Saturday, February 20, 2010

Identity Crisis Part II

Thank you all so much for your suggestions and thoughts about what my website should be called. You've definitely helped me rule out some options and come up with some fun ideas.

I really had to smile at the thought of Cat in the Lap. I have photos that were taken a few days ago that are so apropos.

Why am I having such a hard time hand-quilting Slither Eek Boo? (I have a needle clenched between my lips as I try to get thread snipped, that's the reason for the funny face)


Could it be the cat in the lap?



There's a Pokey trying to keep warm:


Little cutie pie stinker.


Anyway, back to the name game. I'm not sure about Cat in the Lap Quilting because when you do a Google search on "Cat in the Lap" it comes up with a lot of results already. Not to mention, it makes me think "lap quilts."

I love the alliteration of WonkyWords. But seems like I need to get "quilts" in there too. WonkyWordQuilting??? It would be a hoot to have WonkyTown just because it could be a subdivision in Quiltville. That aside, I do more than just houses... WonkyLetters? WonkyLetterQuilts?

There there's Pokey Quilting which I had not even thought of. To me, "pokey" just means slow, dawdling, stopping to smell the roses. It's not a negative word to me and it is close to "lazy" only not as negative, in my mind.

Free Spirit is out - that's the name of a fabric company. "Freestyle Quilting" is already taken, as is "Casual Quilter." Have to keep far away from anything "Freedom" - that's way too close to the Underground Railway thing.

I still like Free-Piecing to a certain extent. I don't mind do much if people searching for free stuff stumble across me. They might mind, but that would be more hits. hee hee hee. FreePiecedQuilting???? The Free-Piecer sounds like a superhero. Dun ta da. Wheeee!

I searched on "playful quilts" and ugh, it's all kid stuff.

I've been blogging for almost 5 years now under the name Lazy Gal Quilting. So yes, my blog does come up under that search. But it IS rather close to Lazy Girl. That was one reason for moving away from that. But yes, I DO like it. I am lazy, you guys just have no idea because you haven't been in my house.

There is a part of me that would like to have a adjective in the title that can also be applied to my style. For instance, "Lazy Letters" - but I've already noted the objections to that phrase. Wonky Letters, Free-Pieced Letters, Pokey Letters, those all work or at least the first two do.

Too Many Choices. Please, continue this conversation with me. I'm enjoying it. Plus I've put a poll over in my sidebar. Pick your favorite choice.

Someone asked awhile back why I was setting up a website, rather than just doing everything on a blog. Well, I need to be able to have a list of classes that I'm available to teach, a calendar, a place for my tutorials, and a shopping cart. Not that I'll be needing that last one until much later this year.

This is all part of my shifting from hobbyist to professional. eeeeek. I made business cards this morning. Can't believe how much work those silly things were.

My husband is out of town - again - so no more photos of me for awhile. whew. I've got to get back to my Olympics now. take care!

But wait - I'm editing this post to add another thought. I hate the rules, I hate using a ruler to actually measure (but as a straight edge for the rotary cutter it works great) - UnrulyQulting????

48 comments:

Kath said...

That little cat is the cutest thing I have ever seen!

Irene said...

What about 2 Many Choiszest?
Its funny spelling, it's too many, it's 2 ways round, it's 2 choises, and its lazy because you didn't mind the spelling....and honoring the zest with which you piece your words ;^}
Irene (like your letters very much!)

♥Duff said...

Nothing better than a pun! Unruly is wild and disobedient--perfect!
I love UnrulyQuilting! Can you add it to the voting widget to allow for feedback?

Anonymous said...

LazyGalQuilting.com is already taken although there isn't a website there. Is it you? If not, you may have to scratch that idea. You probably don't want a .net or something else -- it's too easy for people to type in the .com and not end up on your site.

What about CatintheLapQuilter instead of Quilts? Do you know that if you do a search for Cat in the Lap Quilts, you already come up in the top ten? Yup, Google has already got this post from your blog indexed. Like I mentioned before, don't underestimate content, URL names or a well worded slogan even if your website name isn't descriptive of your "style" of quilting.

~Erin

ilovebabyquilts said...

Unruly is cute. What about Freewheelin'? It makes me think of an early Bob Dylan album. What about the Spanish word Libre? Tonya Libre, like a Cuba Libre drink?

Mandy said...

Pokey Piecing!

Anonymous said...

Hey there , Im 49 and tommorrow is my birthday. I am having troublr embracing it....WHAT IF YOUR WEBSITE WAS CALLED The Liberated Quilter !! in honor of what all of us this age are feeling we want and not want , which is an AGE stigma....:)
pininapatchwork

jude said...

i'm thinking. great pics!

Nancy Anne said...

Just MHO - everyone out there (at least everyone that matters ;o) ) knows you as Lazy Gal. I say stay with what got you this far. However you name it, I wish you much success with your move to the dark...er...professional side!

laura said...

I'm known as lots of names, based on how we met... Matt's Mom, Laura, Jim's wife, hey you in the soundbooth. Lots of people know you from Lazy Gal, but I first "met" you from an article you did on "wonky piecing", probably explains my affinity for Wonky anything. Must be my lack of things to do, I had a whole series of books for you to do with wonky in the title :) better start laundry

laura said...

