Hello all, Mary Ellen here.

I’ve been working on several projects lately that all had deadlines. Because of the time crunch I decided I would quilt one myself that I would usually have sent to my favorite long arm quilter. The style of the quilt is somewhat modern, so I decided to try out some of the very dense quilting that one sees on so many of the Pinterest quilts. I did lots of wavy walking foot quilting and some free motion in opposite corners. The quilt measures about 48″ x 60″. I have a new appreciation for women who quilt bed size quilts on their domestic machines. Granted, my set up of my sewing room does not lend itself to positioning lots of tables around me to support the weight of the quilt. That’s my “fault” I guess you could say. I did put my ironing board next to me to hold some of the quilt and I do have another table behind the machine where the quilt “exited” the sewing space. But…I found I still had to stop very frequently to fluff and reposition the quilt. Dealing with its weight dragging along, catching on corners of tables, etc. was not fun. My hands are sore today, and my shoulders definitely have a crink in them. How do you quilt your quilts? Do you do them yourself, or do you “quilt by checkbook” as Eleanor Burns says?

I’ve been working with the new Stripology ruler a lot of late. I have been a long time owner of a similar ruler from another company. Many of my quilting projects involve cutting and subcutting strips, and/or cutting multiple squares and rectangles. I probably use my strip rulers as much as I use my 6″ x 12″ ruler. Love the new strip cutter. I give it 5 rotary cutters up!

Hey guild friends, how are your projects for our show coming along? Make sure you get your registrations in by the deadline (March 17) even if the project won’t be done until midnight the day before the show!! Can’t show off and brag on your quilts at the show if they miss the deadline! I’m sure Jackie G. would love early paperwork.

TTFN!