Craftsy Becomes Bluprint

If you've been a student with Craftsy, you've already heard the news that Craftsy has become Bluprint (and dang, it kills me to not put an E in bluprint) but you may have questions about what this means as a purchaser of my classes and other classes on Craftsy as well as  the subscription program.

The subscription based Bluprint has been run separately from Craftsy for quite some time, though it originally started out as the Craftsy Unlimited plan. Abruptly, after the poorly handled changes in Craftsy's pattern designer marketplace, the powers that be (under NBCUniversal) announced that it would no longer use the Craftsy brand and all services would be offered under the Bruprint name.

If you read the woes of the majority of designers and pattern sellers as they scrambled to set up web shops a few days before Christmas as their patterns were removed from Craftsy, you know that these changes have been quite painful for the creative instructors and designers that had been working with Craftsy. Changes have been rolling out far longer for instructors than most Craftsy/Bluprint customers realize. They have been incredibly frustrating, confusing, and for most instructors, handled in the silence of professional courtesy.

This has left students in a pickle as well, as some classes no longer have an instructor answering their questions in their "forever classes." After seeing their income slashed by 80% on average, or their extensive class materials and even printed patterns given out for free, some instructors have parted ways with the arrangement. Their classes are still available, but the instructor gets nothing from them.

As instructors, we have been told that questions asked by subscription customers will not be shown to us, as if not having to answer students' questions makes up for lack of compensation. For the most part, we are instructors, teachers, people who share....we don't want to leave students hanging with their questions. Though we are also business people, parents, spouses, individuals with bills to pay.

I can't answer for other instructors, or even the powers that be at Bluprint, but what I do know is that I continue to answer questions, both within the class platform (assuming they show the question to me) as well as through my website, Facebook, and email. I do my best to provide the information without having to answer the same question thousands of times over, via my posts here and videos.

Yes, there can be thousands of the same question. Last year was the last time I was given a full student count and at that time it was 27,000 students for just the first class! Since then, they won't give us a student count or other basic metrics, citing that their status as a publicly traded company, we might be able to somehow calculate company earnings and conspire to do some illegal insider trading.

Some instructors have thrived under the new arrangements, with special types of classes and shows, and new instructors have also been recruited who have no expectations from how it was in the past. If it works for them and their students, fabulous!

In the meantime, if you own classes purchased outright, it appears you will continue to have 'forever access' to the classes, though you may or may not have an actively participating instructor.  If you are taking classes as a subscription member, take advantage of all the answered questions that have come before you, as well as read the class materials. There's a wealth of information in these classes already.

If you are having trouble finding your forever classes on the Bluprint platform, clicking on the "shop" tab will take you to the re-branded old Craftsy site and your library of classes.

For my classes, I will continue to answer student questions if they are shown to me in my "Instructor's Dashboard." That is completely under the control of the Bluprint web gurus. There are far too many questions and answers to be able to search for new ones as they come up in the lessons.

While many things have changed in the time that I first started to work on my first Quilting with Rulers class with Craftsy, I am grateful that they took a chance in this rather unknown and less than photogenic quilting instructor to bring my ruler work technique on a stationary sewing machine to the masses. I was the only one actively teaching it then and Westalee was still in the process of finalizing their ruler foot prototype. Thank goodness for Janome and their ruler foot.

Changes that have happened in the industry also make it possible for instructors to create video content on their own that can rival what we could do before with these big professional studios. One of my disappointments with my classes with Craftsy was being left out of the editing process. So much content was cut out!

In March, I will ramp up video production to produce my new class on free motion quilting and I'm excited (and slightly terrified) to control all the content and production.

In the meantime, take advantage of my Facebook Live videos at AmyQuilts as well as my YouTube videos. By all means, watch my Craftsy/Bluprint classes, it brings me a few pennies and you get a well-produced class with plenty of content.

If you have additional questions about Craftsy classes, access to your class library, or your Bluprint subscription, check directly with them via this link as they know their platform and changes best.

How about you? Are you enjoying the changes to Bluprint? Are you enjoying my recent live FB videos (even if you just catch the replay)? How have my classes and videos helped you? Let me know in the comments. I love the conversation.

Amy's Quilting Juggling Act

Hard on the heels of teaching at the Janome Education Summit, I've been dabbling in quite a few quilty projects, though only a few or them involved quilting with rulers or ruler work. Click on the above link to read about the summit and links from other fabulous participants.

