In The Zone (Process-Creativity)

In The Zone: Joe Cunningham & The Abundance of Freebies

March 6, 2013

Editor’s Note: Pro quilter, teacher, author and musician Joe Cunningham started quilting more than 30 years ago, when testosterone and quilting weren’t as common a combo as they now are. He’s a scholar and historian, using vintage and historic quilts as inspiration for his “totally Joe” style. His work hangs in museums and private collections [...]

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Sewing = A Beach Vacation

March 4, 2013

For professional organizer Elizabeth Tawney Gross, sewing is like a beach vacation, except there’s no sand and no sunburn (unless you back into the iron!) Well, we’re kinda stretching it here. Actually she’s talking about your sewing room. If you approach organizing your sew-space with a beach vacay metaphor in mind, it’s easy to [...]

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In the Zone: 5 Reasons to Write a Quilt/Sewing Book

August 27, 2012

Every time you peruse the shelves of your local quilt shop’s book collection, you dream of seeing your book idea up there. You think you’ve got something to offer, and wonder what you need to know to reach out to your fave publisher. Well, we had a conversation with two of our friends at leading [...]

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In the Zone: UFO Triage

August 20, 2012

Most of us have short attention spans. It doesn’t help that this wonderful q-biz we adore keeps putting out new fabric, patterns, tools and ideas, creating a constant form of creative whiplash for us. If you think you’re the only one suffering from a slew of Un-Finished Objects decorating your sewing space, think again. [...]

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WORKING IT: Get your biz pushed by Kickstarter. We did!

May 11, 2012

It was July 2011 and we were just about to launch our new online blogZine. We knew that this was the first big step on the way to becoming a print magazine and the start up funds needed to set up the website were very low—more sweat equity than cash. As we closed in [...]

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In The Zone: Do You Remember Your First?

February 24, 2012

True, it was a while ago, but I remember my first with the clarity that struck like a thunderbolt because I knew at that moment that I had found my one true love. My first was big, very big, and he was so strong, clad partly in denim as he was. Yet he was also [...]

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In the Zone: An Ultimate To-Do List

November 8, 2011

Jack Nicholson and Morgan Freeman gave us a bittersweet look at the human urge to fulfill certain dreams before death in the 2007 movie The Bucket List. And at least some of their goals were pretty much what you think two guys–and Hollywood–would come up with. (Some cancer patient advocates apparently later complained about [...]

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In the Zone: Ergonomics III—Tool Time

November 3, 2011

And now we come to the third and final installment in our series on ergonomics for quilters and sewists. In our first article we examined how to properly adjust your cutting table, sewing table, and sewing chair to keep your hips, back and neck in proper alignment and prevent fatigue and pain. In the second [...]

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In the Zone: Ergonomics II–Stretching (And We Don’t Mean on the Bias)

October 28, 2011

Fiber artist and art quilter Larkin Van Horn of Whidbey Island, Washington, once sustained an injury so severe that she could not hold a needle for three months. No, she wasn’t diving for a Hail Mary pass or locked in mortal jump-ball combat. She was sewing on beads. Her repetitive muscle injury occurred years ago, [...]

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In the Zone: Bonnie’s Stash

October 27, 2011

Once a month, I help out with the prayer quilt ministry at my church. I’m not the most prolific piecer in the group, but I enjoy being with my friends and helping the general cause. In efforts like this, talent seems to match up with task, and I usually tie quilts that are almost ready [...]

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