The journey of a simple idea... I had an idea 3 years ago, after creating a couple of quilts with all-over embroidery. My design niche being "embroidery is the quilt," I had been composing abstract designs out of basic geometric blocks. The next logical step was "what if the whole quilt is one big embroidery mofit?" Since my design philosophy is usually to jump in the deep end (without first looking whether the pool is filled;) I started out digitizing... The basic elements would be concentric circles in multiple sets and colors that would overlap, with one set emanating from the center of the piece. I was looking at a 5 x 5 block span, each 4 x 4 inches. I created a lattice for the block layout and started digitizing circles... lots of circles... I would have to cut and strip away strips between the blocks to create gaps between the blocks (which would be replaced by sashing) so the final design would actually be based on the original placement of stitch lines. By cutting into the original file, I would end up with a ton (and I do mean the 3 zeros ;) of segments... aka tie-ins and tie-offs in my embroidery... with a matching number of manual clippings.

On filling the pool... Well, I have to say that in this case I ended up watching the pool fill up :) Life happened... parenthood, other quilt ideas (one of which took me to Tokyo for the 9th Quilt Nihon Exhibition), etc. So my Slow Cooker Creative Method (TM) kicked in and the idea simmered on-and-off. I went through 3 design stages, none of which lit the proverbial light bulb. Then I got my 830 and the light bulb did go on... halogen style! With an automatic thread trimmer I no longer had to fear all that thread trimming. And the pool being filled, I did indulge my propensity to the deep end... I determined that a 25 x 25 inch square piece just couldn't render the image I had in my head... of color waves washing over each other from opposing corners, with a center dot (the focal point) creating an all-over ripple-in-the-pond effect. So why not 11 x 11 blocks? each one 5 x 5 inches ;-)

Did you know that a laptop can serve as a waffle iron? When you're churning up 12 million stitches in one embroidery file it can! I had mine running pretty hot for a couple of weekends in the final stage (stage 4) of the design work (btw, I have since acquired a workstation with a 24 inch monitor - more on the monitor later - for my design work... My laptop likes me again ;) I may be a slow cookder creatively by when the idea reaches maturity, I get a creative fever and things start happening fast. Luckily for me, my BERNINA 830 could keep up with my pace. So after a couple of busy weeks in the quilting studio (the master bedroom of my house btw), "Focal Point: A Geometric Stained Glass Window" was well on its way.

Be a good son... call your mother :) I have a little tradition in the making... when the blocks are all embroidered and trimmed to size, I lay them out on my living room floor, climp on the couch and take a picture. That is what I call the proofing stage. As a joke, I call my mother (who has been an inspiration in how to stick with a project to see it through) to let her know that my next piece passed the test. She always asks how many hours have gone in so far... at over 200 hours, it's a good thing that the concept panned out... we have a good laugh.

The best part is... I am very grateful for the scknowledgement this piece just received in the Fall IQF in Houston. While as a quilt artist it's good to get feedback from my peers, the positive encouragement received helps give momentum to my next project. And while "my thing" in quilting (aka "Embroidery IS the Quilt") can be considered a niche, shows like IQF help give exposure to my work. One of my goals is to show how the digital embroidery technology can be used as a design tool. The precision it affords in thread placement on fabric lets me create images in thread that just couldn't be realized with hand-guided free-motion stitching (there is not enough caffeine in the world to make that possible :) My other goal is to get the image out of my head and onto fabric... so I can make room for the next idea. So far, for every quilt I make I get 2 or 3 new ideas... so the more I make, the more I fall behind... As the saying goes ... I can't die - I have too many projects :)

Back to that monitor: If you design large pieces (and especially for large hoops), I highly recommend that you invest in a large monitor that can pivot. I now have a 24 inch monitor, which allows me to work at actual size (ratio 1:1) for my large oval hoop when the monitor is in the regular landscape mode. When I rotate it to portrait (vertical) mode, I can fit my jumbo hoop stitching field at actual size also... so I can preview my work "as is" with less zooming in and out. Since the design phase is where I enjoy the creative fever the most... the monitor has been one of my best investments so far.

What's next? I'm currently working on a wall hanging for a charity fund raiser... then I embark on a project of particular significance for me personally. A photo quilt, life sized, of my best friend whom I lost to breast cancer 9 years ago. It will be done in time for the 10th anniversary of her passing in 2010. I look forward to every moment spent making this next piece.

