My friend made quilted handbags and I kept commenting how lovely there were. She said they were easy to make and invited me over to show me how. That was 3 years ago - and I got hooked! After making a few bags, cushions and an "I spy" simply squares quilt, I wanted to do intricate projects and joined a class. My first class was a stack and whack workshop - and I loved it, only problem I havent finished that quilt because when I went to the class, I saw another quilt class I wanted to do, and I went to that... I have finished that quilt top, and I have enrolled in 2 more workshops for this year and I signed up to the monthly beginners machine piecing and quilting class - I want to learn how to do fancy machine quilting on my domestic sewing machine, and I am taking the quilt top from the class last year, plus it will give me incentive to finish the first workshop quilt top so I can quilt it at the class.

I didn't take a class when I first started quilting. I had been a dressmaker since I was a teen and just wanted to start when my first grandchild was on the way. I also watched Simply Quilts when it was on TV for many years before deciding to start quilting. Maybe a class would have helped me. The sewing was no problem but choosing colors is a huge hurdle for me.

Good luck!

Teddie

You are absolutely right, Teddie. The selection of colors will make your quilt. I learned that we tend to select meduims and not enough darks and lights but even that knowledge doesn't help make the choices. I get into the quilt and end up thinking,"thats not right" and then another UFQ is born. Or we can overthink the whole thing too.

Hello nana2,that was a wonderful story,I love to read of the history behind the craft of patchwork and quilting.In these days of 'instant' and now' it is so refreshing , and I think that all of those that help preserve the old crafts give hope of a happier future. More such stories please,Love Letty.

Hello, just a postscript to my last posting, you in the U.S.A are so lucky, here in the U.K, have no t.v. quilt programmes, and many of our quilting supply shops are closing.We rely more and more on the web and wonderful sites like this one ----so many thanks. Love, Letty

I too appreciate learning how certain crafts/arts began AND I have an even greater appreciation for the generations before us who had such limited tools. I also have a great appreciation for those who have been able to design the great the tools we now use with such success and time saved. Recently on our Public Broadcasting Station, Sewing With Nancy featured a demo of sewing circles. The guest was using an embrodiery machine; but Nancy demoed using a thumb tack. Then right after this I saw a PBS show of Fons & Porter with a guest sewing circles using a special foot for the sewing machine. The next time I visited our sewing machine store I asked about one of these feet for my machine --- the cost was almost $50.00. I came home, got out a thumb tack and went to the sewing machine ---- Works Great!!! So, it does pay to have some of us from the "older" generation around to demo the "how to" without some of the modern tools. With the present economy going down many of us may need to be a little more conserative in our spending and will need to rely on each other for info to help us find a way to accomplish a task without buying an expensive tool. I really think that quilters may find that our attitudes and willinness to help each other will piece together and hold together more than fabric.

OK, I give -- how do you make a circle using a thumb tack??????

Nope ~ self starter. I've been sewing for years and thought...how hard could it be...right? 8) Between books and the internet I taught myself.

Ohhhh, I'd love to take a class from her... :twisted: :twisted: yes, I am evil.......mmmwwwahhhhahahahah

you take a string, tie it to a pencil, stick the tack into the other end of the thread and into a cardboard and use it for the center.. keep the string taut and mark the circle..
The string should be length of the radius of the circle you want to make.

Well, that's how to draft a circle using a tack... not sure about using one with a machine to stitch them.. that would be interesting to know.