Categories
Uncategorized

Finding Inspiration Everywhere

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.

mother-nature

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:

SONY DSC
SONY DSC

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.

SONY DSC
SONY DSC

Finally, remember this focus fabric that I said spoke to me from all the way across the room?

SONY DSC
SONY DSC

This is the quilt top I made with it:

SONY DSC
SONY DSC

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

sam-3

Leave a Reply

%d bloggers like this: