Quilt Fatigue: Have You Had It?
I have quilt fatigue over my current project, and I’m betting you’ve had it, too. Here’s how it goes—you’ve pieced 30 or 40 quilt blocks from your favorite fabrics. You’ve enjoyed the heck out of making this patchwork. But you have many more blocks to go, and somehow your attention begins, inexplicably, to drift.
My current project: Fractured by Kathy Doughty from the book Making Quilts with Kathy Doughty, ctpub.com.
It’s not the project’s fault. In fact, I love my current endeavor. It’s Kathy Doughty’s Fractured design from the Making Quilts book. It’s amazing! It goes together quickly and easily, it’s perfect as a scrap quilt, and it makes for a real “wow” factor. What’s not to adore?
Nevertheless, because I got restless, because I have quilt fatigue, I found an empty space on the studio floor and started this little gem. I’m having so much fun with it! It’s going to be my next free pattern. It’s been done many times before but not with these exact fabrics or with my exact fabric sensibilities. It always feels good to make something uniquely my own.
This will become my next free pattern, although truly you don’t need a pattern—it’s just half-square triangles. If you’re just getting started in quilting, maybe you’ll enjoy having instructions, and if you want to use your stash, I’ll talk specifically about combining fabrics in ways that work.
Right now I’m trying to decide if I can work in some navy. I definitely want it to say “Christmas,” and if I stray too far from the recipe, that message could get lost. Stay tuned.
All the quilts in this post will become part of my “Jingle Bells” trunk show for quilt guilds. It’s so much fun to share holiday quilts and get people excited to sew for Christmas well ahead of time. Call and book your program today!
So how do you work through quilt fatigue? I’m afraid this happens to me often, which I why I have a lot of UFOs. When I hear someone say they have zero unfinished projects, I’m astounded. How do you even do that?! Maybe you can give the rest of us some guidance in the comments. I’d love to hear from you!
Check out the current free pattern for a small scrap quilt called Christmas Dance that finishes at 27″ x 31″.
Christmas Dance by Diane Harris. Photo: Kristen Laing Photography.
Tags: Christmas quilts, Fractured quilt, free patterns, Kathy Doughty, scrap quilts
Anne Wiens
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That zigzag you’re working on would make a great practice pattern for the Tucker Trimmer. I’m going to have to stop reading your blog. You give me too many ideas!
BTW- the navy row works because you already have the turquoise row there.
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Ann Hibbs
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I know what you mean. I tend to get quilt fatigue if I’m making lots of the same blocks. For me, it’s the monotony of doing the same thing repetitively. I’m less likely to develop quilt fatigue if I have a specific reason to make the quilt – a show, a gift, etc. If it’s just for me because I fell in love with the fabric or the pattern, I’m more likely to set it aside for a while and work on smaller, finish-it-quick projects. Once I’ve “rewarded” myself for finishing some smaller projects, I’m ready to pick up that bigger project and resume. After I finished a quilt for my hubby’s June birthday, I went back to the hexie Rose Star quilt that has been languishing in a pile on my work table. Time to get that puppy done!
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