Asymmetry

When I was young i strove to make things that were symmetrical. I found balance soothing. Balance was beautiful to me. And who doesn't like balance? But as I grew older I was exposed to new ideas.

One such idea was brought to my attention by my "artsy" and delightful friend Pinnotheres. ..who asked me why I always worked so hard to make everything symmetrical. My response was a snarky "Because I can" (for someone who was uncomfortable admitting they were an artist I had a strong loyalty to my own sense of style as a teenager. ) Being a true friend Pinnotheres took my snark in stride and responded with "Well, yeah, but anyone can do symmetry. It's all over the natural world for instance...even leaves are symmetrical...don't you want to be unique? "

She was wise beyond our years. It wasn't long before her question began to rattle in my head. Of course I wanted to be unique. I was after all "highly original" as far as I was concerned. And I wanted what I created (even if I was still unwilling to admit I was an artist) to be as unique--and beautiful-- as myself.  I decided to try this "asymmetry" idea, but quietly by myself so no one could make fun of me.

Maybe it was the lure of the new...the excitement of living outside the rules...but without the social consequences of breaking actual societal norms.  Or maybe the asymmetry spoke to my soul in honeyed words. Or, perhaps it is just that asymmetry led to more complex symmetry and that in turn led to less boredom. Whatever the reason, the style soon became part of my artistic expression. I don't use it in everything that I do, but it can be found in many things that I have created.

So, in short--give asymmetry a chance; it can be beautiful, sexy, and interesting.

Happy Crafting,
Seckmea

Internet: quilting pattern maker

Ah, my quilting obsession...never far away...it lurks waiting to pounce when one least expects it!

In this case I was ambushed by the desire to quilt upon meeting my brand new niece! She is so beautiful! And she doesn't have a quilt yet! The fact that I am still deep into the fiddly bits of quilting my other nieces quilt is of no consequence and quite besides the point to my obsession and it sprung itself forcefully into my creative mind....thereby stalling all progress and previously mentioned quilt. (This is, no doubt, why I can never finish things in a timely manner!)

I suddenly had the need to choose the colors I would use. This decision was easily made when my brother said he would like something with purple and blues...Ha! The Fool! Those are two of my most favorite colors...he played right into my creative wheelhouse...all without the slightest urging on my part! Mwahahahaha! Not that I would admit this to him but I was obviously very pleased with this. I had to do more than two colors though. So, I added indigo/teal/green/black to the mix....and other colors as accents depending on the patterns that I chose.

Of course, since the colors were decided I needed to go and buy some fabric (despite having many fabrics of those colors in my stash they were not enough...they never are). The fabric stores, brilliantly, were actually having a Labor Day Sale...so, I got more bang for my buck! This rarely happens to me (inevitably I want to quilt when the fabrics are all full price!) It was glorious. My sister in law was bemused I think about how ravenously I went through the bolts.  I think she was also rather shocked at how quickly this process took me. 30 minutes per store...most of that waiting in line to pay. I can be decisive when I have a vision. 

Now I have all of these lovely fabrics...and I am torn between the design to use! I could of course simply go with the design that I used for her brothers (randomly putting the fabric together willy-nilly until I was pleased with the final outcome) but, I rather wanted to do something new.

In the new pattern category there are three strong contenders. Design Contender One: a quilt composed of patches that are long thin strips (this would be quick and easy and I think it would look rather lovely). Design Contender Two: a quilt that is chevron striped (this is rather promising since her mom has several baby things with this pattern already so it would fit in with the sense of style that appeals to my sister in law...always a plus). And Design Contender Three: a quilt composed of several huge star blocks...one that is ten times the normal star block size (at that size the quilt would practically fly together, which would be refreshing since it usually takes me an age to finish a quilt...as we know).

Not that it matters too much because I am not cutting fabric or anything until I am at the point of starting her quilt. However, while trying to decide which I wanted to do...I came across a website that will allow you to upload a photo...and then it will create for you a quilt pattern (or knitting or cross stitch, what have you) along with a color breakdown etc.! Here is its link...

http://www.vam.ac.uk/microsites/quilts/patchwork/34646/Mario_side

I have yet to check how easy it is to use...I worry if I put a picture in it that I will abandon my purpose and fail to finish the quilts I have in progress already and crush my niece and nephews spirits.  So...now I have more to decide! Do I stick with a pattern similar to what I have done before, do I go with one of the three new patterns, or do I decide to recreate a picture?! I can't decide. So, I suppose that it is a good thing that I do not have to make this decision at this time...sometimes having too many choices feels restrictive. It isn't restrictive, but my mind can't focus, and thus I am unable to make a choice. However, with as much time as I have until I am ready to start her quilt I am confident I will have made up my mind. And if not, there is always the "draw a choice from a hat" method.