Tula Pink Glam Clam Update

I did it! I finished my Tula Pink Glam Clam quilt top! For the first time in my life, I also sent it off to a longarmer to be quilted. If you are looking for a longarm quilter, check out Penny at Alloway Quilting.

I wanted to talk about my strategy, and why it worked for me with this UFO. I used the “small steps” system taught to me by my friend and creative coach, Elizabeth. She has helped me thrash my way through many projects, just by asking me what my next small step will be. (And then she holds my feet to the fire by following up.)

I wasn’t perfect on my goals for this project. I think it took me an extra week or two, but I am still happy to have it done. After all, it was just for me, not a project with a customer deadline. I discovered that I don’t really like spending time at my sewing machine on the weekends when I’m in Florida. In New Jersey I will sometimes spend time in the studio, but in Florida my studio is in the dining room. We are also much more active. So, Jeremy and I are either out having adventures, or we are watching TV together. This is good data for future goals – I will no longer expect to make progress on weekends.

I also waited for a week for new fabrics to arrive. Since I never counted how many clams I cut, nor checked the pattern to see how many I needed, it is no surprise that I was short. I needed 5 fabrics to finish the last row. And, I don’t think I had the correct number of rows for the pattern – this was absolutely just me fooling around. I don’t love that the quilt is wider than it is long. Finished is better than perfect, though!

The lower right corner is made from two fabrics pieced together. I didn’t have a perfect color left, and I was soooo done.

I really love the color flow I got going in this quilt. Again, it isn’t perfect. I could have spent weeks moving clams around to get it just right, but what would the point have been? I actually like the fact that anyone who sees it will feel like they would have done it a little differently. That’s okay. I feel like the “mistakes” invite viewers to have a relationship with the quilt. Perhaps it will inspire them to make their own.

Finally, I’m having a really hard time letting go of these fabrics! I collected Tula Pink fabrics for many years, just because I liked them. Lilabelle Lane’s La Passacaglia was very inspirational for me. I did a City Sampler using them (I’m still not finished quilting that one), and I’ve used them here and there for little things. But, I realize I’m never going to make the La Passacaglia I originally started collecting for.

When I started cutting the clams, it was with the thought that I’d take one piece of everything, and sell off my collection. Now, I’m thinking maybe I need to make another Tula Pink Glam Clam, but bigger. Maybe collect some of the fabrics I’m missing. What do you think?

I love charm quilts – no fabric is repeated, with the exception of the pieced corner. I’ve loved charm quilts since I learned about them.

Oh, and the thing that guarantees I’ll be making another clam? There is an AccuQuilt die! And my contact at AccuQuilt sent me one to play with! Cutting curves is always the most annoying part, and AccuQuilt makes that easy. (This is an affiliate link.) They don’t have many patterns available, either. So, I’ll probably try pitching a couple soon.

Finally, I am thinking about putting together a class on doing color flows on your quilts. It is one of my favorite ways to play with color, and I think I could keep folks busy for a few hours. Now that Gotham Quilts is closing, I need to seriously start working on my own educational platform. Would you be interested in this class?