Tonight's lesson

NEVER trust that a needle has a fresh tip just because you are taking it straight from the package.

That FMQ I did earlier on Clinton, the fashion mate, looked a little off when I flipped it over... I noticed the needle had pushed the threads of the fabric all the way through! Despite wanting to stay home and figure it out, I went to class. Whenever I ran out of things to say during our poetry workshop, my mind wandered back to Clinton.... what's his deal?

I got home, tried sewing a few more scraps, same problem. So I changed the needle-- it wouldn't catch the bobbin thread! But that just turned out to be sill me putting it in backwards. Once that was fixed, all problems were solved. Which got me to thinking... I picked up the needle I had been using (which, mind you, I took straight from the package and put in last night when I got home from Wally World) and looked at it-- NO POINT! It looked like the tip had snapped off!!!

To reiterate: Check your tips. I don't want to blame Wally World or Singer, since they were official Singer needles (I put a Schmetz in)... but someone in quality control should be reprimanded. Just a bit.

Happy sewing!

Tomorrow brings a new project...

First quilt show, and what I learned...

My quilt got stuck in a corner. I think it was too bright and different for the organizers. I am still glad i entered, and since I got in free twice already, I'm actually a dollar ahead. However, I am disappointed that the winners had ALL used other people's patterns, and it seemed like there was no acknowledgement for originality. I met a lovely lady the day I dropped off my quilt, and her quilts were far superior to mine, not only in quilting design (she has a longarm, which makes me jealous!), but also she had designed fabulous quilt tops, not just used someone else's pattern. The quilt that won the whole shebang was a Dear Jane... not to take away from the attnetion to detail and skilled work, but what about Sue's sunflowers? To me, the fact that she created the whole design would have scored extra points. For this reason, I suggested they add a category for Original designs. Mais helas.

Here's a simplified version of what I learned:

1. In Amish country, art will never win over tradition.
2. Practice, PRACTICE, PRACTICE!
2. Until I turn 60 and by then maybe look 40, I should stop being surprised when they assume I'm someone's child, not one of the quilters.
3. I never want to know the calorie count at Essenhaus. EVER.