Karlee Porter - the Queen of Grafitti Quilting

#machinequilting #artquilting #grafitti 

Over 10 years ago Karlee Porter invented and made wildly popular her signature style of quilting - Grafitti Quilting. Machine quilting has never looked so gorgeous!

Basically, it's a mashup of all kinds of unexpected designs in the same quilted area. But that's not all. Oh no! It also involves breaking lots of quilting "rules" to achieve a very unique, and extremely personalized look.

In the first edition of her book "Grafitti Quilting", first published in 2017, Karlee broke down her system into a step by step process that even non-doodlers like myself could learn to quilt.

In her upcoming 3rd edition, she has MASSIVELY enlarged on the printed content of the book, plus added tons of QR codes, linking to all kinds of in-depth video training.

Listen in as we chat about the new book, traveling the world, the marvels of digital learning, and much, much more.

If you can't wait to take Karlee's class, here's a sweet $25 off for you! Use the code SBS25
class registration: https://bit.ly/3v1ZD0u

Want to try free motion quilting but don't know where to start? Here's 3 simple steps to get going.

Transcript

Susan: 0:47

I'm Susan Smith. Welcome to my studio, Stitched by Susan. I have Carly Porter with me in the studio today, virtually, of course, and she's in the process of releasing a brand new book. And so we thought this would be a great opportunity to get together and visit. I've had her on the podcast before, so we'll catch up, see what's gone on in the intervening years. So without further ado, let's welcome Carly into the studio. Carly. It is so great to get an opportunity to catch up with you.

Karlee: 1:16

Thank you for having me. I'm really excited. I'm always excited to see you. So

Susan: 1:20

it's always fun to get a chance to visit. I agree. Totally. Okay. We're talking today specifically about your brand new book that is coming out So give me just a tiny taste of that and then we'll go back and tell some of the pre story

Karlee: 1:34

Okay, so graffiti quilting is the book This is the third edition and it is the 10 year anniversary from when I wrote the first edition Back in 2014, so graffiti quilting is my free motion quilting style. That's all about taking as many different motifs as you know how to quilt and smashing them all together into one quilt in a very Aesthetically pleasing, beautiful, chaotic way.

Susan: 1:59

I love that description. I have that first book and I, I cannot remember how it first came across, my horizon so to speak, but I absolutely fell in love with that style. And frankly it's, it's not in my, like I'm typically more too, too, too, too organized and I repeat the same designs. So like it was a stretch for me. But oh my goodness, it appealed to me when I first saw it. I ordered that book and started practicing it. So do you have some examples that you can show us or even pages from the book that you can show us? Like you gave a great description of it, but we just want to see because we're quilters.

Karlee: 2:36

I think I do have some pages that I could show you. Okay. Let me. pull them up on my computer.

Susan: 2:43

Okay, so whether they're from the original book or whether they're from this one, like I don't mean to make you put you on the spot and have you, show stuff that's your secret,

Karlee: 2:51

but. Okay, this will give you a good reference at least to begin with. Many of you may have a copy of this book. So this is the first book from 2014 graffiti quilting. And it's like. A magazine. Oh, I keep going inside the wrong way. It's an awesome book. It was my first ever book. I self published it, and for being self published, it did very well, which is really cool. That was the first book in 2014. And then after I traveled and taught graffiti quilting, to tons of different people all over the world. I was like, wow, there's actually more to this that I'm still learning every time I teach. And so I started, keeping lots of notes of those things and thinking I would look back at this book and say, there's like a lot that I could really expand upon. In 2017, after I did a ton of teaching, I published the second one, volume two, which I should, in hindsight, I should have named it second edition, because the second book includes everything that the first book had, plus a bunch more information.

Susan: 3:55

Okay. And actually, that's the one I have. I recognize that cover now. And over your shoulder, I'm seeing your insulated cup too. I love it. It's graffiti quilted also. Yeah.

Karlee: 4:05

Yeah. I just barely did this. Thank you. I love it. Thanks. I also bought a pair. I'm wearing high top Vans. Oh my goodness. And I just bought a pair of pure white high top vans that I'm going to graffiti on as well.

Susan: 4:21

I love it. Love it. Love it. If you do this with Sharpie and all different things too, as well as quilting it, cause it works for everything. Yeah. Okay. So you've touched on a couple of things, but like this kind of took on a life of its own. When you introduced graffiti quilting in 2014, quilters like me fell in love with it. And we, we just saw all the possibilities, right? So you went on the road teaching this. Got any great stories from that process?

