Coaching, Round 2

I suppose you've heard the adage "give a man bread, you feed him for a day; teach him to plant, and you feed him for a lifetime?" Well, that principle applies to my learning lately, as I had a second opportunity to visit my friend Terry for further long-arm coaching.

Many of you know that I have been in possession of a long-arm machine for nearly 2 years, yet I have not quilted a single quilt on it. This sad fact has many extenuating explanations, yet truthfully, most of them stem from my own poor excuses and, as one shop-owner/quilter told me, being "chicken."

You can click back here to read about my being gifted the machine from another sweet friend, Sharon O.

Is it becoming apparent that I am surrounded by sweet friends?? I am so blessed by them.

In mid-August, I asked Terry if she would quilt two quilts for me, as I had immediate needs for both, and didn't see myself getting to the point that I could successfully do them on my machine. Instead of offering to quilt them, she offered to teach me how to quilt them. Inspired!! I think she sensed that I was, truly, "chicken" or at least intimidated.

The first quilt was done a week ago, and I haven't fully revealed it yet as it's a wedding gift for my nephew. I wrote about it here.

This week, I quilted a t-shirt quilt that is being raffled to help fund a scholarship sponsored by my DH's fraternity alumni. I shared my shirt-gathering adventures here. Obviously, I don't have to keep this one a secret.

In doing two quilts in two weeks, I have gained such confidence. It definitely has motivated me to do what is necessary to get mine up and running. I have big plans for doing just that, which I will share as it all gets going.

So back to the quilting, I did 'freehand loopy meanders' over the entirety of this quilt. It seemed like a good idea at the beginning to make the quilting dense, but as I neared the end, I was wishing I'd been looser with the stitching, as I ached through the neck and shoulders; I just wanted to be done! It is far from perfect, but for a t-shirt quilt, it is certainly acceptable, and I hope whoever wins this raffle will use it at tailgate parties, picnics, and ballgames at the 'Shoe.

A few blocks were noteworthy. This one had a 3-dimensional rosette attached, so I made sure to stitch around it.

Another shirt was done in pink rather than scarlet; I am assuming it was in conjunction with breast cancer awareness.

I have so appreciated the opportunity Terry afforded me to do this practice quilting on her machine. As I said, it has truly given me the kick in the rear (which I needed!) to begin using my own!

Happy Quilting, Friends!