I may be wrong but I think I've figured out Kaja of Sew Slowly and AHIQ fame. Before we get too far, though, let me tell you that every quilt on this post is Kaja's and every picture comes from Sew Slowly, with her permission. Now, indulge me for a moment:
In this post Kaja writes about her starts and stops on the quilt top she is currently working on. Kaja is a rare gem. She works intuitively from the start. That's rare, I think.
Most quilters begin with something in mind--a pattern, a combination of fabrics, a challenge--something. We begin there and play with the something in our heads. We call this play improv and it absolutely is! But it's not improv from the start: We play with that something but hold on to the essence of it. In a "come hell or high water" sort of fashion, something from the original idea will still be there when the quilt is bound.
Findhorn |
She's "fiddly" to the very end, even after decisions are made, blocks are complete, every seemingly usable piece of fabric is in the quilt. No, there always seem to be "bits" that she can find and those become something else entirely, and she figures a way to get them into the quilt. Even if it means taking things apart, again.
Lighthouses |
As I was reading her blog earlier, an analogy of Kaja's improv style struck me: She travels lightly when she quilts. Consider a journey. For her, improv is like traveling Europe on a college student's budget. What a wonderful way to go. Have you ever listened to a young person who talks about his/her trek? There never seems to be a bad experience. Everything just is.
Improv can be like that--really I have to give it a go one day soon. I wonder if I can begin with nothing except the fabric at hand. Pattern, no. Pre-cuts, no. Block style, no. No, no, no. Nothing.
Yellow Birds |
When we travel and get to a crossroads, Richard loves to stop the truck and ask, "Which way? Right or left?" I look at the map one more time and answer. Not that it matters, most of the time we're just headed in a general direction, north. Maybe north and west or maybe north then east, but the roads don't matter and place doesn't matter and time doesn't matter. We're just traveling and it's an adventure and we're together.
Moon of Fallen Leaves |
In fact we've never taken off without a bag of clothes, an ice chest of food and drink, and full tank of gas. Never. Not even when we took a day trip with a specific destination and that destination had a restaurant, hotel, gas stations, etc. We are just always prepared. Always.
The Marcottes do not travel "De manière improvisée." In Louisiana we say "on main," unprepared. I wonder whether I can quilt that way. Certainly Kaja can--like nobody else--and she is great inspiration, so maybe...
You must, must, MUST go to Sew Slowly and drool over her quilts.
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