Sunday 7 September 2014

Newsletter

I've started writing a Newsletter for my quilting customers. I'll repeat it here (apart from the giraffe photo which I shared in the last blog update) with colour photos.
After Piece Newsletter
September 2014
Hello there, dear quilting friends.
I thought it might be a nice idea for me to send you a letter with news about what I have been doing and what is coming up. You are receiving this letter because you have expressed interest in my quilting service or you have already had a quilt sewn together by me.
Firstly, thank you to all my lovely customers who have placed their quilts in my hands to work with. I enjoy seeing all the different quilt tops that pass through my little studio.
Most of you know by now that I have upgraded my smaller Husqvanna Viking set up for a larger and computer driven set up. This change over took a few months to sort out, but has been well worth the wait. Those customers that have already had a top quilted using the QBOT system have all agreed that the new patterns are lovely. The QBOT works so well as an edge to edge, over all quilting system. However I have also been experimenting with my own quilts to do custom finishes.
I submitted one of these custom finishes, which had QBOT block patterns combined with my own free motion quilting into the Penrith show. The quilt received a second place ribbon in the commercially quilted class, which I was very pleased about as I had no idea of the standard of entries before I took the plunge. Now that I’ve seen the first place quilt, I’m sure I can top it for next year. J

Just after I upgraded to the larger, more advanced set up I had some professional Development sessions with Master Quilter Michele Turner of Pinetree Cottage Quilting. Michele has won many awards and been quilting for 10 years, though she is now winding down her quilting operations while she studies. I learned a lot from Michele. She built upon my knowledge with lots of small detail type hints which have helped to polish the way I work.
Below is a photo of the work I did for Caroline Wilkinson on her baby quilt. The filling stitching around the applique is highly influenced by Michele’s teachings. Carolyn was very pleased with the work I did for her and said I could quote her as saying the quilting had taken her patchwork to a new level. That feels like very high praise indeed, and exactly what I aim to do for you and your quilts.

Here is my newest pattern to be published. It's in this month’s edition of Patchwork and Stitching Magazine. These placemats are foundation pieced and the coasters were made with scraps.

September Quilty tip.
I can’t claim to have thought of this little gem. I saw it on the back of a quilt at the Springwood quilting show (sorry I can’t remember which one).
Use vintage doilies as labels for the back of your quilt. I picked up an assortment for a good price on Gumtree. Then I used an iron erasable pen to write my message and back stitched onto the doily. It’s easy then to slip stitch it to the back of the quilt.


And yes … it took me 14 years to complete this particular quilt (it’s the one I entered into the Penrith show). I made the quilt top in 2000 with help from a quilting show on Foxtel. It was one of my first quilts and I was so proud of what I had made I was hesitant to quilt it for fear of wrecking it. For the show I custom quilted it using QBOT block patterns in the middle blocks, in the ditch and scallops for the house and free motion feathers in the border. 
Thanks for reading
Jennidee



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