Quilting Patchwork Mojo!

Quilting Patchwork Mojo!

Oh dear!  What’s a girl to do?  What do you do when you have lost your urge to create?

Probably you have projects to go back to??? Maybe you have plenty of tools and fabric???  Your machine is working fine ….or is it?  So….what’s the problem?

Who knows?  We are complicated creatures, with busy lives and it is very easy to tell ourselves to be doing all the things we are “supposed” to be doing.  Grief, fatigue, health issues and worry can be burdensome on the mind and prevent things happening, even when time is available.  Unfortunately life is continually presenting challenges.

So how do we rekindle that glimmer of creativity?

My first suggestion is…..Don’t go shopping.  If you already have plenty of supplies, you will come home exhausted, with an empty purse and not much to show for your time ( of course there are always exceptions).  If you are not making at the moment, there is no point.

Clean up your sewing space.  Maybe past projects and pieces of fabrics are cluttering your area.  It won’t feel inviting. Take some time to tidy up.  Wipe down fabric dust.

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Clean up your sewing machine/s too.  Make sure they are operational.   When you are ready to sew it’s really a downer if the machine is not up to scratch.   The most important thing for patchwork is just to be able to sew a nice straight seam.  You don’t need a complex or expensive machine. Prepare your machine for when you will be ready and you will feel accomplished.

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Take the pressure off yourself.  Stop worrying about UFOs.  As a matter of fact I prefer to call them WIPs ( Works In Progress) I think UFOs puts a negative slant on a project.  Works In Progress is way more positive!  Creativity knows no timeline.  It’s not about being a chore.  So what if you haven’t finished something…. If it’s bothering you, put that project away,.  Protect it from light and dust, wrap it up in some fabric or a nice bag or even a pretty hat box.  When you come back to it, it will be a joy.

Dont feel that a project must be complicated to be worthwhile or beautiful.  I’m not ashamed to say I love some of the most simplistic blocks .  They can be so beautiful.   This is especially important if quilts are made to be used.  If it’s not going in a show…..don’t worry.  Start back sewing with something easy and economical.  You won’t feel bad if it’s not finished immediately.

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Remember, it’s not something that has to be done.  Give yourself permission.  It’s your pleasure and therapy.  Solve some problems while you are stitching, instead of feeling like you can’t stitch until the problem is solved.

Once you have cleaned up your sewing space, if you have a bag or box of scraps lying around, cut them up.  They are your fabrics.  There was a reason you bought them .  What I always find amazing is how different a fabric can look, once it’s cut up nicely and in a different shape? or size? to your previous project.

Cut Up Your Quilting Off Cuts

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Make some four patches or nine patches or just cut up some 5″ squares.   They can easily become a baby quilt or a quilt border or a bigger scrappy quilt, or even be part of a last minute gift.  It doesn’t matter if you are not sure of the destination  remember the fun is in the journey!

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The most important thing to remember, it’s what you CAN do.  Not what you might do.   So just go to your sewing space, with no intention to sew, just have a tidy up. Take a nice cup of tea with you…… Who knows what might happen!

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8 thoughts on “Quilting Patchwork Mojo!”

  1. Susie,
    I think you saved my mojo!!! I happened upon this article. I was so lost with no ambition to quilt. I went shopping and got more fabric… no interest on doing anything with it. I took your advice and spent the afternoon with my cutter and my scraps. I had the best afternoon! I don’t like cutting but this was amazing! I can’t wait til tomorrow to do more! Thank you
    Sam

  2. I needed to read this, when I packed and left for 8 months, everything was put in containers etc, in no order at all. I was just grateful of the help by hubby to pack it up, but hopefully I am back home now and feel overwhelmed at what to do. I am getting plenty of ideas and inspiration from your page (as I always have)…Hubby has just made a template of your orange peel and I actually have some foundation papers that have been stored for a couple of years, so I will start the strippy sewing on them from binding strips and leftover jelly roll strips, so Thank You. I find your tutorials very realistic and not overwhelming, you are a generous lady sharing your ideas with everyone.

  3. Thanks Suzie, I needed to read this. My mojo has totally gone.. It is hard to even think about sewing when there is someone unwell in the house. There seems to be no end to doctors visits and/or waiting for the nurse to come daily..( at no particular time) so I don’t even attempt to try and start anything. I did send away for a pattern for birth samplers for my new great grandbabies so maybe I can start on a stitchery and work my way back to my machine. I do have a lot of yardage that although I liked when I first bought it, have wondered what I would use it for, but seeing the difference you have shown as to how different it looks in smaller pieces is a great help so maybe even spending time cutting up some of these fabrics would be a good idea for me. I don’t have a dedicated sewing space so the dining table gets used.. I need something that can be put away easily if the need arises,
    Thanks for your special post which really hit home with me.xx

    1. Dear Sandy, thank you so kindly for your comment. I really hope you will find a glimmer of your mojo returning. Any small project would be wonderful. It doesn’t matter where you sew. I have used the dining room table for many years. I quite enjoyed seeing small stacks of fabric I have prepared. If they are next to your machine you can stitch even just a few. It’s amazing how the blocks will build up! Please keep in touch. Susie x

  4. Oh boy did I need this today! Glad I’m not the only one who goes through a “funk” once in a while. Thanks for the encouragement. Today I scrapped two days worth of work because a patterns instructions (in a book I’ve had for years) was WAY off. I fought with trying to save it for hours – was angry over the waste of some beautiful fabric and finally decided to just salvage what I could and move on to something else. In 24 years of quilting, this has only happened a couple of times, but it is disheartening.

    1. Dear Prudence,
      I’m so glad that was helpful and you could move on from that project. Sometimes it’s the best and most sensible solution! All the best to you and happy quilting!

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