Saturday, May 14, 2011

A bad case

Well, I've done it to myself again! I went and looked at something I knew I would want if all the answers were correct for the questions I had. Well, they were, and now, I have a really bad case of the "I want".  The back story to this is my David Taylor workshop from last year. Remember that? That is when I learned how to do pictorial applique, and I began the one of my dog, Mayo.
The beginning, April 2010
After my return from retreat at Cambria CA, March 2011
Mayo the Wonder Dog, May 2011
The actual picture I am working from
David returned this year for another workshop with our small group, and I put the last stitch in her face about an hour before he got to my house. I still have the body to go, but I really wanted to have this part done so I could get ideas and tips on how to quilt it.
Me and David at breakfast
Last year, I marveled at how his quilting is so beautiful. He told us he did most of the quilting on his domestic Bernina, but he had changed to a Handiquilter for the last two that he had done, and he loved it. I thought to myself, "But, you are DAVID TAYLOR, that's why you can quilt so beautifully. Not me." As the week went by we had many conversations about how to quilt, and we invited him back this year for a small class on machine quilting on our home machines. I thought, "You'll never get ME to quilt like that! NEVER! No one else has been able to teach me." But, I stuck with the idea that maybe he could and I signed up for the class. And guess what? HE DID!!!! He quilts slowly and deliberately, and I must tell you that makes all the difference in the world. He also talked about his Handiquilter Sweet Sixteen sit down machine.

I went to the Machine Quilters Showcase here in Kansas City yesterday. After I saw all the wonderful quilts and visited the Sulky thread vendor I headed over to the Handiquilter Headquarters in the center of the show. I sat down and played with the Sweet Sixteen, and I must tell you that I didn't want to leave!

But alas, this is not in our budget. Not when we still have a house on the market to sell, and we took a bath on the other one we just sold. So, for now, I will quilt smaller quilts on my Pfaff (which I love too) and dream of the Sweet Sixteen. It makes more sense for me to practice, practice, practice on my own machine and save the money for a purchase in the future. (I'll post more about the quilt show next time.)
Sit down and quilt!

6 comments:

  1. CarolMay 14, 2011 9:51 AM

    I was glad to see a picture of David on your blog this morning. I took machine quilting from him in Houston this last time and he was a great teacher. I learned To Slow Down if nothing else. And to find your own rhythmn or pace. He removed a lot of the PANIC I feel when quilting and the lessons he guided us through were so helpful. I was just showing my sample "sandwiches" to a friend the other day. He happens to use the same Bernina I do (and they were our class machines) so that was a bonus as well.
    He is a fun teacher and made the class enjoyable. Know you have enjoyed your time with him.

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  2. Barbara SindlingerMay 14, 2011 11:28 AM

    I took his class at Road to California this year and during one break I sat and watched him quilt on the sweet 16 and wow - that's a good description of what he does slow and deliberate. But he is meticulous is all he does. I wish our class was more than two days - just wasn't long enough.

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  3. Ms. JanMay 14, 2011 3:24 PM

    Sharon, I'm seriously lusting after an HQ Sweet 16 sit-down machine as well. I'm just not a stand-up quilter! I am taking a week long workshop from Jill Schumacher in early June and hope to gain even more confidence. Jill is a protege of Diane Gaudyinski and she is good. I've taken a few of her short classes, but a week with her is going to be awesome. Maybe for my 60th b-day next year....maybe.

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  4. Quilts And PiecesMay 15, 2011 9:27 PM

    Oh how cool is that! What a great thing to spend time with him and learn so much!

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  5. TeresaMay 19, 2011 8:30 PM

    I can so relate to your insecurity, or past insecurity I should say, about machine quilting. Maybe I need to slow it down too and try to be more deliberate in my stitching.

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  6. GailMay 29, 2011 8:05 AM

    I just started machine quilting with my Babylock Quilter's Choice and you're right, the slower you go the easier it is. I always thought you had to drive the machine at 10,000 rpm's but you can't control it at that speed. So glad you had such a good workshop with David, Hope you keep practicing and and keep us posted on your progress. Looking forward to seeing some great machine quilting from you.

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