Janome passed along some photos from the event, so I thought I'd share them with you too. The Summit was my biggest class yet in teaching free motion quilting with rulers. Thank goodness we all had the same machine (Janome 9400), ruler foot and the Janome Ruler Work Kit for our rulers.  That made it a lot easier even though some of our participants hadn't done free motion quilting before.

Here's a great shot of Sarah Ann Smith! It was an honor to have her in class as she's been an inspiration over the years. She totally did her own thing with the project and gave a fabulous write up on the quilting with rulers class segment on her blog.

Have you seen the Jelly Roll Rug yet? Just had to make one of these fun things. I used a jelly roll and two rolls of pre-cut batting strips, but it's an excellent project for using up scraps of batting.

The trick to getting a nice flat rug instead of a ruffled thing my husband said looked like a swimming flounder is to make sure to sew on a large flat surface (pattern gives a suggestion how to set up machine next to a table if you don't have a machine cabinet) and to ease the fabric around the curves. I loved using my Horn cabinet for this.

As soon as I returned from the Summit, I had to get cracking on my shop's Row by Row pattern and project. Row by Row (aka rxr) is like a giant shop hop, all across North America (possibly elsewhere? Unsure) where travelling quilters collect either free patterns or buy the kit from shops. If you are the first to show a finished "row" quilt with 8 patterns from row shops, to a participating shop, you will win a bunch of fabric. It's something really fun to add during your summer travels.

My "row" is actually an 18 inch block as they are allowing different pattern sizes this year. I played with my machine's decorative stitches and a couple of different weights of Aurifil thread on it. I'll write up more about Row by Row closer to the launch date of June 21st. 

I'm really excited about this fabric line by Hope Yoder that we've got in the shop, especially the panel. I decided to order two more bolts of the panel in the thoughts that this might be the basis of my first either Quilt-along, or a new online class. I've got kits for this quilt featuring the panel in the shop right now, but I'll let you know more about what I want to do with it soon. Need to get the additional panels in before I launch something online.

Speaking of hosting a Quilt-along or a new online class, I'm working on two big changes for you  and my business/teaching.

Ever since we bought our bricks and mortar shop, Sew Simple of Lynchburg, I've been neglecting this blog and my video making. I've been scattered in several places online too and it's been quite a juggling act. To make up for my lack of blogging and video making, I've been shooting more live Facebook videos and they certainly helped me feel more connected to you in my online audience, but I've really been spread thin. Live videos are fun and easy to do, but lacking when it comes to organized instruction.

I finally reached out to a pair of mentors of mine and asked them what to do with my websites. I was afraid to hear how bad my sites were as I'm the one who set them all up, so they're a bit amateurish, though fit for my tiny budget. Their advice? It was that I need to condense the various sites into one site if possible and shorten the url. If you've ever heard me struggle in a video to say "I'm Amy from Amy's Free Motion Quilting Adventures," you know they're right!

So....I'll be transitioning everything over to AmyQuilts.com!

I'm excited about the change though it will take a lot of work and a bit of time to get everything moved. If you follow the blog via a feed reader like Bloglovin' or something else, I'll let you know when the blog makes the switch and you'll want to change your settings to the new blog. This blog will stay online, but I won't be adding to it once I make the switch.

Lastly, I'm looking at doing some of my own online classes! These will fit somewhere between the highly scripted classes I did with Craftsy and my very casual, informal Facebook live videos, or even my YouTube videos. This will give me better control over the content I teach and how I teach it. Some classes will be free, others will be paid. All will be full of great information and taught in my laid-back style.

I'm very excited about these changes and I hope you will be too! Let me know your thought in the comments.

Quilting with Rulers: Orange Peel and Continuous Curves

One of the neat things about being a Craftsy Instructor is it's a great source of questions regarding quilting with rulers on sewing machines or sit-down long arm machines. Good questions, even those that someone might think is a stupid question (and I don't think there's such a thing), let me know when there's an area that needs a deeper look and better explanation than I can do in seven 20 minute somewhat one-sided lessons.

I've had a few questions over the years as to what size ruler to use for orange peel or continuous curve designs in squares of piecing, usually with someone asking for a ruler recommendation for a particular sized block.

It's quite a difficult question to answer with words, or at least explain the 'why' of the answer. But today, I just felt like giving this question a fuller explanation and since it's longer than really can fit in the Q&A portion of the Craftsy platform, I figured I'd tackle it here. (Of course leaving a link in the class platform.) So here goes....

