Various Stages of “Doneness”, AKA Ta-Done!
At our “Christmas in July” Sewtopia Sewing Club in 2009, Laurie Parker presented a wonderful trunk show of Christmas gifts and quilts. Along with all the beautiful projects she bestowed her wisdom of her interpretation of “Done”.
Laurie travels a lot for her work, so she devised a term for herself to help her feel a better sense of accomplishment when she has to be away from her sewing room. If you ask her if she has any “UFO’s”, (Un-Finished Objects) she will always answer, “No”.
According to Laurie there are four stages of “Doneness”…
Stage 1: Cut – Done
Stage 2: Pieced – Done
Stage 3: Quilted – Done
Stage 4: Binding – Done (or as I like to call this one “Ta-Done”!)
A project at any one of these stages is DONE!
What a great idea! Breaking up these steps makes getting projects to the next stage enjoyable. She always has projects at any one of these stages, but to her they are DONE until she is ready to take them to the next stage.
One thing I have learned from Laurie as I have watched her become an excellent quilter over the last couple years, is the time she takes as she works on her projects. She takes time to ENJOY each step. She is never in a hurry to get something finished. I think we all could learn to slow down a little and enjoy the process of our hobby instead of rushing through it just to get it done.
Thank you Laurie once again for all your wonderful inspiration and friendship you share with us.
“Focus on the journey, not the destination. Joy is found not in finishing an activity but in doing it.” – Greg Anderson
Kate Snuggerud – 4 Months
Kate is doing very well at 12 1/2 pounds, sleeping through the night and checking everyone and everything out. Here are a few of her latest pictures. Enjoy!
Here Kate is visiting with my mom in Las Vegas via Skype’s free online video service.
In the Event of an Emergency…
Is your sewing machine and fabric stash replaceable if something were to happen to your home? No one plans on having their life turned upside down by a flood, tornado, fire or theft, but it can happen in a blink of an eye.
Let us focus on the valuables in our sewing rooms. Could you describe your sewing room’s contents after emotionally surviving a traumatizing event? Most of us probably could not recall everything.
I contacted our local insurance provider to ask how one would go about getting replacement value of a “Fabric Stash”. And now with some sewing machines valuing $10,000 – $12,000, are these items covered under a basic home owners policy or should there be an additional policy?
Do take time to check with your insurance agent to confirm the type of policy you own and how they best suggest documenting and assessing the value of the contents of your sewing room.
Sewing machines seem to land in the “appliance” category on a basic home owner’s policy. They would be automatically covered without having to do much else. Having proper documentation of the receipt, model and serial number would help expedite any questions on a claim form.
But since fabric is purchased a little at a time and goes into a collection over time, it is not necessary to save every single receipt. (Most of us would not want to know what this would add up to in the first place! Nor would we want anyone else to know!) The best suggestion is to take pictures. Pictures are proof of what you actually have behind those closed closet doors. Do you store fabric in tubs? Open up the lid of each tub and snap a photo.
Our State Farm office suggests, “Take photos of every wall in your home. Make a list of the items in each picture and store the documented information, receipts and serial numbers in a safe deposit box.”
Click here for a great link to creating an inventory list of your own home.
To insure actual sewn quilts and other sewn items, again documentation is key to having some sort of compensation for all your hard work. Keep a diary of photographed finished projects for not only insurance purpose but for recording your projects completion date, fabrics used and maybe even the inspiration behind the finished item.
Taking a little time now could save you thousands of dollars in the future. Just think if you got a check to replace your entire sewing room today…how would you spend it?
Pajama Club
This summer Heirloom Creations offered for the first time a class for older kids to help them perfect their sewing skills. As young adults, these sewers wanted to start learning skills for making clothes that fit. The best place to start for any new sewer is with a pair of pajama pants.
First they learned the importance of using a zig zag and overlocking the raw edges of their fabric pieces while making a pillowcase and a tote bag. Once they were familiar with these techniques they had confidence to move on to their pajama pants.
After taking quick body measurements, patterns were selected for their size. I wanted them to “test” their pattern by sewing the drawn pattern together on Pattern Ease. This way we were sure of the fit before cutting it out of their actual fabric. Once length and waistlines were marked they were ready to cut out their fabric and start sewing.
They quickly learned that sewing clothing is much different than sewing a quilt. (Some had attended our quilting camps in previous summers). Quilts are two dimensional, while our bodies are not only three dimensional but have various curves and shapes.
But before long, they were sewing the hems and running elastic through the waistline casing! They tried them on and whoohoo!…they fit! These girls are styling and comfy for the nighttime and for around the house. The two gals who made capri length pajamas actually wore them home from class!
I look forward to offering this class again for students 12 years old and older next summer. Watch for summer camp dates around February 2010.
The Pajama Party book offers a variety of pajama styles, pajama tops and sleep over items in sizes small to XXL. Books are available at Heirloom Creations.
Quilts & Vines 2009
Saturday, August 8th was the 3rd Annual Quilts & Vines outdoor quilt show and wine tasting event at Strawbale Winery. Thank you to everyone who volunteered to help out with this show and to all of you who let us display your quilts. Thanks to you, it was a great success.
There were over 400 quilts displayed through out Strawbale Winery’s vineyards.
We have uploaded over 775 pictures to Heirloom Creations photo gallery. Check out many of the quilts including the detailed stitching and quilting! After clicking on the first picture, start a continuous slide show by clicking the “PLAY” arrow! Click here to view…
For the past three years Quilts & Vines has partnered with Project Linus. This special organization provides warmth and comfort to local children who are seriously ill, traumatized, or otherwise in need through the gifts of new, handmade blankets and afghans, lovingly created by volunteer “blanketeers.” The local Project Linus chapter will receive a portion of the ticket sales and 20% of all sold quilts. This year over 35 quilts were sold!
Vi Colombe spoke and showed many of her personal quilts. A big thanks to George Martin for holding all the quilts!
The weather cooperated during the morning and early afternoon hours that people were looking at quilts, having lunch and sampling the wine. Though we did find ourselves Saturday afternoon in the path of tornado like clouds, thunder and rain, all quilts were safely stored and secured prior to the weather reaching the winery.
Here is a sampling of some of the 400+ quilts that were on display…
We have uploaded over 775 pictures to Heirloom Creations photo gallery. Check out many of the quilts including the detailed stitching and quilting! Click here to view…
Again, thank you to everyone who helped make this year’s show a great success. We look forward to seeing you next year, Saturday, August 14, 2010!