Start Small....(for the Holidays)

To the left is a link to a free pattern offered by Quiltmaker Magazine for a set of very easy and quick Holiday placemats.  You will find instructions for there napkins as well.

I am going to put together a few sets of these for hostess gifts.

So get out that holiday fabric, grab a cup of tea and get into the holiday spirit.....slowly....don't panic...start with a small project.  We can handle this!  Right?
Even if we have to put it off until the last minute...it really is do-able.

The Process Pledge

I found the process badge on somebody's blog a while back....checked it out and liked the idea.   So,
I took the process pledge. This whole process came from the fruitful mind of Ms. Rossie over at Mutant Quilting.  Go on over and take a look....But COME BACK...I'll wait for you.  Please don't outclick to other yummy looking sites you will find there.  (start using Delicious so you can find your way back.......sorry, that's for another post).

Are you back?  OK....So far there are 420 of us who have signed the pledge.....that is kind of  a lot of quilters who are willing to take the time to photograph, post and discuss the artistic process.  I am going to look at their blogs and see if it is working.

I really do get the idea of shared creative process (or better put, I feel your pain.)
 
The goal of the process pledge is to create a new sensibility in quilting blogs where we don’t just show finishes or occasionally confess about our moments of indecision, but chat openly and often about our works in progress, our inspirations, and our moments of decision. 

Rossie says:
"I know that many of us are already posting about our thinking on quilts and the processes involved from start to finish, let's do more!  And let's post about quilts as we work on them.  I want to see more half-done quilts, not just the finished thing with a journal entry about the process."

Then she goes on to list some prompts to help us with the 'process'......

• Do you have any new sketches to show?
• Is this design inspired by a past quilt or someone else's quilt you saw (link, please)?
• Does the color palette come from somewhere specific?
• Are you trying to evoke a specific feeling?
• Is this quilt intended for a specific person?  How did that inform your choices?
• Are you following a pattern, emulating a block you saw somewhere, using a liberated process, or totally winging it?
• What are you hating about this quilt at this stage?  What do you love?
• Did you push yourself to try something new?
• In working on the quilt, are you getting ideas about what you might want to try next?  What?  Did you sketch it?

I will keep this on hand so that I can talk about what I am doing.  Take the pledge and then see how it affects your approach to your craft.  I have a feeling we might start considering ourselves artists.  (smiles condescendingly).  You think?

Flikr Photo of the Day

Love this series of quilts and the photos from Ashley over at FilmInTheFridge .

Come on in....

This Pinwheel quilt made with repro fabrics is my favorite of all....I call it my 'nap quilt'. There is a view of the back. I got this idea from one of your blogs of course! Missy definitely approves.

This is by far the largest quilt I have made. It is also the one I love most .It is a Pineapple, and took forever with all the squaring up and trimming. But there it is .... (no, I don't keep on the hammock, but thought it would make a good photo.

Come on in...I want to share my quilting life......This is the wonderful room Garth and I designed when we added on to our home. I can spend a lot of time here.