Q: What size ruler do I need for an orange peel design on a field of 4 inch blocks?

A: It depends.....

See? That's why it's hard for me to answer in words! If I were a ruler making company, I'd probably tell you exactly what size, or sizes for each block size, and a handy link to buy said rulers. That's why my second Craftsy class (instructor affiliate link) is all about making the most out of rulers you may already have.

I do have a shop that I sell rulers from, but I'm first and foremost a quilter, and the frugality that's been a huge part of my life as a stay at home mom and now, as a small business owner makes me leery of adding stuff if I don't need it. But IF I think I'll use it, I do love having the right tool for the job! (Anyone needing proof of that can look at my car and then look at my wonderful Janome 15000 and see where my priorities are....ahem.)

I managed to work up the following graphics to illustrate my point. For a series of 4 inch blocks, it might seem like the answer is a circle or arc that reaches across the corners of that block, or whatever sized block.

The problem happens when you realize that the desired circle would have the same diameter at the diagonal of that square. In the case of the 4 inch square, having brought out my long neglected Pythagorean theorem, is that would be a circle measuring 5.66 inches. Which you aren't going to find a ruler in that size, not even an arc (arc rulers have the same sized curve as the circle they are named after).

The more likely measurement is to use an arc or circle (I prefer arcs when you go to larger sizes, BTW.) for twice the size of the block. This gives you the orange peel in a diagonal orientation which is the traditional orientation of the orange peel block.

  So for this 4 inch block, an 8 inch arc is used. Which is an easy sized ruler to source. My favorite on my high shank machines is the QPC #8. Westalee makes an 8 inch arc as well, for those with low shank machines.

But what if you don't necessarily want that diagonal orientation? Maybe you are going for more of a "continuous curves" design? The diagram below* shows some different options. In my second class with Craftsy, I show how you can play around with the rulers you may already have to test sizes and blocks on your quilts to see if they will work for the design you have in mind.

*Partial patterns shown for clarity's sake.

In the red, that is a curve close to what is drawn up in red in the first illustration, but it's not quite. It represents what a 5 inch arc might look like, but it won't quite make a perfect circular shape and you aren't likely to find a 5 inch arc. There's the Westalee Circles on Quilts template which gives a large range of circles with their rotating template, but I personally would find it tedious to do this design if I had to set the pin every time.

In blue you'll see how a larger arc or circular ruler might look going from corner to corner. You lose that rounded shape to that of a more squared off shape, but the effect is still pretty fabulous.

In the green are 4 inch circles. You can see that they dip in too far to work corner to corner, but would work in a diagonal overlap for 2 inch squares or for completing the entire orange peel within the 4 inch shape.

Whew! There's my exhaustive (exhausting?) explanation of what seems like a simple question. I hope this helped.

Bernina Ruler Foot

I was blessed to have a customer and free motion quilting student come into the shop last week so I could take a look at her Bernina and its new ruler foot. As a Janome dealer whose shop now sells fabric, I couldn't work up the nerve to visit my local Bernina dealership and quilt shop to ask about this new foot.

I should have her come in more often. As soon as she came in, we got very busy during a time when the shop is usually fairly slow. This meant we didn't have much time to actually stitch with it and I wish I had taken a little more time with her to reward her for letting me see this new #72 Bernina ruler foot.

I shot a quick video, but nothing of either of us stitching. It wasn't the best footage, so I'm going to pass on posting it.

I like it. For Bernina machines of course. I still love my Janome foot. This Bernina version comes the closest to the Janome foot than anything else on the market. The height is easily adjustible with a thubscrew and there's give to how it attaches to the machine like my Janome foot, which helps it glide over bulk better than a solidly attached foot.

It has a little cut out in front of the needle for visibility too. This foot hopped on the machine she brought in, so it needs to use 1/4 inch thick rulers. I don't know if it can be adjusted with machine settings like Patsy Thompson did with the Janome ruler foot she put on one of her Berninas so it won't hop. It isn't a clackity clack kind of hopping like the generic spring type free motion feet. I'm guessing some Bernina free motion feet might move like this as well. The hopping will help it move over bulky seams well.

My customer tells me that the foot is made so it won't crash into the needle clamp if you go down with the needle with the foot up. I admit, I am so used to making sure the foot is down, I never checked this out. It's a great feature.

