Now for today's column
Grrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr
that's my roar today!!
Let me explain first. A friend and I were talking on the phone awhile back and she told me about this pattern she bought on sale, which of course means she cannot take it back. She has read it from beginning to end and cannot make hide nor hair of it. I've been having the same problems with patterns lately...........I understand them, but they are very poorly done. Okay now the rest of the column..............................
I knew when I cut the fabric after reading the instructions that I was in trouble. You cannot cut fabric 11" x 20" and the second piece 9" x 20" and come up with a 20" square. It just ain't a-gonna happen! Not if you glue it, not if you sew it! It just won't happen. Not only that the 9" strip was suppose to be on an angle.
I now remember I mentioned something else about this pattern to Ruth at The Quilters' Garden Patch in regards to a fabric requirement mistake. I said then, a "newbie" would have trouble with that. Unfortunately, now of course, I don't remember what it was.
I have a plea................a huge big gigantic plea................to all pattern designers. Once you have written up all the instructions for your pattern, please, please, please, give your directions to someone to not only read, but do the pattern step by step as you have written it. If there are mistakes, correct them before everything goes to the printer. Do not make assumptions that the person who buys your pattern is a quilter from way back and can catch these things as she goes along. It doesn't work that way out in the real world. And don't, just don't, do your corrections on your website for all to find. First of all we shouldn't have to do that and it just doesn't work like that out in the real world either.. Believe it or not, not everyone has a computer. Son of a gun, hard to believe isn't it.
After I had written all about my troubles, another friend told me about what happened to her. Charleen had signed up for an applique class as she loves to do it in the evening while sitting with her husband watching television. At the end of the second class the teacher told her there is a mistake in the pattern. The applique does not fit in the border. It has to be adjusted. Soooooooooo, the teacher helped Charleen with the placement. Now here is someone who has paid about $25-30 for the book, bought a kit for the class (and that's a long story best left to another time) and travelled a great distance to take the class. Paying that amount of money for a book to find mistakes is just not right.
These mistakes are happening just a bit too often for my liking. Please just get everything proof read. It really is just that simple.
Not all patterns have errors. I'll be fair about that, but lately there seem to be quite a lot. I'm having better luck on the internet and can highly recommend the following sites:
Angie's Bits and Pieces
Fat Cat Designs
Bunny Hill
These are the three I use the most. They are my style of quilting and my taste.
