Are there enough toppers?

Hmm… what has been happening the last few days? Well, I went to get my new glasses but the place was closed. I didn’t realize they would be closed on Saturdays. I thought surely they would be open on a day when most people would be off from work. Guess they like being off on the weekends too.

Today it appears my glasses will have to wait a bit longer now. I’ve had some tension problems with my machine. I bought a TOWA gauge thinking it would help. It did help me figure out that my bobbin case is bent. So there is another expense. The gauge cost nearly $80 with shipping. A new bobbin case will be $39 plus shipping. It’s also time for me to place another order for batting. That will be another couple of hundred dollars plus shipping. Yes, I guess the glasses will have to wait. The purchases to keep quilting are never ending in this business.

I did talk to the lady interested in starting a machine quilting business. The one question all people interested in going into the trade asks is ‘are there enough customers for another machine quilter’? How can I answer that? I believe there are plenty of toppers for many quilters in one area but who can say about the future?

My own personal belief is that when machine quilting professionals stop trying to be the ‘only’ machine quilter things will become much better in this profession. No ‘one’ machine quilter can do them all. Yes, a machine quilter can draw in more customers and work longer hours with more stress; but, is it worth it? Is it worth all the heartache trying to be an ‘exclusive’ machine quilter in one area?

Honestly, I would hate being the only machine quilter in my area! I really like knowing that others in my area love the art of stitching quilt layers together too. Yes, there are those going into the profession only for the money. These are not true machine quilters. They are business people looking to make a profit. A really true machine quilting professional goes into the business because of their love for stitching quilt layers together. They have a love for the finishing of quilts with pretty designs.

Machine quilting professionals should take some hints from the toppers. Just look at all the sharing and camaraderie they have. The take classes together, they visit quilt shows together, they have guilds, they have show and tell, they share techniques with each other, and they freely share in all kinds of ways. I’ve never seen a topper trying to become the “exclusive” topper in their area, have you? So with this said, are there enough toppers for another machine quilter in an area? I believe there are, but who knows for sure?

Tomorrow the whole quilt industry may shut down because no one wants to piece tops anymore or we could have a national shortage of fabric and walk around in paper bags or something.

Ok, I’m off to do some organizing planning while I wait for a new bobbin case to get ordered and delivered.