As far as rulers go, Bernina is selling their own rulers now, but from what I've seen so far, they are regular long arm rulers that have been available for some time, but now these have the Bernina name on them. Again, this foot needs 1/4 inch thick rulers.

The new ruler foot works on newer machines only.

Here's what I got from a Bernina Ambassador:

The Adjustable Ruler foot #72 is compatible with our current line of machines; the 3 Series, 4 and 5 Series, and 7 and 8 Series. It is not compatible with previous generations of machines with four digits in the model number or earlier. This foot is separate from the BERNINA Stitch Regulator, and is not compatible with BSR. Please check in with your local BERNINA store to find out more about the Adjustable Ruler foot #72 and ruler sets, if the foot is compatible with your model BERNINA, price and availability.

For more information, check with your Bernina dealer as I am a Janome girl, through and through.

If your machine can use this new foot and you already have a different foot, should you switch? That is entirely up to you. If your budget allows, I'd say yes. The foot isn't cheap and if you had any of the other options out there, you likely have some thinner rulers that you can't safely use with this foot. 

Ruler Work Video: Adding More Lines for More Impact

A quick reminder that today is the last day to for my 15% off Spring Fling sale at Amy's Quilting Adventures. Enter the promo code SpringFling15 at checkout and get the best prices on ruler feet, rulers, templates and more.

I'm still working on finishing up this ruler work sampler from my Craftsy class, Creative Quilting with Rulers (25% off link there!). The basic motif from the class is fabulous, but I wanted to add more to it. We couldn't pack anymore content into the class so you get to see it here. (Want to learn more about ruler work? Take my classes at Craftsy. Their camera work is so much better than my own and you can watch them whenever.)

Bit by bit I'm getting this done. I'm working on my super special project and all of you that have placed orders with me at Amy's Quilting Adventures are a huge, wonderful part of it! Yes, I'm a tease.

I can't wait until I finish the rest of these areas and then dress them up even more. Stay tuned, I'll make sure to do another video.

Peeks at My Craftsy Projects

Less than a week after my class, Creative Quilting with Rulers, More Techniques and Motifs (25% off discount link there!), I got a big box from Craftsy. Inside were my projects from the class. I'm so excited to get these back.

Imagine being halfway through a quilt that you're very excited about and having to stop working on it. That's what it was like with these projects. It was very important to me to use actual quilts in this class to help my students see how to use piecing lines and corners for placement of rulers when creating designs.

The solid samples from my first class, Quilting with Rulers on a Home Machine (50% off discount link there) just wouldn't do this time. That class is all about how to stitch alongside rulers, to hold them, and an introduction to all the different types of rulers that are available as well as introducing how to use rulers for different basic designs. It was easier to stitch various "step outs" as they are called, to show the different stages of each lesson segment when they were just plain samples. This new class is focused more on creating designs with rulers you have using the seams and points of the quilt as anchor points for the rulers.

Each quilt in this class had areas that were completely finished, as well as areas that were in various stages of completion to demonstrate each step. Camera crews, producers, and production editors aren't cheap, so I can't just have them wait around while I finish each step so we can shoot the next step.

My ruler work sampler was the only completed project. It was used as part of the background, as well as used to show a few of the variations and finished designs. But everything else is awaiting me to finish them.

We ran out of time for me to show one of the techniques I had ready on the above quilt, so I can share that here on the blog. We try to fit so much stuff and so much detail into these classes, but they've got a particular time line and class plan we've got to stick to, so some things have to be left out.

Craftsy also kept my favorite rulers so they could be used in the professional still shots of the class. I felt a little bit like a child after having her toys taken away. Now I've got them back and I am ready to use them.

I think this quilt with its turquoise and green stars is the project I am most happy to see. I can't wait to stitch it up and show it off. I've been calling it my "Starfall" quilt. It's being stitched in a gorgeous variegated thread too.

If that's not enough to keep me busy, it looks like my special somewhat secret project is also finally coming together. It's huge! I can't wait to finalize it and share it with you. If it works out like we're hoping, it will help me pull several areas of my life together so my days aren't quite as disjointed as they have been lately.

Don't forget that I'm still having a sale on ruler feet, rulers, and everything else that I sell online at Amy's Quilting Adventures. Enter the promo code SpringFling15 at checkout for 15% off everything there. It only lasts until May 15th and the proceeds are very important to the success of my special project I mentioned above. This is your chance to get rulers and other products at fabulous prices.

