A Favor of you Please

Oh boy this is going to be a good one Diana, are you sure your that bored?

Anyways as to how I found this neat little section of the universe , I was checking out the rec newgroups one day back in 2001, and saw this group decided to check out and some how got stuck here. Reading the post of Backwage and Mister Bear, Kate, Butterfly, LN and the rest kicked up my interest into quilting. I helped in the making of a quilt a friend was making for her DIL. I have always liked sewing and wanted to see if I could do it. Plus I love color and what other way can you get to feel color and see it come alive other then in quilting. Watching the blocks take on a life of their own its amazing.

As to why I stay. Where else can you find other people that you can call friends and not get judged as to what you look like, what your income level is, or why you arent married yet or why you live where you live. I like the people here, some I am finding are as strange as I am. If any one has a question they get answers, if someone is hungry they get fed, and every one is there to lend a shoulder to cry on, to give out hugs and support no matter what is happening.

To what I hope to discover in my quilting oddesy, I just want to be able to get the quilts out of my head and make them real. I want to find my own limits. If the quilts make me happy and others happy, then I have done what I wanted to do. But dont get me wrong , lol, I am my own worst critic so it takes alot to make me happy when it has to do with something I make. Well thats my little story, So Diana get better soon as the blue Luna's should only happen once in a blue moon ? Sorry I couldnt help myself lol and yes this is coming from another Luna.

Dawn

Well, Diana.........

I started with a quilt class in October of 2001. My teacher wasn't the best, but at least I learned enough to make a quilt for a friend who was expecting her second child. I did take another "class" with her, but it was mainly to get 2 hours out of the house to myself.

She convinced me that, if I couls sew clothes, I could make a quilt, and shockingly, she was right. By that, I mean that I had always seen quilts as something WAY out of my league, having never met a quilter before. Anyway, I was hooked and made quilted wall hangings for everyone that Christmas!

Since I was soooooo hooked, so fast, I decided to see if there was a group that I could bounce ideas off of and get ideas from, and that is how I found RCTQ.

Through the short time that I have been reading/posting at RCTQ, I have found great people and wonderful support. I"ve also gotten some new ideas, including ones that NEVER would have crossed my mind (and gotten introduced to new "gadgets", which is always a plus!!). What I am hoping for, as far as my quilting future, is to be able to make a Queen size quilt that actually looks as if a professional made it. No, not a store-bought looking thing, but one that looks like it was done by a person who had been quilting for more than 2 years or so.

In the immediate future, my quilting future will hopefully see the completion of a corduroy scrappy quilt for myself, a scrappy quilt for my daughter-to-be, and 3 quilts for donation to a church school auction. After these, who knows where I'll go (though I do have the fabrics waiting for my mom and dad's flamingos in the flowers quilt, and Mother's turtle quilt).

Larisa, sorry if this is boring, but it's all I can truthfully say.

I don't remember how I joined. Oh wait, yes I do. nzl*, who has been one of my bestest buddies (online or not), kept telling me about the group. I tried to join a few times, but my isp just didn't want to cooperate. It wasn't until I got a new computer, and nzl* introduced me to you, Diana Curtis, that I really just couldn't stay away. I finally got to be able to download and subscribe to the NG, and have been a happy camper ever since. Flame wars notwithstanding, I find this a wonderful place to share quilts with other people, whether it's the process of making them, or the finish product, or all the other chatter that goes on in conjunction, just like a quilting bee.

I had always wanted to be a quilter, just like the grandmother I had never known. She died when she was just 21, and my dad was 6 months old, but she had created some really lovely quilts. She left behind two tops that are to go to my dad when my step grandmother dies, and my dad wants me to finish them for him, so that my brother and I can each have one. I've been able to sew since I was 9, but hated it until i was

19, when i couldn't afford to buy the really nice clothes I wanted. So I sewed a lot for a while, looking for someone who could teach me how to quilt. We attended a Mennonite church (which we later joined) and I was able to find a group that would teach me to quilt on charity quilts. They only hand quilted, which I'd never done before, so I was a bit nervous, but the ladies were all quite nice. I sat down around the frame, where we were working on a white on white baby quilt. I took up the needle, after the group's leader showed me how to make the stitches, and I began. I can't describe the feeling very well, but bear with me. I felt like I had come home, like I'd been quilting all my life. I immediately felt like I belonged. To this day, six years later, hand quilting is one of the most relaxing things I can do. The small even stitches came naturally for me, and get even better the more I practice.

