An Original Fall Flavor--Not Pumpkin, Please!

There's no doubt when autumn blows in. The dippey cones disappear from Mickey D's, and then overnight, everything everywhere turns into PUMPKIN! Good news for you Pumpkin Lovers, but 'mehhh' for those of us who just tolerate it. Hold the Pumpkin Spice, ladies! I prefer to welcome the season with a project focused on some bright, fall colors.  


I've been drawn to buy browns lately, and they go nicely with pink, orange, blue, green, etc. You get it--brown is a neutral, but it can add rich color, too. I dug through my stash, and was excited with the colors I found to complement it. What do you think? Can you see a splashy quilt anchored with brown up there? 

One super fun line I found last week was "Daydream" by Kate Spain. Looking closely after I bought a half yard piece, I saw a llama, or maybe it's an alpaca. How fun! This is a perfect design to fussy cut into a design. Hmmmm. How can I make that happen here?

As for piecing pattern, this next quilt is more about color so the pattern will be secondary. I like the simplicity of a nine patch, but maybe a pinwheel. I'll do some test blocks, and see what wows me. Who knows? Maybe I'll wind up with a variety to get in that llama. 

How about you? Do YOU ever start a quilt not knowing exactly how it will turn out? 

How would that make you feel? 

At one time, it might have been hard for me, but now this is my preferred method. I know if it's not going in a direction I'm happy with, I have the choice and power to change it. I love knowing there's a surprise waiting in the project, and I'm not just making a copy of someone else's quilt. I have less of a need to be matchy-matchy, and I value originality more the older I get. So--

Let's poke the Originality Bug this coming month. 

Go outside your comfort zone. 

Change it up. 

Tweak it. 

Make it yours.

You may by pleasantly surprised by your own imagination and creativity.

Show 'em what you've got inside.

Come on, Doxie girls.

There's work to do.

Let's go sew.