* Arrange whatever comes your way *

This weekend as I was safety pinning a quilt for my nephew, I was thinking about what quilting means in an era when blankets and quilts are very cheap and readily available. The logical self starts to analyze, "Why again am I doing this time consuming thing?"
Remember, I am supposed to be making this transition into art quilting. However, there are some projects that also need to be finished as well, usually these projects are at the point where what needs to be done is definitely not the exciting part.
But what I realized is that doing what you love keeps the self intact. It is sure far better than other alternatives I could try that lead down to paths of temporary insanity or sanity, however one wanted to conceptualize those activities.
The studio is also in desperate need of a clean out. Life seems to be throwing me pieces faster than I can organize them. (note this doesn't mean I am actually buying the pieces). This is a good thing, and I embrace being blessed with lots of material that I can use to benefit others, especially little boy nephews in need of love and whom have a feeling of loosing a sort of home, losing the fundamental need of love and belonging in a normal family.
With the quilt maybe somehow I can get across without saying it, that pieces of life do come together, and we can take what we are given and what we are not, and make it better, make our own patterns.

I am one of the fortunate, I know. I have the luxury of a studio, however modest in which to carve out a space of my own to be creative in. There are so many talented people out there that underestimate the power of having a place to work. I'd didn't realize how important this was to my well being; the ability to just sit down to work with everything ready to go! This revelation came from a mentor, and it came in my early twenties, since then I have always had a studio- even if it was just the corner of a one bedroom apartment that I first shared with my husband.

This nice lady was kinda enough to take the time one day to show me her studio. What a concept! She rented a small space/office in a downtown building, and she had all her equipment and supplies ready for the using. I was inspired after this experience not just by her pretty nails, but with her courage to proclaim in such a big way,

"This is me, this is what I do, and it is so important, that I rent a space just for this!"

I've started this blog because I have come to a interesting point where I am no longer satisfied just sewing, or quilting. I have been wanting to develop more abilities is this realm, but I am tired of cookie cutter patterns and my own stubbornness. I am leaping into becoming more of an art quilter, and I am taking steps forward as well as steps back during this process.

It needs to start with the cleaning of my studio, and some dedication to the art quilt that is gathering dust on the design wall.