Today, I am excited to share with you about Creative Quilt Challenges, a new book collaboration between Wendy Hill and Pat Pease and published by C&T Publishing. If you have been hanging around my blog, I hope that you know that I believe that everyone is creative (and if you have not been to my blog before, welcome! You might want to check out some of the discussions we have had on creativity and my free tutorials). When I read Wendy’s dedication at the beginning of the book, I knew I wanted to learn more:
To creative people everywhere: If you want to think outside the box, first you have to believe there is no box! Keep making stuff! ~Wendy Hill
I had a lovely email discussion with Wendy, and we both agree that someone who buys a quilt kit and makes a quilt is creative and putting themselves out into the world in a personal way that people who never make anything don’t. It might be on one end of the creative continuum, but we also agreed that creating is a journey worth taking (even if a project spans decades).
Wendy and Pat structured Creative Quilt Challenges in a way to acknowledge what they have in common, and to explore their differences in processing information and approach to design. By blending Pat’s spontaneity and fearlessness with Wendy’s ideas, structure, and organization, they have developed a series of guided challenges that have me thinking about quilt making in a new light.
Each challenge (which you can take alone, with a friend, in a small group, or with your guild) contains tips and techniques. The quilts presented are not destinations, but rather they are an invitation for a journey: a journey to open yourself up to trying something new or different as part of a process to develop your own style as a quilter.
As I sat down to write this post, I realized that having read the book has already influenced me. Last week I had a few free days of “free sewing time” and I set off to start with the basis of the piecing method from my Beacon quilt and allowed myself to play and explore. Beacon might not exactly be an “old block”, but I wanted to start with the construction style for Beacon and try something new which is precisely the “Reimagine an Old Block” Challenge. And I ended up somewhere entirely different:
The journey was fun, full of surprises, and I will definitely be exploring this new layout and design more! I believe the secret to success is to show up, try, learn, modify, and repeat. I will be repeating lessons from these challenges as I continue on my quilting journey, and I invite you to join me.
Blog Tour Calendar
Monday, March 28: Lynn Merrill with C&T Publishing
Tuesday, March 29: Maria Shell
Wednesday, March 30: Sandra Clemons
Thursday, March 31: Tierney Hogan
Friday, April 1:Gina at BOLT Fabric Boutique
Monday, April 4: Yvonne Fuchs
Tuesday, April 5: Kristin Shields
Wednesday, April 6: Paula Mariedaughter
Thursday, April 7: Teri Lucas
Friday, April 8: Wendy Hill, wendyhill.net/blog
Giveaway
I am thrilled to be able to give away a hard copy (international winners get a digital version) of Creative Quilt Challenges! Leave a comment telling me why you want this book in your quilting library. For a second entry, let me know your favorite social media platform way you follow me (lots of options on the sidebar to the right such as via email, Bloglovin, Instagram, Facebook…). Next Monday—April 11, 2016—I will use a random number generator to select a winner. Good luck!
1. I recently started a new guild. These challenges could be a lot of fun for the group to do together. Plus I always love reading different quilters perspectives on their creative process.
2. I follow you via Feedly
3. This sounds like a great book. I’m hoping to move along the creative continuum, and this sounds like something that would be helpful. I like your new design. Looking forward to seeing how you quilt it.
4. I follow on Bloglovin regularly and on Instagram occasionally.
5. Because I like the cover and would like to read it. Then I’d give it to a friend to inspire too.
6. My favorite ways to follow your quilting journey are your blog for the in depth discussion and lovely photos and IG to the quick interaction and more real-time photos of projects.
7. What an interesting concept with this book! I’ve always believed there is no right way or wrong way to quilt, it should be our way!
8. I got you on bloglovin,facebook…. happyness04431@yahoo.com
9. Knowledge is power….lol Quilt books are knowledge and so many ideas……that’s why i would love this book….. happyness04431@yahoo.com
10. I am new to quilting and looking for all help, guidance and inspiration.
11. I follow on bloglovin too
12. I need to challenge myself and expand my quilting universe!
13. I follow you on your blog and on Instagram.
14. My quilt making journey has revolved around making quilts for others. I am drawn to modern, improv quilts, but haven’t finished many. This book sounds like it would help me determine just what is my style.
