Economics of Quilting - Off the Wall Friday

Well I was very productive this week - I spent it quilting a few hours each day on the fall piece.  Its amazing how much  the quilting line to it adds to the overall look.  Mr.  Sayre even said, "Ohhh yeahh - that does look better with the quilting in it."  So there ya go - I guess now we know why we work in fabric rather than paint!

I am enjoying using the poly thread through out.  This is the first time I'm using my stash of Metro embroidery thread and its working out well.  They have a wide range of colors and I got it on sale dirt cheap (I mean 68 cents for a 1000 m spool  cheapie!!!)  I'm also using some polyneon from madeira which is gorgeous to work with  but pricey.  I'm really happy to be switching over from the rayon to the poly's - it just seems to be quilting up nicer!

Speaking of the price of making a quilt - I started a thread this week on the quiltart mail list about the price of pfd (prepared for dyeing) cotton. It all started with me browsing in Joann's and then doing some experiment dyeing on sale fabrics I found there on clearance.  Plus  I've been wondering what is the cheapest route to go about getting pfd cotton since normally I can't find it locally.  Here are some things that I learned from the discussion:

• Kona cotton is a registered trademark from Kaufman's and the Kona sold in Joann's is the same as the Kona sold in your quilt shop (as per Robert Kaufman's) so you could use a 60% off coupon for a bolt of it
• Some (if not all) Joann's sell Pfd Kona but most times you have to look carefully at the bolt end to read that its pfd and not just white 
• A good scour with a bunch of soda ash in your washer will create a nice pfd fabric (I tested this and its true - thanks Sheila!)
• Pimatex has a very tight weave (like a batik) and dyes up wonderfully - but is hard to hand quilt 
• Most brands of pfd are going for $5.50 - $7.50/yd plus shipping in some cases

Also - I got the following quote from Test Fabrics here in Pennsylvania where many art quilters get their pfd - including me.

As always shipping factors into the quote - since  I'm here in PA, my shipping is  $25 for 50 yds.  I like Test Fabrics too because they offer the two thread weights - 419M is has a bit meatier hand while 400 is a bit lighter.  Also they'll roll your fabric which makes it easy to store (rolls fit nicely into a corner of your studio. grin!)

Ohhhh and btw - ProChem Dyes is offering half off shipping for the month for you east coasters.  Wasn't that nice of them?

So that's a bit of the economics behind our art -

What have you been up to Creatively?