Karlee: 4:47

I think the fact that my teaching tour was so big when it was when the book was so new that like in itself I think is so cool So I published the book in 2014 in the fall and I actually had a quilt that hung in Houston that debuted graffiti quilting like the style Like it was just juried into the show and so that was cool because I was able to show people the print of the the printed book and In conjunction with the quilt. And then that, that fall, the pre sells of the book did so well that I was able to quit my full time job and buy my quilting machine and start working full time as a business owner doing freelance artwork and design and stuff. So by the summer of 2015. I had booked a teaching tour that included a southern tour along the Australian coast, and then England, Ireland, and Scotland, and then a couple places in Canada, and then also a few places state, stateside. So that's I think the coolest part.

Susan: 5:52

Quilters know a good thing when they

Karlee: 5:54

see it. Yeah, and I was, I was not well known at all. But the, the book seemed to really take off, which I thought was really cool. And also very like an homage to. My love for graffiti in general, because one huge part of graffiti is that the art precedes the artist. People don't even know really who the artist is, but the art speaks for itself. And when people like a piece of graffiti art, they like it because of it. Not because there's some sort of branding or name or reputation behind it. That's a notch in my belt, that it feels like I could have been considered like a nobody in the quilting world, but my book was really gaining a huge amount of traction, which was so cool. So yeah, so I got to teach all over the world and got to experience different countries. I had never been out of the country before I went to Canada, and then I went to Europe, and then I went to Australia, all within about a three month period, which was really super cool. Yeah. But it is funny because teaching internationally, there were a few like funny, even though we were all speaking English, little nuances with things. I remember one time I was teaching and I referred to the term ribbon candy, right? Like the design ribbon candy. And I said, yeah, like when your grandma has that old tin of Candy that's all stuck together, but you still eat it because you're a kid and then you break off a piece And it's so hard to break it off. But then you finally realize that it's cinnamon So all that time was wasted anyways, and they were like, what is ribbon candy? Like they didn't know what the actual candy was and I was like, oh, I guess that's an American thing or another one was when I said like you fold your fabric hot dog style or hamburger style and people were like What do you mean hot dog style, but or I don't know maybe that's just a Utah thing But so that was funny just getting to know other people's kind of culture and some of those words that are a little bit different But yeah overall it was really really just an incredible opportunity to get to know so many different people and Be able to travel to places where they don't get as many opportunities to have in person classes with quilting teachers Because it seems like most, most of us are in the U. S. And so those international folks don't get as many opportunities to do that. So that was really cool. I do think that's true. Yeah. And I feel like international quilters, they are like on a different level. Like they're a different kind of beast with soaking up information. And maybe that's part of it is because they know that they don't just have access to people so close to them. But yeah, like I'll tell you, those Australians. Like they just, they were continually surprising me in the best ways with their skills with grasping the concepts. And I don't know, it was really cool. But I think even just the opportunity of being in person with these wonderful artists and building kind of connections that way was really just a huge blessing. It was really cool.

Susan: 9:02

So what a great experience. So for me, Carly, I've I've made quilts forever in a day, it seems but I have not been involved in the quilting industry until nine or 10 years ago at all. So it's been a revelation to me to find that as I get to know people like you and your style with graffiti quilting is quite distinctive, but there are others who have subtler, maybe differences in their style. But what amazes me is that like art, I begin to recognize the artist. I can see their work across the room and I'm like, that's Carly. I know that one and many other people as well. Do you find the same thing to be true?

Karlee: 9:42

Yeah, yeah, and I think that's awesome. Like I'm glad that it's like the comparison between quilting or folk art and fine art. Yes, we're totally part of that. Like folk art is art, quilting is totally art. And so that's really awesome. And I think that's a huge compliment too, especially when So much of the quilting world is based on like patterns where you follow us a set of steps and the variance between like free form artistic expression and Following a list of steps There's a lot of room in there and I tend to stay really far to the side of not only do I not enjoy following like steps From people, or I don't, I'm, I don't like following recipes or patterns. I like to be more freeform, but I'm also not very good at it. I, I just, I enjoy the, the process of constantly keeping my options open when I'm creating art. And graffiti quilting really caters to people like me that like really have issues with authority or don't like to follow a set of directions. They like to be able to let things unfold instead of knowing exactly what the end result is going to look like.

