Hey, guess what? My blog is a day early!
And there’s a good reason for this. If you’ve followed my blog for a while now, you are aware that I normally publish on Thursday, and at the very latest, on Friday. But this week is a little pushed for time, as I’m in a workshop tomorrow all day and then there’s guild meeting tomorrow night. So tonight it is…
I’ve said all of that to say this: Inspiration can come from the most unlikely places. I know we’ve been discussing color (and we will pick that up again soon), but when we were just starting this series, I urged you to take a walk. Observe the color combinations that Mother Nature puts together and don’t be afraid to copy them.
We moved from there to focus fabrics, where I explained that it’s always important to let fabric “speak to you.”
Now for this: Look for inspiration all around you. I am lucky enough to live and work in High Point, North Carolina, the Furniture Capital of the World. I know, I know…Vegas is billing itself as that now, but we had the title FIRST. And while other High Point residents may bemoan that twice-a-year market as a time of too much traffic and too few restaurants, I love it. Know why?
All. The. Colors.
Main Street is awash with the newest colors and it’s easy to get inspired to either redecorate your house or make a new quilt every day! Understand that color is a very individual thing and what I may completely all head-over-heels for you may very well turn around and run from. It’s subjective. It’s emotionally and mentally linked. But try this little trick the next time you do a double-take at something and ask yourself, “Was it the color that made me stop and take a second look?” If that was the reason, or even part of the reason, you may want to snap a picture with your cell phone and file it away. Then the next time you’re planning a quilt, pull it out and take a look at it. That may just be your next focus fabric color.
This week, my DH came home with a new rug for his den. The colors were tan and blue. The rug immediately caught my eye because it looked old. I took a second look when I realized that those colors would look beautiful in a quilt. A few shots with my cell phone and now I have a pictorial file of inspiration.
Then there was also this:
This is a fabric that I am using for my Farmer’s Wife Quilt. I’m making that one out of Fig Tree Fabrics and this is a great print. However, for whatever reason, this week that fabric reached out and tapped me on the shoulder and said, “Hey! I’d make a great focus fabric!” I happened to agree and purchased the last four yards on the bolt at Dragonfly. Since the pattern was large-ish, when I snapped the picture, I placed a penny beside it to give me a size reference. This will come in handy when I start purchasing additional fabrics to go with it.
Finally, remember this focus fabric that I said spoke to me from all the way across the room?
This is the quilt top I made with it:
It has not been quilted yet, but you can see the how the other material pulls out the colors of the focus fabric.
There will not be a blog next week as I will be attending the High Point Quilt Guild’s Annual “Drop Everything and Just Quilt!” Retreat. Much fun will be hand, many calories will be consumed, a lot of stitching will be done, and loads of laughter will prevail.
Until the week after….
Love and Stitches,
Sherri and Sam
