Inspiration - Where to find it.



It is the weekend, and yes we set back clocks too. Don't forget or you may be late getting to that sale on Monday with those coupons!

Sew, you lost your mojo - it happens to me all the time. How do you find it again? Where do you find it again, and why does it happen. When I lose the mojo even in the middle of a project at times , I just put that project to the side and find something quick and easy to work on.

Why do we lose it though?

The number one reason we lose our mojo according to the APA (American Psychological Association), is: we become bored! YEP! B O R E D! In my undergrad years, I wrote a paper on just this topic; of course it was not dealing with quilters, at least not that I was aware of!

Let's go back a bit here. First, you have that new project and you are EXCITED (did a little dance here) as all get out to get it going and see it to completion, I mean hell the last one went so well you decided the next one will be bigger and prettier and bolder and have way more in it than that last one. It was a breeze! So yeah; I can do this. You get your pattern, your fabrics, and you get it cut and you make the first block and then the next and the next and sew on...

And sew on and sew on... They are all the same. YOU. Can't. Stop. Until you do!

Why? Repetition is the number one killer of mojo. Repetition takes the excitement out of things, when you do it over and over and over again, you can do it with your eyes closed and it's just so not fun anymore. If you are like me, you like to see things coming together after a bit, and when I sit and make the same blocks for a quilt without seeing anything but a pile of sameness piling up I get bored.

Logically of course - "lets put some together"! Let's see how it is going to work. YES!

That has to be the answer, right?

Noooooo. WROOOOOOOOOOOOOOOONG! [sing that with me]. Here is this one little thing with quilting and blocks:

THEY.

ARE.

NEVER.

THE SaMe siiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiize.

Damn it!

When you realize this as you excitedly stitch and stitch those blocks you got so bored working on. WHYYYYYYYY?

"I just wanna know WHYYYYYYY"?





It is a given; fabric stretches, seams shrink and expand.

Now your just DONE! (stupid quilt!)

The pieces go flying and the oh so beautiful, prettier, bigger and better quilt is a mess in the corner. You flip the power switch with such vigor your machine wobbles a bit. The lights in the sewing room go out, you huff your way into the kitchen for something dark, tasty and sweet wine, chocolate, or both.

Don't fret it happens.

Here are some ideas to get you back in the sewing room working and feeling better about yourself and that damn quilt! You know you said it, I do all the time, or that damn machine without the needle you tried and tried to get your auto threader to thread! Yes it happens.

Okay - Here we are. Its the next day and you say I'm just not doing it. Its ugly, its crooked, it not perfect! [Nothing is ever perfect and if you strive for that, then you have set yourself up for failure at the first. Remember, when it is complete it will be loved. ]
Do NOT expect perfection. First and foremost. It's a set up!
Do not start to put things together until you are at that step.
If you get bored, here is a tip (have another project on the side).
If you have a small stash to the side you have things to go to.
If you can see those small projects you will be haunted by them.
If you keep your things organized you will know where they are to go to them.
If you have a diary of projects look in it for ideas.

IF you do not. Make some.

Now.

Here we go - New day. New start, New project.

But how do we go about it?

Remember this - 'a quilt that is incomplete is a quilt waiting to love'.

When you get back to your area, look around. For what? Everything! Is your room organized how you like? No. Then organize - inspiration in organization is a common thing, When things are in their place you feel better, clearer more calm. So put that project mess away from last night, neatly. Look at those blocks, know your ripper is in the future. BUT NOT TODAY! Label it so you know what it is and where to find it.

Now your room is organized.

Did you find anything you liked? No, yes, maybe. If nothing inspired you or you spent all day organizing that is okay too. Your room (area) is ready for the next time. Feel good about it being ready and clean and fresh. Just a bit of organization can actually freshen the look of a room. Clutter if you like it is okay too, but can be a hindrance for creativity. That saying of "creative chaos" is not a myth, but it can be a problem. So clean up, put away, throw out or destash it. You can find many many destash groups on Facebook https://www.facebook.com/groups/destashwithclass/ just one and yes it is mine. Another of course is Fabric Destash Stephanie Calabrese's group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/702352793263828/ these groups are good for finding an ISO (in search of long lost piece you need to complete a project).

Well here we are.

Still uninspired... GAH! No. It does not work like this does it?

Sometimes yes.

What can I do? Hope, pray, swear, give up!

NO! Never give up.

Find inspiration in your surroundings, look on groups, or pages, books magazines, or just google something to look at. Remember this: a quilt can not be made in a day. A quilt top yes and entire quilt NEVER! Unless your magic beans are in a jar next to you and they work very well. Mine however are red, green, blue, brown and have little M's on them. No fairy dust on them.

Inspire me you say... Look at other work, look at something you have not tried, watch some tutorials on new projects and ideas, don't tell me you don't have a thousand ideas on things to make and will make and know you will never make but want to make, this is a God given dilemma for any quilter!

FABRIC!

Yes, fabric can inspire. Do you have a fat quarter set?

Yes!

Good. Now google fat-quarter friendly patterns - make something quick easy and fun! You have those for a reason those FQ's, they are already coordinated and ready to cut or not. You can put them together with sashing and arrange them in a way that is pleasing to you. Make a table runner, a mug rug, a something! If you do not attempt to get your own mojo back, it won't just appear out of thin air. It must be nudged back into you. It must be sparked, and breath given to it so it may resume living within you.

YOU ARE YOUR MOJO!

Why would I say "You are your mojo"? Because you are. The ideas are yours, the projects are yours, the fabrics are yours, and the people you want to make these projects for are yours! When you decide to make something it is due to wanting to give to another, to see if you can do it, or because someone asked you for one of your beautiful works. Inspiration does not only come from within, it comes from your surroundings, the people and things in your life. You see them everyday although you may not recognize them in the moment they are there.

Inspiration and mojo come and go. Project's can piss us off, and blocks get repetitive. It's the process. Quilting again is not a science, it is creation, art, and a piece of you. When you get to that point you just can not make another 4 square, 9 patch, or strip; put it aside. Clean and organize, read a bit, leave the area and give it some space. For me the more complex the block the more frustration for me, I like it simple. Don't get me wrong I love love love to look at all those intricate quilts, and eww and ahh over them. I DO NOT have the patience. I know this because I tried it and it was not for me. The simple timeless blocks appeal to me. And of course the occasional panel. I love fabric too, and I have a lot (but i sell it) www.sewnsewhome.com.

Now, you know you are not alone in this process of not getting it done all in one sitting, or one week a month even a year. I have read members post on QPI: https://www.facebook.com/groups/quiltingimperfectly/ where people have gotten out or FOUND yes found an UFO (unfinished object) and finished it years later. It happens to us all, remember come visit us at QPI page to get a bit more inspiration, from around the world or in your own back yard.

Take some time away from monotonous block building, create a quick fun easy project and let it shine for that moment, and realize YOU CAN do it. It just takes time, and Every quilt Is waiting to be loved!

Until next time. Creative with love, inspiration, friendship and hope!

References: Sally Fields, [photo] "Steele Magnolia's (the movie). Image retrieved from Bing - 2017.




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