Susan: 11:00

So I, I just love that in the quilting world. There's room for all of us, because I'm probably at the other end of that spectrum. I am a bit of a rule follower. So I have to be nudged and pushed a little bit explore, do something different, mash together your designs, it'll be okay. I have to be pushed a little to do that, but it's so good that there's room for all of the above. Whatever your style is, whatever your expression is, there's, there's room for all of us. Yeah. I agree. So you've published a book or two by now. You've been in a number of quilt shows by now, somewhere along there, you shifted to doing much more online teaching than teaching in person. Were there specific reasons for that and what has been the outcome of that for you?

Karlee: 11:44

Yeah. So I would say the main reason was in 2017, I had my first baby. And that was a huge catalyst in saying I want and need to stay closer to home. But I didn't want to lose the connection that I was making with my students. The other thing that really pushed me in that, so there was actually two more things that I would say were big motivators in moving to online, there's, I just can't go everywhere in the world. As much as I want to, there's no way I could cater to all of the locations to get in front of the people who want to, want to be with me. And so teaching online, obviously, that meant anyone anywhere in the world with an internet connection could, we could play together. And then Finally, the thing that I really, really love about teaching online is that instead of going to a location or a quilt show and saying, okay, everybody drink from this fire hose. I can say, all right, we get eight weeks together or we get 12 weeks together where we're going to really get to know each other. And I can really alleviate a ton of the like pressure to perform. Both on myself as well as my students because we're just slowing down the process and it's more of a courtship instead of like speed dating. And so I really loved that idea. And then I guess finally the like little side note on that is that I am a very long winded person. And so traveling to teach somewhere and smash everything into two days, I feel like it's really hard to do it justice. At least with graffiti quilting which that's really the thing I've been teaching. Maybe with other like less in depth courses, it makes sense to do like a three hour class, but with graffiti quilting, I could talk and talk and talk and talk and talk and talk and talk. And so I'm like, I would rather cater to an audience that wants more, more breadth. Of knowledge and more kind of spread out and then also thrives on the idea that they can take a little chew it up and swallow it and digest it and then come back for seconds and thirds and fourths and so so true of my so yeah so those were my main things with teaching online that actually ended up serving me very well because I started teaching online I think in 2017 and then COVID hit and I already had the infrastructure in place to just keep doing what I was doing and that was a huge thing. Huge blessing and privilege to be able to maintain, maintain that in such a, such a hard time for the rest of the world.

Susan: 14:13

Yeah. So perfect. I so agree about the, your analogy of drinking from a fire hose. My My father in law was a preacher and he used to say the head can absorb only as much as the seat can endure, which is just another way of saying the same thing, right? You can only take so much in when it's new material, when it's stretching your skillset, you can only absorb so much. So the beauty of online and or on demand courses is not only is it broken up over the weeks, but you can press rewind and you can go back and watch that difficult portion again and again and again, practice it, watch it, et cetera, until you get it. There, there is really this. Beauty in, both have their benefits. There is nothing like being with the teacher in person and getting their flavor and their personality. But there is this advantage, which we've talked about, of the content coming to you, a little more dripped, a little more slowly. And just. The, even for, for quilt guilds and for people, the advantage of, not all guilds can afford to bring in a teacher. It's costly because travel costs are enormous, right? So you can only do so much of that. But this is like opening a buffet of teachers, again, from anywhere in the world that's got internet access. So yeah, it's pretty

Karlee: 15:29

marvelous. The cool thing too, that I've been able to do is like. When I'm, when I'm gearing up to teach another online course, there have been some times that guilds will approach me and say, Hey, we're, we are in this location. What are your prices to come and teach a class? And instead of quoting them a price that's going to be quite expensive, it might take their whole yearly budget, depending on how big the guild is. I can say, how about this? If your guild wants to take my online course, I can give you a group discount. That will help support your guild instead of draining the funds from your guild. You can just have your members Register for my class and then you get a kickback that will help support the ongoing endeavors of your guild To keep doing those fun activities and then also get access to really great education. So that's cool too, to be able to collaborate in ways that I wouldn't normally be able to because then I could have two or three different guilds all in the same class session and they're getting to know each other and, and that's really cool too. With online, we're not limited to the amount of seats that we can fit into a room. It's everyone in the comfort of their own home in comfy clothes and pants are optional.