Creative Quilting with Rulers, More Techniques and Motifs

Wooohooo!!!!!! Today's the day, launch day, time to see what I've been working on for the last 4 months, the unveiling of my new Craftsy class. Can you tell I'm excited?

photo credit Craftsy.com

This is the perfect follow-up to my first class and a great class for those who have already begun to do some ruler work and want to learn more designs and gain understanding of how to work with the rulers you may already have to develop your own designs for your projects. I also use larger projects in this class to help demonstrate how to manipulate rulers and quilts together.

In lesson 1, I give a brief intro and a few quick reminders about using rulers safely and effectively before jumping in to how to decide on and develop quilting designs for your own projects.

Lesson 2 is all about working within blocks with echoes and block designs. I'll show you designs that are great for emphasizing piecing and for quilting large blocks as a unit, even when you don't have big rulers.

Then we head outside the block with the rest of our lessons. First there's sashing designs in Lesson 3 followed by working with rulers in the wide open spaces of negative space and background areas of both traditional and modern quilts. Then we take it to the border and look at three great designs for quilt borders.

Finally, we wrap up with Lesson 6 and get a little fancy while creating motifs using rulers not only for a simple block motif, but also for larger whole cloth inspired designs.

Here's the class trailer:

To entice you to go ahead and buy the class instead of waiting for those predictable Craftsy class sales, I'm giving you a special discount link to get my NEW class at 25% off!

Still Haven't Tried Ruler Work?

My first class, "Quilting with Rulers on a Home Machine," has been incredibly well received with reviews like:

"Loved the class. This is exactly what I was looking for to go to the next level of quilting on my home machine. I do free motion quilting and now with the aide of rulers I feel like the sky is the limit."

 --- Pattimorrow.

"I have purchased over 30 classes on Craftsy and this is one of the best. Amy has clear, informative lessons and creative ideas. I love that I can stop, replay, go back to, and review all the lessons...forever! I have been watching Amy's videos on her blog for quite awhile, and was so excited she did a Craftsy class.
Thanks, Amy."

--- keynotegal

If you haven't taken it yet, this is a 50% discount link from me to you, so what are you waiting for?

Sharing the Ruler Work Love with a Sale

Because I want more people to enjoy the fun and creativity of using rulers to guide your free motion quilting, I'm also having a sale site-wide at Amy's Quilting Adventures! Until May 15th, take 15% off of your order with the promocode SpringFling15. Make sure to enter the code, I can't add it after the fact.

That makes it a great time to finally order a ruler foot for your machine or to expand your collection of rulers. There's a great selection of rulers to choose from and they're all rulers that I find most useful and more importantly, usable with sewing machines and sit-down long-arm machines.

Lastly, I've got some winners to announce!

The winner of the official Craftsy class giveaway is maddie90 and the winner of my own giveaway for the class is Pam A. I'll be emailing these winners shortly with a code for their free class.

Goodness! I think I'm more excited than I expected. I've got butterflies fluttering in my tummy. Let me know what you think of the new class in the comments.

Spring Fling Sales!

Spring has sprung and while many folks think about spring cleaning, I feel like the world is full of all kinds of growth and new opportunities, so don't miss any of the following opportunities:

We could all be cleaning, but let's have a little fun with some sales. Yes, that's plural. As in more than one sale!

Craftsy is no stranger to a sale and they are offering 50% off of their top classes through Saturday! Treat yourself to a new skill after you've done your spring cleaning or yard work. Did you know Craftsy even has classes on gardening? Don't forget outdoor photography. Maybe procrastinate by taking a class instead of cleaning. Those baseboards can wait. No judgement here regarding spring cleaning. Use my special instructor's link for this sale and put a little extra jingle in my pocket too.

I'm bringing in this big guy to announce my first ever sale over at Amy's Quilting Adventures. To celebrate the nearly here launch of my second class on ruler work with Craftsy, I'm offering everything (Everything!) in my shop at 15% off until May 15th. Use the code SpringFling15 at checkout to get the sale price.

If you've wanted to try ruler work but haven't yet gotten a foot, now's the time. I'm available to help you choose the right foot for your machine too.

If you've been wanting to expand your collection of rulers we can help with that too! 

You can get my first Craftsy class, Quilting with Rulers on a Home Machine at 50% off here with my special instructor's affiliate link. Not only that, but when the new class launches (Monday sometime!), you can get it here only for a 25% discount right away!

So there's our sales, so now let's move on to a few giveaways!

