairly easy to understand. I wish I had her "joie de vivre" because she obviously enjoys what she is doing & I love watching her. Maybe things aren't so perfect but are our "super models" so perfect either without air brushing etc.
Let's just enjoy her work & all the videos that she provides to us, free of charge.
Let's just enjoy her work & all the videos that she provides to us, free of charge.
05-31-2014, 03:47 PM
#58
Power Poster
Join Date: Jul 2008
Location: East Oklahoma - pining for Massachusetts
Posts: 10,477
If it's anything like a movie, they may be doing more than one "take". Also, she could have been quilting for many years. I saw a tutorial last night where she mentioned that she sews almost ten hours a day. That can lead to a great deal of confidence.
Last edited by Boston1954; 05-31-2014 at 03:50 PM.
05-31-2014, 04:30 PM
#59
Super Member
Join Date: Oct 2010
Location: California
Posts: 1,732
I am making in the process of making the Disappearing Pin-Wheel (ShooFly) using Jenny's technique. Working on blocks cut on the bias is not all that easy. Most of my blocks were square, but not all. I just did the best that I could do. I used a lot of starch to help prevent stretching, sometimes to the point of being cardboard like and they still didn't always come out square. The quilt is for me, so I am not stressing over it, but my youngest grandson loves it and wants it when I am done with it. It is made from my late husband's button down shirts into a memory quilt and only one of the materials is 100% cotton. I am sure that is where part of the trouble started. I am just happy that I could follow the pattern and have it almost finished at this point. The only thing to finish is the borders and binding since I used a QAYG technique, also. I will be posting a photo when it is complete.
05-31-2014, 07:10 PM
#60
Power Poster
Join Date: Jan 2008
Location: Florida
Posts: 17,636
I've noticed the ironing thing too. Somehow it works out for her.
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