gifts

The best part about being a quilter is the gifts made for me by my extremely talented friends. It's smart to cultivate gifted people because they give the best presents.

Case in point. My friend Virginia made this art quilt for my birthday. Can you see the little cover of Wild Goose Chase? So cool!



And if that wasn't enough, my friends at Always Quilting made me an Old Maid's Puzzle quilt to celebrate the publication of the second quilting mystery. Pernille organized, Kit quilted it and a dozen or so friends worked on blocks to include in the quilt. The best part was they did it right under my nose. I was in the room (hey, it's a big room) working on my own projects while they were sewing up the blocks.



I lied to them. Not on purpose. I told them I had never received a quilt before. That was almost true. I did get this quilt from my quilt guild when I left Pennsylvania to move to California. It's full of very cool sentiments.




Along the way, I've been given plenty of unique, handmade treasures. If you don't have a crafter as a friend, I suggest you start looking for one. Now. Christmas will be here before you know it.

10 Lessons

Ten lessons I learned from quilting, stamping and writing

This is a version of the talk I gave at my launch parties last week, so if you couldn’t make it, you won’t miss out. In fact, I’ve added one lesson, so you’re actually winning.

10. There’s always a point where you look at what you’ve done and you’re tempted to throw it out and start over. Resist the urge.

9. You don’t need to know where you’re going. You’ve heard it before, but it is truly about the journey. Give in to not knowing where you’re headed. Often you find a more interesting path.

8. Quilts and books are like houses. A house needs a roof and four walls and a bathroom and a kitchen, but beyond that, the rest is up to you. Your quilt, your stamping project or book has to follow certain conventions, but there is a lot of leeway within that structure to make it your own.

7. Know that there’s a lot of work to be done, but don’t let that stop you. It’s helpful to work in chunks, and celebrate each time a chunk is finished.

6. Learn to take criticism. Finding someone who can be an impartial judge of your project, and can suggest new ways of looking at your work, will help you to soar to unimagined heights. Critiquing is a good thing.

Continued next Friday…

To be read pile

I'm on a list where people are posting pictures of their to-be read pile. Giant leaning towers of prose stacked up on the nightstand. Mine includes two manuscripts (Old Maid's Puzzle and Stamped Out), research on mountain lions, Pacific Grove and Julia Morgan, architect, the first mystery of friend (and soon to be KH blogger) Betty Hechtman (Hooked on a Murder)and the usual array of books.

TBRs and UFOs (unfinished projects in quilt lingo) are just a fact of life. I struggle to be non-judgmental and see them as bountiful abudance rather as anxiety-producing, brow-furrowing, stomach-churning to-dos. I try.

If it all gets too much, I purge. In fact, I'm getting rid of a UFO right now. Email me if you want it. It's a Judy Niemeyer paper-piecing project called Autumn Splendor. I believe all of the papers necessary are there. There are about 7 blocks complete, done in batiks in a wide variety of colors. I'm not guranteeing anything, but you should be able to get a lap quilt out of what's there. There's not enough fabric cut to finish. First one to email me gets it. terri@territhayer.com

So some pictures of my TBR pile:



TA-DA!