Susan: 16:42

Exactly. Cause you're only seeing me from here up. Yep. So many good things.

Karlee: 16:46

I wear pants, but you don't have to. Me

Susan: 16:49

too. I even have footwear on. Usually I'm in bare feet, but today I even have footwear on. So many good things result though, when, when we allow ourselves to think outside the box. And honestly, the whole pandemic episode was very good for many of us in that way. I feel like. Quilters, by and large, are retired or semi retired, mostly women who, four or five years ago probably didn't have the knowledge of how to attend a Zoom class or how to purchase an online course or how to log back into it a year down the road, right? And they were forced into Learning those skills too, but it has resulted in this wealth of sharing of information Being available to all of us. I just think so many good things came from that, bad situation But there is a silver lining and we've found it as quilters. I think

Karlee: 17:37

I agree I think it was it was definitely a baptism by fire But but a baptism nonetheless, yes, exactly,

Susan: 17:44

exactly. Okay. I would like to hear about another thing that you've done in the last couple of years too, which is you have formed a company called Honest Fabric, which prints quilts. Tell us about

Karlee: 17:58

that. So Honest Fabric is a company that my husband and I founded in 2018 and the three pillars or like it, I thought of it as like my love letter to the quilting industry. So it was about 10 years into my like my introduction into the quilting world where I felt like, okay, here's something that maybe we could improve upon a little bit as an industry. And so Honest Fabric was my love letter to that. And it's. Based on being fair trade, American made, and eco friendly. So those are the pillars of the why, the rationale that's like this is the bigger mission of the company. But the gist of the company itself is basically that we print on demand, custom printed quilt tops that are large format and ready to quilt. No piecing. No seams. It's just ready for you to throw it on your frame and get to quilting. And it's like a next

Susan: 18:48

gen for those cheater quilts that we used to buy that were like double wedding rings or lone stars that were all printed in place, but it's up leveled that quite a bit.

Karlee: 18:57

Yes, because I think that like where the industry was lacking is that anytime there was like a panel It was always still just the width of yardage because it was still printed in the traditional way that the rest of the line that It matches was it always felt like an afterthought to the yardage like it was like Oh, here's this cute little thing that you can cut out and make a pillow with but really the yardage is like what the fabric Company wants you to stay focused on which is fine and So that was one big thing that I was like, I want a quilt. I want a quilt top that's the size of a quilt. And so with Honest Fabric, the three sizes that we have, the smallest is a 50 by 60. And then the largest is an 88 by 104. So the quilt that's hanging here in my studio, this is a custom printed quilt top. It's amazing! Yeah, so another thing that I love about it is that there with with digitally printing fabric There are just some aesthetics that you can't get with piecing or applique And this is that quilt is a good example of that because there's no way in the world That I would ever make that quilt with traditional quilting methods. Like I don't even really know how to applique.

Susan: 20:14

So there are people who would, there are people who would, yeah. You and I, I feel are not among them.

