taiboo

I saw a quilt at a shop that i loved, so i bought fabrics that i love and came home....issue is, it is all free style cutting, there is no pattern...the pieces go in all different directions, different shapes...etc.

I desperately want to do this, i usually make my own patterns, but this particular style has no real pattern...its more of a fly by the seat of your pants kind of thing...cut here...cut there...make it all fit together.

It's exciting to have this challange ahead of me, but i never realized how much i think inside the box... my husband is like...just start cutting and see where you wind up...I don't know if i have this in me to do it.

Can anyone relate? How do you get past the fear of messing up lol???

Thanks
Kimberly

Chasing Hawk

I had this issue last night. I am working on a Take 5 quilt for one of our granddaughters. The pattern instructions say to turn each one a certain amount of times to make it look "scrapy". I started to go bonkers, because all my working career it all had to line up. I still can't get the idea of letting it go with the flow as they say when it comes to my quilts.
I have to remember...Perfection is NOT an option, nothing is to be Perfect it's disrespectful to Wakan Tanka.

Finally after several breaks, a dinner of leftover Tuna casserole, I finally got it the way I want it.
But no peeks until I am done with the other 2 and Curtis Ray's turtle quilt.

NJ Quilter

You are much braver than I would be! I'm a pattern girl myself. I'd be beside myself having bought all that fabric and finding there was no 'pattern' to follow!

taiboo

i knew when i was picking out all my fabric that there was no pattern... I really thought i would have no issues with it...now here the fabric sits on my cutting table and i'm nervous, didn't really think it would be hard for me lol

GingerK

Whenever I am afraid of a 'pattern' or technique, I go to my scrap bag, pull out the crappiest pieces I can find, and make a practice block. Why not try that as a gentle baby step into the world of 'letting go'.

erstan947

This is not brain surgery......it is just fabric! GingerK has great advice....do a practice block or quilt then just jump in~don't over think it We want to see how you progress. Quilting is suppose to be FUN!!

auntpiggylpn

This is why I can't do the "paper bag" technique when I do a scrappy quilt - I just can't relinquish that control!!!

taiboo

I will def be trying it this way...thank you for the great advice

MissSongbird

I feel like that type of person. I like measurement and some sort of direction when I quilt. That thought of just sticking stuff together worries me, but quilts like this tend to be so beautiful. My sister can through together a quilt with random pieces and it ends up looking far more technical than it actually was.

I say go for it! I still haven't found the guts yet to do it myself. haha

Jan in VA

Making a practice block of fabrics you can bear to use up will help.

Also, sit down and think your way through this hang up.
1. What will happen if you use the fabric you bought?
2. If you worry that you'll " make a mistake," what is the worst that will happen?
3. And if that worst happens, what is the worst that will happen then?
4. What will you feel if you totally hate what you've done? How can you get rid of that feeling?
5. What is the worst that can happen if you feel bad? And after that, what will be the worst?

Walk yourself thru this "what is the worst...." process. Decide how much you can live with and still be safe, whole, healthy, happy, and a good person. Usually this little exercise will help you see that the worry and hesitation is way out of bounds of the reality of the outcome. So you will have spent some money in a way that wasn't (choose your adjective.... wise/smart/responsible/unselfish...) Using this, you likely can come to a "so what?!" place and go for it!

Good luck,
Jan in VA