A New Month, A Fresh Start

In order to get going again in the studio, I have to clear the decks, put everything away from the previous projects and then I am ready to begin something new. The bed quilts from this summer are all safely tucked into a chest of drawers and now I am back to making wall quilts. All the time I was piecing I was making notes and sketches for the other kind of work I usually do and so I have a zillion ideas to wade through and decide about.
There is an empty space in my living room that calls out for a colorful piece, so I might take aim at that. No sense planning too much, or the thrill of discovery is lost.


Out comes all the fused fabrics, cotton, silks, and even fused cheesecloth. I am armed and ready. I find the weekend is always a good time to start something new, a habit that extends from when I worked full time at non-art jobs and had only the weekend to make art.
Glad those days are long gone!
Funny thing about this summer and all the work I made...it was a learning experience but it also made me feel less of an artist because I was focused on technique, and just couldn't get past that aspect. It dug into my confidence and I felt 'less than' instead of my artist self. My sister reminded me of something so important, and it is that 'Only you can make what you make'. When I was making those other quilts, I felt that they could have been made by anyone else. Part of that was the print fabric, and part is the design, which I confess, I didn't pay ANY attention to. I will now.
In the spirit of starting fresh, I unknit the sweater I was diddling with all summer and got going on a new and better version. Now that's me!
And funny, it gave me just the bump in confidence that was needed. This is the Pacific Grove Pullover from www.justonemorerow.com
My studio mates, snoring away.