December 2006 Quilt Magazine/Newsletter - Page 2
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Featured Quilter Sue Wilkins continued...... |
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Great Expectations |
Sue taught Floral Design for many years. What she enjoys most about the teaching is the process that takes place, whether building a flower arrangement or designing and making a quilt. She takes pleasure in encouraging participants to work in a way that helps them to enjoy the process too.
“I feel if I can give someone the sense that they have accomplished more than they expected, or pass on a tip or technique which they can use to make their next project more enjoyable, or more successful, then I feel I did a good job,” she says.
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Frog Kingdom
One of Sue's Most Popular Patterns |
Quilt Seeds Designs is Sue’s website. Its name is very special to Sue and was inspired by two things. One was a way to carry a little of her past into her future by using the fabric seeds and the flower pot as her logo. The other was that she thinks of her patterns as seeds too. They are the beginning; the tiny seeds of inspiration that then grow to be quilts by the hands of the quilter who makes them .
Most of Sue’s designs are foundation/paper pieced. The issue about paper piecing she hears most of all from beginners to the technique is that they feel they waste too much fabric and cut the wrong angles. Sue says she did too at first but has since developed her own methods for cutting the right angle the right size each and every time. She has also explored working with gently curved lines. The fabric can be added in a way that reduces the number of seam lines. Her Great Expectations landscape pattern is a good example of working curves into a pattern to give it a more rhythmic appearance. Her tote bag workshop is a form of foundation piecing where quilters work on multiple layers of firm foundation which is cut to finished size.
“A unique base construction finishes the inside and outside simultaneously and overlapping changes the depth, so it can be quite spontaneous and creative during the building process,” says Sue.
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Closeup of Frog Kingdom |
Sue entered her first design, a Christmas Toy Soldier Quilt, in the monthly contest that Electric Quilt was running at the time. It won for September 1996. Sue feels that little design is what gave her the confidence to pursue this new career path. She does not enter her finished quilts in shows because she concentrates mostly on the design aspect of quilting and does not finish her projects to show quality standards. “ Will I someday? Maybe...if my focus changes, and as I evolve as both a designer and as a quilter,” she says. |
One of Sue’s interesting experiences was having her sample quilts examined by a US customs officer when she passed through the airport to attend the International Quilt Market in Houston in 2002. Sue shares, “He kept us standing there for what seemed like forever and said he was waiting for his partner to arrive before he could let us pack up and continue on our way. He gave the impression that he was not sure she could take her quilts into the U.S. As it turned out, his partner was a quilter and he was just stalling for time, so she could get back from her coffee break. He knew she would not have wanted to want to miss the opportunity to see the quilts. We talked quilts and sewing machines for a few minutes and then we were on our way!”
Recently, Sue expanded by developing a new pattern distribution site. She now provides quilt pattern designers with the venue to offer their patterns directly to quilters as e-patterns. Her new site is Quilt-E-Patterns.com. Quilters can download the patterns immediately to their home computer after purchasing them. It is an important distinction that the patterns are offered by the original designers who are all participants in the site. Each pattern includes all you would find in the paper packet version, but have the added benefits of always being presented in full colour and can be printed or saved right away with no waiting.
Sue says, “Imagine wanting to make something Saturday afternoon. You know you have lots of fabric in your stash and all you need is to find the pattern that inspires you to get sewing! Browse the catalog of patterns by technique, style, designer, or even the designer’s company name. You’ve spotted the one you want to make and within minutes of purchasing the pattern you can start sewing. How easy is that? Another benefit is being able to print the number of templates or pattern pieces such as those for paper pieced patterns right from your computer, too. E-patterns are direct and budget friendly!”
Sue is a multi-talented person. Her time is taken up by web design and creation, quilt designing, planning mystery quilts, and providing quilt designers and quilters with a place to meet online, among other things. Be sure to visit both of her sites Quilt-E-Patterns and Quilt Seeds Designs to become better acquainted and to see all that she has to offer!
