Saturday, January 19, 2013

Seeking inspiration

...but finding nothing.  My brain is taxed and empty.  I am finding little to no creativity no matter where I look.  And I find it frustrating.  I have all but finished up the 2 show quilts that need to be done by month's end.  I am puttering with the mosaic floor quilt started last summer.  But I have this luscious stack of Radiance half-yards that I am itching to work with.  There is something so gorgeous about how silk quilts, and I just want to be quilting these.  I want it NOW.  Therein lies the problem!
I did design (and start, sigh) a quilt using these.  I got so far as to make about 2 dozen quarter circles.  I just am not in love with the plan, and don't wish to continue.  I find myself drawn in too many directions with this fabric.  It is a little bit slippery and stretchy to work with.  The wise person in me thinks it smart not to overdesign complexity into the quilt.  I suspect it may be a bit harder to nicely align all the points, and if there are lots of straight lines, then they might be hard to maintain during the quilting.  

I have sketched several things.  Just last night, I drew out a companion to this quilt.  Scroll down for a full quilt shot.  I love the look of the interlocking lines.  That satisfies my innate need to make things that appear complex.  In the case of working with the silk, I fear it would be rather complex, and maybe would not come out as desired.  I have pondered going very simple, and allowing the quilting to take the front stage.  But that plan leaves my analytical side feeling underwhelmed.  Yes, sadly, I am one of those people that has strongly conflicting left and right brains.  I can be very artistic, as in the quilting, but I need a delicate balance of both to feel satisfied.  Plus, I want all the tones of the gorgeous fabric to be used, so how to do that "simply" mystifies me.

I have thought about doing a traditional design, but twisted.  I like the Birds in the Air and Orange Peel designs.  I'm not sure I am committed to doing the hand applique using the silk that the Orange Peel would require.  

When I see the fabrics, I think fall...as in Autumn.  Yet, I really don't know how to appropriately incorporate that into the piecing.

My latest whim for a design concept is a complete whim for me.  How about a strata quilt?  It would be easy to incorporate all the fabrics.  I could free piece this, and not have to worry about matching points and seams (within reason).  But then that concept has obvious concerns too...is it complex enough to enter into shows, and receive any respect?  How would I quilt it?  I would have to make sure that some of the pieces were large enough to enable a nice development of quilting designs.

I know that when the design is right, it will flow forth from my mind like warm molasses.  The Giverny quilt I showed initially (with the interlocking) was designed in only a couple weeks, and made in 1-2 months.  No messing around there.  So why is my brain overthinking this one so much?


6 comments:

Maddie Kertay- The Domestic Anarchist said...

Don't you just hate when that happens??.. Sometimes you just have to wait for the muse!

Vivian said...

Don't worry about the why now -- just relax and give your mind some time to chew on the problem. It will come to you if you don't push for it. You've done it before you'll do it again!

Katrina said...

Just keep reading, pinning and looking at things on instagram to inspire you... when it's ready to come it will! Can't wait to see what's coming!

Joyce said...

Feel free to send the fabric to me, since you can't seem to decide what to do with it. I'll just 'pet' it.

Desley said...

Keep on tossing around ideas. When the right one comes you will know as it will just flow like you said. I know I am on the right track with an idea when I get a tingling of excitement. I enjoyed reading the process you are going through, and I think it is more complicated than how I work. I will make a bunch of blocks without even knowing what I am going to do with them, or start a whole quilt with just a quilting concept I want to incorporate. Good Luck! I am sure whatever you do with those gorgeous fabrics will be magic.

Rebecca said...

Have a glass of wine..... Take a day off and go shopping it will come to you......lolol