15. And I follow you via Bloglovin.
16. Creativity is where I need the most help! The technical part, for me, is the easiest!
17. I follow via Bloglovin and Instagram, but to make sure I don’t miss a post, they are delivered to in inbox.
18. I’ve only been quilting for two years but I haven’t been afraid of thinking outside of the box so far. I’m continually attracted to projects that stretch my abilities to the max instead of staying with safer, simpler options. This book would stretch me even further, I think, which is a good thing!
19. I just started following you on Bloglovin and look forward to seeing more of your work and ideas.
20. Wow I love this quilt and great post!
21. HAPPY TO FOLLOW YOU ON BLOG LOVIN’!
22. HI,I’M A BEGINNING QUILT AND I NEED ALL THE HELP I CAN GET! BOOK LOOKS GREAT! THANK YOU!
23. I follow you by Bloglovin and now by email. Must say that I prefer by email (may be my age (wink emoticon) and the fact I don’t understand all the options for bloglovin etc)
24. Must say that I try all kinds of creative endeavors with cloth. I always chose my own fabrics and rarely use a pattern as is. However, having no design training, I feel this is a place that I struggle, so a book like this would be fabulous.
25. This sounds exactly like the kind of quilting book I like – very inspiring! I definitely want this one.
26. I follow your blog via Bloglovin.
27. Sounds like an interesting concept that’s why I would like to give a try.
28. Bloglovin and IG are my fav platforms to follow you 🙂
29. It looks like it would be full of inspiration!!
30. I am a “rule follower” in much of my life and quilting helps me to sometimes let go of that. The challenges to help me “color outside the lines” would be fun and would help expand my horizons.
31. Bloglovin and IG ( I am @AlyciaQuilts)
32. I started following blogs via GFC and still do that for many blogs today. If GFC is not an option I usually follow by email, which is how I follow your blog. Other than reading blogs and posting pictures on flickr I don’t really do the social media thing.
33. I would love this book because I want to break free of the box I am in and explore new ways of doing things. cdahlgren at live dot com
34. I currently follow you on bloglovin. cdahlgren at live dot com
35. Bloglovin for me!
36. The process as you share it looks really interesting.
37. Playing with your block design resulted in a really cool graphic. It’s great to see where these exercises take us!
38. This book looks like it might help me turn something old into something new. How awesome is that!
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39. I follow on Facebook.
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40. I’m the librarian for my local MQG and this would be a great addition to our library. We could use it to challenge our members to try new directions in their work.
41. I follow your blog and Instagram but still prefer the blog. I just like reading more and getting to know people better through their blogs Now if only I could keep up with blog reading.
42. Through this blog hop, I’ve started thinking about the kinds of creative challenges I could join/spark amongst my quilty friends. Considering that, I’ve realized that being part of those challenges would probably make me feel some trepidation–which is a good thing for me, to feel it and then plunge ahead. So I think this book would be good for me!
43. My favorite way to follow you is plain old-fashioned email.
44. I follow on BL. I think this is a wake you up and try something book. Sometimes we all need one of these books.
45. I am trying to stretch my wings with some designs of my own. This book may help inspire me.
46. These quilt challenges sound like just what I need for a new burst of creativity! I like to design my own quilts and these exercises would teach me some new techniques and maybe rejuvenate some old ones. Thanks for the give-away. I will be following along via Bloglovin.
47. Hi;
I would love this book as I try to push myself to start to work on my own ideas, as opposed to “copying” others’. Thanks for the opportunity.
48. I follow on Bloglovin, FB and IG.
49. Creative Quilt Challenges should be on my bookshelf because it has much to offer to expand my quilting skills in ways I’ve never thought about about! I love a challenge! Ann in NC playdoll2@yahoo.com
50. I have followed your quilting related boards on Pinterest, my Pin name is kittyannart. playdoll2@yahoo.com