I was teaching in a lovely quilting shop in Missoula, MT, called A CLEAN STITCH recently. I even took some photos, because I know you always want to see local quilt shops, yes?

It’s always so lovely to visit quilt shops with a little different selection than my local stores carry.

And I ALWAYS leave a little room in my sample suitcase ❤️

Driving home to Spokane, I had to cross a mountain pass – it’s the southern tail of the Rockies – and the temps were juuuust above freezing, and it was pouring rain the whole way.

Now, this girl grew up in the far north of Canada, so not too many road conditions scare me, but I like to think I’m realistic too.

I mean, I had a bag in my car with snow pants…scarf…mittens. All the essentials, really, because I do know stuff can happen. 

And being realistic, I did indeed drive “for the conditions”. 

First I slowed down. Montana has an 80 mile per hour speed limit, and that’s definitely not a good speed for possible freezing rain. It simply doesn’t give you time to act, or react appropriately. Think standing water in a low area. Think high beams on oncoming vehicles. And so on.

Plus I ramped up my awareness. 

For me, that meant cranking up the music and then paying close attention.

Paying attention to the road signs. 

Even paying attention to my nav system to know what’s coming around the next curve in the road, or over the next hill.

Free Motion Curves Ahead

This idea of tailoring what you’re doing “for the conditions” is a life lesson for all kind of things, even machine quilting.

What are some of the conditions we quilters need to slow down and pay attention to?

Thick seam allowances?

Specialty threads?

Maybe mixed fabric types?

Or (our nemesis!) wavy borders?

These 2 actions – slowing down, and paying close attention, go a long ways toward safely navigating these challenges.

They give you time to glance ahead and be aware of what you’re approaching, time to zhuzh and make adjustments to the full bits, even time for the needle and bobbin mechanisms to “deal” with thickness or fabric slipperiness, or whatever the challenge is.

So I challenge YOU! 

Next time you’re facing some tough quilting conditions, try scaling down your speed and scaling up your awareness. See if it doesn’t help! Drive for the conditions 😁