I took an online class from Carla Barrett. She discusses everything to take into account when quilting, including if the quilt design is masculine or feminine (geometric or curvy), who it's for, whether it will be a utility quilt or a wall hanging, so forth and so on. Then she shows how to take inspiration from everyday things around you and incorporate it into quilting designs. It was a fantastic class, I highly recommend it if you want to take your quilting to the next level. You can see examples of how she designs here:
http://featheredfibers.wordpress.com...-online-class/