Karlee: 20:19

Yeah. I'm not, yeah, there's a special place in heaven for those people. I just, I'm not, I'm not cutting it. So that was like really the, the motivation for Honest Fabric was feeling like. There's a niche in the industry for it. It's obviously very small because it's like a niche within a niche within a niche, but me being someone who prefers the quilting to all of the other steps of the quilt making process, I wanted to cater to people like me who just want to get to their quilting machine and spend more time quilting and you can make more quilts because you're not putting the, 80 hours into piecing the quilt top. It also alleviates a lot of fear. For quilters who spend so much time on a quilt top and then they're afraid of the quilting and so they either send it out and have a professional do it or they have this anxiety the whole time like a shivering chihuahua, like they're going to ruin their quilt top, which is not a fun experience either, you want to have fun with the quilting the same way you had fun with the piecing. So it's nice too, that there's, there are these really beautiful, Beautiful pieces of art that can be used as quilt tops Where people can practice without the anxiety of like totally ruining fabric because I mean at the end of the day even if you you know, our quilt tops range from 80 to 120 dollars, which I think is pretty Phenomenal based on what it costs to make a quilt top so it's like even if you totally completely butchered the quilt top You're out a maximum of a hundred and twenty dollars, right? Which is nothing compared to the time. Yeah. Yeah Right and picking it out You're gonna it's gonna take you a while with Honest Fabric to pick out your favorite because there are so many choices Yeah, and the other thing that I loved about the concept behind honest fabric was that as I was becoming a professional in the industry I felt like there were a few platforms that really took a chance on me as like a, a nobody, right? Like I was called that, like I would reach out to some, there were some companies that I would say Hey, do you want to? License my designs and they'd be like, nobody knows you like you're a nobody. So why and they clearly were not interested in taking that like leap of faith or, or giving that that space, which is like fine business is business. But then there were others that were like your design works good. Who cares if people don't know you, you're still money in my pocket if I can sell your stuff. And those companies really, really helped me to be able to at least have a proof of concept that what I was doing could be financially profitable. And that was a really, really amazingly generous thing that they did. And I wanted to also have Honest Fabric be a possible. And I think that's a really cool place where other designers like me could just have another platform that could be a revenue stream. It may not be, but it may be great. Like we have some, like Natalia Bonner, for instance, she's a really great example of a success story with Honest Fabric, where she has her online courses, and then she will give her students the pattern and they can piece the quilt top, or she gives them a link to Honest Fabric and they can just purchase it and we drop ship it to them. And that's a really great way for her to supplement her income as a teacher because she makes money off of the registration of the student. And then also if they buy the quilt top, she makes another bonus off of that. So how does

Susan: 23:44

that kind of be a win for the students too? Yeah. Yeah. It's a real win for the students too, because Natalia can teach and they can quilt far faster than they can piece. So now if quilting is the thing they're trying to learn, right? This is just like a giant shortcut for them. Get straight to the quilting. And it's just a win win.

Karlee: 24:05

Yeah, yeah, and I love it too because the fabric is really so soft, like it, the quality is still there. It's not like these are just like afterthought cheater panels that it's like, Okay, it's cheap, but it didn't cost me much, but like it's not a real quilt. They are actually really beautiful and very Like my bed quilt is a custom printed quilt top. In fact, I have the very first quilt that I ever made when I was doing proof of concept for Honest Fabric and this quilt has been on my bed for, I, I made this quilt a couple years before I launched Honest Fabric and it's like one of my favorite quilts still.

Susan: 24:42

I remember this. Yeah. Yeah, so it's too

Karlee: 24:49

big to hold up all at once, but yeah, so it was really cool to be able to have this because even a pattern like this, I wouldn't have pieced, like my piecing skills are like so minimal that like when I look at patterns that are piecing, I'm like, that just looks hard and time

Susan: 25:07

consuming. Piecing skills and like fabric and color selection and arrangement. Yeah. Like how much would you have had to spend on fabric to be able to get that kind of. Variety. Gradation. Ton of work and thought and a ton of money to get, I don't know how many different colors you have in there. A hundred probably.

Karlee: 25:24

I think, I think it's like 14, but, oh yeah. Beautiful rainbow. And it's like solid, solid colors and when it's in a rainbow, it looks like more, which is the point. So that's good. Got it. Got it. But, but yeah, so I really liked the idea that. For me, Honest Fabric was not like a, Oh, this might be a get rich quick scheme. It was like, I feel like I've been in the industry long enough that if I can give back even in a small way, and if this could be a platform where maybe, if even one single designer finds success, and if even one single quilter likes it, I will have considered it. Worth all the time and effort that it took Andrew and I to build the infrastructure to make it an offering so Which it has and so that's awesome. Yeah, so yeah

Susan: 26:09

It's it's a solid addition to all the ways that you can make quilts and create in the quilting industry It's just another way Another entry point there. And I, over the years of, of getting to know you, Carly, I've been so impressed that you have this, this broad concept too, of the industry as a whole. So in other words, the things you do are not just, I want to make money off this for my family, but it's how can it impact other people and how can other people also use this in their businesses? And, the old saying, the rising tide lifts all ships, right? Exactly. What can we be doing that's lifting each other up, that's cross promoting, that's using each other's products and services and highlighting them. All of this helps all of us, and I think that's really, really important. So I appreciate that in the work that you do. I see it in all kinds of ways in the things that you post, in the comments that you make, and in how you handle your businesses. So I appreciate that.

