Hi ,

 

Do you have a project you’ve been wanting to make for years, but just keep putting off?

 

This week I decided to clear the decks which means shelving a book I’ve been working on for months so I can focus on another book that’s much more important.

 

This is a book I've been meaning to write for years, one that quilters have been asking about for almost as long. This is the book sharing the stories behind all of my Goddess quilts, which includes the Release Your Light quilt pictured at right.

 

Yes, . That means I'm stopping work on Rise to the Challenge of Your Life. As you can imagine, I didn't come to this decision lightly. But I'm feeling so much better now that I'm finally writing the book that's been on my heart and mind ever since I designed my first Goddess quilt.

 

I also discovered something very powerful while working through this: giving yourself permission to make what you most want to create.

 

To celebrate Springtime, at least for those of us here in the southeastern USA, we're running a sale on all video workshops and embroidery collections. You'll save 35% on every video class and embroidery design collection until April 2nd.

 

 

Last month I cut my vintage treadle sewing machine cabinet! I finally faced the fact that my vintage Singer 12 was just too old for sewing and quilting. I began hunting for a new machine that could work as a treadle, but that meant I had to cut the hole in the cabinet bigger.

 

The hardest part about cutting the tabletop was the fear of messing it up. At first I was going to cut out the hole by measuring the machine carefully and transferring the marks to the table. But as my dad pointed out, that was a really easy way to make mistakes. Because the machine needed to sit on a lip on the table, I could have easily cut out too much.

 

Click Here to read the rest of the story. You're going to love the little machine I replaced the Singer 12 with!

This week I noticed I had a tension issue when quilting the checkerboard tiles block. The top thread was pulling in the corners of my Boxy Loops design. 

 

The absolute key to troubleshooting any sewing machine or longarm machine issue is to only change one thing at a time and test the machine with each change.

 

If you change seven things at once and then do some quilting, you’ll not know what fixed the issue, you may create new issues, and ultimately you won’t have any idea how to fix the problem next time.

 

So that's it for this week, .

 

I hope my rambling podcast will help you identify the things you want to make and give yourself permission to clear the decks so that you can work on them. Yes, a quilt can be far more than a blanket you curl up with in bed. Making a special quilt can change your life and that is exactly what many quilts have done for me over the years.

I cannot wait to share this journey with you. More to share very soon!

Finally, please don’t forget about the Quilt Friends Club in case you haven't yet checked it out.

 

This membership club is filled with supportive, kind quilters from around the world. It’s also a great place to ask questions and post your pretty quilt pictures too. We have 350 members and no matter the time of day, there’s something going on.

Let’s go quilt,

Leah Day