I think we all have one -- a place where we put bits of fabric or pages from the fabric catalog or torn from quilt mags -- that place where you look and it inspires you with color or shape or .... something. For me, it's the curtains in front of me. Two wonderful blocks I made ages ago, both of them of four birds meeting in the center, wild colors. Those inspire me every time I look at them. So they stay on the curtains. And when I turn the other way, I have a quilt from a page in a non-quilty magazine that just wows me and a full color brochures from several different crane festivals. I've got a thing for cranes.
Now, what are you looking at that inspires you? Has it been there awhile? Do you need something new to look at that sends your quilt neurons firing?
Right now, I am inspired by the very first quilt I ever made. I just put it on my bed a couple of weeks ago. It is hand-pieced and hand-quilted. The blocks are scrappy with a white background. It is rather old-fashioned looking, and I love it!
I'm just waiting for it to get cool enough to start on my next hand-quilted project. The quilt is sandwiched and ready to go. I look at the one on my bed to remind that hand-quilting is worth the time. :-)
The wonderful colors of Nature, and her displays this time of year. Back in 1999 I made a grandmother's fan style WUH called Fan Tango at Dawn, using the winter sunrises of the area where I lived as an inspiration. Tall trees of all sorts piercing the cloudless skies, drought brown hills speckled with shoots of green after our rains of last week. Clouds hanging out to sea that I can view as I drive from the courthouse out to one of the psychaitric facilities.
Sometimes it is almost sensory overload as I try to capture in words in my notebook, the ideas for future works.
G> I think we all have one -- a place where we put bits of fabric or
I'd have to say the books we've accumulated, the images I've collected via google image searches, and any odd pics from festivals, shows, exhibits, etc. Sometimes browsing people's photo albums on yahoo groups or the like or any of many quilting sites. Occasionally there's a scene/shot in a movie; if we don't own the movie, I usually make notes/sketches about whatever the inspirational image is. My hard/fast rule (and I don't push it on anyone - it's just me) is that I never copy anyone's work directly; I'll borrow an idea, elements, get inspiration or idea "seeds" from others' work, and I certainly use available "components", but whatever I finally come up with has to be my own. I think it's an artist/designer thing.
Traditional patterns for patchwork. I am enjoying seeing how a rhythm appears during assembly that I would not guess was there if I was just looking at the individual patch.
Got a good one for you. After being online earlier today, I've spent the rest of the day tending to the needs of His Nibs. When I finally put him down for a nap, I took a few minutes to look at the stacks of fabrics I'd laid out over the past few days on the cutting table. I've arranged them in different ways - by color, texture, type, weight... even at random - to try to figure out some of the nitty- gritty patching of my CQ project. Then it hit me. I had an epiphany.
This is the first time this has happened to me (in this way) with regard to quilting (though it's happened in other design venues and in other ways) and it took a crazy quilt for it to happen. I was staring at/admiring an upholstery remnant I picked up over the weekend. It's a very textured western motif in reds, golds, and browns - a gorgeous warm earth-toney spectrum - that would easily work either as upholstery or accents (pillows & sich) with our family room furniture. The idea/concept for an entire CQ in this theme & color scheme smacked me in the face like a 2x4, and I've got everything I need for it right there on the table staring me in the face and daring me to proceed. The problem is, it's about as far from my intended project as I can imagine, yet it's having such an effect on me that I can't just put it on hold, it's totally distracting me from matters at hand, and the whole situation is driving me nutzo (admittedly not a great distance/leap for me right now)...
So do I somehow manage to stuff this new concept someplace for the time being and force myself to keep going with what I started out to do, or do I drop everything and pursue this flash of inspiration that's inundating all of my passion?
AARRGGHH!!
So to answer your questions:
1.) It's this single remnant of fabric I'm looking at that inspires me right now.
2.) It's only been there two days.
3.) Sometimes I (obviously) need something new, but other times I need something old, to look at that send my quilt neurons firing.
And, Doc, THIS is why so many of us have so many UFOs. There's just not enough time to finish one project before something else grabs us and drags us off in a new direction.
Leslie- with the attention span of a two year old and oodles of UFOs! & the Ever Patient Furbabies in MO.
Hi Sunny,
Got a good one for you. After being online earlier today, I've spent the rest of the day tending to the needs of His Nibs. When I finally put him down for a nap, I took a few minutes to look at the stacks of fabrics I'd laid out over the past few days on the cutting table. I've arranged them in different ways - by color, texture, type, weight... even at random - to try to figure out some of the nitty- gritty patching of my CQ project. Then it hit me. I had an epiphany.
This is the first time this has happened to me (in this way) with regard to quilting (though it's happened in other design venues and in other ways) and it took a crazy quilt for it to happen. I was staring at/admiring an upholstery remnant I picked up over the weekend. It's a very textured western motif in reds, golds, and browns - a gorgeous warm earth-toney spectrum - that would easily work either as upholstery or accents (pillows & sich) with our family room furniture. The idea/concept for an entire CQ in this theme & color scheme smacked me in the face like a 2x4, and I've got everything I need for it right there on the table staring me in the face and daring me to proceed. The problem is, it's about as far from my intended project as I can imagine, yet it's having such an effect on me that I can't just put it on hold, it's totally distracting me from matters at hand, and the whole situation is driving me nutzo (admittedly not a great distance/leap for me right now)...
