2023 Quilting Tips

Merry Christmas!  This episode of A Quilter's Life is being published on Christmas Day, 2023!   I hope you’ve enjoyed the stories of the wonderful people behind the beautiful quilts in 2023.  I’ve gathered their tips for this episode of A Quilter’s Life.  This year we’ve heard some great tips that will help us along the way in our quilting journeys.   We start with   Just make it.  There’s never an ugly quilt. This was a great tip for me as I tend to dream about what I want to make instead of getting in my sewing room and just getting to it.   Just try it.  No matter what it is, know it won't be perfect, but try it. Have you wanted to try a pattern or technique, but didn’t think you would be able to make it look right?  Well, it really can’t hurt to try and more than likely we realize we can do it and we enjoy it.   Never pass up an opportunity to learn something new. I’m also finding that when we learn something new it’s not always learning something more difficult, but many times we learn a new way that is actually simpler.  Why wouldn’t we want to make our lives simpler? When you get frustrated with a step in your quilting project, keep failing.  Because it helps you to figure it out, get better and learn.  Your quilts don’t need to be perfect.  And don’t compare.  Remember finished is better than perfect.   If it works for you don't worry about what others say.   Enjoy the process! Yes, enjoy the process that you’ve figured out works for you.  There’s always going to be the person that has found what works for them and they think that is the way it should be done.  It never hurts to listen to what they have to say because we can pick up tidbits of information that may work for us.  But we can just thank them and enjoy the process that works for us. Which leads us into the next tip of  Don’t be afraid to experiment and adapt.  Try a technique if you don't like it there's usually another way to achieve the same outcome.  Do what works for you. Also, don’t be afraid to make a mistake.  You’re in charge of that.  You get to decide if you’re going to rip it out or leave it in.   Don't take shortcuts. This is especially true when we’re working on a project and we’re tired.  We know ourselves and we know when we need to do that extra step, but we just want to get it done.  Before you know it we have a date with Jack.  Taking out all the stitches with the seam ripper because we just took a shortcut and it ends up not being a short cut at all.   ...