You've had lots of comfort & advice. I hope it helps you appreciate you for you. Hugs!

On the design side, if you haven't got electric quilt, get it. If that's too pricey or complicated, get quilt wizard.

Its the "junior" version same company just not as sophisticated.

Start playing with design. Put dif blocks together. Play and learn. I believe everyone is creative. Skill levels vary as do methods of expression.

Lots of good advice here. :) I always felt the same as you. But after awhile I realized where my weakness lay in designing quilts and where my darling SIL excelled. Now we trade ideas!! Her sense of color is better than mine but I think my sense of proportion is better than hers and we compromise (or agree to disagree!) on some layouts. Even if you feel like you are not creative there are always good ideas on google search or pinterest. Happy quilting!! :)

I'm not really that creative either, but I have often taken quilts that I saw in magazines and adapted them to what I want. I have a friend who also quilts and we bounce ideas off each other. She's not real creative either and neither of us get upset if one of use gives a negative review. We also use graph paper and colored pencils to sometimes draw out the quilt and we both have design walls.

As far as your sisters idea, maybe you could tweek it just a little to make more of your idea. It is hard to come up with ideas, but sometimes it helps to Google quilt patterns and you would be surprised of all the ideas you can get from there. Good luck with your quilt and be sure to post pictures

It's your choice, your color, your pattern, using your skills to put it all together. Be proud of what you have accomplished. I think every creative person strives to make things better. Listen to your inner self, not somebody elses ideas. Each quilt is a piece of art, and every artist is different.

Everybody has their own "talent". My mother is an artist - painting the most beautiful oil paintings. She has been doing this for over 50 years. It just dawned on my not too long ago that my mother has never painted an "original" painting in her life. All of her paintings have been copies. She has copied the "masters", copied photographs, etc. But she paints them beautifully! You might not have an original idea for a quilt but you probably make a darned good copy of one that you have seen before in a book or magazine or Pinterest, etc. What is wrong with that? If it makes somebody happy that you give it to, or makes somebody warm?????

I know how you feel. I'm profoundly color blind and I quilt. Shortly after I started quilting I realized I can't do quilts with a zillions of different fabrics/colors. I get paralyzed mentally after many attempts to make it work because I literally can't process all the different colors. I'm also somewhat geometry challenged, so complex quilts are not in my future.

Nonetheless, I do what I consider creative quilting. Creativity isn't all about complexity and color, or even talent, it's about what you do with the gifts God gave you.

My niche is 2, 3, or 4 fabric quilts. Within that niche, I make quilts that I consider creative. It's not easy; I have to audition fabrics and have my DH (or someone who I know is good with color) approve my fabric choices. I'd say my quilts are striking, perhaps more on the modern side than the traditional.

So don't concern yourself with your sister's creativity vs yours. It's the excitement that you felt before you spoke with your sister that makes quilting fun, so show her your quilts after you're finished or don't show them to her at all.

PS: I'm 65 and my sister is 69. We both quilt, but I've been doing it longer, so I've figured out how to do a few more things than she has. She will not take any suggestions from me about anything. Sadly, sibling rivalry will apparently live with us until one of us dies. That makes it hard to share the excitement and joy of quilting with her. Oh, well.

When I show a lay out of my quilt pattern to my quilting friends, someone will have a great idea to do it another way and I go WOW! what a difference and I feel happy that my quilt will be much better. I have never been being upset because I didn't think of it. I may next time so no reason to let it bother me. You may have a great idea the next time or the next so if you don't keep making quilts you never will have your own WOW quilt moment.

I read lots of words of wisdom in this post. You will gain confidence with each quilt you make. I spend a lot of time in the quilt shop seeing what other people pick out for their quilts. I look at quilts to see what it is that speaks to me about them. I have a friend who always seems to be able to give some advise which will help my quilt along. I don't have a sister to give me advice -- which is why the advice I get from others doesn't bother me. Learn from each quilt you do. I've been quilting 18 years and am so surprised at what I learn about quilting!

I understand how you are feeling. I really do. I don't even know how to help, except to say that you are not alone. Hang in there though, take comfort from us, and know that you are not alone.

Dina

Okay, dear one, take a deep breath, clear your mind of hurt and let's think this through.
Does your sister quilt? What is her creative outlet if not? Do you do it as she does?
How long have you been quilting? Do you enjoy the process more than the picking of fabrics/colors/patterns?
Are you in love with the cuddle effect of finished quilts?
Have you given any away? How were they received?
Have you taken any classes?
Do you buy books and magazines with lots of colored pictures of quilts?
Have you ever searched Google Images for pictures of quilts and thrilled at the colors and shapes?
Do you have a good sized stash or do you buy for each quilt individually?

Answers to these questions will begin to introduce you to your self as a quilter, to your habits, focus, preferences. If you will allow yourself to think about these and about what YOU want from the craft of quilting, it will help you to settle your emotions around not being what someone else may be (your sister) and allow you to be what YOU are. If you have been quilting less than, say, five years, you still have lots of developing of your own creativity and quilting personality to do. You are you...isn't that a miracle!....you aren't anyone else!

Work to develop your creativity IF that's what you *want* to do, would *like* to do.....not if you feel you *should*. Artists come in all genres, thankfully. Find your place and enjoy it as long as you want to, then grow a different direction....if you want to. Be you. You are unique. Admire the skills/talents/direction of others, but never feel the need to be like them when it isn't you.

WE at QB want to see and share and encourage your quilting; bring it to us no matter how you finish, okay?!

Hugs,
Jan in VA