WHERE DO YOU FIND YOUR QUILTING INSPIRATION ???

[Judith T.]

I was following this jewel toned blue car yesterday and through the windshield of that car I spotted a teal colored pickup in front of the car in front of me and I thought to myself that that was a beautiful combination for a quilt and then a red car zoomed up into my vision and , WOW, that was another combination for a quilt. Inspiration comes anywhere and everywhere. Judy in AZ

[Judith T.]

Rorimer


My problem is I KNOW the color I want... finding the fabric in THAT color is where I get in trouble. I can not buy fabric unless I see it up front and personal. Buying on line is useless as the colors are always off and wrong when you get a hold of the fabric.

I try to keep stashes of colors.... in my box and then I group them into the same colors.... Most of my quilts are scrappy and I might have 10-20 close but not the same red ( BLUE, green, yellow etc ) fabrics in my quilt, all of them in different patterns.... I love trying to make them all play together nice.


I guess as a child I never learned to color inside the lines.

[Judith T.]

http://community.webshots.com/user/elainequilty





I almost forgot to mention one of my favorite past times... going through Flicker and WebShots to look at pictures of quilts. I spent over two hours looking at pictures I have taken at past quilt shows. I also like running through my bookmarks looking at other quilters quilts and webshots.

Mostly I find inspiration but sometimes I find the

NO those are not the color, style, techniques, blocks for me.... That can save me a lot of wasted time.

[Judith T.]

My inspiration comes from what I see and do every day and also from my spirituality. I love using earth tones and deep country colors most of the time, although there have been notable exceptions. I find myself lately inspired by my faith as well, and am currently planning a series of four Rhapsody quilts, each using the same skeleton but with the applique in each reflecting a different set of mysteries of the Rosary (four sets - Joyful, Sorrowful, Glorious, and Luminuous mysteriers). They will be meant to hang together so their corners will meet and form another larger over all pattern. I can close my eyes and see it, but it will be a while before I actually get to it I think.

[Gloria H.]

That sounds awesome Mandy. Don't wait too long before you get it out of your head onto fabric.

[Gloria H.]

Mandy I think you are describing how Michael Angelo, Da Vinci, Rembrant etc viewed their art....

[Gloria H.]

Since "The Quilt Show" I have cancelled all my mag. subscriptions except the AQS American Quilter. All the inspiration I need is right here, particularly watching the series of shows. There's so much inspiration there, I will never be able to make all the ideas in my head at any one time. Wish I had started 30 years ago.

Dorene

[Gloria H.]

Until this past year, I never noticed things around me as much....I mean little things, like shapes and words and sayings and color. Now I snap pictures all the time and keep something to sketch on. Tonight I cut pictures of shapes and rugs and designs out of a new Ballard catalog. I have some notebooks with page protectors to keep all these in. It's so much fun to see all these things that have always been here.

Dana in Olive Branch, MS

[Eileen K.]

Dana,
Are your pictures a new Rhapsody germinating? Hmm??...........
I've never thought of just putting shapes in a scrapbook. I have a little camera that tucks into my pocket, but have to empty the internal memory and put in a memory card.
I'm with you-in the past year, I've become much more observant of life around me.
eileenkny 8)

[Eileen K.]

Mandy,
What an awesome task you'll be taking on. It will be so interesting to watch you in process through this site. I've often sat after Communion and just looked at the cover of our Missalette. It would make such a great quilt.
Thank you for sharing what inspires you. I've been searching lately for my spirituality. I want it back.
eileenkny

[Eileen K.]

At this point I have a couple of skeletons I am working with to see which will work best. I need one with at least 5 larger spaces to work with. I am also researching stained glass windows to use as inspiration for the applique - each mystery will be shown as a stained glass window scene in the large open areas and then I will put various Christian symbles in the remaining spaces such as fishes, bread loaves, wheat stalks, grapes and vines, lions and lambs, stars, etc. Like you said Eileen, this will be a very big undertaking, and I want to really take my time and do it right. This will probably be my masterwork.

[Eileen K.]

I get inspiration from alot of places. I'll cut out a pic from a magazine if the colors strike me. I see patterns in floors alot. I use the camera in my phone alot. I had always thought having a camera in the phone was just the silliest thing...not any more! Couldn't live without it! I've been looking a tattoo designs lately. The tribal tattoos would make some great applique! One of my sons has tattoos so his quilt will probly have some of that in it. I feel like I'm surrounded by color and pattern. Somtimes I have to make myself tune it out!
Sherry

I have done that, taken inspiration from a tattoo design. Other odd places that I go for inspiration are stuffed animals and pictures of just about anything that catches my eye.

[Judy M.]

I can't wait to see all these quilts you all have in your heads! They will be beautiful!!! Judy in Torrance

[Annette R.]

We lost some great messages here. If yours is one of the lost please enter it again. This is a great topic. I will be back later to enter part of what I had written but dh is tapping his foot again Have to get dressed for church.

Ann (well I did four but there may be more from me later today)

[Frances L.]

Mandy, Can't wait to see your quilts. I am also working on a quilt based on the rosary.
My latest quilt was inspired by the cathedral downtown. It has a dome over the altar in dark blue with gold stars and rust colored pillars up the sides. I was looking at it one Saturday night and wondering what I could do with those three colors. The next Monday was our guild meeting with someone talking about miniatures. She had a miniature that was friendship stars with an extra corner on it that made it look like a ribbon around the stars. That was the additional inspiration that I needed. Cathedral Stars is part way done. As soon as my ankle is better, it is one of the first things I will finish.
Frances in Austin