So do I somehow manage to stuff this new concept someplace for the time being and force myself to keep going with what I started out to do, or do I drop everything and pursue this flash of inspiration that's inundating all of my passion?
AARRGGHH!!
So to answer your questions:
1.) It's this single remnant of fabric I'm looking at that inspires me right now.
2.) It's only been there two days.
3.) Sometimes I (obviously) need something new, but other times I need something old, to look at that send my quilt neurons firing.
Leslie, I don't know what led you to believe I ever questioned or criticized anyone for UFOs. I've said many times that I usually have a score or so projects in different stages on EQ at once, and the same has been pretty much true in most design endeavors. I also said that, apart from possible/likely blunders, it's another reason I bought enough foundation for several CQs... ;-) I wish I had the physical space to work on more than one at the same time, but we're sharing space as it is, and I don't want to find myself having to share sleeping space with the Fudgster, if you catch my drift... ;-)
right now the changing leaves and the glow of the light this time of year. Autumn is my favorite season, and i just can't get enough of it this year! i have been known to buy FQ's of any and all leaf designed fabric and leaf patterned anythings. my "wish" book holds clippings from magazines that i want to tackle with said "leaf" fabric. i'd like to have more time to finish designing an Autumn quilt. i've done a couple, but haven't gotten to that pinacle of "there" yet. i'll get "there" eventually, of course!
ROFL! Doc has got the quilt bug for sure! Don't fight it, go ahead and make a block or 2 with your new idea. You'll sleep better. And what doesn't get started never gets finished.
I also had to laugh at your description of a "crazy" quilt project, all so neatly organized! Roberta in D
Baskets. This year I finally joined the AQS, and one of their articles is "Baby Basket" by Anita Shackelford. Somehow that pattern struck me as so pretty that I just had to do it (you all saw the results earlier). Then I joined a basket BOM (
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. Previously I thought that basket blocks were nice, but nothingspurred me on to do one. Now, I am basking in baskets :-). Bev in TX
On Oct 19, 4:57=A0pm, Sunny wrote: ... portion snipped...
You're right. "Pseudo-Crazy Quilt" is probably a more apt description. The organization/manic planning isn't the project - it's me. You might say I carry "measure twice - cut once" to the nth degree... ;-)
have you started looking in second hand shops and at garage sales for real baskets. they're great for stashing stash in. then use those basket all round the house to decorate. its fun to just grab one and sit down and unload it to see what you stashed in it. then they get reloaded in a different order, new fabric on top and it changes the whole decor of the room. nothing like having your beautiful fabs on show all the time i reckon. well til they get used in another quilt of course. then you buy more and redecorate the house again. just a thot. seriously i do love baskets and they really are great for storage here and there. j.
"Bev in TX" wrote ... Baskets. This year I finally joined the AQS, and one of their articles is "Baby Basket" by Anita Shackelford. Somehow that pattern struck me as so pretty that I just had to do it (you all saw the results earlier). Then I joined a basket BOM (
formatting link
. Previously I thought that basket blocks were nice, but nothingspurred me on to do one. Now, I am basking in baskets :-). Bev in TX
On Oct 19, 4:57 pm, Sunny wrote: ... portion snipped...
cool, i went to check out that group in the UK. i see it is owned/run by our very own Elly D. i like baskets, mostly for keeping stash et al in but i also like basket blocks. i am now waiting approval to join up. the home page basket is cute and has some great possiblitys. i see they plan on having a new basket block monthly starting in sept so should be 2 by now. cant wait to see what they've come up with. hmmmm, best get my thunk'n cap on, eh. ta for the heads up on this group, Bev. j.
"Bev in TX" wrote ... Baskets. This year I finally joined the AQS, and one of their articles is "Baby Basket" by Anita Shackelford. Somehow that pattern struck me as so pretty that I just had to do it (you all saw the results earlier). Then I joined a basket BOM (
formatting link
. Previously I thought that basket blocks were nice, but nothingspurred me on to do one. Now, I am basking in baskets :-).Bev in TX
Sunny, Interesting that you would use the word neurons, because I have just learned about neurons and the firing of them in my Pysch class...unfortunately, I haven't been inspired to sew and now with me trying to keep up with learning to drive school bus routes, homework, housework and keeping up with my son, three dogs and my kitties I sometimes feel like I don't have any neurons left to fire! ha ha! And yes, usually something new does it!
I'm a basket case too. There's one just inside an outside door to my sewing room. That's where I put incoming fabric. It's always a beautiful display - and yes, me too. I often forget what might be in there and enjoy unloading it. Just now it is predominantly purple and lime. Jeanne would love it. Polly
Really? Gee, we couldn't tell! 8^D
My, you're easily amused! As long as you're not sitting in the middle of Walmart while you're doing it... ;-)
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