Well, for me, it's definately a creative outlet. I was told early on that it was an obsession and that was very true. I love finding patterns that inspire me and I have 100's of them filed in notebooks....I mostly love picking all the fabrics for a particular quilt. It's very fulfilling. I love applique' and lust over many patterns and books...probably have most of them...LOL,LOL and maybe someday , if I live as long as Methusalah, I'll get them done.....Those with the most quilting projects live the longest! LOL,LOL I dearly love the entire process and have been at this about 10 years which started when a friend asked me to attend a quilt piecing class with her, which I finally did. I finished my quilt, but she never finished hers ....Hope to be able to do it for the rest of my life. I do everything by machine, the applique', the piecing and the quilting.... except the final edge of the binding, and attaching the machine embroidered labels,(which I make myself)...those I do by hand.