Karlee: 27:05

Thank you. I, I'm glad you're not sick of me yet. Cause I know as if you follow like my Instagram where you're getting kind of day to day sometimes it gets a little cheeky, like sometimes I'm like, I, that's one thing I really appreciate too, is I feel like when I first got into the industry, there was like this box, right? That's if you want to be a professional quilter in this industry, these are like the standards. That you follow, and over time, the more that I said, I'm just gonna say no thanks and figure it out on my own and do my own thing, the more successful I've been, but I've also found that that just, it's like it puts another leaf in the table for other people to say oh wait, hold up, we can reinvent the wheel because it's not actually a wheel. It's like a proprietary, very specific product that someone, that one single person might be capitalizing off of. And we can, we can duplicate different things in different ways and offer things in different ways. And at the end of the day. Everybody I was talking to a close friend of mine recently about this and she had been in the quilting industry for a while and then took a step away and she wanted to come back as a professional and she was like, I'm just so worried that what people are going to say and I said, I don't know if you realize this, but you don't need any anyone's permission. Mm hmm. Like you, there's like actually not any literal like regulation that stops someone from saying like I'm a professional. Yeah. Which is like a little bit imposter syndrome

Susan: 28:32

There's no letters after your name. But yeah, it's

Karlee: 28:34

like literally anybody can do what they want and they either, and it's almost like the capitalistic side is you can do what you want, but if you're doing it for money, it just may not work. So it's like up to you to decide. So I don't know. I think that's really liberating to be like. Anyone who wants to be here can be here. All it takes is for you to decide to pull up a chair. Cause it's not like you have to expect people to invite you into this like secret quilt business Illuminati. It's just everyone's in their own club, in their own home, in their sweats, standing at their quilting machine. Yeah. Just doing what they love so and

Susan: 29:13

I feel like maybe when you're just coming into it It might feel like that sort of secret society that you don't really have the password for But as you get in it longer and you get to know more people and make more connections, it might be go to shows, it might be, submit to magazines, it might be published patterns. But as you get familiar with it, you do find that there's all kinds of people doing all kinds of things. And that's the beauty of it. That's the richness of it, honestly.

Karlee: 29:39

Yeah. Yeah. And I think it's a double edged sword too, because I don't feel like there's any single person or entity or business or group in the industry that could be like, I'm going to end your career or I'm going to make your career. So it's that makes it way less scary to be like, the world is flat in a sense that like we're all at the same starting point and some people have worked harder than others or longer than others, but also there's not. I think sometimes the biggest thing that stops people is themselves, like out of all the barriers of being a successful in a successful entrepreneur or business owner or artist in the industry, it seems like the biggest barrier is usually like our own inner critic. And if we can connect with that first and be like, no, I'm good with me. So now anyone else who's good with me, that's a bonus to me being okay with me because that was something too that I learned, in the first few years, I was so eager to figure out what kind of validation would syndicate me, and as I chased that, I was continually disappointed and, but then when I was like, okay, I just put my nose to the grindstone. I'm going to just fill my life with passion projects. Yeah. That could be capitalized on but I need to stop chasing the green and hoping that I enjoy it instead I do the thing that I enjoy and I share it and those are the things that typically end up being the most powerful and responsive and I, I think that people have a good intuition for when your heart is in the thing that you're doing too, versus when you're like chasing the cash and, which has worked in my favor because I have tried to keep my heart in it. So I don't know. I guess that's another piece of unsolicited advice that I would give anybody. It's if your heart is there and you're good with you, but I also realized that I speak from a place of privilege because. It's very hard to focus on Batman all the time when you're grinding like Bruce Wayne, yes. So yes It's a double edged sword for sure.

Susan: 31:43

It is. I have found the same principles apply in social media It can be ever so easy to get caught up in either pleasing the people or what what's commonly known as the vanity metrics You know how big the numbers are how big the following is how many likes how many shares etc? But the truth of the matter is But whatever you do, there are some people that see it the same way and that appreciate what you're doing. And there are some people that don't, and you don't have to keep them all happy. You don't have to please all the people. Just find your people, whatever size of little pond that is, just swim in it happily. Yeah.