I'll be drawing one winner for my copy of The Ultimate Guide to Machine Quilting by Christa Watson and Angela Walters on Saturday. Enter here: http://goo.gl/forms/VX5MXlU3sE

Craftsy is sponsoring a giveaway for my new class, Creative Quilting with Rulers, More Techniques and Motifs and the winner will be announced as soon as the Class launches. Click here to enter! http://www.craftsy.com/ext/AmyJohnson_Giveaway

One last thing, I'm doing my own giveaway for the new class. Enter now with this link (one entry per person please) and maybe you'll win a code to take the class for free. I'll announce the winner Monday.

Oh! If you're even somewhat local to Lynchburg Virginia, my Janome dealer is having a fabulous sale on floor model machines. Seriously good deals.

Creative Quilting with Rulers

It's nearly time for my new class with Craftsy to launch and of course that means some giveaways and other special things are going on.

Photo courtesy of Craftsy.com

First, it's called:

Creative Quilting with Rulers

More Techniques and Motifs

Yes, that's a mouthful but the powers that be at Craftsy get to pick the name and I guess Quilting with Rulers 2 isn't as pleasing to their professional marketing peeps.

Photo courtesy of Craftsy.com

I am so excited to have made this class for you! First of all is the awesomeness of being able to do it with Craftsy, so the video quality is awesome and my editor and producer make sure that I stay on track and present the information in a coherent fashion. Plus you can watch it whenever you want and how you want, whether that's in your PJ's late at night or when you're in a hurry and you speed me up to 1.5 or even 2x speed. (I will sound like a chipmunk, but that's OK.) At regular speed I am my usual mellow, encouraging self and I take the time needed to fully explain any tricky bits.

Photo courtesy of Craftsy.com

The class is a follow up to the first one, Quilting with Rulers on a Home Machine (that's a 50% off link) so if you're completely unfamiliar with using rulers and a free motion ruler foot on your machine, you'll likely want to take the first class before this one. If you've already played around with rulers to guide your free motion quilting for really straight lines and smooth curves, you will find this class really helpful.

I finished up my ruler work sampler for the backdrop of the class too. They redid the studio I was in so I felt a little lost without the old gray background and Craftsy props.

I don't get to see the actual finished edition of my class for a few more days, but I feel really good about it. It is cram-packed with designs and tips, plus I used several different quilt projects in the class to stitch on, so you get to see how to manage your rulers on actual quilts instead of the plain samples I used for the first class.

Photo courtesy of Craftsy.com

The best thing about this class is that you don't need any fancy rulers. We're just using a straight edge and a few basic curved rulers and I'm showing how you can use them in a bunch of ways, even smaller rulers in big blocks, and simple rulers to make complex designs.

I've got some exciting events coming up for you as the class launches.

First is a giveaway! Use this special link right now to enter a giveaway hosted by Craftsy. They'll draw the winner the night before the class goes live (currently, scheduled for April 25.). I'll have that name for you on launch day.

I'll be setting up my own giveaway for the class later this week for another chance to win a code to get the class for free. That name will also be announced on launch day.

I'm also going to be posting a special discount link here for the new class! Yes! While it's still brand new, you can get it at a discount right here. I can guarantee it'll be a while before you can get the class cheaper through one of Craftsy's sales.

I'll also be running a sale on rulers and all other products at Amy's Quilting Adventures in conjunction with the class launch. Not entirely sure how I'll be setting this up at this point so keep your eyes peeled for my newsletter (long overdue neglected thing that it is), info on my Facebook page, and of course, here for more information coming soon.

I've got another special project in the works, so I don't want to over-commit myself, but I'm also hoping to share a tutorial or pattern or two for the projects I've used in the class. Some of that will have to wait until I get those projects back from Craftsy, but I'll know more about my special project by then so you'll get news on one or the other.

Lights, Camera, Action!

Today's the day! No time to really write, but I'm so excited! Here I am reflected in the booth window of the newly revamped and equipped Craftsy Studio E. If you remember the yellow room with the grey metal wall with all the wonderful little props, thread, rulers and such of many Craftsy quilting classes, it is no more. I kind of miss it!

Below is my producer, Clif looking for the right tool as Maria Capp and Molly, both with Craftsy as they work to figure out how to sink the machine level with the surface. The mechanism got stuck somehow.

I foolishly decided to leave my laptop at home for lighter travel which was a big mistake. I have my tablet, but somethings don't want to play nicely with it. I feel a bit lost and out of touch without it.