If i could do nothing but quilt, I'd be happy. Piecing is a real pain for me, because I like to rush to get through making the top so I can quilt it...LOL. But i'm getting much better. I'm also learning to appreciate hand applique, ok, and machine applique, too. I've made it a goal to challenge myself to learn a couple of new techniques every year. That goal has been put to the side for a little while, but next summer, I'll be ready to jump in again with both feet and quilt my fingers off. I love the fact that there is so much to learn, and that beautiful things can happen with little bits of fabric sewn with love, whether by hand or machine.

Probably more than you ever wanted to know...

I came to post on RCTQ because no-one I knew quilted and I refused to go back to the shop where I purchased my first kit (yes I cheated!). On threat of a vile, horrible, nasty, painful death I will NEVER set foot in that shop again. So, when DH brought the internet home he suggested I look up and see if there were any newsgroups. Lo and behold, there were - ONE!

I have never looked back and indeed will never look anywhere else. This group has become like family to me, I've met some of you, spoken to others, and emailed with even more. Gosh darn it...... I love you guys!

Hi Diana!

I'm glad you're recovering well =). Here's my story for you and it's the absolute truth - you may be shocked when you read it!

How I came to post at RCTQ: Remember e-mail address was "Chaingang" at first? You ask why? Because I was ready to harvest e-mail addresses and spam everyone in a get rich quick scheme. Cold hearted and just wanted some cold hard cash. You probably know the scheme. It's the one where you "sell" e-mailed reports for $5 each and you sell so much, it compounds, and sooner than you know it, you're out of debt, have tons of money in the bank and just get more.

Well, I had to lurk before posting my spam e-mail, right? I didn't post here but of course I posted elsewhere - I was naive, you know! Of course it didn't work. But I kept reading posts here and really enjoyed this group of people. Decided to nix the whole get rich quick stuff and stay and get some quilting questions answered.

Why I stay: I've gone to other lists since then but this one is truly the best! Lots of experienced quilters as well as new quilters like me, so the questions that get posted are usually ones that I'd like to ask, too. The advice is great! I've built up a library of "necessary" books based on what others have said are good books to have. I've improved in my machine quilting as well as my machine piecing. Of course, I've made friends here, including you, Diana, and wouldn't dream of leaving. If I don't post often, it's because of the three little ones, my full time job, and my now part time job to try and make ends meet.

How I came to be a quilter: I've sewn since I was 11 when my mom sent me to sewing school one summer. I've been sewing garments and crafts since then. I decided to take up a Hawaiian Quilting class at work (1998 I think), where they try to keep the Hawaiian culture alive. Being part-Hawaiian, I thought it would be a good thing to do. Then I got a pattern off the internet and made a quick baby quilt for DD1. Couldn't stop since then!

What I hope to find in my quilting future: I would like to get better at machine quilting. So far I can stipple and meander but I've never drawn a design and quilted it. So that's next.

I can't remember how I found the group, my DH probably did for me, but it was in 1999, I think! Wait, DD#2 was born in '97, so it must have been then, cuz I was working on some quilts at the time and I remember asking questions about thread basting. What I learned: don't try to thread-baste a quilt on the floor while 8 months pregnant. :-)

Why I stay? That's easy - everybody is so great here! I have a large number of quilting friends (even if I haven't met most of them in person), a support group of experienced quilters to ask questions of, and a place to get a laugh or a hug whenever I need it.

