OK, after publishing my last blog post I decided I needed to readjust how I work to keep the fabric artist in me happier. It’s just plain silly to go around feeling sorry for myself when I am in control of my own work schedule. So I have decided to carve out time for making show quilts, playing with my camera, and limiting my work on my little microbusiness downloadables and books to something less than all the time. I also need some time to just chill. All of these things are important, and all are needed for maximum creativity.
So I am going to be a tough boss and tell myself I have to:
- Take breaks
- Take vacations (probably will be quilt shows)
- Adjust work on sale items to a more comfortable level…it is, after all, a micro business just to supplement my retirement income.
- Find time for other creative outlets (photography, painting, exercise)
- Do my very best at everything…reach to make the most beautiful fabric art I can and not be concerned if my quilts do not place (or even get in a show like Paducah).
Sew I am working on the design for my next two show quilts. I’ve told you before that I like having two quilt projects going at once. I am an oddball in that I don’t have UFOs hanging around I think it came from my whole work background where finishing was not an option..I had to finish projects on time. So I like to run two quilts at once for when I get stuck on one and need to leave it alone until I suddenly know how to solve it.
The first quilt will be a three dimensional deep forest quilt with woodland creatures and oversized three dimensional insects. It’s something I’ve had in my mind for some time, but I am finally working on the full design and digitizing the embroidery for this quilt (I plan on having a lot of embroidery for this quilt). I find it hard to describe, but think about it like a pop up book with multiple layers of paper providing some dimension.
The second quilt is finally going to be my Sashiko/Ikebana quilt I have had in mind for several years. This will have a background of irregular rectangular blocks with Sashiko and the foreground will be as Japanese Ikebana “flower arrangement” probably using broiderie perse and possibly some embroidery for the flowers and a digitally painted vase. I will be making this with Peppered Cottons, which I have been collecting for a while now. They seem perfect to me for this quilt. I’m thinking I might even do the Sashiko by hand…that remains to be seen. I’ll try a block and see what I think.
Oh, and yes, I will continue to work on my book and downloadable for my little online store, probably three days a week, and not expect so much of my sole employee (me). 😀
My next blog will star a new quilt journal for one of the two quilts, or maybe both. Looking forward to sharing the journeys with you.
Sew happy everyone! Adjust your schedule to help reach maximum creativity.