WE QUILT...

     We quilt...among other things together. As a matter of fact we have no real recollection of not doing everything we've done together, since like meeting in high school in 1961. We have been very fortunate. So how in the heck did quilting get in the picture and why blog about it. The blog is a result of frustration on my part (Les). We own a longarm machine, we have had some frustrations, a learning curve, some disappointment with customer service from the manufacturer and belong to several of the yahoo groups monitored by said manufacturer, or should I say censored. They may not like what I have to say, I may not be a cheerleader for them on certain issues but I am entitled to my opinion and last time I checked maintained the freedom to express myself. With the understanding it is "their" group and I was wasting my time participating we decided on another avenue to relate our experiences, good and bad, that hopefully will help others benefit from our postings ...so here we are. The issues that created the frustrations have been resolved as the result of our distributor, who we will on occasion highly recommend if you're in the market for a 'longarm' and live in the state of Virginia, anywhere in Virginia...the drive will be well worth it. More on them later.
     We quilt...well sort of...It all started about a year ago at the Mid Atlantic Quilt Festival, well the day before really. My wife ask if I wanted to go to the quilt show. Now I have gained some knowledge over the years being married to this creature of beauty. One of the things learned is, without hesitation or thought, is to respond with the correct answer...in this case if there were no need for me to go or she had no desires for me to tag along, the question would not have been ask...therefore the answer was an enthusiastic, "Yes." For reference another automatic response would be "No." To the question regarding "Does my .... in this dress?" So it is off to the quilt show. It wouldn't be long for me to realize my needed presence. If she were to decide to purchase a 'longarm machine' and any financing were required, my signature would also be. Two plus two still equals four. We didn't purchase a machine that day, or the next, but the selection process narrowed it down to two. The final decision would come some eight months later.
     Of the two machines, Gammill and Innova only one got my attention, the other, not in the least. But it most certainly wasn't my decision and my input was minimal and I was very selective about my chosen words so as not to tip the scales one way or another. To my delight she chose the Innova. Had she made the decision to go to the Gammill, I would have never longarmed one piece of fabric.
     Innova, manufactured by ABM International is in my book the cream of the crop. Please consider with very few exceptions, people will say this about their longarm machines almost religiously...who wants to admit spending ten to twenty + thousand dollars and not liking their purchase. But Innova did something the others haven't...they took the process of using 'pantographs' from the rear of the machine, got rid of all the paper patterns, put them in a software program and hooked a computer tablet to the machine and moved the task to the front. Personal opinion here...long overdue. So my first experience with Innova and PantoVision was nothing more than me standing in front of a power tool hooked up to a computer making stuff. It would have fit right into the garage between the table saw and the chop saw. It didn't though...it got the living room, and I couldn't be happier...we never went in there anyway. So beginning the day after set up..."My wife is a quilter" became "We quilt." I know she has mixed emotions about that...it's okay...like I said I've gained knowledge over the years...I know when it's time to be in the 'longarm room' or the Man Cave.
     Welcome to We Quilt...we hope you enjoy the journey and have the joy in sharing in our adventures in fabric...all of which I have found are not necessarily pleasant...I'm not a huge fan of a seam ripper.