September 01, 2010

Expert?

My field of expertise is this


and a bit of this

most days you can find me here


or here

If you have some sort of contraceptive quandary, I'm definitely your girl.


I'm not an expert at quilting though. I'm more like your crafty pal. Like, come over to my house and I'll shove a pile of half finished projects out of the way so we can stitch together and then eat some ice cream and watch Star Trek.

And because you're the kind of friend who's not even going to laugh at me for watching Star Trek, I'll tell you a secret. My quilting is far from perfect.

Sometimes I have tension issues

Sometimes my stitches get crazy long


Sometimes my meandering is all weird like


Sure, sometimes my stitches look great


But sometimes they look bad on the back



So I just wanted to get that off my chest. I make quilts to delight the people they are made for. I don't need my quilts to be perfect. I like to say "Done is better than perfect". And I wrote you a prescription, in case you need to use it on this quilt along:


(Apologies to the PMQG who already heard that joke). Alright, that feels better. Thanks for all the kind, encouraging comments you have left for me. I am delightedly planning the next steps for the quilt along. It's normal to be thinking about quilts all day right?

46 comments:

Anne-Lise at Rag, Tag, Bobtail said...

Thanks for the prescription - and for this post .. my shoulders sank several inches :)

Megan said...

Seriously? Star Trek? AND ice cream? Christina, I'm telling you, we were meant to find each other and become friends! And thanks for the prescription along with the healthy dose of humility and honesty. After seeing your quilts in person at PMQG, I can truly say that your work is glorious!

Gina said...

Thank you for saying that good quilting doesn't have to be perfect. I feel that there is far too much pressure on the home quilter to turn out show stopping quality for every quilt.
My quilting is far from perfect but it's good enough for the judges in my life (DH & DD) so it's good enough for me.

Love and hugs GIna xxx

Helen in the UK said...

Relax and enjoy the process - DONE is definately better than PERFECT. You were very brave to show your quiltng that close up, but we've all been there and done that many times :)

Unknown said...

Its good to know that the expectations are not skyhigh :o) Im excited to see how it goes because I havent done a lot FM-quilting and my sewing machine is new and I havent used for this kind of quilting before. But I have to practise and this is a great opportunity, thanks :o)

Crowing Moon said...

Hahahaha With 6 kids I'm kind of an expert in the top two pics as well ;) and I watch Star Trek with hubby regularly....AND the back of your quilts look just like mine lol

Fat Chick Design said...

Hee Hee! Your such a star :)
I put my pad together yesterday and have it pinned over my tailors dummy to keep it flat while I get on with my work sewing.
I bought some machingers? gloves a couple of days ago, I couldn't get any in the UK, so they may take me a while to arrive as they are from your side of the pond.
:)

Diana said...

Hi, Christina! I grew up watching Star Trek, too! I got my fusible batting today and will be ready to quilt when you are! I'm so looking forward to this quilt along. Have a great day!

Jess @ Scrappy n Happy said...

I think it is completely normal to think about quilts all day! That is my escape from everyday worries, like how I haven't done my top for the quilt along yet.....

Molly said...

I have the exact same issues with the quilting part! I think the middle picture looks kinda like a fallopian tube with an ovary. Maybe you were preoccupied with work that day...

Last Mother's Day I gave my mom some placemats I made and right away my sister noticed some quilting that looked like male genitalia. I can't even look at those placemats now without cringing.

MARIA CRISTINA said...

Una receta ideal!!!
La tendré muy en cuenta!!!
Tu trabajo en el hospital es admirable.
Un abrazo!!!

Linda Lee said...

Thank you!!!!! I sometimes have to remind my self that quilting is something I do to relax and to take my mind off of my other life! I don't need to put extra pressures and stress on my quilting.

Gene Black said...

Ha. I love the Family Planning pictures. I work in public health -so all of that looked quite familiar.
I can get into some Star Trek. I can also understand the quilting issues. I have "frogged" a few areas with bad tension. (rippit, rip it!)

AnneMarie said...

I have to admit I am a first time visitor, lured to youe site b/c of the OB/GYN pics showing up through quilter blogs... Nice! Glad to hear your confessions...as I'm sure we would all confess the same! Or at least MY quilting isn't perfect either.

Stop by and visit if you get the chance: http://genxquilters.blogspot.com

Isadora said...

Thank you for this encouraging post, I'll have that saying as my new motto!
Cheers
dora

Anita in Florida said...

Christina you are making this FM quilt along so much fun...enjoyed your 'up close and personal' pixs of your quilts! Thanks.

grendelskin said...

Thanks for the scrip! I'll keep it in mind as we begin. So far I've never had a recipient be less-than-thrilled at the quilting on a piece! We tend to be our own worst critics. And if it isn't normal to think about quilts all day, at least you're in good company in your abnormality!

Anonymous said...

