Beth Ferrier’s Blog

Let’s talk about getting small. Applique, I mean. What were you thinking?

The leaves for the sweet peas are narrow and pointy. While the shapes are pretty simple, small pieces do require a little extra care. This would be a perfect time to use a glue pen instead of a glue stick. My new favorite glue pen is made by Pioneer. Called Photo Glue Stick Pen, the glue goes on smoothly and cleanly. I find mine at the local Michaels.

The first step is to cut the seam allowances a little narrower than the usual. Instead of a scant quarter inch, for these narrow shapes aim towards a heaping eighth inch seam allowance.(These photos are blurry, I’m so sorry for that. One of these days I’ll learn how to work my camera. Let’s call it a romantic soft focus. Hey, it worked for Doris Day.)

Next carefully fold the seam allowance over the points. It’s important to be really, really careful to avoid breaking back the point of the freezer paper (or Tear Away Magic Fusible, if you’re using that instead). Yes, I did trim the seam allowance at the point, to square it off. Apply glue just to the seam allowance tips for now and press in place.

I’ve found that working the side with an inside curve first turn out best. This inside curve is so gentle that I didn’t even do any clipping. Glue baste in place.

Finally, glue baste the remaining side. I don’t worry about how the seam allowances overhang the points yet. At this step I’m only worried about the appearance of the finished edges and points. After the glue dries the applique hangover can be folded back onto itself or even trimmed away.

We’ll start the curvy leaves the same way, this time let’s only baste over the pointed end, not the point at the curvey end.

Again, we’ll glue baste the inside curve side first, this time we’ll need a couple of clips in the seam allowance, just two or three, in the curve.

Oh, yikes! I must have had my glasses off when I was taking these pictures. At least you can see the clips in the seams.

Finally, let’s glue baste that remaining side. The puckers and pleats on the outside curves only matter if they affect the edge. They are on the wrong side of the leaf so they won’t show, no worries.

Nice. Most important of all, take your time. Don’t worry about how many you have to do. Think about each leaf as you’re working on it. Do your best and then move on. Some will be lovely, some will have more character. The more you do, the better they will turn out, and before you know it, the hardest part of the applique will be done. Time for a Ten a Day Leaf Challenge?

Even though I have been a traveling teacher for more than a dozen years, I have never rented a car. When it comes to handling the hiccups of air travel, I feel pretty confident. But when it came to renting a car I was a big baby.

As is becoming all too common, I arrived just fine in Little Rock, but one of my suitcases did not arrive with me. Knowing that I had a four hour drive ahead of me, I decided to wait for the wayward luggage. It contained my teaching materials for the next day’s class and all of the quilts for the new book. The airline said it would take at least two days for the baggage to find its way to me, unless they decided to hold it for my trip home. Geesh.

Four hours later, with both of my bags packed into my car, I started off towards Mountain Home. Being able to rent a Ford Focus, the car I drive at home, helped me feel a little more comfortable about the trip ahead. The incredible thunderstorm that greeted me right outside of Little Rock put on an awesome show. High on the bridges I wished I was closer to the ground, rushing through standing water in the low spots, had me wishing I was back on the bridges.

But the storm passed. A few miles of fog lifting off the drying pavement gave me something else to worry about, but it too passed before long. The roads were in great shape. The traffic was very light and at last I made it, bedraggled and tired, to Mountain Home.

I must say, the members of the Hill n Hollows Quilt Guild are pretty terrific. As a program chair, Vicki is top notch, well organized, and charming. The students were so open to new ideas, and ready for fun. It was a delight for me as a teacher. I felt that they were playing along with me. It doesn’t get much bettter than that.

Too soon it was time to head home. This time I’d be making the long trip back to Little Rock during the afternoon. The weather was perfect, blue skies all the way. Taking the “scenic” route (although I think most of northern Arkansas would qualify), it was a blast to drive. Banked curves, hair pin turns, and breathtaking views opened before me. Once more, the traffic was really light so if I needed to slow to a crawl I could.

There are teachers out there who go boldly to far away lands, embracing adventure at every opportunity. I am in awe of them. I admit, I am a chicken. I’m sure that disaster awaits me at every turn. But I hang on to this quote by one of my favorite philosophers, Mark Twain who says, “Courage is resistance to fear, mastery of fear, not absence of fear.” I may be shaking in my shoes, but on I go.

