Stitchnripper

I am in the process of making fractured paintbox. The instructor was very helpful. She got me organized and now I can do it myself. I made a regular JN pattern - it was a leaf. My son had it framed and hung it on a wall and it looks great. I had the hardest time with that one until the instructor set it all up in order. Then I zipped through it. I don’t know how many more of them I will do.

coffeecozy

I am really glad to see that some of you have had success paper piecing a JN pattern without following her system. I have a couple of her patterns, they are too pretty to resist but I have heard people say they are too complicated if you don't follow her steps. I haven't tackled the patterns yet because I did a class with all the templates etc. and I hated it but I really enjoy strip piecing when I paper piece. Maybe I will give it a go.
Which pattern are you working on in your class onebyone? I hope you enjoy the class as it gets farther into the quilt.

MaggieLou

I'm glad is just isn't me that doesn't like to precut the pieces. It seems like a royal pain then you have to remember which pieces go where.

Onebyone

The pattern is the Lakeshore Hosta. Three day workshop with followup classes once a month until done. The followup classes are my option.

Onebyone

That is where I learned to organize the pieces. Wonder clips, ziplocks, and a clear workspace saved my sanity.

Macybaby

ziplock Bags really help to keep my organized. I have a small tote filled with them, and keep reusing them as needed. I really like precutting, I just cut smaller pieces.

bearisgray

If one is going to take a class from someone -
maybe it's a good idea to put one's other ideas aside for the time being -
and pay attention to the instructor's methods?

I know that I have missed things because I was so busy thinking about doing something "my way" - that I missed the point of what the instructor was trying to teach/illustrate/explain.

redstilettos

I wish some of you lived closer to have a 1:1 class to learn your "short cut ways". I'm a "learn it by looking and doing" person, so a smaller group would be best for me....which is why I stay clear of classes

Oh how I love JN patterns, though!

Onebyone

I agree always do as the instructors shows. Why pay for a class and then do it your way? May as well teach the class yourself. Things click in my mind as a better way for me and I make note of it on my pattern. I always learn something from every class I have taken. I take all the classes available that I can. The ones I think I won't enjoy seem to be the most fun ones!

Rose_P

This cracks me up! I'm virtually unteachable when I have made up my mind about how I want to do something. I sign up for Craftsy classes and look at lots of Youtube tutorials, and I do learn a lot along the way, but not necessarily what the teacher is trying to get across. And yeah, the older I get the less I care about conforming to someone else's way to doing things.

There's an old story about someone cutting a roast in half before putting it in her nice, big oven. Her husband asks her why and she says, "I don't know, but it's the way Mom does it." So he asks her mom, and she says, "I don't know, it's the way my mom always did it." Eventually they find the grandma's old cook book, and there in the margin next to roast beef is a note that says, "If it's too big for the oven, cut it in half." I won't be cutting any roasts (or quilt pieces) without knowing why!