In addition to the main machine, I also ordered the table overlay and the TruStitch regulator, as well as one table extension. I'm using my pressing table to function as the extension on the other side.
The quilt shop I ordered it from, Gentler Times, delivered and set it up for me. It will be a bit of a learning curve but I'm so excited to use her! I named her Chloe. Hopefully after I've used her for awhile I can post a more detailed review.
The pattern produced a cowl that was about 34 inches around, but I find that length to be awkward, so I decided to make mine nearly 60 inches around so that it can be wrapped around twice. That way it'd actually be useful in the winter. The lace side and non-lace side are done separately and joined later, but I know better than to join and then wash / block. I just cannot trust that the blue yarn won't bleed onto the white, I've had far too many sad experiences with something like this. So I blocked them individually and washed all the extra dye out of the blue yarn before I joined.
I think it looks nice, I love how the blue peeks through the white lace. It is quite thick due to being crochet and being 2 layers joined together, but it'd be cozy in the winter.
We asked for the guided tour, and the first stop of the tour was a little conference room. The guide mentioned the famous wooden quilt, and I, having heard of this quilt, looked around but all I saw was a simple quilt hanging on a quilt rod. Then, the guide said that WAS the wooden quilt, and I did a double take and gasped. The quilt on a rod, that looked so real, was made of wood! It was incredible.
The exhibit was so amazing. The amount of work that goes into some of the intricate quilts was unbelievable, with so much beadwork and hand applique. I alao enjoyed the beautiful modern and abstract quilts, and they gave me a lot of ideas for how I can incorporate that kind of look into my own quilts. I wish I could have taken photos, but alas, the most I can say is, it's not so much a quilt museum, as an art museum (mostly of the contemporary variety) where textile is the medium. It is fabulous and definitely worth a visit, quilter or not. Some of my favorites included a Lord of the Rings inspired quilt that was mostly thread painting, a 3-D piece of textile installation on metal rods, and a quilt that had embedded little cellular phone chips on it. I was delighted to recognize 2 modern quilts by Jacquie Gehring in the Midwest exhibit.
After the exhibit, I wandered into the gift shop, and there was a whole room devoted to every quilting book I had ever wanted. Everything on my Amazon wish list was in this room, and I wish I could have spent hours here! However, I had brought my 4 year old along, and she was running out of patience, so we left before I could browse to my heart's content.
Now that my head is swimming with ideas, I'm just dying to go quilt.
When I see a piece of work or pattern that is above my level of ability piecing-wise, I always look for ways for me to achieve a similar look but doing it in an easier way. Here are some of the potential ways to make it simpler to do:
Can I applique it?
I hate piecing curved seams. I really, really hate them. When I first tried to do them on a Drunkard's Path block, I nearly broke down in frustration. I had bought a Curved Master presser foot, but it was completely useless to me, even when I manage to sew a curve ... it does not flatten into a square. However, a similar look can be achieved by appliqueing the curved piece, using either raw-edge or turned edge.
Can I use English paper piecing?
I like tumbling blocks a lot, I find the 3-d effect mesmerizing. I also like stars made up of diamonds. However, I find that level of precision piecing to be above my ability, so instead I make it with English Paper Piecing, which allows really really precise looking seams, and I applique it onto the background fabric. It looks just as good, if only a little thicker. (Think of that as extra insulation)
Can I make the piece oversized and square it up?
If I made half-square triangles using exactly what the specification was, by the time I try to square it up, it will probably resemble a diamond. Maybe it's my piecing of bias seams, maybe it's my pressing, but I cannot seem to get it right. But if I make it just a little bit bigger, I have plenty of room to square it up and it will look perfect.
Can I break down the block into easier components?
The LeMoyne star is made up of diamonds and Y-seams. Blech. Instead, I can achieve a very similar look by converting the entire thing into half-square triangles, which are much easier to work with. I do have more seams in this case, but it's better than not making it, or making it really badly.
Can I swap out that block for something else?
Sometimes, I just have to call it quits on a block. It's just not working. That's when I look for a block in that size and swap it out. Not only do I have something more "unique", but I don't have to force myself to do something I hate. After all, only I should dictate what I want to have on my quilt, and so what if it doesn't look exactly like the pattern picture?
