The past week I’ve been catching up on a few deadline projects and re-orienting myself after my MATS class ended. I spent a little time making lists and goals for the next few months…and then I felt stuck. I often have a little crash after finishing something big.
What I needed was a “palette cleanser”. A quick project that was fun and showed me an immediate tangible result!
You may remember my post Flea Market Finds Block from last month. I had begun experimenting with piecing bits of my vintage linens with other fabrics. Since then I created sort of a swirly whirly block revolving around a little fussy cut bird from a french tea towel (left). It was my first time trying a improv log-cabin-ish block and it was really fun!
Yesterday, to un-schlumpify myself, I worked on another (right). This time I started with a floral tea towel in the center and worked my way out. What a great scrap buster! I had so much fun…the studio was a mess, dinner was late, but I accomplished something satisfying. Yay! I think I’m going to keep at this and maybe even actually create enough for a whole wonky whirl quilt.
What kinds of projects do you do to un-stick yourself?
I think I like Wonky Whirl more than Round and Round!
I love the terms; palette cleanser and unstumpify! When I can’t seem to create, I often pull out something that is unfinished and go at it! A great way to clear the cobwebs, get the creative juices flowing again, and the bonus of finishing a project! Makes me feel like I’ve accomplished something.
Carol b
I’d be curious to know if you washed all those linens prior to sewing with them. And if you didn’t I wonder how they will all shrink up once you get them quilted?
True, the whirls might get wonkier! If I had actually planned to do a quilt when I started (ahem) instead of just goofing around, I probably would’ve washed everything first!