Impressionist Appliqué
Grace Errea and Meridith Osterfeld
C&T Publishing; $29.95

Grace Errea is known for her “value-based” realistic appliqué work. In this book she, with the help of Meridith Osterfeld, shares her technique for creating her quilts. Her technique is systematized and features lots of color values to get the desired effect. For those unfamiliar with working with color, she offers a primer on its components: hue, saturation and value. She also discusses the basics of line, shape, form and texture in your work. Before working on any of the five projects in the book, Grace has you do exercises to understand the value of your fabrics, including making both a Periodic Table of Value in Color and a Color/Value Fan.

Regardless of the appliqué technique you choose, the exercises in value will enhance your work.

Look for the book at your favorite book retailer. Here’s a link to www.Amazon.com if you would like to learn more about the book.

As a creative entrepreneur you probably struggle with a large to-do list. I know I do. Even as your business grows and you have assistance, it can still seem overwhelming to get everything done in the allotted time you have.

The key is to put money generating activities (MGAs) at the top of the list. If you look at the last five things you did in your business, how many were related to sales or marketing in your business? You need to prioritize those activities if you are going to bring income into your business. Here are some tips to do that.

• Capture all the things that you need to get done in one place. No more sticky notes or little pieces of paper. You can create one master to-do list or one for each project. Just the act of getting the tasks out of your head frees up thinking and working energy. I like to use a sheet of paper in a three-ring binder.
• Go back and decide what you need to do today. You will probably have other tasks to add each day that may not be on your master list. Rank the activities so you can see how many are really money-generating activities. You can use A1, A2, A3, B1, B2, C, etc., ranking system to prioritize them. “A” tasks are those which will make you money.
• Get going and finish your A1 task before moving to your A2 task. It will take disciple to stay focused on those A tasks, and that’s what you need to do to generate an income.
• Look at the tasks you are doing with the thought that maybe someone else can do them. Consider taking one of these and train someone else to do it. You’ll be able to spend your time on MGAs while your team can handle other work. You’ll actually be happier and more productive.
• Watch getting sidetracked by little tasks. It’s easy to look at the list and think you can winnow the list down by doing some quick items, e.g., the phone call, answering email, checking your Pinterest page. I’ve tried that and what happens is that I don’t get to the big stuff because I did the little stuff.
• At the end of the day, look at what you accomplished. Ta-da!

Please share your tips about how you stay focused on MGAs below.

Away From Home
Nancy and Oliver Rink
Kansas City Star Books; $25.95

Subtitled Quilts Inspired by the Lowell Factory Girls, this book features a sampler quilt with an appliqued center along with nine pieced and applique blocks. An additional eight projects are included. The basis for the book is the The Mills Girls 1830-1850 fabric collection from Marcus Brothers and Judie Rothermel in conjunction with Lowell’s American Textile Museum. What I found most interesting was the story of the New England textile mills and the women, or “mill girls” who worked there.

Look for the book at your favorite book retailer. Here’s a link to www.Amazon.com if you would like to learn more about the book.

On my birthday, I like to reflect on those things I’ve accomplished and think about what’s ahead. I also like to have a little fun, as in playing with my fabric, as in making some art. However, I looked around at my studio and realized that it could use a healthy cleaning. So I started sorting books and fabrics and notions. Gosh, we quilters, sewists and artists certainly do accumulate a lot. I know I’ll appreciate the open space in which to create. Here are some tips if you are facing that increasing pile, or piles, of stuff.

1. Do you really need all those back issue of your favorite quilt magazine? I’ve gotten better over the years, but the stack can get out of control. Now I try to decide when they arrive if I want to keep all of the magazine. In most cases, it’s  an article I want to read or a technique I want to try. I’ll tear out the article and then file them in a manilla folder by topic. If you are highly techie, you could even scan the articles and toss the originals. I also have a master list in a notebook of “someday” ideas and projects. I will note the existence of the article and how I filed it. Periodically I go through the files. Something that sparked an interest a few years back, may have lost its luster, and it’s easy to toss now.
2. What about the books you have on the shelf? I get lots of books to review and I purchase a fair share also. Again, some that I found valuable in the past don’t hold the same weight today. Look for places to donate books you no longer use. It could be your local guild or your local library. If you want to manage the shipping, you could sell them on ebay. My books find a welcome home at the Virginia Quilt Museum. I know the museum adds some books to its library and sells others to cover museum expenses.
3. Is your fabric collection in need of paring down? Of course we need a “palette” as quilt artists. Do we need that large of a palette? And doesn’t our palette need refreshing every now and then? If you’re like me, you’ll never live long enough to use all the fabric you own. You’ve seen the saying, “The one who dies with the most fabric wins!” I’ve decided I don’t need to be in the competition. I regularly donate fabric for charity quilts hoping to make a dent in the stash.
4. And, how about those notions? A year ago a friend donated all her mother’s sewing notions to me after she died. Wonderful, I originally thought. Then I looked at the collection. Spools of thread that cost 25 cents. I think that thread is so old it will shred in any quilt I choose to make. So that was easy to toss. It did cause me to look at all the notions I had that probably went back to high school. Yes, I collected and tossed what was not useable and donated the rest.

I know it’s hard to get rid of “stuff,” and it can be overwhelming to do it all at once. If you can’t set aside a full day, block several hours in consecutive days just to clear out what you don’t want. Sort it into two piles – items to donate and items to trash. I know many people say add a third pile for stuff that needs to be fixed. I used to go by that theory, until I realized I didn’t want to fix the stuff.

