Monday, July 10, 2006

What if? Writing meets the needle.

I had one of those Eureka moments last week.

I was having a bad day with the quilt I last posted and in a sulk picked up a very old copy of Popular Patchwork. In there was an article on 'Liberated quilting' i.e cutting up fabric and sewing it together however you like and it led to a very creative and happy weekend. I emailed the author June Barnes (who has a wonderful gallery of quilts on her site the quality and inventiveness of which I aspire to) and she wrote back saying in part:
"there is no right or wrong way to do anything in this field of textiles, no rules and regulations to adhere to. If it works for YOU and the results please YOU then it is right! It is so important to enjoy the process, not follow some pressure to please others (especially judges!) – have fun! Always ask the what if? Question and experiment to find out the answers!"

I am used to the 'What if' instruction in writing but it had not occured to me to try it in quilting. The photos below show the weekend work/playing of a quilt in process and a consequential midden of a dining room, which sadly will now have to be left as I travel to Leeds for three days... but I will be asking 'What If' about the quilting to be done as much as I will about a possible second attempt at a novel. I have a family in mind who are presenting themselves quite strongly as wanting to be in a novel but need to work on what exactly happens to them: there are a few ideas already there ( equivalent I suppose to my basket of fabrics) but I want to do the mental equivalent of spreading them on the floor and seeing what goes well where.... at least I have three evenings in a hotel room with nothing good on TV to start the process!

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