I used to be a weaver - I've always done some hand work or other - and I used to sew clothes. I wove baby blankets for DD#1 and DS, as well as a couple of nieces. But with kids, I couldn't set up my loom anymore. For a long time, DD#1 had her crib in my weaving room! Once she started crawling, it had to be put away. I took up sewing again, making baby clothes. DS's blanket was woven at a community center - another thing not to do while 8 months pregnant!

DH asked me what I was going to do for DD#2's blanket. I dunno what happened, I just decided to make a quilt. I can sew, right? How hard can it be? And my best friend was having a baby, too, so I wanted to make a quilt for her baby. Then, of course, DS would need one for his big boy bed, since he was getting booted out of the crib. By that time I was well and truely hooked! It didn't hurt that the lady who sold me weaving supplies had diverged her business (they sold knitting supplies, finished pottery and finished quilts) into just quilting supplies, and some finished pottery, too. Her partner took over the yarn part of hte business. How great was that? A LQS owner I knew! She's a great lady, too!

For the future, I want to improve my skills, yadda yadda... I also want to make more quilts for my home, as wall hangings, and for more beds - not every bed has a quilt yet. And, I really want to teach a class on some aspect of quilting, and I'm working on that goal now! :-)

Im recovering well... certain things coming in the mail keep my spirits up, thank you muchly! But the days linger long sometimes. I havent energy to do much yet, but you, yes YOU, have the power to entertain and amuse me if you feel like it, and I hope you do... Would you please tell me how you came to post at RCTQ, and why you stay, and how you came to be a quilter and what you hope to find in your quilting future. Maybe everyone else will get some pleasure in reading these .. then I wont feel so selfish! lol Thanks in advance, Diana the slightly bored

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SHE's HEALING!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! "Truly that bored" is the BESTESTESTEST thing I have read all day Butterfly (letting my finners do a HAPPY HAPPY for you)

Diana Curtis wrote:

You read it right the first time , I came here before I truly ever started. I am not counting the helping the friend thing, cause she didnt like what I did. I sewed the seems to big and the block turned out to small, she read me the riot act. It was my first time ever working on a quilt top with no instructions other then to sew the lines straight and make sure they match.

But here I am with one quilt top made from start to finish by me, (and I am not counting the panels cause I just had to hand quilt those). And its All your guy's fault I think you all need to owe me chocolate now ( second thought its to hot for chocolate, FQ's will do nicely )

Dawn

Thank you Judy, for a lovely tale. It has history and future. Im going to have so much fun if all the storys are as interesting! Diana

family---although

Wow, it all seems like so long ago. I think we first connected to the Internet in 1995 or 96, and I looked for anything and everything I could find that related to quilting. This newsgroup was one of those things, and reading it has become an important part of my day! I don't post often, but I check in to read several times a day. Why do I stay? Sometimes I'm not sure, because I do have other things I could (should?) be doing, but I have come to feel like I know many of the people who post here. I've cried with their losses and cheered and smiled with their successes and happy danced when it was appropriate. I'm not much of a joiner -- I don't belong to a guild or even a small group (although that's something I probably would consider) -- and RCTQ is something where you can come and go as you please. I read a couple of other newsgroups, but this one is the one I stay with. Quilters are a special group -- kind, warm, and caring -- and even when we have our disagreements, we can generally come back to the board and still be friends.

When I was growing up, Grandma taught me how to crochet, knit, and embroider, and I did all of them! The one thing she never taught me, though, was how to quilt. When DH and I got married, he was still in the Army, and the Officers Wives Club on post offered a variety of classes, including quilting. So, off I went. There was a great little fabric shop (quilt shops as we know them today just didn't exist) where I found the perfect fabric for a Trip Around The World quilt -- which was hand pieced and hand quilted and is still part of the family today. I quilted it on Grandma's floor frame. That was back in 1980 and, as they say, the rest is history. I have done some cross stitch periodically since then, but the crocheting, knitting, and embroidering have gone by the wayside.

