Lessons learned and learned and learned

I think I am ready to have learned all my lessons the hard way, for real.  From now on just let me make good decisions that turn out well.  Thanks, prish.

I have the t-shirt quilt on the frame and bought special variegated orange thread on my travels. I fell in love with these threads - clearly marked machine quilting, 100% cotton.  I got two different kinds for a total of 5 spools.  This morning my husband left on a business trip early so I scampered up to the sewing room first thing.  (Fine, I creaked my way up to the sewing room.)  Hello Kathy, how can you be so silly - this is a spool of thread no way will it fit on your longarm.  Why wasn't that obvious until I was standing there looking at the two incompatible pieces.  I had already made two bobbins and had one loaded.  And now for even more fun, it was time to leave for my mammogram.  Yippee!

After that fun filled event I ran over to Joanne Fabrics.  I found a variegated orange thread on a sortof modified cone.  I bought two and kept my fingers crossed the whole way home.  Success, it fit and the bobbins still worked colorwise.  As I threaded the machine, I remembered a discussion at my long arm training about how to loop these kinds of threads a bit less so they won't break.  I felt so very clever when I did exactly that and then went on the fly to meet a friend for lunch.

Back home, I noticed that the quilt looked a little saggy.  I realized I had wound it so tight that the knits and flannel were giving a bit.  So I not only did a stitch to anchor but ran all the vertical seams with a stitch in the ditch to stabilize the quilt.  When would I get to start the creative part?  Not now, I met a friend for mani/pedis and dinner.

Finally, I got to start my meandering and meander I did until I cranked that fabric around and I got a glimpse of the back.  Somehow with the less looping, the main loopy loop on the tension had come off.  I had a sick feeling in my stomach and broke the thread as I was rethreading it.  At the exact same moment, my neighbors arrived for a condo meeting.  I was able to walk away and not break into sobs that I had not continued to check the back stitching.

At 9:00 I finally got back up there and decided to try the new threading on a test piece of fabric.  Why hadn't I done that earlier?  Why?  Oh well, I decided to plunge on and did some happy meandering.  When I get done, I will check the back again and see how much I have to pick out and redo.  I plan on reminding myself that it is just a t-shirt quilt and that I am still learning.  I will not sob.  I repeat, I will not sob.  Nobody likes a cry baby.

Enough learning already!  I want total competence on my Longarm and I want it now!  And patience!