Scattered Chevron Table Runner

“La inspiración existe, pero tiene que encontrarte trabajando.”

Pablo Picasso

One of my favorite artists is Pablo Picasso. Whenever I feel uninspired in my sewing, I remember his advice that inspiration must find you working, and I find it in me to carry on. Most of the time, my quilts are made from someone else’s patterns, or are inspired by someone else’s quilt. Once in a blue moon, I find inspiration in an unlikely place, and the resulting quilt is just that much more satisfying. Even more rewarding is when the quilt is made with someone special in mind. My Scattered Chevron Table Runner is doubly dear to my heart as it was inspired by a piece of wood art and by a person who has inspired me these past few years.

It is no secret that I love Pinterest. For me, it is another way to connect online with people I like, as well as a place to find inspiration and entertainment. A while ago, a colleague pinned this piece of art, and I repinned it as possible inspiration for a future quilt. A short time later, my colleague announced that she was leaving for another company. I have always admired her work ethic, style, and ability to be well-respected in a field dominated by the opposite gender, while still being true to herself as a person and as a woman. I knew that I had to make her something quilted as a farewell gift, as she is a sewist herself. I remembered the art that I had repinned and with very little time at my disposal, pulled a few fabrics from my stash and just started sewing. I began this piece at the first Seattle Modern Quilt Guild sew-in I attended. As I sewed, this small quilt developed deeper meaning.

The front of this piece symbolizes my colleague’s ability to create meaningful insight from black and white data. The back symbolizes her creative and colorful personal style, as well as her vibrant personality. Finally, the binding is symbolic of her strong individuality.

The improv piecing on this quilt was very challenging, but I am very happy with how it turned out. It was difficult to part with this table runner, just as it was difficult to part with my esteemed colleague. However, instead of focusing on what is lost, I choose to focus on what was gained. I am glad I had the opportunity to work on this quilt, and more importantly, I am glad I had the opportunity to work with this fantastic woman.

Linking up with Sew Modern Monday, as this is the most modern quilt that I have made to date.

Purple Pearl Mini Quilt

For my grandmother’s birthday recently, I made her a mini quilt. When I first saw Lizzy House’s Pearl Bracelet fabric, I knew that I had to use it in a present for my grandma. You see, my late grandfather used to lovingly call her his “pearl of great price.” He passed away this last spring, and our family misses him very much.

Keeping the pearl theme in mind, I embroidered Proverbs 31:10 and then bordered the embroidery with two rows of 1” by 1” squares. I just made it up as I went along. It finished at about 9” by 10.5”.

Since this was a birthday present, I also made a coordinating gift bag. I used the same fabrics in a block from the book Modern Blocks. The block is Everything Equal by Louise Papas. Both the mini quilt and the gift bag were made entirely out of scraps.

The Purpose of Passion

Most of the blogs I read are quilting blogs, but I love The Happiness Project. (I even bought the book!) I thought what Gretchen had to say recently about passion was especially relevant to me:

“A passion gives you a reason to keep learning and to work toward mastery. It can often give you a reason to have the new experiences so key to happiness. It gives you something in common with other people, and so fosters social bonds. It gives you purpose. It often has a satisfying physical aspect—rock-climbing, fly-fishing, knitting, smelling. It gives meaningful structure to your time. It makes the world a richer place. When you’re in pain, it can be a refuge, a distraction, a solace.”

Sometimes I feel guilty about “wasting” time quilting. I have to keep reminding myself that doing something I love is not a waste! In fact, it helps dissipate some of the stress of being a working mom, and that is not to be discounted.