Monday, September 16, 2013

A long arm Boogie Man

Have you ever "met" the "long arm Boogie Man"?  Well, I have.  He usually hides in the corner of my sewing room hidden from from plain sight.  But, nonetheless he can be quite persuasive with his negative talk.  He says things like... "The project you wanna quilt? Well, it's just gonna be a big MESS!  You don't know what you are doing!  You're just gonna make mistakes...ones you can't fix!" 

Or he tries to convince me I just don't have time to start it and get it done in a particular amount of time.  I do try to argue...but, I usually end up procrastinating...WAY too long! =(

Ida (my Innova Long Arm) sits patiently, waiting to share time with me.  She knows that together we can make some nice quilts.  They might not be perfect or fancy...but, they are NICELY finished.   

Well, after several months of letting that Boogie Man overwhelm me with his hindering (mind blocking) negativity,  I finally dressed Ida and slipped her switch on. It really felt good to hear Ida's sweet engine happily helping me to create my not-so-famous loopy "E"s.

This is a small quilt that I quilted for a VERY special, VERY long-time friend (actually more like a second mom).  We took our first quilting class together nearly 35 years ago.






                    ^ there's those loopy "E"s ^  
                Thank you, Ida (Innova) for helping to make the stitches nicely even.


This is a second small quilt for my friend that I have loaded on the frame ready to go.  Breaking the process up in two steps (1) loading the frame (2) then, quilting...makes the project not feel as overwhelming.  I can find more slots of time when I break it into at least 2 steps.  Hopefully, I'm on a roll.  Maybe, now that I've finished one, I've got a stronger/louder argument against the Long Arm Boogie Man


Do you have a "Boogie Man" that talks you into procrastinating on tasks...even ones that you *know* would be fun to do?   


22 comments:

Josie McRazie said...

Yup! Backs confound me! I prefer a pieced back... so it has to be just right... so! I have ELEVEN quilts TEN of which need backs before I can even think about trying to quilt them!

Rebeckah Austin said...

SOmetimes just the quilting. I wish I had one of these It would be so much easier to finish off my quilts!

Andra Gayle said...

I have the exact same boogie man as you and then a few more! Beautiful quilting!

Colleen said...

Your boogie man has relatives - and one of them lives in my sewing room!

Coincidentally, I have that exact same quilt, waiting to be quilted! The boogie man is taunting me about another UFO at the moment, but once that is done, this top will be next.

Granny Annie said...

That darn boogie man imp wears a red suit and has a pitched fork and a tail. He follows me everywhere.

Vroomans' Quilts said...

I don't have a boogy man - I think I would run him over/I have the opposite problem - slowing down which I am working on.

Joanie's Trendy Quilts said...

At times that Boogie Man attempts to rear itself! Sometimes he wins then I remember to ignore him! Both quilts on Ida are beautiful! I think the Boogie Man lied to you because the quilting is fabulous!

Anonymous said...

I love the quilt! I am SO jealous! I want an Innova. Do you have the lightning stitch? You can use metallic thread at high speed until the needle gets so hot it melts the thread! I love that machine. I can't afford it, though. LOL. If I lived next door to you, you wouldn't need the boogie man. I'd be sneaking over and using your machine so much you wouldn't get a chance to. LOL

Amy, a redeemed sheep said...

I have a boogie man, too. =)

Your quilts turned out lovely! Glad you didn't listen to your boogie man. =)

Deanna said...

I wondered why I had not heard from you. Now I know, wonderful quilts...have fun working on another one of your many talents.

Sarah Craig said...

Pretty quilts! I've found that if I load a quilt up at the end of the day - it only takes 15 minutes or so - it's easier to get started the next morning - all I have to do is start quilting! I pile finished tops and backs underneath the frame so they sit there and remind me to quilt them.

Jolene is not nearly as nice as your Ida, though - she will not put up with being left in the corner unused!! I've actually asked people to come over and quilt on her when I can't so she doesn't get peeved with me!!

Michele said...

I'm glad that you banished the Boogie man, hopefully for good. My Penelope is still waiting for her 1st workout but my problem is time, or more accurately, lack of time.

My Sister Made Me Do It.... said...

I have more problems with Procrastination Man these days....lol........and WOW! A long arm Namesake, I have! Love It!:)

Karen said...

I don't have a boogie man.
When I see a project I want to try I read over the pattern a couple of times, gather my supplies (just like in baking) and give it a try. And do it until it is good for me. I don't like square in a square. it did not turned out right the first time I tried. I reread the pattern and will try again until I like the result.
My attitude is.. Do it until it works the way you want it. Then jump up and down for joy.

I am very new to long arm quilting. I again read about the pattern, then take a kids quilt (small and simple blocks) and begin learning. Do it until its the way you like it. Don't forget the happy dance. You are worth it.

Chris H said...

I'm glad you didn't let the Boogie Man win.

Pokey said...

Oh, it is way too easy to let that Boogie Guy take over. I applaud your attack on the creativity road with these two great quilts! Yippee, keep Ida dressed in those fine projects ~
:-}pokey

Cathyjo said...

You do lovely work.Take good care of Ida and tell the Boogie man to get lost.Hugs

Red Shoes said...

I am not sure how I got here, but I LOVE your quilts!!!

I remember when I was little, Mom and Dad had some old quilts like these that belonged to their parents.

What I wouldn't give to have one of those...

Beautiful work!!

~shoes~

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Timothy Reimer said...
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Shanna said...

You can do it ANNIE!!!!!!! I am excited that you are getting back to long-armining, I have a pile of flimsies not even to that stage yet, ha! I perfectly understand though what you are going through. It's too simple to just say that you shouldn't listen to that boogieman, he is a smart crafty one!

Ulla's Quilt World said...

So lovely! :)
Greetings from Finland!
Hugs, Ulla