Geared for Guys Book Blog Tour!
admin May 15th, 2012
I was pretty excited that Emily asked me to be on the blog tour for her first book, Geared for Guys.
But it didn’t hit me how busy I would be this week with Quilt Market Prep!! So I don’t have a lot of pictures, but I did get a great little interview with Emily for you. Warning, Emily does not have any qualms about changing the questions by answering with something completely different! I like her already just because of that!
So tell us a little bit about how you named your company. You don’t seem Old or Crazy.
I hope no one is getting tired of hear this story, it’s probably the most often asked question I get. The way the story goes is about 8 or 9 years ago when I was getting serious about quilting I decided in a day that I needed my own quilting/craft room. So I moved my boys into a room together and set up space in the empty room. When my husband came home from work that day he was a bit shocked at all I had done. He came and stood at the doorway and I didn’t even get up from my machine. I look at him, smiled and waved. He just shook his head and asked “Are you going to become one of those crazy old ladies that sits around and sew all the time?” I just laughed. Then about 4 years ago I decided to start marketing my quilting patterns and felt Crazy Old Ladies would be a perfect name. Although I’m sure in time it will apply to me, it’s really a stereotypical reference to quilters in general.
Is Geared for Guys your first book and who published it? did you publish this yourself?
Geared for Guys is my first book. I thought long and hard about the publication process and even talked to a couple of wonderful companies. In the end I decided to self-publish. The main reason was time. I’ve had the concept of Geared for Guys on my mind for a while and I was so anxious to get going on it. I was worried that if I was hung up in the editing process for several months someone else might beat me to it.
Your first two lines for Michael Miller are Going Coastal and Hall of Fame....both are really guy oriented. What is your next line going to be? any chance it will be “girly”? and when is it coming out?
Well I’m releasing another collection at Quilt Market this week. It’s called Shore Thing and has all the beachy elements I didn’t fit into Going Coastal. I LOVE it! I think it’s a bit more “girly” with everybody’s favorite pink birds (flamingos!) but still has a masculine edge too. When I started designing fabric I never thought “Oh, I’ll design fabric for guys” it’s just kind of evolved into that. I’ve got a few ideas for my next collection(s) that will be a nice marriage of masculine and feminine prints, patterns, and colors.
How did you approach getting on with Michael Miller Fabrics? When did you think, “oh I should design fabric myself”?
I put my big girl pants on and just went for it. I started designing Going Coastal when I was in a week long isolation following radiation from thyroid cancer. Once I had a collection I showed it to a few quilter friends who encouraged me to “Go for it!” I put together a little portfolio and went to market. I walked into the Michael Miller booth asked if I could show someone my ideas and had a very nerve wracking meeting with Kathy Miller. Obviously it ended well and I’m still pinching myself.
What was your favorite color when you were little? I think everyone goes through color phases but my most consistent one has been green (all shades).
What is your favorite color now? Still green. 
And the big one, what is next year’s Color of the Year going to be? Oh gosh, um, I’m always way off on this. But I’m hoping for green.
Do you remember when you first realized that you had an artistic bent? Tell us about it. I may not have cognitively realized it but as a small child I was always caught drawing on the walls. I would draw or doodle on anything I could get my hands on. My Mom would come into my room and clear out stacks and stacks of paper. When I started college I announced to my parents that I wanted to be a History teacher. They told me that they saw me doing “something more creative”. Of course, at the time I took that as my parents not supporting me but obviously at 19 years old my parents knew me better than I knew myself. I think I was always meant to do something with my creative talent, it’s just taken me until now to realize it.
What has been the oddest place you found inspiration for a fabric or quilt design? Let’s see, I don’t know if I’d call it odd, but clothing has given me lots of inspiration. I recently made a quilt based on a pair of men’s board shorts I’d seen at the mall. I also made a quilt inspired by a shirt I saw online. More oddly though, if you were to look through the pictures on my phone you’d see lots of hotel lobby-ish carpet pictures. Hey, look down once in a while- you might see something cool.
Will you write another book? How soon?
Oh yes! I already have an outline for Geared for Guys 2. I have several patterns planned and can’t decide if I should just dive in and get to work or wait and give it time because my tastes might evolve. Right now in the mayhem of market prep I’m leaning towards taking a little rest.
What is your biggest pet peeve? When someone tells me I can’t do something. Yes, I’m that kind of person. I just want to go out and prove them wrong.
What is the worse movie you have ever seen? Did you walk out? If not, why did you stay? Meet the Parents. Really!? There is no redemption for Ben Stiller’s character- ever. I can’t remember if I saw it in the theatre or not, but I did sit uncomfortably through the whole entire thing. And to think, I could’ve been quilting!
Strawberry-Banana, Kiwi-Lime, or Orange-Mango? Why isn’t Dr. Pepper on the list?
Ryan Gosling, Jason Bateman, or Will Smith? Ryan or Will? Ryan or Will? Ryan or Will? I can’t decide. But it’s a really close tie between those two.
Mad Men or Downton Abbey? I haven’t seen either. I know, I can hear you all gasping. There are only 2 shows I watch regularly Smash and Glee. And no, I don’t sing.
Cats, Dogs, or Fish? ELEPHANTS I love elephants, always have. If anyone has a pigmy elephant out there that will stay baby sized- I want it.
So that’s a little bit about Emily, the author of this great book with quilts for guys. You can hear a little more about my “thoughts” on the book on Friday the 18th when Generation Q gets their day to be on Emily’s Book Blog Tour. And you can win a copy of Geared for Guys by leaving a comment here about something you enjoyed about Emily’s interview and/or about what kind of prizes you want me to look for at Market for you. I won’t be drawing for a winner until I get back from Market, and I will be trying to approve comments from Market, but my internet time will be spotty, so don’t panic if you don’t see your comment show up right away. It’s in there, waiting to be approved….keeps out the riffraff you know.
and for another chance to win the book…go to Konda’s place tomorrow…she’ll be having a giveaway there as well!!
Best of luck!
Generation Q
