Hey Everyone, welcome to the first day of Inspirational Sundays. No there won’t be any sermons or singing (trust me you don’t want me to sing) here at Inspirational Sundays just a few words and pictures about what inspires me in my quilt making.
Where does the inspiration come from?
I gain my inspiration for my quilts from the world around me, other quilt blocks, photographs that Michael takes – I don’t have to worry about copyright since he is my husband, billboards, architecture, artwork, fabric, gift bags, fancy paper napkins, kleenex box designs, and of course mother nature. The list is endless of what you can gain inspiration from. Although one does have to be careful as to the source of the inspiration so as not to infringe on any copyrights – the key is that they are inspiration only to spur on your own creative ideas.
I am forever having Michael take photos of one thing or another for me and sometimes he just looks at me and the look says.
Really, you want a photo of this!
But he humours me and he takes it, processes it and passes it over to my computer for me to use or not use but I have it just in case.
An Example
The photo that Michael showcased at Sticky Beak Photography the other day I used as a source of inspiration for a small wall hanging that I did for my mother when we were living in the Australian Outback. The photo was of the Stuart Desert Pea which is the state flower of South Australia. This flower only blooms in late winter early spring when the conditions are just right. A large amount of rain fall is required for the seeds to germinate and we were lucky enough to see these flowers in great abundance twice in the 5 years that we spent in the Outback.
The small wall hanging I made for my mom in the very early stages of my design career.
These flowers are a bit strange looking but they are magnificent with their bright red body and black eye centre with approximately 5 flowers forming a circle as you look down on them. There are some other colour variations which are usually rare and difficult to find so when you do it is a bonus.
White with maroon centre – one of my favourite colour variations.
Upon looking at the wall hanging I made for my mother I can envision another one –
let’s just say with the idea bouncing around in my head there is certainly going to be a bit more fabric, pieces and creativity involved.
Another colour variation.
What inspires you? Let me know by leaving a comment. I would love to hear from you.
Happy Quilting
