Character

There are many interesting people who touch my quilting life in various ways and I think this is a golden opportunity to introduce some of them.  I am honored to call Kelly Jackson my friend--at least I think she is my friend.  She may have gotten a bit pickier about whom she associates herself with now that she has the ear of Alex Anderson and Eleanor Burns.

Anyway, Kelly was the speaker at our local guild, the Mountain Laurel Quilt Guild, last night and, as expected, was great entertainment as well as a source of important information about the latest quilting tools and gizmos that she sells on her online store, I Have a Notion.

Now Kelly is a very useful friend--she is the reason that I know about the UV version of Misty Fuse that takes care of the yellowing effect that comes with some fusibles as they age and the reason that last night I bought this cool little tool called the CutRite Bind Up.  I can't wait to try it because it promises to take some of the contortions out of mitering the final joined seam in the binding around a quilt.

But she is also inspiring.  When Kelly walks into a room, you notice her--and no, it is not just because she is tall. She is blessed with an enviable amount of energy that is actually catching for those of us who tend to move more slowly through life.  And just being around her is a great motivator to go back home and accomplish something.  To say she throws herself into whatever she is doing with enthusiasm is too much of a cliche because her enthusiasm is intensified by attention and a strong desire to know everything she can about a situation.  The trait I probably covet the most in her is her ability to ask questions.  Kelly asks those questions that we never think of asking or are afraid to ask because we are afraid we will look ignorant.  But she ends up looking and being all the wiser.  Her products sell so well because of all this open probing she has done, and people have learned to trust her assessments.

Kelly is a character in the sense that you never know what she is going to say or do (You end up laughing a lot around her--add that to the list of reasons why I like her), but she also has character. (Guess that's what I value in a quilt as well--originality combined with a deep integrity that gives it meaning.) If she doesn't totally know who she is and where she is going, she is a lot further along that journey than many people.

And if you are still with me, thanks for the company