Stirring the pot with another discussion-- <VBG>

Well, plain and simple, like in sports, I think any one who earns income, whether from actual sales or from reaching a certain level of monetary prize awards, automatically becomes a professional. Those who do it for fun, family and ribbons would not be considered professional using this standard. As far as quilting services go, whether via long arm or DSM, again, if income is received for the services, then it is at a professional level, regardless of the actual skill level. Just my 2¢ Lorraine in La Center

Especially when it's a computer guided long arm.

Frankly, the oh-so-perfect computer quilting looks eerily Stepford-like and gives me the shivers. Debra in VA See my quilts at

Susan, I've designed a few applique blocks for myself. Now, I might just want to put a copyright on them because they are mine, but until I get paid for the designs I wouldn't consider myself a professional designer. Debra in VA See my quilts at

Anyone who is paid to design quilt blocks or whole quilts is a professional designer. Anyone who is paid to write a quilt book is a published author. Anyone who is paid to teach quilt classes is a teacher.

None of the above makes anyone a professional quilter because you can do them without ever actually quilting anything. One could even do them without actually sewing anything. Entering quilt competitions doesn't make you a professional either--it just wins you some prizes. Simply put, a professional quilter is someone who gets paid to quilt an existing top into a finished quilt, or makes and quilts a complete quilt.

Debra in VA See my quilts at

Actually anything that is in tangible form, print/photo/made up quilt, has a copyright. It may not be a registered copyright, but it still falls under copyright protection of a sort. Whether or not it has a copyright symbol on it is pretty much irrelevant. Of course defending that copyright is something entirely different. And a kettle of worms I am not at all up to getting more involved in at the moment.

Pati, in Phx where we have High Heat Advisories/Warnings out, expecting highs the next couple days in the 115°-117° range

Debra wrote:

I'm so glad it's not just me that thinks that! It's just to machine-made-JCPenny-bedspread looking. ick.

marcella

W-e-l-l-l-l-l, that's not necessarily true, per se ... if you create a quilt consisting of irish chains & Puss-in-corners in red and white you can't say that that's *your* design - the patterns that you used to create it is public domain (so to speak). In order for a copyright to be valid it has to be an original ... it has to be unique and something that can be proven to be singular.

And for the majority of pieced and PPed patterns, they aren't C/Rable because they pull too much from public domain to BE unique. Like a PP sailboat - unless it's so spectacularly different from the typical Sailboat PP block, it can't be C/Red.

That would be as if I drew a stick figure and said no one else could copy it ... now the composition of the piece (say, a stick man standing in front of a log cabin with a pipe in his mouth) AND the style I used could be C/Red. But I would more than likely be infringed upon and considering the simplicity of the piece, it'd be damn nigh impossible to pursue it in court.

Applique patterns - say the ones I'm working on - I can't copyright the elements but only the total configuration. If someone likes a portion of my design and wants to use, say, a petal or leaf, but use it in a unique way, they can - and I can't claim copyright infringement.

Typically, a C/R is weightless if someone modifies it enough to LOOK like an original piece. I deal with that particular chestnut ALL the time. :/

B'sides, I'd like to think that ALL quilters are such good people that copyrighting isn't necessary! :)

Doesn't look like anyone is too shy to voice their opinion!!!! Thank goodness. I have really wanted to know what other quilters feel about Judging. I know Judging is not an easy job. I will always think the names need to be covered. Even if it does not influence a good Judge, it would keep any feeling of favoritism.

I was in one of Hariette Hargraves machine quilting classes. She called the all over large meandering the "Mattress Pad" design. I had never thought about it, myself.

The "perfect" computerized long arm designs are a bad example to put in a show. The novice or inexperienced view usually has no idea it is a computerized design, sewn on a long arm. Now, if the long armer designs it herself and quilts it without the computer then that is a different matter. IMHO

I teach free motion quilting. I am not a professional, I do not quilt for others. My quilting is not "perfect", I do not use a BSR. My quilting is an artistic expression, not anything I count stitches on. Don't really care if my stitches are perfect, the design is what I am having fun making.

Sandy, sounds like we are basically on the same page.

OK, I'll move to a different thread now............

Marsha in nw, Ohio

We may be on the same page with one exception. I do use a BSR on my Bernina machine. I tried for about eight years to get even stitches with my FM machine quilting -- couldn't do it. Now the BSR helps a lot. It's still not perfect, but it's *so* much better. I guess that means I'm not doing all of the work myself, but it makes me happy. I don't think a computerized quilting machine (doing all of the work, even the design) would make me happy. JMHO. :)

I think a computerized quilting machine (doing all of the work, even the design) would make me very happy. Send me one and I'll let you know. Polly

"Sandy" wrote, in part > I tried for about eight years to get even stitches with

those things are huuuuuge, metal and heavy. probably cost less to buy one than to ship the darn thing. would be cheaper and more fun to just go to play with Ms Polly for a week or three. :) jeanne

LOL!

With a computerized long arm machine, the design work is done on the computer. It can still be just as original. If the patchwork is somewhat uneven (blocks aren't perfectly square or sides aren't the same length, for example), that all has to be compensated for in the computer to have the quilting come out right. The skill set is a bit different for the computer machines -- the operator needs the computer skills rather than the machine skills. Of course, everything has to be planned in advance; it is harder to change the quilting design "on the fly".

Julia in MN

I'm glad I'm not alone too. Debra in VA See my quilts at