But I'll be focusing on my class pretty hard and I'll be back home soon. It's a lot of work on a tight and fast timeline, but so worth it.

Until then, just keep quilting!

Quilting with Rulers: Rack Them Up

I've been meaning to show you the gorgeous ruler rack that the talented and generous Patsy Thompson sent me. It's so pretty! Especially with all my sparkly rulers stacked and looking like giant jewels.

Let me point out the beautiful inlay work that Patsy's husband Ernie put into this rack. It sits perfectly on one of my cube storage units and is nice and heavy so I know it's not going to get knocked off.

Yes, I loved my son's pointer he got from his school so much I bought myself one. Actually I got 3 in different colors. I was hoping to find a small one that would fit on the end of a pencil so I could use it easier in my videos. (Or break it out in a Craftsy taping! I'm pretty sure they wouldn't keep it in the footage, but it would make a great blooper.) I wasn't feeling brave enough to use it in my recent talk to a local quilt guild.


I didn't get my ruler work sampler done in time for the guild talk. I've been filling in at my Janome dealer's shop while he recovers from some surgery. It's put a crimp in my schedule for sure, but I love helping the customers.


I did some partial crosshatching into one of the setting triangles the other day....

Then I decided to fill in every other square with a back and forth line fill. I'm not sure I like it. What do you think? I probably need to heed my own advice and step away from the quilt before looking at it and deciding it's not good enough. If I hadn't already done the fill below the crosshatching, I would have put another two lines in so the filled spaces worked out to fill the corners of the design, not just the top and bottom diamond.

Don't forget the upcoming Ruler Work Link Party on January 26th. Get your ruler work projects ready to share, inspire, and educate other quilters and we'll pop around the links and visit.

In other news, the USPS is raising their postage rates this weekend and I'm sorry to tell you that we'll have to raise shipping rates in the shop. Anything ordered after Sunday (1/17) will have the new shipping rates added.

I enjoyed all the wonderful feedback I got from my last post on the Sew Slip mat and its alternatives. While the commentors didn't all agree on what they used for a good slick surface, all agreed that something extra was needed beyond just the table and machine surface.

Edited to add: I almost forgot! Craftsy is having a sale on its new classes this weekend. New year, new class specials. They don't often put the newest classes on sale, so take advantage of this one by clicking my affiliate link.

Time to Tidy the Studio

The new year always has me cleaning, organizing, and trying to get my world pulled together so I can tackle some great goals. This year is no different and I've got several big projects to tackle. Since my two biggest accomplishments of last year weren't even a glimmer this time in 2015 (My Craftsy class- Quilting with Rulers on a Home Machine (50% off link there!)and opening my online shop, Amy's Quilting Adventures, to sell my favorite supplies for ruler work and other tools), I'm extra motivated to prepare myself for whatever lies ahead!

 The first order of business was to corral my plethora of papers, pictures, and Post It notes. A quick trip to Staples and I brought home some pretty magazine holders in my favorite colors of turquoise and white to put next to my "inbox". I'm using them on their sides to hold files files and papers. (Got that idea from David Allen's Getting Things Done system) The Post Its were put into my bullet journal. Here's a video on the bullet journal. I can't ever stick with a pre-made planner, but I've gravitated to this from making to-do lists on far too many separate pieces of paper, Post-It's, and other notebooks. Here's a link to Bullet Journal Joy, who has a prettier, more artsy vibe. Both folks use some fancy notebooks, but I use a simple Walmart blank journal.

Not too shabby.

Now that the papers and computer were taking up only half of my work surface, it was time to make sure I had space to iron and cut efficiently. I had two ironing surfaces and one was too big for the space, the other was too small. I made a new ironing board out of a piece of plywood 18x22 inches, a layer of batting, and some natural twill. After using my trusty staple gun to put it all together and pulling a 3/8ths inch staple out of my finger (Yeeeouch! Big oops.) I made it a pretty cover of (What else?) turquoise and white.

Now to get to my creative work! I did work on a sample using the TopAnchor Celtic Knot templates. I hope to have them available in the shop soon. Take a look see where I ran out of bobbin thread below. Less than an inch left to stitch and my bobbin comes up empty.

How about you? Are you getting organized? Have some great goals for yourself too, quilty or otherwise?

