Reflections of 2015

As rule, I'm not usually one for looking backwards.  This leads to a decided lack of sentimentality on my part.  And although I think about things as they happen, I rarely go back and reflect on what has happened, say at the beginning of the year.  I'm not sure why,  Maybe I'm just not very deep.  But change is good and also unavoidable, so with that in mind, I'm going to take the journey backwards to see what has transpired in my creative life in 2015.

So yeah, last year was, creatively speaking, a great year.  I think I'm going in all sorts of new directions creatively that I like.  I'll share some of my favorite finishes with you here, although you've probably seen most of them if you read my blog regularly.

1. Decipher This - I really love this piece.  It had no plan whatsoever, came about from pure play, and I LOVE the way it turned out. Up there with all time faves for certain. 

2. Soicles - This one also was a "play" piece.  I was inspired from a print I saw in a magazine.  I can't believe how many ideas come from random encounters!  At the moment, it too feels like one of my all time favorites, but who can ever choose favorites, right?

3.  Turkey Leaves - This came about from a trip to the local fabric store with a friend.  I rarely make seasonal pieces, but these fabrics and colors called to me so I bought a bunch of fat quarters.  What to do with fat quarters...not my favorite precut.  I love the background of map fabric and the framing, if I do say so myself, really makes the piece special.  If that darn orange didn't have pumpkins in it, I would have left it up a lot longer...

4.  Magnetism - I can't help it, I really love this piece.  To me it combines traditionalist quilting with a modern  minimalist vibe.  I love the pluses in the middle, and I feel it is some of my best FMQing ever - as far as design, idea, and even execution.  I think it's also special to me because it is an example of realizing after I had completely quilted three squares that the design wasn't right AT ALL and I patiently, without any negativity or frustration, picked out the stitches.  Luckily as I was doing it I got the magnet idea, which was SO RIGHT.  And I also learned making this piece that simple doesn't necessarily mean easy.  

5.  Drops of Jupiter - This is a seriously minimalist design.  I love the funky fabrics, and I love that the idea came from my friend Amy's son Aaron.  He had a drawing he showed me and it really tickled my fancy...Of course I turned it into circles, because well - I love circles, and if I do say so, this is a seriously cool quilt.   I'm thinking of a different version of it, actually...but more on that later.

This year I branched out into other things, too, and they were so much fun.  I made potholders

                                                                       

 

 

 Pillows...

And bags and purses, which are becoming obsessions at the moment...

 

Okay, this if fun, looking back at makes from this year, you guys are right.  It's amazing how quickly I forget all the pieces I worked really hard on.  I can't say for certain, (without going back and counting, which I don't feel like doing) but I think I made about 18 full quilts, give or take a few, 15 purses/bags, and 10 or twelve minis or potholders.  That's a pretty productive year!  Woo hoo - Happy 2015!

Next post will be about plans for 2016. Maybe...