I was able to present or help in these sessions and enjoyed watching new sewers and people who had never before sewn or embroidered complete their tote-bag. We customized the 830 screen with a wallpaper of their choice from the many to select from, set the needle minder for the needle installed in the machine (so we wouldn't forget), and started creating our embroidery in the Jumbo Hoop! We took 2 designs from Diane Gaudynski's embroidery folder of feathered quilting designs and created our design and embroidered. Then, with the touch of one button, we went to the sewing screen and created a stitch combination using Drag & Drop and Connecting Stitches and sewed that under our embroidery. The final step was to use the BERNINA Dual Feed to sew up our bag.

Everyone had a new tote they could fill up with their shopping treasures from Houston.

If you really want to have your creative juices recharged, just stop by a Bernina booth at one of your area Quilt Shows and be inspired! We love seeing our BFF's - and that stands for BERNINA FANS FOREVER!!

It was very fun to show our BERNINA 830 to hundreds of people who stopped by our booth. It was encouraging to see that the public has done its homework and are so well informed about the BERNINA 830. Having ten 830s set up for consumers to use was a beautiful sight.

But even better, we had quilt artists Pat Holly and her sister Sue Nickels in the BERNINA booth during Festival. They stitched their quilting magic on the 830 and wowed all those who stopped by to see the applique, creative stitchery and free-motion work for which the sisters are famous. Check out their website and the beautiful quilting that has won national and international awards and praise at www.sue.nickels.com.

I leave on Sunday for two weeks of dealer trainings on the BERNINA 830. Dealers will be training on machines that they will take back to their stores for you to see. The BERNINA 830, in limited quantities, will become available the beginning of December for those of you who have put down deposits.

If you want to check out a dealer near you visit the dealer locator on www.bernina8series.com. Click the "where to buy" tab: www.bernina8series.com/dealer_search-n31-sE.html.

Yes, the time we have all been waiting for is finally here. And the Jumbo Hoop, Jumbo Bobbins, Multi-Spool Thread Holder and other accessories like the BERNINA Quilt Frame and the BERNINA Cabinet are also available. As you plan your holiday entertaining, think about how all the space on the 830 could make holiday sewing a breeze. Try out a BERNINA 830 at a dealer near you!

At the BERNINA booth we had ten BERNINA 830's set up to give as many people as possible a taste of the 830. We gave 30-minutes classes from the time the show started until the show ended each day and it was so much fun to see the reaction of our guests. Many people had seen the machine at their dealers' stores but many had not.

The most impressive and obvious feature was the size of the machine and all agreed it would be a huge benefilt not only for quilting but also for sewing and embroidery.

In 30 minutes we were able to customize the screen with the built-in wallpapers, use the BERNINA Dual Feed to stitch through ribbon, paper, fabric and stabilizer, experience on screen drag-and-drop using beautiful new stitches in a stitch combination - a BERNINA exclusive - and embroider our BERNINA 8.

We began early one morning so that a group of quilters from Japan could experience the BERNINA 830. They loved the machine.

The comments that we heard the most were: "unbelievable," "fantastic," "it has everything we ever wanted in a machine."

Many people were also impressed with the BERNINA quilt frame which will accommodate the BERNINA 830 in addition to all other BERNINA machines.

Our staff was all smiles on preview night - please notice that the owner of BERNINA, Hanspeter Ueltschi, was with us in Houston. Many people approached Mr. Ueltschi to thank him for the quality of the BERNINA product throughout the years. BERNINA has changed many creative lives for the better.

One of the highlights of my visit in Houston was to attend the Silver Star dinner - a tribute to Alex Anderson. Please visit the Quilt Show blog to share this special night with Alex: http://www.thequiltshow.com/os/blog/php. Alex has inspired thousands of people and she is so deserving of this special recognition.

So, Houston was lots of fun - more next week!

Don't miss the BERNINA Fashion Show, Rendezvous, tonight at Festival, from 6:30-8:30. For those of you that aren't at the show, the next issue of BERNINA of America's Through The Needle magazine is the program for the show, with photos and descriptions of all the garments. And, once the show is over, I'll be able to show photos here at the blog!

Here's a little quilt I designed for the occasion using the Quilter program in BERNINA Embroidery Software. It's easy to create blocks and add embroidery - just point and click - and much faster than actually stitching a quilt! Plus, if I decide to make my blocks, it's just another click to print pattern pieces and embroidery templates. This block uses Diane Gaudynski designs from the new 830, and Tuilleries fabrics from Benartex.

I'm looking forward to reading all the comments from show attendees!