In order to be really scrappy, I cut out a total of 448 squares (half white, half from scraps) of 2.5" sq, and 112 squares (half white, half scraps) of 4.5" sq. That sounds like a lot of cutting, but I managed to do it fairly quickly and had a lot of fun too mostly because of the Stripology ruler from Creative Grids designed by Gudrun Erla. I saw it demonstrated at Quilt Fest and thought it was brilliant. It is my most expensive ruler, but completely worth it as it makes cutting strips accurate and really fun. In fact, I find every excuse to use this ruler!
After getting all my squares, I chain-pieced one white square to one colored square. Then, to make it really random, I mixed it all in a bin. I then grabbed pairs and put them together randomly. I only just started, but I will need to make 28 16-patches and 28 4-patches.
I wasn't feeling too sure when I was stitching individual squares together, but as the blocks came out one by one, I knew it was going to be great. The impact of scraps is undeniable. After all, despite their randomness, there's one common thread ... my taste.
If hand pain was the price I had to pay for crochet, it was worth it for all the stuffed animals I made over the last few years. It's interesting that although amigurumi started as a Japanese concept, the dolls that the English patterns made had a very different look and style. Most of the Japanese patterns seem to produce tiny dolls best suited for display and collecting, while the English authors produced dolls closer to stuffed animals that kids can play with. I want to share some of my favorite designers as well as my all-time favorite creations.
First up is Ana Paula Rimoli who was the one that got me into amigurumi to begin with with her adorable patterns, and she's known for giving faces and personality to inanimate objects ... like a birthday cake. I enjoy her patterns despite the extra work that embroidering the faces on require.
If Ana Paula Rimoli is the one who inspired me to want to make amigurumi, then Stacey Trock of Fresh Stitches is the one who really taught me how to do it. My very first class on Craftsy was Stacey's Amigurumi Woodland Animals, and through there I really learned how to crochet in the round and how to put stuffed animals together. Stacey's animals have a distinct style. They're simpler with virtually no embroidery, and they're bigger and cuddlier and much more suitable as toys for little kids. Also, her animals look different from everybody else's because she mostly only crochets through the back loop. I made a TON of animals with patterns from Stacey, here are my favorites:
And last but not definitely not least, my favorite designer is probably Little Muggles. Her animals are probably the cutest I've ever laid my eyes on. Yet ... I don't know what her brand of magic is, because I can *never* get mine to look as good as hers. There's something about the magic of facial placement that she's mastered that I have not. Nevertheless, here are my favorite Little Muggles dolls:
While most of the animals I made are available for my kiddos to play with and lovingly tear up (as long as I have a photo of them looking their best ...) I did make a few that are hiding in my closet, that are just for me. Naturally, they pertain to Japan-o-phile side of me. Here I have a Koopa Troopa, Lil Melody, and 2 Totoros.
Finally, I've only made one amigurumi in my life that I designed based on a photo, as there was no pattern available. I made Kumagoro which was a stuffed bunny from the anime Gravitation. It is my most proud creation simply because I used no pattern.
Even though I don't make amigurumi so much anymore, I had a great time making these and who knows, I might make more in the future.
I'm using the method of sewing together 3 strips of 2.5" across, then measuring, and hoping the end result is perfectly 6.5". For each foot / needle-position combination, I'll first press to the side, measure, then press open and re-measure.
Test 1: Zigzag foot at needle position 3.5.
Pressed to the Side: Just shy of 6 5/8
Pressed Open: 6 5/8
Test 2: Zigzag foot at needle position 3.3
Pressed to the Side: 6 7/16
Pressed Open: 6 1/2
Test 3: Quarter-inch foot (no adjustment)
Pressed to the Side: A few hairs more than 6 3/8
Pressed Open: A few hairs less than 6 1/2
The closest was using needle position 3.3 and pressing open. It seems when I first press to the side, it's not very accurate, but if I press open and *then* to the side again, it's much closer. That's a lot of work, but worth it if I want more accuracy and nesting seams as well.
