I'd like to talk to you all about my weekly quilt series and give you some of the ideas that have been brewing in my mind. I constantly get questions about my weekly series and small quilts in general. I hope you enjoy this series!
***************
How did it start?
Back in 2005 or 2006, I don't really remember which, Martha Gilbert and I were at a guild retreat and she showed me her weekly "journal" quilts. What was a journal quilt? Well, apparently the fine quilters of the Quilt Art list were doing these small 8.5 x 11 inch quilts each month. Any topic, any technique. Ideally they "journalled" what was going on in their lives. Martha was taking this a step further by doing these each week, each quilt 8.5 x 11 inches.
I was gobsmacked. I worked (and still do) full time. I had long wondered "How can I get into my quilt room more and make things more often?" That's when this idea took hold. If I quilted a mini quilt each week, I could actually finish something! Quilts don't have to be lap sized... They don't have to be wall hangings, either. They could be, just to be! I would have to be in my studio. I would have to design and make them on the fly in many cases. I was ready to start this as my "new year's resolution" back in 2007. It also gave me a reason to blog. I wanted to show what I had made and have more reasons to post to my blog and this was perfect!
My first mini quilt was 6 x6 inches, using a chenille cutter I got for Christmas. My "week" is technically Monday through Sunday, so I have the entire weekend to complete my design. Do I cheat and work on them late? YES. Do I change my mind about the themes and regret picking a difficult one? YES. Am I happy when I power through and get them done? YES, YES, YES! Do I always have "Show and Tell" for guild? You betcha!
I have been doing these weekly quilts ever since, and it's an amazing body of work to go back and look at with both a critical and a stylistic eye. The next parts of the weekly quilt series will tell you what I have learned about my self, my art, and my style by looking at the project as a whole.
1 comment:
I'm always impressed by your doggedness in making the time to do these each week. I find it incredibly difficult to make time for things like this, but believe that you're right and we all should. I can't wait to see the gallery show with 10 years' worth of these, and would still be looking forward to the NEXT 10 years!
Post a Comment