What do you fear? Do you let it keep you from following your dreams? What’s the worst that could happen? (Oh, wait, maybe we don’t want to go there.)

I’m off today, to Mountain Home Arkansas. After more than twelve years of teaching, this trip will bring my first experience with a rental car. I’m hoping for a Ford Focus, with Sync, so I can listen to my book on the mp3 player. I’ve downloaded The Good Earth by Pearl S. Buck, which should carry me from Saginaw to Mountain Home.

 I don’t know how much time or energy I’ll have at the end of my teaching days, so I wanted to post a heads up for the Sweet Peas coming this Friday. The Sweet Peas will be just a little more challenging than the Roses. The hardest part is the small, pointy leaves. I’ve put all the prepared pictures on a jump drive (so that’s what those things are for!). If time allows I’ll post a tutorial on glue basting these leaves while I’m gone. If not, it will follow early next week.

For the first time I’ve created full size applique diagrams. I found, as I laid out the center applique, that I really wanted a reference diagram, and I figured you’d want one too. Because these layout guides take several pages each, they will be posted with separate links.

You’ll need to trim and paste the pages together. The lines are extra thick so they can be seen through light colored fabric. If you’re using a dark background you may wish to trace the designs onto clear vinyl, which can be found at chain fabric stores. Some quilt shops also carry it.

There will also be an “Alternate Border” layout, which I will be using. My bed is a four poster. Any applique in the corners would be lost in tucks and folds. Who wants to work so hard on beautiful applique only to have it disappear? Not me!

Applique in the corners looks fantastic on the computer screen, or when the quilt hangs in a show. But my quilt is destined for my bed (well, actually all of my big quilts are destined for beds), so I designed this alternate layout.

But if you really love the existing layout, the full size diagram will be posted too.

If you’ve done as I have and created mirror image flowers you’ll find that they don’t necessarily fit perfectly, mine didn’t. Even though these are actual size diagrams we don’t have to be slavish about matching them. They are GUIDElines, not the RIGHTlines.

Oh, and the juries still out on whether I’ll add the berries to my design. I’m still stitching down the center applique. Once that’s done I’ll decide if berries are gilding the lily or the cherry on top.

I had more or less removed myself from the local quilting scene some years ago because of some rather nastiness on the part of a few guild members. They felt that I didn’t deserve the success I was having in the quilting industry and they set out to spoil my progress.

They passed a new guild bylaw making it against the rules to show anything that could result in profit. I know, what a truly low and base thing to do. But the worst part is, aside from making me feel unwelcome, the rule didn’t hurt my business at all. It did make things hard for local long arm quilters, who couldn’t be given credit during show and tell; the local teachers who couldn’t promote classes; the local shops who couldn’t announce sales let alone offer specials for guild members. I felt really bad about it all until I learned that this ugliness has happened to other quilting teachers.

But there is a season for everything and most of the nasty wenches have moved on to torment other groups. A very good friend has decided that it’s time for me to come out from under my rock.

 Now, you have to know some things about Connie. There is no one on this earth more giving. I wouldn’t be doing whatever it is I do if it weren’t for Connie. She took me to my first Quilt Market. She made me talk to pattern distributors, even though I threatened to throw up. She waltzed me right up to Alex Anderson and told her that she needed to see my designs! And Alex listened and ultimately booked me for that first Simply Quilts episode.

 So when Connie said I needed to go to the local shop’s “Sleep at home Retreat”, I said yes, but I have to admit I was a little nervous about going. 

Even though one of the wenches was in attendance Connie, Joannie and I had a perfectly lovely time. I was surprised at how much I missed being part of a community. I was greated with hugs from long ago friends. I always understood that it was a very small group of women doing their dirty work, but you know how one bad apple can spoil the whole lot.

We laughed until our sides ached. Connie finished about four hundred quilts. I worked on stitching down the applique in the center of the Now & Forever quilt. I spent most of the first morning poking myself with the dozens and dozens of flat flower head pins holding down all the motifs. After drawing blood for the bazillionth time I decided I needed another plan.