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Quilt Tools Review
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Guidelines™
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I have been happily using and reviewing the new Guidelines™ Ruler for the past 3 months and am absolutely delighted with it! It has become the ruler I always reach for. It makes everything done with a ruler simple, fast, easy, and accurate, time after time.
This photo shows the ruler hanging on my sewing room wall. The speckled wallpaper behind it demonstrates just how well you can see through it. The markings show up equally well on both light and dark fabrics which is a great bonus and makes measuring and cutting so much easier. In fact, this ruler has so many bonuses it is difficult to know which one to write about first.
I will start with the fact that it has non slip strips on the back which make accurate cutting much easier to achieve. Although they do not show up well in my photo, the Guidelines™ Ruler also has raised edges along both sides which protect our fingers when using the ruler with a rotary cutter.
As you can see, the Guidelines™ Ruler also has four openings which allow for a perfect view when aligning fabrics. These openings serve other purposes as well. The two fabric guides which come with the ruler are set into them.
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These fabric guides are my favourite feature! They can be locked accurately into position, not only for quarter and half inches but on the clearly indicated eighth inch lines as well. You can set these guides and cut as many strips as you wish with precision and accuracy because they lock perfectly into place and do not move until you reset them!
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You will love the Finished-Size Guides, one of which is shown above! These Guides are also inserted into the openings and positioned where needed. The Guides are an optional attachment - one quilters will not want to do without!
They eliminate the math for quilters. We can now cut squares, half square triangles, or quarter square triangles without having to calculate the necessary seam allowances. The Finished-Size Guides do it all for you!
As you can see in the photo above, the Guide has 3 settings, S for squares, H for half square triangles, and Q for quarter square triangles. All we need to know is the desired finished size, set the upper part of the Guide to that size, and the lower part will indicate the exact place to cut with the required seam allowance set automatically! These Guides also make it possible for quilters to resize a quilt pattern with ease.
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The Angle Line Markers, shown above, and magnified on the ruler photo, are included with the ruler. There are two and they can be moved and inserted on the 30° or 45° or 60° lines on the ruler. They look like tiny flowers when in position and their purpose is to mark the angle you are working with, eliminating the need keep looking and checking to be sure you are using the right one with every cut. What a time saver! Each of the attachments allow us to set them and forget them while we work. With the Guidelines™ Ruler, the Guides, and the Angle Markers, quilters can easily, quickly, and accurately cut equilateral triangles, half-square triangles, quarter square triangles, and 30° - 45° - 60° diamonds.
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One more optional attachment is the Floating Handle. It is inserted into the openings, is adjustable to any position you may need, and gives the quilter control of the ruler with just one hand. Very handy! |
John Brady is the inventor of Guidelines™. Look for him and his new video on QNN (Quilter's News Network) now and in 2007. To learn more about John, go to the QNN site and look for the title Talent near the top of the page. Click on it, then scroll down to find Brady, John and click on his name.
There is so much more to learn about the multiple uses for Guidelines™ and to fully learn all that can be done with it. It is truly a great tool for quilters! I would not be without mine and the exciting news is that plans are being made for Guidelines™ to be manufactured in 6" x 12" and 12 1/2" square rulers in the future. I am greatly looking forward to those!
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John and his wife Ritzko's website is Guidelines4Quilting.
Be sure to visit it to see everything
you can do with the Guidelines™ Ruler,
to learn a great deal more about it,
to see the demonstrations,
to read the excellent manuals,
and much more!
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John Brady |
Ritzko Brady |
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A Special Holiday Discount Offer
from John and Ritzko Brady
to Maria Michaels Designs Newsletter Subscribers!
25% off Guidelines and its Attachments!
Click here to order this great ruler!
Offer good through December 21, 2006
A great Christmas Gift! |
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Go to Page 3 for another Quilt Tool Review,
Book Reviews,
Pattern Winners, and more!
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