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Old August 19th 05, 07:30 AM
NightMist
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On 18 Aug 2005 08:49:40 -0700, "Leslie & The Furbabies in MO."
wrote:

I've been making all types of quilts for almost twenty years as well as
having taught quilting classes for about 6-7 years in the mid-90s till
our local fabric store went out of business. I've found that I need to
go back to beginner's books periodically and un-learn or re-learn my
techniques. I *know* how to do it, but I find sometimes I wander off
the path and develop bad habits and/or get sloppy (mostly in my cutting
and safety practices with the rotary cutter). If my basic skills
aren't excellent my more advanced skills will suffer since I don't have
a strong foundation to build on. Also, new and better methods and
tools are being developed every day and I need to keep up with the
advances being made in our craft.

Do you find yourself getting in a rut or complacent and needing to
un-learn bad habits and re-learn correct basic techinques?

Yes Ma'am!

I do a lot of sewing, and if I don't keep myself in order I swap over
techniques inappropriately.
For example I have gone and sewn entire blocks with a 3/8 or a 5/8
seam allowance. Now there would be nothing wrong with that, except I
cut most blocks with a quarter inch allowance. If it is a block with
curves things can get really ugly when you do a dumb like that!

So if I have done a fair bit of garment sewing I will sit myself down
and run over the simplest things about putting together a quilt before
I so much as take the cover off the machine. Vice-versa if I am
sitting down to make clothes after a long stretch of quilting.

Sometimes I will sit down and put myself in the right mindframe by
sketching out a design and doing the math for it. Sometimes I will
pick up a book or three and read through basic techniques. Though I
do that mostly for garment sewing as I have reletively few quilting
books. Sometimes I just rattle off a mini project that takes a
specific skill I have to focus on.

Since I mostly do Really Big Quilts I want to be in the right sewing
mode and proceeding with confidence. Otherwise I will end up ripping
a whole great lot. Having the basics in order and done well are what
make the quilt IMHO.

NightMist
--
"To repeat what others have said, requires education; to challenge
it, requires brains." -Mary Pettibone Poole
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