A Quilting Life Podcast
Modavation Recap, Trimming Quilt Blocks Down, and Placing Low Volume Fabrics in Quilts
· Summarized
Key takeaways
- Most quilting patterns are designed with enough fabric to allow for trimming and layout adjustments, but reading patterns carefully is essential.
- Cutting larger pieces and trimming them down is a common and effective technique, providing flexibility and ensuring sufficient fabric.
- When placing fabrics in a quilt, contrast between lights, mediums, and darks is crucial, and personal judgment along with software like EQ can guide fabric arrangement.
- Low-volume fabrics are useful for visual rest and contrast; experimenting with fabric placement can enhance quilt design.
- Participating in industry retreats and events like Modavation offers valuable networking, industry insights, and inspiration for quilt shop owners and designers.
- Engagement through short tutorials and listener interaction on platforms like YouTube and Patreon helps build community and share knowledge.
Summary
Dallas Modavation Retreat Highlights
Sherri McConnell shares her recent experience attending the second annual Modavation retreat in Dallas, Texas. She praises the organization and hospitality, noting the expanded venue and improved classroom space which allowed for more engaging activities and better networking opportunities among shop owners and designers. The event included inspiring classes from industry professionals, panel discussions about the quilting industry, and tours of Moda's warehouses. A notable aspect of the event was the camaraderie and willingness to share insights among attendees, which underscored the passion behind small quilt shops and their support networks. Sherri emphasizes the value of the event for shop owners, urging them to register early and attend future retreats.
Follow-Up on Quilting Techniques and Fabric Selection
The hosts revisit questions from listeners, focusing on practical quilting methods. One topic covered is how to determine if you have enough fabric when trimming blocks or working with specific yardages, with a consensus that most patterns include enough fabric to accommodate trimming or layout adjustments. They discuss the benefits of cutting blocks larger and trimming down, and the importance of reading patterns carefully. Another key topic is fabric placement, including how they choose where to put lights, mediums, darks, and low-volume fabrics in quilt designs. They talk about using EQ software and personal judgment, including taking photos and experimenting with fabric combinations to achieve pleasing contrast and balance. Mom highlights her tendency to incorporate low-volume fabrics for visual rest and contrast, while Chelsea emphasizes contrast and balance.
Additional Insights and Announcements
The podcast includes updates about their YouTube channel, mentioning a new short video tutorial on binding with a simple mini folded corners ruler. They also discuss plans for upcoming episodes, including a listener questions episode. Mom reflects on her recent trip to the motivation event, praising Moda's organization, the variety of classes and speakers, and the positive networking among shop owners and industry professionals. She encourages shop owners to attend these events, highlighting the professional growth and industry insights gained. The hosts tease potential future topics like connecting with the younger generation of quilters and using polls on YouTube for listener engagement.
Sponsors
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Show notes
In this episode, Sherri recaps here recent trip to Dallas Texas for the 2nd annual Modavation retreat. She shares some of the great insights and news she learned while there. Sherri and Chelsi then answer a couple follow-up questions from episode 135. They discuss how to tell if you have enough fabric to trim a block down. They also go a little more in depth with their fabric selection process. Specifically, on how they decide where to place their low volume fabrics in their quilts.
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