Tapping into your Creativity

Book to read : The Creative Act: A Way of Being

My heart for quilt making has been stitched into my life since I was about twelve years old. From sewing my own clothes through high school and college to sewing dresses for my daughters, my journey has always been with fabric. When I retired, it was a dream come true to be able to spend my days quilting. Once I had more time, I knew I wanted to bump up my game and make breathtaking quilts. Not only did I study quilt designers and how they designed quilts, but one of my rock star quilters suggested some books to help your creativity. The best book I have read is The Creative Act, A Way of Being by Rick Rubin. That first summer I retired, I read a chapter a day and reflected on how to apply his ideas to my quilting. You can find the book here. I think you will find it helpful to create beautiful art, no matter what you craft. 

Starching first!

Best fabric starch

 Time to begin my Christmas projects! I like to get an early start to beat the holiday rush and make sure my quilter has time to quilt my projects early. Faultless Spray Starch is my favorite starch and is available in a 4 pack. It goes fast—buy the larger bottle in a large pack! Fabrics today are more stable, sew together while holding their shape and press better when starched first. Spray your fabrics slowly so it is saturated, then hang to dry. It will dry overnight, then press before beginning your project. I don’t know about you but I can’t wait to get started! 

Urban Garden

Urban Garden Quilt was made using the urban garden fabric collection from FreeSpirit. I downloaded the pattern free from the FreeSpirit website, but made it larger because I wanted the quilt to be twin sized. It was donated to Kingsway Christian School Auction on Saturday, February 23, 2013. I am delighted that Donna Swartzentruber, the 2nd grade teacher at Kingsway, is the new owner. This quilt is quite special because it is the very first quilt I quilted on the longarm machine.

Urban Garden

Batik Double Sawtooth Stars Quilt

Batik Double Sawtooth Stars Quilt

As many quilters do, when I viewed the Double Sawtooth Stars Quilt in a magazine (I don't know which magazine, but will post when I find it), I knew I had to make it. However, the pattern was in just three colors, light blue, purple and dark blue. Of course, I made it my own scrappy type of quilt, deciding to use batiks in purple, aqua and green. 

 In my quilt guild, twelve of us participate in a birthday fabric exchange. At least one month before our birthday, we request a particular type of fabric. Then, on our birthday, we receive 3 fat quarters from each participating member of that fabric. During the year 2011, I requested dark and light Christmas batik fabrics in purple, aqua and green. As you can see, I received 33 beautiful batik fat quarters.

First, I planned each block using one light fabric, one medium and one dark fabric. The small star in the center of the block was made using the medium fabrics, the large star used the dark fabrics, and the background was the light batik fabrics. In all, this quilt has 49 -- 10 inch finished double sawtooth star blocks.

Next, the sashing was made using light and medium batiks. Each year, we are supposed to present our finished quilt on our birthday. Well, in 2012, I presented the top, without borders, on my birthday. It was not completed by my birthday on May 15. I actually spent the summer completing the borders.

The inner border is a red Christmas batik fabric, also used as a dark large star in several blocks, and as the binding. The large outer border, also a Christmas batik fabric, is found in the blocks as a large star. The center border used half square triangles which were the remains of the triangles trimmed from the large star point.

Not all the fabrics are Christmas batiks, but using several of them creates the effect of winter stars. The quilt is king size and is the Christmas/Winter quilt that covers my bed. It is extremely precious to me because my quilting buddies have contributed to this quilt and warms not only my cold feet here in cold NE Ohio, but my heart as well.

Afternoon Delight

After being laid off from my job in April 2009, I dug out several WIP (works in progress). Afternoon Delight was one of those. The Quilters had started a log cabin block class, so I was using my floral scraps to make a courthouse steps block. Using a pattern from Relax and Quilt by Leisure Arts, I used light, medium and dark fabrics--all floral, or course--cutting 1 1/2 inch strips. The center of the quilt uses predominately light fabrics, the outside uses medium and dark fabrics. I changed the border to dark purple squares on point. Joyce Coburn quilted it in flowers. Even though I did not use all purple fabrics, the quilt appears purple from the border squares. The outer setting triangles are dark purple fabrics however.

Completed in May 2009. 74 inches x 84 inches

Last Birthday Quilt

Tonight is the unveiling of this year's last birthday quilt. None of the quilt group has seen it, per the rules of the birthday quilt challenge. Last year, each quilter gave Carol 3 fat quarters of thirties fabrics on her birthday for a total of 27 fat quarters. During the year, we were not to talk about the pattern, block or quilting of our birthday quilt until it is revealed on the birthday this year. It is a huge secret--what suspense! For our quilt group, it truly is difficult because we share and discuss the making of all our quilting ideas. So tonight, it's a little sad to celebrate a quilter's birthday and end our first birthday quilt challenge.

Last year, I requested Amish colored fabric, but tone-on-tone, not solid colors. For my birthday quilt, I made "Birthday Baskets", a wall hanging sized quilt, using each of the 27 different fabrics I received. Look closely--you'll notice a slight variation of colors in the baskets. I chose a black background, also an Amish quilt characteristic. The quilting is done with a variegated thread--not easily done on black fabric! One of the rules is that your quilt has to be completed by your birthday (ok, some of us didn't quite get that) but sometimes life gets in the way of quilting. My quilt was only the second to be revealed this year, even though I have a May birthday.

Tonight's meeting is full of excitement and suspense as we look forward to ending our first quilt group challenge. I think it was quite successful and fun. FYI, this year's quilt birthday challenge is to "pay if forward" and donate a quilt of your own to a charity! Also, not only do you bring your quilt on your birthday, but you get to provide the goodie!

Christmas Quilting

The leaves are falling, but it's time to start my Christmas sewing. I pulled some fabric that I purchased previously, used a charm pack (also purchased previously), and added some fabric that was on sale on an on-line store. Popped a Christmas CD into the player and got started! I'm using the new colors of Christmas, lime green, aqua, and red, which are really quite cute. It's a very different look, but I started decorating my Christmas tree with these color, so I can use the table runner next to the tree.

Next, I'm thinking about a Christmas quilt for my king size bed, but haven't found a pattern yet. Also, several years ago, I purchased a fabric with a Santa face from the '60's with a black background. I'd like to fussy cut the Santa into about a 6 inch square, but don't have a pattern in mind for that either. If you have any ideas, let me know!