Interview with Geta Grama - September 2009
by Penny McMorris
Q: Thanks for talking with us. I first remember seeing one of your quilts, "Dancing Feathers," last fall in Houston. Someone came to our Quilt Festival booth raving about your beautiful quilt, and I believe your quilt description mentioned EQ5 or EQ6. Do I have the right quilt in mind?
I thank you for your kindness and for the opportunity you offer me to talk about my work.
I had three quilts in Houston last year but "Dancing Feathers" was not among them. I think you are talking about "Passion".
Read more about the "Passion" quilt on my blog.
Q: You've written that "Dancing Feathers" was your favorite of all the quilts you had made. We blogged about your quilt last summer. Tell us more about it how you came to design it.
I think for many people their latest quilt is the favorite one. "Dancing Feathers " is the latest large quilt I have made. I am amazed by how much experience I have gained working from one project to another. All this experience can be seen in this quilt.
All my designs started with only one little shape and in this case, with a feather.
The only thing I had in my mind was that I wanted a quilt with feathers.
Using that little shape, I made tons of motifs, then combined them using the WreathMaker tool from EQ software.
I think I made hundreds of versions until I was happy with the design. The good thing is that the WreathMaker tool makes things easy, so it was easy to redraw a design or make adjustments or start again from scratch.
Q: You call this style of quilting Shadow Trapunto. Is this your own name for it, or was it inspired by another quilt in this style?
Shadow trapunto is a modern variation of trapunto. I did not invent the name of this style of quilting.
A few years ago I saw Linda Taylor in a show on QNNtv making a little wall hanging using shadow trapunto. At that time I knew about trapunto but then I saw what shadow trapunto is for the very first time.
Q: Your blog had a wonderful post showing your trapunto technique. Can you briefly tell us how you get ideas for a quilt such as this?
My first love was trapunto, I made a few small wall hangings, but it was difficult for me to buy the right batting from abroad. And I did not like to trim away thick batting!
Linda Taylor used cotton batiste for making that quilt in the show. I was not content with the transparency of the batiste I found. I wanted a more sheer fabric so the beauty of the background fabric was not altered. And I liked the idea of batting -- this layer of a quilt that is never visible -- to be the star. This is how I got to use organza.
I tried different fabrics and different types of batting until I found the best combination and I was happy with the result.
But finding the right fabrics and improving the technique were only a part of my shadow trapunto adventure.
The best thing that occurred to me was the possibility to combine my love for shadow trapunto with the designs I make with EQ.
If I did not have EQ, I would probably not have made so many quilts using this technique.
I love not only the designs that I can make in EQ but I am so happy with the way I can print them on paper and I can use them in my quilts. I hate tracing the pattern onto fabrics so I am so glad that I can use the patterns on paper for stitching my designs.
Q: I understand you now have an e-book on your Shadow Trapunto technique. Tell us about your book, and why you created it. Was it because so many people were asking you about the technique?
I love many quilting techniques, but shadow trapunto is my favorite. I wrote this book first of all because I am passionate about this wonderful technique. It brings me so much fun and I want other quilters have fun as well.
But it is true that I got a lot of questions about the technique and many people were anxious to learn about it.
The e-book explains the technique in detail using a lot of pictures. I strived to do my best so that the quilters eager to try it will enjoy the work, have fun and love it as much as I love it.
There are six designs available to experiment with using this technique. These designs are easy enough for beginners and quick and fun for advanced quilters.
And because I made them using EQ software, I though that EQ users will be happy to have the EQ file with these designs. Therefore the e-book includes this file as a bonus. The EQ users can enjoy all the benefits that come with it: printing the designs in the size they want or using the existing motifs to make other designs.
Q: Am I right that while your book describes how you sew trapunto it does not describe designing them with EQ6?
Yes, you are right, the book explains only how to make shadow trapunto.
Q: Can you talk about how you started quilting, since quilting is not widely popular yet in Romania? (In fact, if you google "Quilting in Romania" your name appears first in the list!)
In my country, the word "quilt" is completely unknown for most people. 8 years ago I discovered the world of quilting on the Internet, absolutely by chance. It was love at first sight. The colors and shapes from quilts revealed to me a world that I never imagined could exist, especially when I realized that all the artwork was made using fabrics.
Completely seduced by the quilting world, I abandoned my occupation (I am an engineer) and all other passions and I dedicated myself to quilting.
I encountered many obstacles since in my country, at that time, I was not able to find anything related to quilting: books, fabrics or notions. I learnt from other quilters and I had to use what they used for their quilts so I had to buy everything from the USA, even threads and needles.
But the biggest impediment was that I did not have a friend (in my country or abroad) to give me even a little advice.