Oh, and I forgot the most important thing- Pokey is the cutest cat! Right up there with Commi and Izzy.

Unknown said...

I voted ..none of the above in the choices because I really think "letters" needs to be in your name!!
Have you thought of using the name of your book?? I love Liberated Letters, or Love Letters, For Letter Words, Cover letters, Quilt Expressions, Quilt Sayings, Quilt Phrases, Wordy Quilts, Cursive Quilts.
Just my 2 cents worth!!

Loris said...

These photos just keeping getting better! Pokey is too funny :-)

WonkyWordQuilting rings true. I would definitely still remember it was you!

sophie said...

I have seen and heard you referred to so often as "Lazy Gal Tonya," that I think you might be doing a disservice to yourself by abandoning it. And while you're well-known for your liberated letters now, do you expect that is all you're known for or will be known for in the future? Right now, "unruly" is ahead in your poll, but I'm not sure I'd choose to be associated with a negative word (no matter how clever).

All that said, my boring suggestion is that you use your name ... because that is professional–I assume your upcoming book is a part of this decision to establish a web site–and unlikely to change as time goes by. You can always establish your personality by putting something clever in the title bar and the header for your site ... and change it if you decide that like, "lazy Gal Tonya," you've outgrown it, without all the work of changing your URL.

dutchcomfort said...

Great discussion Tonya! And great pictures of you and Pokey!

Letters are so much a part of your work... how about CharacterQuilts or CharacterQuilting!

I love PokeyLetterQuilts, but don’t exactly know the meaning of the word Pokey.

I often have discussions with clients about corporate identity. It’s important to choose a name that fits your work and business ad one you feel comfortable with.

Anonymous said...

what about "wonkygalquilts"
except that I LOVE the letters, but you are more than letters...unruley sounds hard to manage....pokey is the sweetest cat, but sounds slow and might take forever....
this is fun watching/reading your thought processes on this.
Julie

Darling Millie said...

You know, you can register more than one domain, after all, they are pretty cheap. So you can register lazygal or some variation, and then simply direct it to your number one choice. Also, shorter URL names are harder to get. Don't be afraid to make it longer. Most of the time users will get directed there from one link or another so it less important what the actual URL is. I'm not a fan of "Unruly Quilting" as it doesn't describe what you do, imho.

Anonymous said...

I always wanted to start a blog named Rogue Sewing.

Unknown said...

You can't pick "Pokey (anything)" for your website name, because there's Pokeytown Kim, for one, and Pokey Bolton, for another. I suggest you wait until you have a firm title for your book, and then name your website a close variation of that so that readers of your book can find your website easily.

sewprimitive karen said...

Unruly Quilting is fabulous!

Monet said...

I like the name Free Piecing myself...and thanks for the sweet comment about my wonky star quilt. I really hope you're right :)

Kathy said...

Your cat is just adorable!

Kristin Shields said...

There are a lot of good suggestions here. I was having trouble with coming up with any sort of meaningful addition, but after a bit of thought I've noticed that when amateur quilters "grow up" they usually move to having their name as their website. I don't think your name is hard to remember or to spell. When your book comes out the plan is to have your name be a household word! I do like the idea of using your full name in the url and then having whatever sort of "fun" name be the title of your website. I wish I'd known the difference between a url and a blog title when I started my blog. I thought they had to be one and the same. Whatever you choose I wish you wonderful luck in the future. It's a big step! By the way, if you do pick a fun name I like a combination of wonky, words, letters, or Lazy Gal. I don't like Pokey because of the confusion with Pokey Bolton. I also wouldn't pick something hard to remember how to spell. Enough said!

Anonymous said...

I vote for
"Quilting with Pokey"
When I saw your picture with Pokey asking for suggestions, that is what I came up with :):)

Ruth in Laredo, TX

MARCIE said...

I love Unruly Quilting! To me it sounds perfect for you. Good luck with it all!

Jan said...

I've been following your blog through Planet Textile Threads for over a year now. I lost it for awhile when I lost my computer and couldn't remember your name. PTT seemed to not work for awhile there. suddenly one day your name came to me and I found you again. Lazy Gal Quilter. I like it. What will your book title be? do you know yet? I don's associate you with only wonky letters, but wonky, yes. Good Luck!!

Unknown said...

I think you are one "L" short. Wonkyworldquilts would encompass all the aspects of your fantastic art.

Lynda said...

I voted for Unruly Quilting -seems to encompass everything which is fun, and 'not in the rules' of free piecing.

Anonymous said...

how about Wonky Pokey Lazy and Unruly.........LOL
encompasses lots of facets.

Marit said...

I agree with Sophie, I think of you as Lazy Gal Tonya. This name would look good as pieced letters for your logo...

; )

Those pictures of you and Pokey are so cute. And I can totally relate!

jovaliquilts said...

Unruly Quilting is cute -- easy to remember (that's important!) and different. Lazy Gal Tonya gets some points just because it's already familiar, but I never thought the term Lazy Gal suited you.

