It’s done!

Actually, only the top is done,but it has been given to my machine quilter, Shirley Jackson, to quilt.  What a great feeling to finish a project AND have it turn out as well as this one did.  As I mentione in my last post, I was going to a quilt retreat at a nearby resort last weekend, but guess what?  I didn’t go.  I came down with a head cold and spent the weekend at home so that I wouldn’t infect anyone else but my own family.  They seem to have missed both of my last bouts of illness.  Lucky them!  I managed to find time in between taking some naps and feeling sorry for myself to do some sewing and not only finished my Bodacious quilt, but started my sister’s quilt.  I haven’t had time to sew in so long tha I had forgotten how relaxing and enjoyable it is.   BTW, what should I name it?

We’ve had 3 guys come by this week and look at our plans for an outside building and they will be sending us bids – hopefully soon.  Two are suggesting concrete block buildings with insulation in the blocks.  The other contractor puts up steel buildings using a post and beam frame.  Both have advantages and disadvantages, but I guess a lot will depend on how much they cost.  All these decisions are stressful!  I want the business to grow and I need the room for it to do so, but the investment is big and I guess I want to see into the future and know it’s been a success.  I’m a worry-wort, what can I say.  Keep me in your prayers and I know God will guide me if I lean on Him.

My other worry is whether or not to go wholesale with my fabrics.  I have had several quilt shows show interest, but it’s another BIG investment to get the fabric and have it bolted to sell to shops.  What do you think?  Do you think it will be of interest to your local shop?  Ask them and let me know!  Thanks.  You can email me at patti@batiksbydesign.com.  Or have them email me.  I would love to hear from shop owners!

It’s lunchtime, so I think I’ll go and find something to eat.  With my food allergies, that is not as easy as it sounds.  Hmmmm.  I think there is some leftover corned beef or maybe I’ll make a salad.

From the nervous quilt entreprenuer,

Patti

I finally found some time to sew!

I’m sure you find it hard to believe that I have so little time to sew with a home based business that is quilt and sewing related.  But it is true.  Since business was not my major, I spend a lot of my time pulling my hair out and trying to figure things like accounting and payroll out when I would be doing other things like making quilts.  It’s the nature of the business for now.  I’m hoping that will change, but I’m not holding my breath.  Last Friday I was diagnosed with a throat and ear infection and spent the day sleeping.  Now I can just here you saying to yourself – she could have sewn then.  Frankly, I just didn’t feel like it!  I felt pretty bad.  But after a day and a half of sleep, I started to perk up and decided to sew instead of work.  And I did.  I started a sample quilt from a book we carry called Bodacious Quilts by Colleen Granger.  I spied it at Quilt Market in October and was intrigued by the number of designs that could be made using this one block.  Peggy Welchert, my assistant and pattern designer, helped me pick out fabrics for several samples last week.  We decided to try black and white for this quilt with accent colors of fuschia and purple.  I’ve added a picture of the blocks layed out to see how they look.  What do you think?  I used a mix of traditional batik designs and Bali batiks.  I plan on only making a wallhanging size because we have so little room in our quilt booth at shows to display all of our quilts. 

On Thursday – yes, on Valentine’s Day – I am going on a quilt retreat to Kentucky Dam Village which is not far from where I live, but it gives us a chance to sew and sew and sew!  There are 21 members of our guild going for the weekend.  I can’t wait!  I haven’t been on a retreat in years.  We are renting 3 cabins with 7 of us in each cabin.  I plan on making a quilt called Five of Diamonds while I’m there – another one of our patterns.  I think this quilt has a lot of potential with our fabrics and I hope it will turn out as great as I hope it will.  I’ll fill you in on the retreat – and the quilt – when I get back.

This afternoon, Peggy and I are taking a break from the business to make baby quilts.  She’s coming over around lunch time and we’ll sew all afternoon!  Yeah, another chance to sew!!  We both need baby quilts for special people who are adding to their families in April.  In my case, I am making this quilt for people who have been very special in my daughter’s life.  They’ve been her teachers, both at school and at church, and Academic Team coaches.  They have also helped Kristen to believe in herself, which is so important in a young girls life.  They are wonderful role models for her and I hope they’ll continue to be a part of her life even after she moves on to high school.

 Gotta go.  I need to workout and do a few other things before Peggy arrives.  Yeah, I need to read more on doing payroll.  The IRS has too many rules and regulations, and then you add the State rules on top of that! 

 Bye for now.  I hope you get some time to sew too!!

 Patti Oakley

Batiks by Design

www.batiksbydesign.com

Over the weekend . . .

Since I opened my store, my husband and I have been talking about taking down our barn (it’s really old and too far gone to restore) and putting up a building that would house my “store” and his workshop.  That was well over a year ago.  We have “sold” it on eBay twice and most of it is still standing.  Yes, we sold the wood from the barn on eBay.  The buyers cam and took whatever wood they wanted from the barn.  There’s really old oak beams still left in there and we hope to salvage them when we take it the rest of the way down.  It’s actually sturdier than you would think.  We had some trees logged from our property and several hit the barn on the way down.  The barn shuddered, but is still standing – and that was AFTER 2 people had taken wood out of it.  They don’t build things like they used to.

So, my business is in my basement, which is finished and is supposed to be our family room.  Little by little though, I’m taking it over!  I started with 1/3 of the basement and now I’m in 2/3rds of it as of this past weekend.  I keep running out of space to put things and store my fabrics.  My Indonesian buyer has 90 bolts that she’ll be sending to me within the next week.  So . . . I went to Lowe’s and bought two 6′ x 6′ x 24″ heavy duty metal shelves.  My daughter-in-law, Candy, came over and we put them together and rearranged most of my stuff.  I can’t believe how open it actually feels down here.  I don’t know why!  We actually have the same amount of stuff that we started with, but it is organized differently.  I’m still not sure where the 90 bolts are going to go.  I have room for some of them . . . as long as the grandkids (above) will stay off of them!

I must have gotten through to my husband though about the barn, because he finally went out there and took the pump out of it so that we can finish tearing it down.  Yeah!

I cut out one quilt yesterday, it’s a blue and yellow quilt I promised my sister years ago!  By the time I get it done, she may change her mind.  I’ve also cut out a table runner and a wallhanging for quilt show samples and to put in the online store and gallery.  As I sew them I’ll put some pictures on here so you can see my progress.  I’m not going to tell you yet which patterns I’m using.  Two are from my online store and the other one is one that I’ve just ordered for the store.  See if you can figure it out!

Back to doing my filing.  Fun.  Not.

Patti

Batiks by Design

www.batiksbydesign.com