A Blog Hop with a Difference

There’s a blog hop happening that is a little different to the ones I’ve seen before.  This one is designed to be ongoing with more bloggers tagged to then share about themselves and their creative processes.

I have been tagged by the wonderful Angie from Gnomeangel to tell a little about my creativity and show some great pictures.     Here goes…

WHAT AM I WORKING ON RIGHT NOW?

These next few weeks are going to be pretty much full of quilting and then some paperwork (ugh!) to prepare for the biennial Australian Machine Quilting Association Inc. Quilt Show.  This is being held in Adelaide at the Convention Centre alongside the Australian Machine Quilting Festival.

I am also working on some mug rugs for a swap I am involved in.  The quilting has taken over and I am now running behind on these.

HOW LONG DOES IT TAKE TO CREATE A PROJECT?

As with anything, it really depends on how much you want to do it, or how many things are happening to occupy your time.  I have a great idea for a red and white quilt which I have yet to finish cutting all the pieces out for.  The fabric I was given for a significant ‘0’ birthday almost 3 years ago.  Not so fast on this one.

However give me a deadline and I’m a better worker.  I offered to make the Raffle quilt for Canberra Quilters a couple of years ago and needed to get it done and quilted in a short time frame.  It got done!  I did have some help from my wonderful Mum, without whom I would have struggled in the time frame.

WHAT ARE MY FAVOURITE THINGS THAT I LOVE TO CREATE WITH AT THE MOMENT?

As a quilter I am enjoying exploring the world of thread.  When I first started I pretty much stayed with what I started on and felt comfortable using in the machine.  Now that my machine and I are much better acquainted, I am happy to experiment and try the effect of other threads.  The tension dial is there for a reason, and perfect tension is relative to what I am using.

Other than thread I love the ranges of fabric that are coming out and that making a quilt that ‘works’ has become easier thanks to the designers and the fabulous prints that are available.  one thing about quilting is that I see a lot of quilts made by other people and some ‘work’ better than others.  To be honest, these fabric ranges make my work easier too, the quilts don’t need detailed quilting, the fabric is gorgeous on it’s own.

HOW DOES MY CREATIVE PROCESS WORK?

This is a little harder to answer as I don’t know if I have one for my own quilts,  I often follow a pattern with my own tweaks included.  However when it comes to the quilting I can certainly answer.

When a quilt comes to me to be quilted I need to know a few things about it;  who is it for?  male or female?  age of the recipient?  intended purpose?

From this information the client and I come up with some ideas and settle on a quilting design to enhance or be functional on their quilt.  We will probably avoid putting floral designs on a male’s quilt.

Then the decisions are about thread colour, top and bottom, what type of wadding, backing fabric and binding.  Sometimes the client supplies these things, otherwise we order the thread or backing fabric and I have a variety of wadding in the studio available for purchase.

Then I need to get on and quilt the designs we talked about ready for the due date.

HOW DO I BECOME INSPIRED AND STAY INSPIRED?

Inspiration comes in many forms, a picture of a quilt that I ‘need’ to make, a deadline (can be quite motivating), seeing some great fabric ranges.

With a quilt I may have it out and look at it frequently to wait for an idea to form.  Many quilters will say a quilt will ‘speak’ to them.  Now we are not an odd bunch with a weird 6th sense, but sometimes seeing the quilt will make an idea for quilting designs just pop into our heads and then we can refine them to suit that quilt perfectly.

Part of how I stay inspired is to pretend that each quilt i work on is my own, this is what I often share with my clients, “If it were mine, I’d quilt…..”  This can often help them clarify their thoughts.  Did you know that knowing what you don’t want on your quilt is as important as knowing what you do want?

WHAT IS MY SIGNATURE STYLE?

Are we talking fabric or quilting?  I am a fan or red fabric, not the orangey red, but a deeper cherry red.  I love the classic quilts but am also into a bit of applique and have a number or patterns here that I want to make.  Raw edge applique was a good way to get something done a little faster and I love the quilt I made for my husband. 

I have my own style too when it comes to quilting.  Most quilters do.  I have a leaf shape that will come more naturally to me than to another quilter.  They might be really skilled at free form flowers and I may struggle to get one that looks right.  I may choose a particular type of feather because I can do that one really well and it suits my style.

When it comes to quilts, there are no quilt police and if it works for me or you then go for it.  Enjoy what is made and the process of making it.  Have fun, stretch yourself.  Our styles change over time and as we grow, live and love.

Thanks Angie for nominating me, I thought I would find it hard to write about these questions but then I was inspired.

To keep this blog hop with a difference going I want to tag Leanne from Mount Vincent Quilts and Val from Bluegum Quilting Services

Thanks Leanne and Val, I look forward to reading more about you on Monday 14th September.

Happy Quilting