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that is so true. I was making simple half square blocks as a beginning lesson. Had a stac k. then made pin wheels...next decided to set them on point and made triangels to make the next square. all the points looked so nice. then I realized i would lose all the points when I put it together. :oops: :oops: finally got an old blanket, a neutral brown sheet and put it together with tying. It is on my porch and it is my favorite. and always will be. and I have had people ask if they can have it. :-D :-D I call it Beloved Imperfection.
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:) :) :) I think you have verbalized what we all feel....it's the process, and each quilt is an expression and is created with love.
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lets see if I can bring up my beloved imperfection quilt.....
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... hands clapping .... good for you. I quilt for me ...if someone likes it fine .... if not, that's their problem, not mine.
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i also have been quilting for 6 yrs i have been snubbed myself people look at me like im a freak i have a pierced nose and several tats but you know what i am a freak and i let my freak fly every day of the week i am an educated woman and let them judge the book by its cover at this point i would not let any body open my book to read you sound like a strong woman who is our future stand strong and proud best to you always oh by the way im 60 yrs old and i love being the freak of the week
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Originally Posted by almodent
i also have been quilting for 6 yrs i have been snubbed myself people look at me like im a freak i have a pierced nose and several tats but you know what i am a freak and i let my freak fly every day of the week i am an educated woman and let them judge the book by its cover at this point i would not let any body open my book to read you sound like a strong woman who is our future stand strong and proud best to you always oh by the way im 60 yrs old and i love being the freak of the week
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Glad you found out and stopped beating yourself.
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BRAVO !!!!! When we are a kind, gently soul, we do have a tendancy for letting people beat up on us. Glad you found your nitch. Your avatar by the way is beautiful. Thanks for sharing your experience with us.
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I agree with you. I found out recently my quilts are far from being masterpieces. I think taking part in a quilt show can open your eyes. My quilts are nice and my family and friends think they are great, but they certainly aren't blue ribbon winners. I just quilt for pleasure so this doesn't bother me.
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Bless your heart, PPQ. I am so happy you learned this lesson so young. I was about that age when I realized I did not have to play a different role for every person in my life, because I was fine, just like God made me, and life has been a lot easier since then. Be artistic to your own tune. If everyone in the band played the same instrument and the same part, where would the harmony be? Let rudeness of others slide off your back, dear. Every day in every way, we are getting better and better at being who we are, and no one else can do that for us. Bravo, and happy quilting. ;)
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It seems to me that if you enjoy what you are doing, the love will show through on your completed project, no matter what that project is.
I hope you continue to make beautiful quilts and enjoy the process. |
I think you have stated very well that quilting can encompass everything we want it to be and everything we don't. I didn't start quilting originally because I saw it as being such a perfectionist pursuit for it to work and being inclined to perfectionism myself, I felt I lacked the skills to pull it off. With the persistent encouaragement of a few friends I gave it a whirl and it has taken a few years for me to overcome my perfectionist approach because I do lack some skill to pull that off. I admire those who can and celebrate that I quilt because I love the adventure with colours in a tactile medium. I love the thoughts that go into a quilt and that there are so many techniques to suit everyone. It has challenged a weakness I had in myself and I feel more liberated and more 'artistic' than every before. No quilt police except in my head! I love the sentiment that quilts bring to myself and many others. Great postings here to confirm that too.
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At 73 I am still learning. I love to do the puzzles called "Crypt-to-quotes" and one this week was Kurt Vonnegut's quote, "TO PRACTICE ANY ART, NO MATTER HOW WELL OR BADLY,IS A WAY TO MAKE YOUR SOUL GROW SO DO IT!" It so fits!
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You go girl. Quilt for yourself.
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PumpkinPatchQuilter, it's great to read this. I'm twice your age and still struggle with the idea that perfection is a thing to be grasped. After the first year I entered something in our guild quilt show, I vowed not to do it again. Too many self-appointed quilt police!!! And too few with the heart of a teacher. So I don't show my quilts. I give them to people who will enjoy them. And I teach others who are intimidated by those expect perfection.
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Originally Posted by pumpkinpatchquilter
This is the lesson I am slowly learning. I have been quilting for 6 years, and as a new quilter I surrounded myself with some of THE most knowledgeable, and intimidating quilters in the area. I was 24 years old, green and new to the quilting world when I began. As I progressed I felt like I had to do BIGGER, BETTER, and GREATER to be taken even a little bit seriously by these women who were much older than me and knew what seemed to be SO very much more than me about quilting. If I wasn't getting snubbed for my age I was getting snubbed for my skill level. I am an artist at heart, all I wanted for years when I was young was to go to art school. That unfortunately never happened for me as I started a family early, and many of you know just how hard it is to go back to school with small children. But it was a blessing, truly, because my family is my world, and making a quilt for my daughter was what brought me to find my life's passion in quilting. All of this combined with a really awful experience with a quilt shop owner who hired me to teach a class but then treated me so rudely as if I didn't know a darn thing I was talking about has left me with this need to prove myself artistically and I feel like for the past several years I've been on this personal MISSION to prove to anybody and EVERYBODY that I am capapble, I am skilled, and gosh darnit, I'm artistic!!!
