Why are we always in a hurry?
#1
Senior Member
Thread Starter
Join Date: Sep 2011
Location: Winston-Salem, North Carolina
Posts: 939
Why are we always in a hurry?
I just read another post where someone was talking about how quickly they finished a quilt top. What's the hurry? I enjoy the process - the planning, shopping cutting, and sewing. I find making a quilt like reading a good book. I love for it all to come together, but there is something a little sad about it being over.
#3
Senior Member
Join Date: Dec 2012
Posts: 381
Some of us are just classic overachievers. Most of the quilts I make are for Linus. They are simple and rarely pieced. I have set a quota for myself of 21 a month. Our Linus Chapter usually produces at least 600 quilts a month so I am not the only one keeping busy. I need an excuse to keep purchasing fabric. I feel guilty if I don't make use of it.
#4
Senior Member
Join Date: Apr 2009
Location: Bushkill, Pa
Posts: 534
I completely agree with you. I know people who just do one quilt after another and as fast as possible. I used to think there was something wrong with me because I worked so slowly. I didn't retire to keep working on a speeded-up treadmill. One of the reasons I retired was to slow things down. It is enjoyment for me. It is not a speed contest.
#5
Power Poster
Join Date: May 2009
Location: NY
Posts: 10,590
I am definitely in the tortoise camp as opposed to the hare, slow and sure. I gravitate to more complex patterns with numerous intersecting seams like mariner's compass, NYB, etc. I also enjoy working with small pieces (patchwork that finishes to as little as 1/2" by 1"). The complexity requires a certain amount of precision that can't be rushed. Don't get me wrong, I love shortcut methods like strip piecing, rotary cutting and making numerous HST at once using a grid sewing method but I still have no desire to work at breakneck speed. Like you, I enjoy the process and I always have numerous projects going that require different techniques including handwork. I too can't understand what the big rush is. Even for charity quilts I don't see the point on trying to produce so many. It isn't like there is a huge shortage or overwhelming need, especially with so many charity quilters out there.
#7
Just because someone completes a lot of quilts, doesn't mean they are rushing the process. Maybe they love it so much, they just can't stop. I used to make 2-3 quilts as month. Never rushed, but I'd come home from work and quilt for 4 hours. Or quilt all day (12-14 hours) on a weekend, just because I love it so much and it's my relaxation time. Certainly gave me a rep for being Speedy Gonzales, but as I said, I never rushed a single step.
Now, I hardly get any quilts done - maybe 3-4 quilts in a year - because I've started longarming for others. That takes up all my quilting time now.
Now, I hardly get any quilts done - maybe 3-4 quilts in a year - because I've started longarming for others. That takes up all my quilting time now.
#9
Junior Member
Join Date: Jan 2014
Location: Birmingham, AL
Posts: 130
I enjoy the process but also get bored when I'm on the same project and looking at the same fabric for too long. That's why I love the Jenny Doan-type projects. I can take pleasure in cutting precisely, lining up seams and points exactly and dealing with bias edges, and trying to get a consistent scant quarter inch seam. With the "quick and easy" techniques I can have an attractive, complex-looking finished project in a few weeks and improve my skills while doing it.
#10
Power Poster
Join Date: Jun 2011
Location: Southern California
Posts: 19,127
Usually people have deadlines to get the quilt done such as a birthday or a wedding or a holiday. That is what happens to me. When I was in competition with my quilts, I was literally sewing the binding to the back as my friend drove me to where I was to drop off the quilt. Never enough time in the day for me.
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