Of Mosquitoes and Quilters

Today I had hoped to include photos of our white rhododendron that blooms twice a year.  The fall bloom isn't as heavy nor are the flowers as large as in the spring, but they are still lovely.  The buds are a very pretty carnation pink and the open flowers very white against the dark rhododendron leaves.  This morning I went out with my camera and tripod, set everything up as fast as I could, and took the picture just as fast.  Then I ran for cover.

No, it wasn't raining, but the cloud of voracious mosquitoes was absolutely incredible!  I haven't seen them this bad for 25 - 30 years (and yes, I'm serious).  Once I was safely indoors, I had a moment of nostalgia for the truck that used to drive up and down our street belching anti-mosquito smoke out the back (with a horde of kids on bikes behind!).



Wonder who those people are?

It was only a momentary weakness, but our recent rains have made going outside a torture.  Anyway, I had hurried so fast taking the photos that not one is worth sharing with you.

My success story of the day is that I met with my quilter, Karen Gibbs, and that was time very well spent.  After looking over my sketches and listening to my plans for construction, she gave me some helpful information about what I can and can't do before quilting.  Not only is this her area of expertise, but she also is a quilt designer and maker (she has delightful patterns and does some amazing work) so she understood what I'm trying to accomplish.  Karen also told me that seeing the ideas beforehand helps her design the quilting.  It gives her the time to think about it and to let the ideas rise to the top.  This way she'll be better prepared when I bounce in with my finished product - especially since I need such a quick turn around.

Often I've heard people be a bit negative about using a professional quilter instead of doing one's own work.  Here are my reasons for rushing off to have someone else work on my quilt tops:

     1.  While I can design and chose colors and construct a quilt, I do not have either the experience or the eye to know what will best enhance my product.  A professional, especially one like Karen Gibbs, has both.

     2.  A professional quilter should always ask you what you think you'd like to have done and do whatever you say.  However, she or he should also make suggestions if other options might yield a better result.  She or he should also let you know if the machine on which the quilt will be quilted will not do what you think you want to have done (there are limitations).

     3.  I don't have a long-arm or a professional quilting machine nor do I want to invest in one.

     4.  I don't have a problem collaborating with another artist (and I always include information about the quilter on my labels).  Look at all the books that are written by two people!

Many times I have watched people work on hand-quilting, and I know that the day will come when I will have the time to join them again.  I love hand-sewing and I realize that the more I practice, the better I will become and the easier it will be to select the best quilting design.  However  right now, I must be realistic about my time, my abilities, and the size of some of the quilts I make (remember my discussion about my quilts-on-steroids?).

There is a place for those who quilt their own and a place for those who don't.  Neither approach is wrong; you simply need to chose what is best for you without being judgmental about what others do.