Karlee: 32:18

Yeah. I like to think of it as if, if you were a seasoning in the spice drawer, what would you be? Like I know for sure that I am tajin seasoning. I don't know if you've had tajin, but it's like little spicy, a little sour, but it's so delicious on sweet things like fruit, like watermelon and mango and strawberry. But it's also great with cucumbers and vinegar. So I feel like I'm tajin in the sense that like I carry tajin around in my purse. Like a little travel bottle and I can do without it. I have people, yeah. And I have people in my life that like, that's they, they're like my og like religious type of followers or supporters. And then there's other people that might be like, oh, I don't know. I guess I'll try it. It's an acquired taste and they're surprised that they like it, but they might like it or. Then there's the people that are like what is that? And I'm like, okay. So I'm not for everybody. Yeah. No spice is for everybody all the time. So I don't know. I'm an acquired taste. I think it tastes good. But I also am not surprised when I hear the dry heave towards me because I get it. I'm an acquired taste and I think it's a good thing to not be for everybody because it means that it's

Susan: 33:28

a good perspective. It's a good perspective to keep. Yep. Yeah. Yeah.

Karlee: 33:32

So what spice are you in the spice journey?

Susan: 33:35

I'm gonna have to ponder on that a little bit. I doubt that I'm the tahini, i, I might be the nutmeg, but like fresh nutmeg, not the stuff that's been in your bottle for a month of Sundays. Yeah. You have to think about that though.

Karlee: 33:48

Okay. Yeah. I would love to know

Susan: 33:49

that. So your first graffiti quilting book now is, it's the 10th anniversary. So the book that you're publishing now is, is it a third edition or is it a different

Karlee: 33:59

book? Yeah. So it will be Graffiti Quilting Third Edition. Okay. It'll, it'll probably have the same I've kept the same tagline on both of the books. So a simple guide to complex designs because I think that's very true to graffiti quilting. And it's, it's more that I want to show how much can be brought under the graffiti quilting umbrella instead of saying okay, there's graffiti quilting, but then all this other free motion. I've found that being able to show how it incorporates to this overall technique. It's like a buffet. Like I think graffiti quilting is like a free motion quilting buffet. So it's like you can taste everything and it's going to be yummy. It might be hard to stomach sometimes, but everything leads back to the buffet of free motion quilting. And some combinations work great and others don't. And that's okay too. So yeah, so I'm still like, it's, it's crazy to think that it's been 10 years and I am, I have no shortage of ideas for how graffiti quilting can apply in more. I don't know. So that's a really good problem to have. In fact, when I was starting to write the third, the third edition book last summer, I was like, okay, this is going to be done by like end of September. And then I was like, as I was getting into it, every section, and I was like, okay, it's going to be 200 pages. And then I was like, okay, I'll just add a page here, add a page here. It's fine. 210. It'll be okay. And then I was like, hold up, wait. There's this whole other section that needs to be explored and needs to be done justice to. So I'll just add this, this extra section and it'll be fine. It'll be eight sections. And then what's the page number? Yes. So it kept going. So now what it's at, and I feel good about this. So I, and then I was like, okay, it'll be done by Halloween or okay, it'll be done by the end of the year. And, but now I'm like, if I'm going to do this, it has to be done well. And as much as possible, I don't want to rush it for time. And so that's it's, it's been good that I've been exploring that. And now I'm like, okay, I feel really good about this. I'm actually like sleeping at night because. The things in my head are starting to get manifested and that's really good. So it's a 10 section book with 300 pages total. So for reference, the, the volume 2 book is 80, almost 90 pages. 86 pages. Oh my goodness. Yeah. And so Graffiti Quilting 3rd edition is going to be 300 pages. In fact, today I was trying to decide if I should do a hard cover or a soft cover because that's one thing I still can't decide. I feel like a hard cover feels appropriate for a collector's edition, 10 year anniversary. But then I also wonder if most people are like, no, I want a soft cover because then I can bend it or then I can spiral bind it.

Susan: 36:53

So that's where I was going with it. But if you want my vote. Cause I like using my quilting books. Some of them are just dog eared from flipping through. And I love to trim them and spiral bind them and then lay them flat and have them right there when I'm working. So that's my vote.

Karlee: 37:08

I was thinking that because it's a thick enough book, I could still do a hard bound and it would lay flat because it has a thick spine to lay on. And I also was thinking that because it really is going to be such an in depth textbook, I want it to last as long as possible. And so those hard cover edges would protect the edges of the pages. So I don't know. I just did a reel on Instagram doing a poll to see what people think. The hardcover costs like five bucks more to print, but if that's what people want, I'm totally happy to eat that cost. So it's like the cost doesn't make a difference to the consumer, but I want to just make sure that every little detail. It is as good as possible for as many people as possible. Awesome.

