sstiles

It’s surprising how having such a list serves as inspiration for both new projects and old.

Looking at the works-in-progress brings me back to the way I felt when I began them – in love with certain fabrics, anticipated pride in getting it done, and the imagined joy of the person I intend to gift with my creation. Like you, I also have projects that don’t feel quite as inspiring and fun as they once did but are still much too nice to stay unfinished. And don’t we all sometimes feel that we’ve started things that turn out to be overly ambitious?

I’ve had that apprehension for a few months. It can be a nag. I really wanted to learn a new skill but wondered if I had gone overboard.

I kept at it. This past week, I was able to finish piecing an art quilt that I started last October in a workshop. In the beginning of the workshop, I had that “satisfying burst of creativity”…then the serious work began. At the time I left the workshop, my pattern, laboriously drawn and cut and tacked to a foam-core board, was only partially covered with a few dozen fabric pieces. The instructor had sent us packing with several rather challenging directives: don’t sew anything until ALL of the pieces are cut and pinned, and also, sewing it all together would be the easy part.

By the time I finally got all the fabric cut and started sewing one section (that had only 4 pieces), I discovered, to my amazement, that I was going to be able to do it, one section at a time. Not all the fabric choices are perfect, and there is a certain undulation in the background (I think it gives it a nice watery feel, don’t you?), and I still have to quilt it. I’ll be moving it to the long-arm shortly, getting my design wall back, and thinking about what I want to continue to work on next.

I think it will be both something old, and something new, and something I can cross of the list.

Happy spring!

Susan

Johanna Roll, Susan Stiles and Ellen King took our beautiful 2017 raffle quilt to the Annapolis Quilt Guild to sell raffle tickets. Our trip included a visit to Cottonseed Glory Quilt Shop

While at their guild meeting, we got to learn about some of the projects they do and how their meetings and staff are organized. Great ideas for us! Then we stayed for their guest speaker, David M. Taylor, an extraordinary appliqué artist whose presentation was wildly entertaining and unforgettable.

A wonderful evening. NOTE!!  The quilt is available to road trips! It’s really fun to visit other guilds and help raise money for our operations in the coming year. Join us!

Article and photo submitted by Susan Stiles

5. Develop your own working style
Take bits and pieces from everywhere, mix them together and toss things aside until you have a set of working skills that reflect who you are as an artist.

6. Decide on message
Think about what you want your art to communicate, then make art that fits your purpose

7. Create a thread of continuity
Spend some time developing pieces that are thematically, technically and/or color related; work in a series, sustaining these will yield a consistent body of work

8. Engage in quiet reflection
Stress and art are not good companions, it is important to periodically disengage from the world around you to reconnect with your inner voice

9. Work for yourself
Stay true to your own vision, don’t attempt to create art that you think will be chosen by a particular exhibition or gallery. If it doesn’t come from deep within you, it isn’t your voice

10. Expect your voice to change
Artists grow and evolve and change throughout their careers. As an artist, you must always stretch yourself and challenge yourself to do more; re-think, re-evaluate, and revisit your approach, your themes and your techniques. If you stand still your work will stagnate and become boring. Follow your voice where it leads you. Art is a path you follow, not a place to reach and rest.

For more information or to register, go to http://www.quilt-around-the-world.com/en/content/4th-international-block-swap-ibs4 The fee is 25 Euros (currently about $27 US$). The deadline is February 28, 2018 – next year.

I have flyers giving much more detail and I will bring them to the next guild meeting or you can download flyer here. I hope other QOL quilters will be as intrigued as I am to participate! We will have some unusual and unique projects to share at our 2018 Show and Tell.

I hope everyone has a chance to support other local guilds. It means a lot to be reminded and inspired that we are part of a truly global community of artists.

Visiting the Baltimore Heritage Quilt Guild Quilt Expo 2017 was wonderful. The creativity, originality, and workmanship of these quilters produced yet another dazzling show for this guild, which meets at the Woodbrook Baptist Church on Stevenson Lane in Baltimore City on the 2^nd Tuesday of the month  www.baltimorequilters.com. They have been around for 32 years and have about 150 members. So many quilts, and each one more delightful than the next! Here are just a few of my favorites (see photos).

Wash Day, by Amy Selmanoff

While at the show, I learned of an interesting national quilt block swap that you might enjoy. Read more about it here.