I hope it is normal to be thinking about quilts all day or I might need a prescription for that as well :)

Rebecca Merry said...

with ice cream all things are possible!

Stray Stitches (Linda G) said...

It's nice to see someone admit to not being perfect - and I am waaaaaaay far from it too! I like your prescription! And, yes, many of us think of quilting 24/7 - lol!

Graciela said...

Que lindo trabajo tienes, traer vidas al mundo es hermoso!!!
y lo perfecto no es hecho a mano seguramente , asique adelante con lo hecho
kisses for you

DIDI said...

Thanks.a.lot for the prescription. I sort of thought it was taking me too many tries to get on the right track.....

BTW after the first photo I had to check twice to see if I was on the right blog and then wondered what you were coming up to.... :)

Biquiños

Paulette said...

Thanks for the Rx! I feel like we're in good hands.

Lee Ann L. said...

I needed to hear this because I'm constantly in a state of wanting things to be done perfectly. Heh. I just need to do the best I can and that is all that matters. So, thanks. :-)

Jocelyn said...

I am so sorry that I am not going to be able to join you for the quilt along as I had planned. Plans do sometimes take a detour. After a fall over a week ago I've got a compression fracture at T11. BP issues too :-( I am going to try to follow along and watch your progress as long as I can use my hubby's laptop.

Unknown said...

You really are truly amazing and my quilting hero!

carolyn said...

Done IS better then perfect and creating beauty is purposeful! all words to stitch by :D

Jennwith4 said...

My friend and quilting mentor taught us to never point out our mistakes because no one but us notices them. =) Done is way better than perfect. And those little imperfections makes each and every quilt unique and special.

Linda in Calif. said...

This is the funniest post! Thanks so much for the laughs!

Cheryl Warren said...

Wow, I LOVE the way you think! So far your quilt-along is fabulous, and I love the reality-based approach. Thanks a million for doing this and for being so open about your own work, which looks a LOT like mine. Everybody loves to get quilted things from me and nobody ever complains about the wonky stitching. Sure, I would like to improve, which is what brought me here in the first place, but the most important thing is having fun with it.

Allie said...

You are definitely my kind of quilter - I say that all the time, done is better than perfect! So good to have it validated by a medical professional, lol!

The Vegetarian Hunter said...

I could not have said it better myself. I told another friend that if anyone is coming over and complaining about the quilt stitches on the blanket I put on the bed - they can sleep in the yard!

Kay Lynne said...

I love your prescription! It's not in the stitches in the quilt that you give away; it's what is in your heart :)

Mama Pea said...

That's great. My dad was an OB/GYN. :-) I love your post. Yes, I think about quilts all day long, I love Star Trek and anything Sci Fi, and...well, you don't have to worry about me being a perfectionist or picking on your machine quilting. I really need help with it and that's why I'm doing your quilt along!

Dolly said...

Hooray !
What a wonderful post for today.
You're just another one of US !
If you've done some things we haven't tried, how fun that you'll share them with us.

We just need a little shaking up, and sometimes, a little hand-holding to get us started.........you're perfect for the job....in your IMPERFECTNESS !

Thank you, right now, for all the thought and, yes, obviously, concern, you've already put into this.

Let's have fun !

Janet said...

I love this post!! I would love to come over for Star Trek and ice cream too. Awesome! I am slowly learning finsihed is so much better than perfect----and that is why I have so many flimsies and UFOs----FEAR! Thanks for the smiles and the honestly. lol

Shay said...

Love that you showed us it's Ok not to be perfect and thanks for reminding me I need to go to someone like you and have a checkup!

Blog posts, sewing support and medical reminders - you're one handy person to follow.

Tamera said...

Wow! I really needed that! I'm having some issues this evening, and I just hung it up and decided to return to it tomorrow.

Thanks!

Unknown said...

Just the giggle I needed!

WoolenSails said...

You made me laugh, that is how my quilting goes, never perfect, but that is life.

Debbie

Unknown said...

You are a humble star of an inspiration.

martameiga said...

hahahaha.... I had to laugh with this post... definitely you are the perfect teacher!! :)) I love the look of your quilting with the good and bad parts and wish I can do it just as well... mmm and your proffesional field of work might be of use as well :))))))))))).... some day...

Joanna said...

I love this post. I'm not aiming for perfection anyway. I'll be glad just to get over the "loss of control" feeling when I use the darning foot:)

scarlett said...

I love ice cream, I love Star Trek (the movies are my thing) and where oh where were you 9 years ago when I was diagnosed with infertility!

Aileen said...

Wow, what a great way to point out what different worlds we all come to in our passion to quilt. This really is a community be where everyone is welcome.

Sand and Sunshine said...

Star Trek, my oh my, perhaps being able to say it's good enough because I'm so not ripping those stitches out and enjoying a bit of SciFi in the process go hand in hand (and here I thought it was just me!)

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