Hmmm, what's in my quilting future? Well, I'm still working on hand quilting a Thimbleberries BOM that I started something like three years ago. Then, I have a WIP that has a Mariner's Compass theme that needs to be taken to the next step. I'm going to have to sharpen my machine quilting skills for that one, though, because I used a white-on-white fabric where the design is kind of stamped on, and it'll be awful to try to hand quilt it!

Diana, it's great you're feeling better. Hope our stories have helped pass the time!

My DH helped me find RCTQ several years ago and I got hooked on it pretty quickly. It took me a while to get my nerve up to post, but the more I do, the more I do, and now I do not know how I could sew a quilt without this group! Y'all are nearly as vital as my sewing machine! I made my first quilt when I was in college, living in a room which had a door to an porch which didn't shut quite tightly. BRRRR! Decided it was time to put together those blocks my Mom had been saving for me. She wasn't a quilter, or hardly even a sewer, but I guess we'd decided to save cloth from garments I'd learned to make (with the help of a friend's mother) in case I ever wanted to make one. So over Christmas vacation I cut 100 10-inch blocks, laid them in rows, sewed the rows together. Put a rainbow-colored sheet on the back and used some kind of polyester batting. Tied it. Decades later that worn and torn quilt is in the archives but I'll never part with it--it is truly a diary of my life, with blocks form my prom dress, my curtains when I was a kid, and countless other threads of my past. Wish I'd saved more cloth--it can spark memories nearly as vividly as long-forgotten aromas. As I write this, I realize that my quiltmaking is yet another gift from my Mom ( who died 4 years ago), who had the foresight to save those squares so many years ago....

I continued to make quilts, tho' not at any great rate (or quality!) over the next 20 years. Then when I quit my full-time job I got into it much more and now I can't imagine not having some quilty project to work on.

Growth wise--I'd like to get better at everything that I like: patchwork, colors, MQing. Some day I want to be brave enough to do a Drunkard's Path and a Lone Star, and oh--about a dozen others, too! And what I hope to find? That dadgum piece of dogbone cloth I misplaced a year ago! But thanks to the generosity of someone on this NG (three cheers! You know who you are!) substitutes are en route.

Thanks for asking! Hope your recovery continues nicely and quickly!

great questions. ;-)

I came to rctq a few yrs ago after being on the 'net for quite a few years before that. I mostly read parenting newsgroups but then branched out a bit. I had to step away from the group for a while when I changed service providers and then popped back in for a short while. I finally came back again for a longer time a couple of years ago. It's much easier for me now because I work full time on the computer and can check in whenever I want during the day. I keep coming back to see what interests other quilters and, sometimes I can even answer a question or two!

How did I become a quilter? I have no idea! I've tried just about every craft there is and I always became very passionate about them, but... the passion never lasted very long so when I initially became passionate about quilting (when my now 14 yr old was a baby), no-one thought it would last. Hah!! I sure fooled them! I've made way more quilts than I know (last unofficial count was in the 60s but those are only the ones I remember). I learned completely on my own, never knew another quilter until just a few years ago.

What do I see for the future? I'd love to be more adventurous. I tend to stick to patterns, colours that I know and like so I'd love to do something totally out of the ordinary for me. Right now, I am collecting bright, very bright, fabrics to see what I can do with them. I see myself quilting forever though, it really has enveloped me and I enjoy it so very much.

Marijke, in Montreal to see some quilts, check out

and click on"my quilts"

Does this mean you came here before you started ever quilting or am I reading it bass ackwards? This is a truly good story too. Thank you Dawn! Diana, truly that bored.

It started out innocently enough for you didnt it? And now.. bwuwahahahahaha... sucked you in deep didnt it! lol Im glad you set your goals high. Why not. There doesnt seem much point unless youre willing to try to do better than yourself. Diana, thanking you for hte diversion

Bored is a good sign?? yay! Diana

Love you too!!! and even tho I HATE how you were treated in that store, I am so glad they behaved so badly and you ended up with us! Diana