Inspiration 12-12-12

Some artists are posting 12 things that inspire them in honor of 12-12-12. Unfortunately, I should be finishing up writing an article right now, so I don't quite have time to find 12 things. However, I would like to show a few things that continue to inspire me.

Nature:

A blue whale tail that we saw during our great, unblogged California vacation this summer

A spiderweb in my carport

Nature is quite simply a constant source of inspiration, joy, and awe to me.

Surface Design:

Pole wrapped shibori using paints instead of dyes

Some of you might not know it, but I have a passion for surface design even though it's not usually the focus of my quilts. I usually use fabric I've dyed for the back of my quilts, as well as borders and bindings (if I use them). I also frequently use hand dyed fabrics in the samples I make for various articles I write. Most summers I dye quite a bit of fabric. This summer, not so much. Obviously I did take time out on one day to paint this fabric, and it inspired me to do what you know I love -

Digital Manipulation:

 This is the image above, cropped, blurred, and color adjusted. Add a few layers and you get:

So how did that green fabric look when it was dry?

OK, I probably should have ironed it better!

And what happened when I played with it for a few minutes?

Now we're cooking!

It's always interesting to me to see what  inspires other artists - what inspires you?

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If you're interested in learning more about how I digitally manipulate a variety of images to create my quilts, why not check out my DVD, Digital Collage for Quilt Design? In honor of 12-12-12 it's on sale just for today for $12.12.

More Tutorials!

About this time last year I created a post with links to tutorials I've written. I'm happy to say that I have now added some more!!

These are some cute mini-stockings that I designed for last year's Quilting Arts Gifts.

I love them as embellishments for gifts

I originally designed them to hang on a swag

Yesterday this project was featured on Quilting Daily, so if you'd like to make your own mini-stockings, head *here* to get the directions.

Though not Christmasy, these water bottle slings make easy gifts, especially for kids (so they can carry their own!).

 They were originally in 101 Patchwork Projects + Quilts, but I also showed how to make them on Quilting Arts TV episode 910, and the directions are *here*.

If you're looking for more technique oriented info, there are many great articles available on the Machine Quilting Unlimited Web Extras! page. In particular, if you're interested in learning how to quilt feathers, check out the links to my article on feathers, as well as Judy Woodworth's.

The holiday season always inspires me to create, and I hope some of my projects inspire you to do some fun quilting, sewing or crafting too. Merry Christmas!