I remember how hard it was to decipher my first quilting book. I was so confused about all the terms with "B": binding, backing, batting, basting! It's hard to learn even from books if you have never seen a quilt in your life.
During the first two years I made quilts but I didn't know for sure whether they were real quilts or not. Then I had the chance to see a few quilts made by other persons and I calmed down: I was making quilts, too.
Since then, a lot of things have changed for me. I learnt so much about quilting (again -- all by myself). And I have made a few quilting friends (even in Romania) and I made a lot of quilts.
Q: You recently blogged about past quilts you'd made. It's been quite a journey for you, from then, to now, hasn't it? How important has the Internet been to you in learning how to design and quilts?
It was a journey, indeed. I was so desperate to make things right! I was looking at the pictures from books with a magnifying glass, just to be sure I understood it correctly! Maybe the fact that I did not have any teacher made my progress even better. I had to do things as best I could. And I learnt tremendously from my mistakes.
The Internet changed my life. Not only because it is the reason for my quilting journey, but because it gave me the chance to share my love for quilting with quilters from all over the world. Without it, I would have been isolated in my country. Without it, no doubt, I would have not made the progress I have made.
Q: How and when did you first start using EQ?
I bought EQ5 in my first years of quilting. I learnt that there is software for quilting and I searched what other people said regarding this topic. Since I found out that many people love EQ, I bought it immediately.
In the first years I used it especially for making patchwork quilts. And I made a "Block of the Month" series for beginner quilters in Romania and found it very helpful for explaining how to cut the pieces for a block.
Only recently I have played more with WreathMaker tool and discovered the wonderful designs I can make using it.
Q: Several people have commented on your blog that they have EQ6 but have no idea how to design wreaths as you've done. I'm guessing they have not tried using EQ6's WreathMaker tool. You're an expert with the WreathMaker and have a little tutorial on your website. How would you encourage other EQ6 owners who have not tried using the WreathMaker tool?
The WreathMaker tool is like a wizard. You only need to draw a few shapes and it will do the hard work for you! You just have to play a little bit with it and soon you will discover its power. I hope that the tutorial above will make things easier for new users of Wreathmaker.
And I will continue this tutorial with another one in which I will explain how to draw more complex designs.
I found this tool so useful because the designs can be used not only for trapunto, but for appliqués, wholecloth, stained glass or stenciling as well. And you can print the designs in any size you want, so there is no need to go to a copy shop to get the size you need.
Q: I like your idea of trying Shadow Trapunto for a fabric postcard. Tell us about yours.
I liked the idea to make a quick and easy piece using shadow trapunto so that is why I started to make postcards. They are wonderful gifts. Many of the floral motifs I drew from my own pictures.
I think any quilter can make such a postcard in 1-2 hours.
Q: Our July newsletter featured an easy quilt you designed. We wrote:
GETA GRAMA'S QUICK & EASY QUILT
A finished quilt in 4 days? Geta shows you a great little design, so easy you can create it in EQ6 just like she did. You'd draw the block in EasyDraw, then color, set the blocks, and rotate some to get the effect you like. Easy!
Did you get any feedback from EQ users who tried your idea? If not, would you like to encourage people to give feedback whenever they visit a site and like something someone offers?
Yes, I received a few messages from quilters who said they used or they will use this idea in their projects. It is true we all live in a big hurry, but it is always nice when someone takes the time to give you feedback. The world is filled with generous people ready to share their knowledge with others. We all can learn from their experience. If we are interested in what they do they will be encouraged to do this again and again. But they can't know this unless we tell them.
Q: Last year you had quilts exhibited in the AQS show in Nashville, and the IQA show in Houston. What's your biggest quilting ambition for the future?
To make a 80"x80" shadow trapunto quilt. The organza I use for my quilts is only 60" wide, but I will have to find a way to make a larger wholecloth quilt. I don't know when I will find the time to make such a project, but this is my dream.
Q: When you need inspiration, where do you find it?
In the colors and fabrics around me. And I regularly browse the Internet where I see wonderful things made by other crafters that inspire me.
Q: What's next for you? What project is on your mind for the future?
I want to write a book about shadow trapunto (with a publisher). I want to make this technique known to as many quilters as possible. And I can't do this all by myself.
That is why I want to thank you for all the chances you gave me in the last year to make my work known. And for the best quilting software ever! I didn't even try another one, I don't need that.
I am truly sure that without EQ WreathMaker tool I would not have found my biggest love in quilting: shadow trapunto! And EQ makes my shadow trapunto technique easier.
I want to say one more thing. If I would have not been able to make quilts I would have probably played all day long with WreathMaker tool.
Thanks for talking to us Geta, and for the new free designs you've just posted on your blog here:
http://cadouri-din-inima.blogspot.com/2009/08/free-quilting-designs.html
We'll be watching your blog for more inspiration ourselves!
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