You know what? I refuse to live with that insecurity any longer, I know who I am and what I can do. Here I am. I am 30 years old, I'm a Mother first and foremost, second a wife, and third I'm a dedicated quilter. I have finally learned that FOR ME, every quilt doesn't need to be a masterpiece. Every quilt that I create does not have to knock everybody's socks off, and it doesn't have to encase all the techniques I have learned in the past 6 years to PROVE that I am a capable quilter. That is not to say I don't do the best I can with every quilt, but a corner that doesn't match perfectly doesn't always need to be ripped and resewn. Every project doesn't need to be the hardest and most complicated project I've ever done. I adore challenging projects but a simple nine patch quilt can be just as satisfying to complete as the most complicated paper pieced mariners compass. Thanks for the vent. Just thought I'd share that little revelation, because I know I'm not the only one who feels like they need to prove themselves to the local quilting veterans. ;) 40 years, and I certainly don't "know it all" , and all things are not perfect. Doesn't keep the oohs and aahs from coming tho at 'show and tell'. You are ahead of most of us if you have an artistic eye. I have noticed the first ones to offer criticizem, and tell you what you should have done are the ones that never do anything... Keep quilting, I'm sure you are doing fine. |
I have to admit that I would like my quilts to look like some of the ones that I see on here and other places, but I know I don't need them to look like those quilts to be happy with the ones that I make, because each quilt I make shows some sort of improvement and those quilts make the people I make them for happy...what more can I ask???
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I love lots of different things. I like the weather crisp in the fall and warm in the spring. I admire the lilies, tulips, daffodils, lilacs, sunflowers, and the mums. Sometimes I like a tuna sandwich and sometimes I want a slice of pizza.
We don't need to be one thing or another, or settle for one style or another. Sometimes I like a simple quilt pattern and sometimes I want a challenge. Sometimes I use 4 fabrics in a quilt, and other quilts have hundreds of fabrics. Variety is the spice of life for me. "To every thing there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the heaven." |
Thank you for saying what I have been feeling along!..:) Im a new beginner also and thought I had to quilt as all those snobby quilting groups thought I should when instead I needed to just learn from trial and error and do what was best for me. I have more confidence since coming to the board and the folks Ive met and talked with. There are no snobs here. Just good friends and good advice.
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AMEN! I haven't had my quilts criticized but I feel I have to keep making more challenging quilts with every quilt. I decided why do I need to put this pressure on myself. I can make whatever I want. I totally agree with your rant. Thanks for saying it for us.
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I'm 63, still learning, I quilt because I love to. It makes me feel good. I will never enter a contest, don't care what the "Quilt Police" say. I'm open to constructive critism, but in the end, if I like it, that's all that matters. Just remember that no matter what you do, there is always someone who can do it better, but you can do it better than someone else. So just have fun!
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What a wonderful post! Thank you!
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As in most things, people are people. There will always be ones who can only feel good about themselves by putting down others. If you are happy with your project, that is what counts. You know your skill level, you know what obstacles you faced to complete that project. Be proud of what you did and what you learned from each project!
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You are right on Pumpkinpatchquilter!
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You have shared what is on the heart of many a quilter - I never plan to show a quilt in a show, only give quilts to folks I expect will appreciate them for the quilt's sake, not for the difficulty level or how fancy the free-motion quilting is.
I DO appreciate seeing the gorgeous precise quilts others make, but it is no longer an obcession of mine to duplicate their skills. I'll keep learning and growing, I hope, but do not beat myself up over small errors. When someone criticizes anothers efforts, I think it is rude. I can take absorb constructive criticism IF it will help my process, but not just for the individual to play one-upmanship with me. Fortunately most of my quilting friends are just plain nice folks who like to quilt for others. Our bunch has no quilt police among the members. |
I agree, I have a friend who constantly pushes me to take classes and "better myself" I finally told I had no interest in being an "artist" and that creating my variations on patterns was plenty fulfilling for me. Stick to your gun and to what gives you pleasure!
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Amen!
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I quilt for me. If I give it away it is because I want to and I feel it is good. If it is bad; you will never see it. I do a lot for me but I like to share.
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I could not agree with you more.
I like most of my quilts |
Amen sister!
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The thing I like about quilting is that no matter the skill level, it always comes out a quilt. One can be gifted in the various areas of quilting, or more like me, just happy making simple quilts the best I can, for the enjoyment of it. I love to look at the beautiful quilts, and at my humble ones. So, make your quilts Pumpkin Patch. You love them, and we will too. Gary
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I too just want to do my best, but I know I never will be perfect. As long as someone enjoys my quilts that is all I ask.
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I live by none of my quilts have to be a masterpiece. I do it cause I enjoy it and I just do the best that I can. That is all I ask of myself.
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Good for you. I feel the same.
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Thanks for giving me permission to just have making the quilt even if it's not the most beautiful quilt I have ever made.
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Amen, Sista! I've finally learned that myself. I enjoy quilting soooo much more sine I learned I don't have to please anybody but myself with my work.
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You go Girl, do what you enjoy. Take or leave the information you receive from others and learn to trust yourself. Only you can walk in your shoes and please yourself and if you do that you will never be disappointed. No one defines you or your skills but yourself so please yourself and enjoy what you do. Life is a journey so enjoy where you are and what you are doing at the moment!
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Thanks for giving me permission to just have making the quilt even if it's not the most beautiful quilt I have ever made.
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I love your avatar and if anyone said it wasn't beautiful they must be nuts or blind. Stick to your guns and keep quilting your way it's the only way to go.
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Glad you now realize that you do what makes you happy and you do the best you can so it's perfect for you!! Don't be so hard on yourself, you know who you are and don't have to prove anything to anyone. Take care.
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