Susan: 37:50

So when is the actual release date going to be, or do you know that yet

Karlee: 37:53

for sure? Yes. So the book and the new revamped, robust online course will be in conjunction with each other. So people will only be able to get the book by taking the class because really it's like an experience. The book is awesome and the class is awesome, but I really want people to have the experience of both. And you can register for the class starting March 1st, and then the class session runs for 12 weeks, starting September 7th. You've got to Yeah, so it'll be a 12 week class with a class session every other Saturday. So six class sessions every other week because that's another thing that I really wanted to make sure of is that people have enough time to digest the material while still staying on track with a schedule. So I felt like 12 weeks was great where they had every other Saturday because I also realized that it's hard to dedicate every weekend for 12 weeks to something.

Susan: 38:48

So yeah. And a lot of us are quilting Twixt in between, right? So that two week span gives you time to. Get another course or two finished, load up a practice piece and play with it a little bit. So what, what's the format that you deliver those classes in Carly?

Karlee: 39:03

So the way that people register is on my website and then they'll be invited to a private Facebook group. And so over the 12 week course, the class, the live class sessions will take place in the Facebook group. And so they can, yeah, and I really like that method. I don't love Facebook like But I do love the community aspect that a Facebook is about. Yeah, yeah. And I want to be able to duplicate that as much as possible, like people will post their own work and others will comment on it or people will post videos of their studio and it's really nice and friendly and collaborative in that way. And so the Facebook group is where the classes will take place and then I always leave my Facebook groups open Until no one is actively working anymore, so it's not technically lifetime access But it's always I make sure my students are happy before I shut down the group But then that way I'm not managing a hundred Facebook groups right in in ten years from now or whatever, right? So because the other thing right The other thing that's so exciting about this new graffiti quilting book is that I have built in copious amounts of QR codes that lead to additional content online. Love it. I'm like, still. So I think it's the coolest idea. I don't know why every quilting book doesn't have it. I know technology is here, so let's do it. But like in, in one of the sections that's like the free motion fillers that you can use as the background. There's. The page with the design, the description next to it, and then a QR code that will take the reader to the video of the page being drawn, and then also a video of the design being quilted. So they have the text information, plus the drawing, plus the quilting. So it's like that repeated over the course of 300 pages. So it's a really, really robust, yeah, I want to give as much as possible. To the reader, I don't want them to buy a book and then be like, but I don't get that. I wish there was someone who could show me more in depth. It's Oh, just scan the QR code and go to this video and boom, there you have it.

Susan: 41:11

So for those who want to read, for those who prefer to watch whatever or reinforce by doing all of the above, it's all there for them. So good. Yeah. And we will put links by the way, I'll put links in the description below so that you can go right to Carly's website. Maybe even sign up for her newsletter so you get notification when these things become available. That would be a great idea, folks. Yeah. So anything else you want to close with before we go?

Karlee: 41:35

I don't think so. I'm just, I like it was, it's funny cause someone asked me recently so what's going on for 2024? And I said, literally the only thing I've given up on absolutely everything except for My book and class this year and flossing. I'm still gonna floss regularly. That's my other New Year's resolution. Yeah, but yeah, I just I guess if I could leave any like words of Encouragement or advice it would be that just don't give up, you know quilting. I love quilting so much I could talk about it all day. I love teaching So if you are a quilter who is a little bit nervous Come hang out with me and I promise I will, I will help you. I love, I love being able to witness the journey of quilters as they progress and grow. I love teaching and I love quilting. So to be able to do both of those together is such a huge privilege for me. And not to toot my own horn, but this is literally the only horn that I have. But I really pride myself on being a good teacher. And I, I feel like I'm good at it. I, I hope that you guys will join me. Because even if you don't want to do graffiti quilting on every single project, there really is so much information to take with you on your journey. And I think that's another great part about quilting, is you take what you want and you leave the rest. And, and you get to make those choices because You're the creator of your own, of your own life, and your own quilt, and your own story.

Susan: 43:06

Thank you so much Carly, and I'm not even going to say goodbye, I'm just going to say until next time, because we're going to do this again. I know we are. I love it. Thank you, appreciate it. Talk to you soon. Okay, bye.