I get inspired by colors, patterns and believe it or not... the mistakes. I figure if someone can make a quilt with mistakes (we all know they have them) and have the quilt hanging for the show for everyone to see, then I shouldn't feel bad giving a quilt to family and friends. I kind of get the feeling that its a learning process and I do come away with learning something new on every quilt. usually from the mistakes I have to undo LOL. My goal when I start a quilt is to learn something new, a pattern, new technique etc. and to have it look good not perfect. If I strive for perfection, I'd never get anything finished