The Quilt Skipper

quilting makes me skip for joy

Jenny K Lyon

Quilting makes me skip for joy

The Visible Learning Curve

I am piecing a quilt! Yes, me, piecing! I am not the strongest piecer but I fell in love with this super cute pattern, Feathers, by Margot Lunguedoc Designs at The Pattern Basket. It has aged in my stash for a few years and it is now ripe:-)

From The Pattern Basket website

It’s so stinkin’ cute! There are 30 pieces in each 81/2″ block and some of it is a wee bit challenging. So of course I ran into….The Visible Learning Curve (VLC).

A VLC happens when you are learning something new. As you progress on your project, your skills improve and it shows! I have learned to let the VLC be.

I learned this about 13 years ago when I was working this ensemble. There was a time when I made garments, sigh. The top is filled with curves and feathers:

I started on one side of the garment and quilted around it clockwise. By the time I got to the end, there was a noticeable difference in the quality of the feathers between the left and right panels. So I tediously removed all the quilting from half of the garment and requilted. And there was still a discrepancy. I am probably the only one that noticed.

Then came the epiphany-I would become a dog chasing its tail if I kept on ripping out previous work. There is always a Visible Learning Curve! So let it be. Rejoice in the better work, don’t rip out the old work!

As I was piecing these sweet blocks, I ran into this again:

See the little brown beak on the right? That line is supposed to line up with the angle of the head line to its left. Oh my, that is not even close!

A few blocks later and that is fixed! Still not perfect piecing, got a wee bit of any underbite,no?

I experienced another VLC as I pieced this quilt. I actually enjoy a few lost edges in a quilt, where the edge of the piecing doesn’t show well because it blends with the background. See the breast on this one? It is barely distinguishable from the background.

That lost edge is a little too lost but I think I’ll keep it.

Probably my best example of a VLC is on this panel I did eons ago.

I was inspired by McTavishing and I wanted to learn how to do that. Panels are great places to practice so I grabbed this one, added a few borders and went to town.

This was my first attempt. Okay, yes, but not the McTavishing look that I wanted.

A few blocks later, my own version of McTavishing emerged and I loved it! No way I was going to rip out the first efforts.

I hope you will consider letting your Visible Learning Curve be. Let it shine. Rejoice over how much you improved! Life’s just too short to go about ripping out work. Go forward, as I always say, “Onward”! Don’t let your Visible Learning Curve take the joy out of quilting.

I’m linking up with Nina-Marie’s Off the Wall Friday-great links over there!

Comments

  1. Loved this post today!! It is sooo true. A pleasure to see your work and progress. Thanks again for the inspiration.

  2. Lovely patterns and past quilting examples. I think it’s wonderful of you to tell us other quilters with apperception complex that it’s OK to relax a bit and go forward past those small imperfections that only another quilter might notice!

    We have a policy in our guild that a quarter must be donated to our comfort quilts batting fund if you denigrate your show and tell project! Makes us think twice!!

  3. Jenny, I LOVED “it aged in my stash a few years and is now ripe”!!! As usual, everything you do it lovely.
    Sandy

  4. I’ve come to realize that I am the only one with my nose in the quilt, so I see every imperfection. The overall effect is always lovely, and once it’s done, I have a hard time finding my ‘mistakes’. I agree, let it be.

  5. Years ago I was fortunate to attend a lecture by Paula Nadelstern. Talk about someone who’s piecing looks perfect – that is until she points out all the places where the fabric and piecing don’t line up. Her theory was if you can’t see the imperfection while riding by on galloping horse – let it go. I’ve been letting it go ever since. I loved the reminder that this is all part of the process. Great post, Jenny.

    • I’m actually shocked that Paula’s piecing is not perfect! I abide by what I call the “6 foot/galloping horse” rule, because life it just too short for perfection. Thanks for the comment Gwyned.