Please share your tips below about how you get your stash under control.

‘Tis The Autumn Season
Jeanne Large and Shelley Wicks
Martingale; $24.99

In this follow-up to their top-selling ‘Tis the Season, Jeanne Large and Shelley Wicks head into autumn with a collection of 12 projects. The owners of The Quilt Patch in Saskatchewan, Canada, are know for their “urban country” look that features chunky appliqué, easy piecing and earth tones. Instructions are included for a variety of appliqué techniques, including fusible-web and fusible-interfacing appliqué. Since the designers love to use hand-dyed felted wools in their work, they offer tips for working with wools. The book also includes a bonus online pattern. I was taken by the large thistle flowers in their “Reunion” quilt and loved the use of rick-rack in several of the quilts. And, since most quilters I know also enjoy a culinary treat or two, Jeanne and Shelley have included a few recipes to enjoy.

Look for the book at your favorite book retailer. Here’s a link to www.Amazon.com if you would like to learn more about the book.

For some reason I’ve equated the long, lazy days of summer with a slow-down in my work. Well, it never quite works out that way. I have lots on my plate, as I’m sure you do. With traveling and vacation, I seem to have even less time. One of the things I’ve tried to work on for the last few years is working smarter and using my time more efficiently. The key to that is knowing how I am working currently. Here are some tips I’ve been using:

Please share how you work smarter below where you may “Leave A Reply.”

Simply Sensational Square-agonals® Quilts
Sandi Blackwell
Landauer; $24.95

If you missed Sandi Blackwell’s earlier book, here’s your chance to learn her easy technique for creating quilts with a diagonal setting without adding setting and corner triangles. She uses a mathematical concept known as “dissection.” When creating your blocks you just cut, rotate and reassemble. In the introduction, Sandi explains the math to you, only it’s not necessary to know as she points out. She provides directions for constructing 12 quilts, which are not on the diagonal, and then she shows you how to make two cuts, rearrange the pieces and then sew them back together to create the diagonal set. The instructions are clear, and if you or your students get thrown by creating setting triangles, give this technique a try.

Look for the book at your favorite book retailer. Here’s a link to Amazon if you would like to learn more about the book.

One of my favorite shops to visit when I’m at my home in St. Michaels, Md., is Take Me Home. It is quite a challenge – and one I cannot meet – to leave without a little something. This time I picked up two small treats, a gift for my sister to celebrate her new dog and a some clever napkins for my book club.

One of the joys of shopping here is the shopping experience. The owner opened her shop about five years ago and has an eclectic mix of items with quotes, whimsical designs, soaps and other household gifts and accessories. She puts herself in her customer’s place when she thinks about her merchandise mix. She is always engaging with each person who visits. And she looks for creating an experience for her customer that lasts beyond the visit to the store. One way she does this is in her packaging. It doesn’t matter how much you spend (I only spent $15); the package is special. My purchase was delivered to me in a nice toile-design paper bag with the store label. The item was wrapped in tissue paper and then two decorative papers were stuffed in the top of the bag and it was finished with a satin bow on one bag handle. It looks so good that I almost don’t want to give my sister the present!

What are you doing to create an experience for your customers? It could be in the packaging. It could be in the greeting you offer when they come into the shop. It could be the invitation to join you for a cup of tea and a sharing of your customer’s latest quilt. It could be a nice note you tuck into the shipment with your wholesale orders.

Please share how you make your customers’ experience special on the blog.

Happy Endings
Mimi Dietrich
Martingale; $24.95

Twenty-five years, a quarter of a century – that’s a long time for a quilt book to be in print and remain of value. Now re-released, Happy Endings is a terrific resource in your quilting library. Mimi Dietrich covers what to do with your quilt once the top is done, beginning with adding borders, preparing a backing, basting the quilt sandwich, and finally the actual finishing of your quilt. Not all quilts use a binding, so she teaches you how to finish without a binding, whether that is using an envelope-edge technique or using the backing to finish the quilt. I like some of the special techniques, e.g., using striped fabrics and creating scrappy bindings, adding prairie points or covered cording. And, a quilt is not finished until you add the label and a hanging sleeve, so that’s included, too. A valuable reference for all quilters.

Look for the book at your favorite book retailer. Here’s a link to ShopMartingale if you would like to learn more about the book.

Ever wonder if anyone actually puts the slogans they spout to heart? Well, I found that to be the case during our recent Mastermind meeting at the Doubletree by Hilton BWI Airport in Baltimore, Md. The hotel’s motto is C.I.D. It stands for Consider It Done and it was the brainchild of Adam Novotny, the hotel’s general manager. The employees wear the pin shown to the right. And, when I would ask a question, I often heard “Consider It Done,” and it was. From the management to the dining room staff to the cleaning crew, everyone exhibited a friendly attitude and clearly wanted our meeting to be a good experience and it was.

The experience got me thinking again about how our customers think about our businesses. What qualities are important for you to leave with your customers: being friendly, handling orders/questions within a certain time frame, being sure your customers have a positive experience, providing extra touches? I’m sure you can come up with others.

It would be a valuable exercise to write down the values you bring or want to bring into your business and how you interact with your customers for a week.

Next, think about the systems that you could create to see that your business continues to express these values.

Please share your insights below this blog.