One of the things that help inspire me is to work on something different, like preemie quilts or charity quilts. I very much enjoy doing something for someone that will never know it was me that did it.

I have a couple of preemie quilts I am working on now that are so sweet! I love to work on those. I love the kids-size to work on too. Oh, heck, I like to work on every size, but I get the greatest joy working on the ones for the babies and the children. Edie

Are there special requirements on preemie quilts? Also what size are they?

Both of my kids were preemies. I would love to make some quilts for those precious "little" ones whose start in life is so tough. Are there organizations who specialize in distributing those quilts?

When I get quilter's block I do one of the following:

I have lots of jeans that need to be cut for jean quilts. Getting those seams and waistbands cut off helps on space and when I am ready to start a jean quilt, I can jump right in.

I will start a small project, like a baby quilt to donate. It doesn't take long and you feel like you have accomplished something!

I will go through my scrap box and cut strips and squares for future projects.

Those things usually help. I will say that I kind of like the chocolate idea. I may have to incorporate that into my list!!!

OK.. when I got tired of quilting.. I quit quilting... yep..just boxed it all up.. (not as much then as I have now) and put it away.. I have learned to tat, crochet, counted cross stitch,knit..I've done woodwork projects and done landscaping and the list goes on.. but I always have been a fabric collector. and behold.. one day I got the urge again.. and got EVErYTHING out and now I'm piecing again.. but you know.. it's not a contest and I don't HAVE to have them to cover my loved ones.. it's a hobby!! So quit pressuring yourself.. when you're ready you'll do it.

Mine is 36x36 finished, I believe (I haven't finished it yet). I get mine from Quilts for Kids. They do the preemie and the kid size. Both are equally rewarding to make. But the preemie ones are special to you, I am sure. Edie

Thanks Edie! I have done the QFK's ones. Didn't know they had preemie ones too!

I do them for a local hospital. Some places say to use 100% cotton batting and others say not to use any batting at all. 18" X 21" is a good size. The main idea is that they aren't too large thereby the parents don't have to fight any 'over hang' when having their child in their arms. The nurses also use them to put over an incubator to shield the harsh light from the child. The quilt goes home with the child when they leave the hospital.
I would suggest that you contact a local children's hospital and make arrangements to donate.

OH. and NO QUILTING on these. You also need to be sure that no loose threads are there and NO embellishments are to be used. Not even applique..

Thank you for the information! I will contact the local hospital for more reguirements. My youngest daughter had preemie twins. They spent one month in NICU. We practically lived at the hospital during that time. They are 5 yrs. old now & precious!

When I have the "quilter's creative block" problem I just find a UFO to work on. Before I get it done the new project usually comes to mind. Another thing that helps is to put "want to do that someday" samples/info into a basket ahead of time and draw from it. If the block is bad enough, I just look on this site or the catalogs for inspiration.

I make a lot of very simple little quilts for the local hospital. They are single piece of interesting fabric for top, batting, backing, quilted vertically about every 4.5" and do binding by hand. when I have a mental block I start putting these together. First step is layering and pinning, second step is quilting and third is binding.l

I do this and not waste time worrying about "the next project". In almost all cases an idea will come to me while doing this.

I will also put some groups of fabric in plain sight as I work on other things and again, ideas will start coming.

An example of an unintended project. My sister sent me two of her "quilty" dresses. One had never been worn the other had been made from a primitive line of fabric back in the 90's. I was going to give them to the quilt guild for their sale table. I did give the new one to them. I kept the one my sister had made. It was a tiered gathered skirt made of 6" squares. I decided to take it apart and make a small quilt top to send back to her to finish and give to one of her chairity projects. The fabric is still good as the dress had been worn only a few times. I found some solid that matched exacttly.

So inspiration can come when you least expect it and often when you are not searching for it. Find something simple to do in the meantime. We do think while sewing - Right?

I keep my scraps organized by width ( 1 1/2, 2, 2 1/2 etc.) in empty see through plastic boxes from the grocery just for my down times. Maybe some day I will have a down day!

I have found that I usually take more time finishing something that I am making for myself. If it is for someone else it seems that I have a deadline, such as Christmas or the person's birthday. You could start one for a friend.

I put together a list of projects I want or need to work on with a proposed completion date. Once I'm ready for a new project I look at what I really need to get finished soon and do that next.

So many good ideas to get the juices flowing. Thanks to all the suggestions.