Oh, dopey me! I ran home (well, I drove home), snatched up my favorite basting tool and hustled back to replace super sharp pins with soft, plastic tacks. Now, why didn’t I think of that sooner? I think it was the laughter that shook loose my creative brain.

This month we are working on the pieced sashing for our Now & Forever quilts. Knowing that there were approximate fifty billion pieces to be cut and sewn (well, not really, but it felt like it), the hardest part for me was getting started. It’s so easy to be overwhelmed when a pattern calls for 192 triangles, and doesn’t count the four other fabrics to be cut.

And, don’t think just because I designed the quilt that I don’t wonder what the heck I was thinking to require so many pieces. I often have to give myself a stiff talking to, to remind myself that it will be worth it in the end.

That’s why I was so thrilled when Geri (in our Yahoo group) suggested a 10 a Day Challenge. Anything can be accomplished if we allow ourselves to take small portions. How do you eat an elephant? One bite at a time.

Whether it’s sewing a million sashing triangles together or starting a new career, being able to break a project down into small bites makes it much easier to swallow. When the parts become manageable then the process becomes much more enjoyable.

 Working bite by bite helps me focus. Instead of rushing to finish an unappealing job, I can concentrate on the few seams I’ll sew today and do my best job on each one. I usually find that I’ve finished before I’m ready to be done.

My best tip for these pieced sashing strips is to stay organized. Whether I’m cutting just a few simple pieces or a bazillion triangles I place them on a ruler, in their final position in the block, as they are cut. If I’m using a tone on tone background fabric I take the time to flip theses pieces all right sides up.

Now I can just carry the pieces to the machine on the ruler. No worry about rotating shapes, or sewing the wrong pieces together, or mixing up the right sides of the fabric. In other words, I get all of my thinking done before I sit down to the machine. All that is left to do is blissful, worry free sewing.

Traveling teachers rarely get time together. Even when we’re teaching at the same conference our classes often keep us too busy to visit.

So it was a real treat to spend a totally off task day with Pam Holland, teacher extraordinaire from Australia. I’ve known Pam online for a really long time. Known then as “Pam in the shed”, we were members of an early internet list called Quilt Bee, or something like that, more than a dozen years ago. It was so new then to exchange daily notes with people all over the globe.

Pam has a great curiousity about the world. She’s much more adventurous than I. If she hasn’t been there, it’s only a matter of time until she’s on her way.

Make a Smilebox slideshow

It was a lot of fun to share my little corner of the world with such a seasoned traveler. We had a really great time discussing our business over meals. Teachers often have so much in common, the same struggles and challenges, it’s always a treat to hear how others would handle the issues. And nice to know that we’re not the only ones dealing with petty jealousy, juggling responsiblities, longing for sleep, loving our jobs. 

Pam is off to Paris to work on her big project. Watch her blog for information on that. I’m off to Mountain Home, Arkansas next week, to teach. Who knows when our paths will cross again, but our blogs will keep us in touch.

First I need to thank you all for the terrific testimonials. My goodness, it makes a girl blush! I’ve forwarded them all to my book editor, she’ll make the call as to which will show up on the back of the book.

Second I need to tell you where I’ve been. I’ve been here in my studio, slaving away at the computer, working on things I can’t show you. I’ve been here, listening to the whole Sookie Stackhouse southern vampire series while weeding the garden, folding laundry and primping my home. I’ve been home, just being home for the entire month of July, something I haven’t done in a really long time. And I liked it!

Third, you know how when you’re with someone and the conversation lags and then falls into that uncomfortable silence and then the silence lasts just a little too long and it feels really awkward to break that silence? That’s how I’ve felt about the blog. Honestly, I don’t think my life is all that interesting, especially when I take time off, and I’ve vowed never, ever to post a picture of my breakfast on the blog (which is the blogging world’s version of jumping the shark).

So finally, to ease myself back into blogging I’ve decided to throw a party, a spur of the moment little thank you party.

For the next two days, until 9pm Eastern time Sunday night, we’re having a half off sale on my website. Nearly every book and pattern is half off. Since we’re down to our last few boxes of Hand Applique by Machine it won’t be marked down, and none of the notions are included. But everything else is half off.

The regular price is still posted on the website, but when you check out you’ll see that you’re getting the sale price.

And now that it’s August, and I’m back to work, I’ll be posting more often again, for what it’s worth.