Newsy: Apple App for Quilt Lovers

The Alliance for American Quilts announces Quilt Index To Go, a new Apple app compatible with iPhone, iPod, and iPad. You get a quilt a day accompanied by bits of history right on your device. The quilts are pulled from a 50,000 record database, so it’s like visiting multiple quilt museums without the travel. See the entire Press Release below:

QUILT INDEX TO GO:

A New App for Quilt Lovers

ASHEVILLE, NORTH CAROLINA and EAST LANSING, MICHIGAN -February 3, 2011.

The largest online database of quilts in the world is now easier to access and share. The Quilt Index team has released Quilt Index To Go, a fun app that delivers a new Quilt Index quilt to the palm of your hand each day. The app is now available for iPhone, iPod Touch and iPad on the Apple App Store for 99 cents. All revenue will support Quilt Index expansion and sustainability.

The Quilt Index website (www.QuiltIndex.org) provides centralized access to nearly 50,000 records, including quilts from state or regional documentation projects, museum and private collections. The Quilt Index, launched online in 2003, is a joint project of Michigan State University Museum; MATRIX: Center for Humane Arts, Letters and Social Sciences Online at Michigan State University; and the nonprofit Alliance for American Quilts.

“Quilt Index To Go brings resources where people really need them — where they work and play,” says Dean Rehberger, director of MATRIX. “The Quilt Index To Go app is a great example of MATRIX’s dual focus on outreach and research. Working with nonprofits we’re bringing new access to the online Quilt Index repository through mobile devices. In this way we help them provide new services to existing users and connections to new users. Through this development, we also advance research on ways mobile devices can access digital libraries across the humanities.”

Lee Nakamoto, Consumer Intelligence Orchestrator for AccuQuilt in Freemont, Nebraska, served as an early reviewer for Quilt Index To Go. “I saw quilts and learned snippets of their history that I would never have known without the app. I was amazed with the diversity of techniques, fabrics, styles displayed,” says Nakamoto. “My quilt IQ has indeed been significantly increased. The app truly gives exposure to a segment of the population that would not otherwise make it to quilt museums or galleries.”

The Quilt Index To Go app draws from the full Quilt Index database so users will see quilts from 28 contributors including museums with quilt collections like the Daughters of the American Revolution Museum and the National Quilt Museum, documentation projects from states such as Kentucky, Hawaii and Iowa, private collections like the Mary Gasperik Quilts, and most recently an international partner, the South Africa Quilt History Project. Daily quilts display on Quilt Index To Go will showcase more than 200 traditional quilt patterns cataloged in the Quilt Index as well as original contemporary designs.

For questions about the Quilt Index To Go app or the Quilt Index, please contact us at [email protected]

Next Quilting Pattern:

I have fabric buying rules.

Very sensible rules.

Responsible, grown-up, “I have teenagers and a mortgage” rules.

And yet… somehow… I still come home with another bundle of florals.

If you’ve ever typed “quilting fabric sale” into Google knowing full well you do not need more quilting fabric, this one’s for you.

Let’s talk about the rules I made for myself — and how often I quietly ignore them.

Rule #1: Only Buy Fabric for a Specific Project

This is my most repeated rule.

Only buy quilting fabric if I have a pattern in mind.
Only buy fabric yardage if I know what quilt I’m making.

In theory? Sensible.

In reality?

“I don’t have a pattern yet, but this would make a beautiful lap quilt.”

Which means it joins the “future project” pile.

That pile is thriving.

Rule #2: Shop Your Stash First

Before buying new quilting cotton, I tell myself:

You have a whole cupboard of beautiful fabric.

And I do.

But sometimes I open that cupboard and think:

“Yes… but not this shade of blue.”

Apparently there is always room for “just one more perfect blender.”

Rule #3: No Buying Just Because It’s On Sale

This one gets me every time.

Clearance quilting fabric is dangerous.

Because suddenly I’m not buying fabric…
I’m “saving money.”

Which is how three metres of something I wasn’t even looking for ends up in my sewing room.

On sale fabric has a way of whispering,
“You’ll regret it if you don’t.”

And honestly? Sometimes I would.

Rule #4: Stop Buying Novelty Prints You’ll Never Use

I love novelty quilting fabrics.

Chickens. Teacups. Tiny strawberries. Vintage florals.

Do I make novelty quilts often?

No.

Do I convince myself I will?

Absolutely.

There’s something about quirky fabric that makes my creative brain light up — even if it takes five years to turn into something.

Rule #5: Don’t Duplicate What You Already Have

This is the funniest one.

Because I absolutely have:

Three nearly identical cream background prints.
Four versions of “soft dusty pink.”
More neutral blenders than I could sew in a year.

But when I see “the perfect low-volume print” — logic disappears.

Apparently I believe each new one is slightly more perfect than the last.

Rule #6: Only Buy Quality Quilting Fabric

This one I actually stick to.

If I’m investing in fabric for a quilt, I want quality quilting cotton that presses well, holds up over time, and doesn’t fade after washing.

I’ve learned that lesson.

Cheap fabric looks like a bargain… until it doesn’t behave.

So at least I’ve matured in one area.

Rule #7: Finish One Quilt Before Starting Another

This isn’t strictly about buying fabric, but it’s related.

Because nothing triggers fabric shopping like:

A tricky block
• A frustrating seam
• A quilt top that won’t lie flat

Suddenly a new project feels like a fresh start.

Which means new fabric.

Which means the cycle continues.

Why We Really Buy Fabric

If I’m being honest — and this is the handwritten, tea-in-hand honesty — I don’t just buy fabric for quilts.

I buy fabric for:

Possibility
• Inspiration
• A future version of myself
• A quiet hour I haven’t had yet

Sometimes buying quilting fabric is less about productivity and more about hope.

And that’s not entirely a bad thing.

My Real Fabric Buying Rule (The One That Matters)

Here’s the rule I actually try to follow now:

Buy fabric that genuinely makes you excited to sew.

Not pressured.

Not influenced.

Not because someone else says it’s trending.

If I can picture it on my cutting mat.
If I can see it stitched into something useful.
If it makes me want to sit down and sew tonight.

Then I don’t feel guilty.

A Little Gentle Reality

Most hobby quilters don’t struggle because they don’t have enough fabric.

We struggle because:

We don’t have enough time
• We don’t have enough energy
• We’re juggling life

Fabric buying is the easy part.

Making space to actually sew? That’s the real challenge.

So yes.

I have fabric buying rules.

And yes.

I break them.

But as long as the sewing room still feels joyful — and not stressful — I’m okay with that.

Because quilting isn’t about being perfectly disciplined.

It’s about enjoying the process… even if that includes another bundle of florals.