Quilting with Rulers: A Paradox

In July of 2014 I shared a design based on a Zentangle design called Paradox. What I stitched was based on a drawing someone had shared done in triangles instead of a square. I later used the square version in my Craftsy class, Quilting with Rulers on a Home Machine (That's a 50% off link BTW!). It was just shown as an example of straight line designs, but not actually taught in the class.

Design shared on the blog

One of my students has been wanting to stitch out the design but was having trouble figuring out the stitch path and asked me (The beauty of a Craftsy class: you can ask the teacher questions and get answers!) for some help.

A similar version, but not the one shown in the class.

These designs are so easy to stitch out with a ruler once you figure out the stitch path and the illusion of curved lines. There are NO curves in this design!

Here the design is being stitched out using tiny triangles that are 1/4 inch wide at the base.

I drew up a diagram to give a little more clarity and thought I'd share it with you as well. Below, I've expanded the drawing to make it easier to see the stitch path. It removes some of the impact of the design and takes away a bit of the effect, but when you stitch it, you can add more lines for greater impact and the illusion of a spiral curve.

This is stitched with one continuous line, but I have changed ink colors with each rotation for better clarity. Starting at a corner, indicated by the blue arrow, place the ruler 1/4 inch away so the stitching starts right in the corner. place the other end of the straight ruler at whatever interval you would like to use depending on the space to fill and the density you want. For the square I used 3/4 inch spacing which means I used the 1/2 inch mark on my ruler at the corner. For the triangle I used a smaller spacing.

Working around the block, stitch a series of triangles, using the ruler against the foot at one end for the point, and offsetting the ruler at the other end to make the wider end. There's no back tracking either. The black dashes indicate where the spiral curve illusion appears when this design is drawn or stitched at a tighter spacing. It's actually a series or straight line segments.

I always get a little lost right in the center once it gets too small to neatly form the narrow triangle. Just keep going around the block until you've reached the center.

It's an interesting block with great texture. The density needed to make the illusion of curves work the best makes it a little stiff for a cuddly quilt, but great for a wall quilt or table topper.

Just in the Nick of Time

I finished my Big Block Baby Quilt for my niece just in the nick of time and sent it off. The USPS tells me it will get there Christmas Eve Day. I really enjoyed this project. It worked up quickly (despite the little available time I had to work on it) and was fun to quilt with an all over design and I did just a bit of quilting with rulers.

I did a bit of ruler work in the solid blue triangles, since that's the only place where it had a chance to show. A triangle, star, Celtic knot, and the letter A (for Abbie!) into a triangle. I used bark blue thread for the quilting in these spaces and while it shows up a bunch on the back now, I'm confident that one wash and the minky will cover up the stitching.

I finished the binding by machine. I stitched the binding onto the back first (with regular thread) and then stitched it down on the front with a tiny blanket stitch with very fine invisible thread. I made sure to tie off all ends very securely.

 I used the built-in walking foot attachment on my Janome 8200 for the binding and I also wore my Machingers gloves on my left hand to help me guide the quilt as I stitched. This dry winter air makes things slippery and the grip of the gloves really helps. By the way, did you know you can get these in size extra small at my shop? My hands aren't tiny, but my fingers are somewhat short. The extra small leaves no extra space at the tips of my fingers. Very (ahem...) handy.

I mailed off the last of my Christmas presents today and I'm all done with the kids' presents. Hubby is in charge of wrapping them. Shopping isn't much of a deal here as we keep Christmas pretty simple but the kids are so excited! Since they're out of school, we're planning on doing more baking and some crafting too.

Is it done? I'm sure she wonders....

Craftsy is having their last sale of the year and all classes are up to 50% off including my own. If you're done with your shopping for others, it might be time for you to buy a little something for yourself OR to "Gift a Class" to someone else as a last minute gift that doesn't require wrapping or shipping. Use my Instructor's link to get the best prices and to put a tiny bit of jingle in my pocket at no cost to you: http://www.craftsy.com/ext/AmyJohnson_holiday

This video reminds me I better make sure my hubby hasn't lost his list of my gift suggestions. I usually tell him I don't need anything and he takes that as "Don't get me anything" and then he doesn't. Silly man. You'd think that after 22 Christmases he'd learn that I do like a little something to unwrap even if it's not much. (Then again after 22 years, you'd think I'd be used to him taking me at my word about not needing a present.) I hate for him to spend money on something I won't like though, so this year I gave him a little list to choose from.

How about you? Are you done with Christmas shopping? Does your significant other need some help when it comes to shopping? Do you give a list too?