Victoria Findlay Wolfe said...

your name will probably be best.... There are many people with hard to spell names but it isn't hard to find you googling Tonya and quilts... Wala! There you are!
Happy choosing!
When I originally set up bumble beans , my lawyer advised to select three names... My first two choice were denied being to similar to others names already in use, so to avoid possible lawsuits, it was advised to keep thinking...
Although my name was set when I was making kids clothes, I'm very attatched to my silly name... :-)

you'll find the right name that suits you.... You'll get the strong gut feeling!

Kim said...

LGTFLQ
Lazy Gal Tonya's freestyle letter quilts.
Okay we need to buy a vowel for that acronym.
Don't want to lose Lazy Gal do you?
Everyone thinks of you when they hear those words!

Happy sewing

Jennifer D said...

My wheels have been turning since I read your last post. I agree that you can't use "letters" because you do so much more than just letters or words. I like the word Wonky but I can't make it work...yet. I just keep coming back to the word liberated, cause that is how you make me feel when I quilt "Tonya Style"! Hey I like that,Quilting Tonya Style. I also like Cat in the lap. Pokey looks soooo cute in those photos. I am gonna go think about this some more. The perfect name is out there.

Tonya's Liberated Quilting Cafe...
hmmm...

julieQ said...

Love the unruly idea...sounds wonderful! "Running amok" qulting? Your Pokey is beautiful.

Judy in Michigan said...

I like UnrulyQuilting but what about putting an "e" in there...
UnruleyQuilting as in against the rules. Of course, if someone misspells it, they may not find you. I also like "Wonkyworldquilting". Then there's "Tonyaswonkyworld". Such a dilemma. Good luck.

Anonymous said...

I've been reading all the comments and your latest posting on this, and I think you have established a huge following with Lazy Gal Quilting - I'd hate to see you change it - the only other change would be to just use your name - your name is well known in the quilting - blogging world!

Good Luck!

Teresa Rawson said...

That Pokey is some kind of adorable!! Have they taken your picture for the inside cover of your book yet?? You should pose with Pokey...people will pay for that kind of adorable...even before they open your wonderful book!

You are both very photogenic!

In stitches,
Teresa :o)

Lynley said...

It's probably completely irrelevant - but pokies in Australia are poker machines, which includes any form of slot machine or electronic gambling machine. Anything with the word Pokey in it just reminds me of the song "Blow up the Pokies" by The Whitlams. Which is a great song btw, but probably not the happiest association.

I'm not sure how worried you are about your Australian fan base though :) I'd find you wherever.

LynnDel said...

When I originally saw the name of your blog, Lazy Gal Quilting, I thought, there's a girl after my own heart. I think it's a particularly effective name if you are sharing techniques and selling patterns, because so many want to know the most efficient ("lazy") ways to accomplish things. If you are going to be selling your quilts, however, you might want to have a different idea for the buyer, as in, "I spent hundreds of hours creating this masterpiece." You could have that part of your identity be one of the suggested names, with a subtitle, "by LG Quilting." Just a thought.

Anonymous said...

Free spirit quilting

Christina said...

I really like "unruly" it's brilliant and I wish I had thought of it! I would advise you to keep cats out of your name because they evoke an idea of quilting that is Far different from your work. If I saw a link to a website that had both the word "cat" and "quilt" in it I would probably not visit it!

Kristin Shields said...

I'm not sure if this matters, but I was just on Amazon and noticed a new book coming out called Rule-Breaking Quilts. So you wouldn't want to be confused with that author.

Clare said...

You look really well. Have you been exercising?

Slither Eek Boo looks huge. I bet it's keeping Pokey warm.

I've voted for LazyGal cos I do know how lazy you are LOL!

comicbooklady said...

I don't really like unrulyquilter, to me there is a negative connotation....I came up with Say it in Pieces...Say brings up the words, but not exclusively as most quilts have meaning and stories to them anyway, and pieces is related to Piecing and pieces still has a connotation of disarray and unruliness without the negative connotation. And there is positive action in the the title, it has a rallying call to action, makes you want to do something, it also implies instruction.

Lisa Peter said...

Hi there-I saw your post on Twitter about a domain name for your blog.

I am working on starting up my own blog and found out the Domain Name is so important for generating traffic. I decided to go with a recommendation from a business associate. She uses The Niche Blogger course. Amy Bass is a terrific trainer and her beginning lessons include domain names for blogs because it is such an important topic.

Some of what I have learned is you don't want to use your name. You want to use a phrase or words that people who like quilting would "google". That is the best way to build traffic to your blog.

If you're interested in learning more about Amy's training program click here for a FREE 3-day trial.

http://www.thenicheblogger.com/amember/go.php?r=3543&i=l1

I hope this helps you. It has been one of the best business decisions I have made. I thought I would share it with you.

Good luck! Lisa

Bonnie said...

Absolutely love Unruly Quilter. I think it covers you quilts and your attitude towards quilting and can be construed as your was of life. Bonnie B

Pat said...

Your quilting is beautiful. Your cats are so lovable. What cuties. I enjoy your blog a lot.