President’s Message - A Season to Cross-Pollinate and Share Sewing Hacks

Dear Quilting Friends & Colleagues,

Hope springs eternal, and finally a few lonely crocuses have emerged in my yard here in the Northeast Kingdom. Hallelujah! Soon the garden will beckon me outside to soak up the sunshine.

In the meantime I have taken time this mud season to do a deep clean and reset in my sewing room. My goal was to inventory what I have, reorganize and make my room and sewing process more efficient, and finish a few UFO’s (unfinished objects) before they get their PhD (piled higher and deeper). I am sure some of you can relate! In this message I thought I might share a few of my favorite “thrifty” sewing tools and hacks. I have likely stolen these ideas shamelessly from many of you.

Hack #1 – Magnetic Pin Organizer

We have so many sewing pins – fat, skinny, long, short – and each one serves a different purpose. I admire many of the pricey newfangled magnetic pin organizers. Instead I found a tool, often used by mechanics. It is a shallow heavily magnetized bowl. I created sections for the bowl and now my pins can “hang out” by compartment. This hack was kid-tested by my two-year-old granddaughter who turned it upside down without a single pin dislodging. The cost? Approximately $5.00.

Hack #2 – Clear Packing Tape

Buy a medium-sized roll of clear packing tape. Hang a 12-inch length, sticky side out, next to your sewing machine, cutting mat, ironing board, etc., to “collect” those pesky tiny threads that appear and multiply at each stage of quilting.

Hack #3 – Repurpose a Yoga Mat

Clearly my yoga mat was not getting much use rolled up in the corner. I trimmed a 2-inch edge off, and it clings nicely to my sewing table. Here I can collect more pins, and stick bent pins and needles for disposal. I also whacked off a 16 X 16 section of the mat and covered it with batting, and can use this as a block-by-block design board that moves from the cutting station to my sewing machine. At the end of the day, I lay out the next block, so I can jump in and sew without having to think too hard.

Hack #4 – Stripology Rulers To Trim Blocks

I must confess I am in love with my Stripology ruler. A big one is great for cutting strips and binding, eliminating challenges with wavy cuts and ruler slippage. It also works great for trimming up blocks using the special marks for centering the blocks, and you can trim blocks from 3 to 12.5 inches. The fact that the ruler lays flat on the fabric makes cutting easier for me. I also recommend the smaller Stripology Squared Mini It is a wonderful tool for small strips, and for trimming half square triangles and flying geese. One serious bloody cut, and a few choice words, prompted me to make this worthy investment!

Hack #5 – Create Mini-Bolts

After moving every single piece of fabric out of my room to clean, I had a small mountain of fabric on my dining room table. As Easter dinner is approaching, the urgency to get these organized increased. I saw some fancy organizing boards on- line – for a price. Instead I made a trip to the dollar store, bought foam board, and cut it into 11 X 11 squares. I then made “mini-bolts” of fabric for any pieces that were larger than a fat quarter. These fit on my closet shelf. I used extra-large paper clips to hold the fabric in place, and my label maker to tell me the approximate length. I can now see “at a glance” what I have, by color, without digging and making a further mess.

Why Organize and Economize?

We have all seen the price of fabric increase. Over the past three to five years this was often driven by ethical imperatives to support a living wage for factory workers. Many textile factories are in China, Indonesia, Vietnam and other parts of Asia. Most would support an ethical fair wage, healthy working conditions, and sustainable cotton farming practices.

Currently, with escalating tariffs, import and export quotas worldwide, large fluctuations in currency rates, inflation, continued supply chain challenges, and rises in shipping costs, industry experts predict that the price of fabric will increase further. Businesses from manufacturing to quilt shops simply cannot support large increases in the cost of goods and will be forced to pass these on to the consumer.

Now more than ever I urge you to buy locally from your local quilt shops (QS), instead of online, when you can. Local QS are small businesses, run primarily by women, a cause worth supporting! Nationally many are going out of business, creating “fabric deserts” in some regions. They may be further impacted by the current price pressures, as the cost of goods will increase their up-front cash flow and investment in both fabric and notions. Local QS are more than just an outlet for fabric. They are staffed by experienced quilters who are happy to provide advice, guidance, and help you choose the best options (e.g., wide-back versus pieced) for your particular project. Local shops, like Barnyard Quilting and Haphazard Quilting, (both owned and operated by guild members) are also a source of learning, classes, and inspiration. In addition, they are a gathering place, stitching the community together and contributing generously to local causes, and supporting quilt guilds with their time, talents and expertise. Even when you are traveling, you can google “quilt shops near me” and if your location is turned on your phone you can support local quilt shops wherever you are.

As we navigate these challenges, now is also a good time to remember that historically fabric was a very precious commodity, to be savored, not wasted. We can get even more creative, recycling, reusing and repurposing fabric as Julia McLeod demonstrated in March. Check out her book – “Patchwork Luxe” from the NLQG library. Rescuing old quilts from your family, thrift stores and yard sales, is another great strategy to preserve our quilting heritage. Even this month’s Block of the Month Challenge inspires you to rescue an orphan block and give it a new home!

So the call to action is this. If you have a good quilting or sewing hack, or an old quilt that needs some love and attention, please bring it to our next guild meeting in May. We will make time to share it during the “Quilt Clinic” portion of the meeting. After all – it is spring – so let the cross-pollination begin!

Grateful Always,

Madge Buus-Frank