Thinking Outside the Block

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Well, that’s thinking outside the block!

It’s time to try something new! Now is the time for you to challenge yourself to try piecing or quilting something outside your comfort zone.

Yes, I know, there is a reason the comfort zone is so cozy. There is nothing unexpected there, nothing you need worry about. No one will criticize you for anything you create in your comfort zone because you do it all so well. There is absolutely no reason to leave your place of contentment.

Except…you don’t really know what you are missing, do you? Learning a new favorite technique, creating something unexpected, discovering an original design only happens when you step outside your comfortable home and venture into the wilderness.

Yes, you will make lots of mistakes. Lots and lots of mistakes. Don’t be afraid them, they are good things! Consider them all constructive criticism. Remember Thomas Edison who said, “If I find 10,000 ways something won’t work, I haven’t failed. I am not discouraged, because every wrong attempt discarded is often a step forward….”

Besides, everything you do backwards today will be a funny story tomorrow:-))

Experimenting with a new idea need not be a lifelong commitment. You tried it, worked hard enough to know how to do it well and still don’t like it. After all that work, what did you gain?

In a word, confidence. You did it, even though that little voice in your head said you couldn’t do it. Or maybe you didn’t do it precisely the way “everyone” said you should do it, you did it your own way. Hooray! You didn’t give up and now you have the confidence to work through another challenge. Isn’t it great to know that you now have the ability to make a decision based on what you want to do – or want to challenge yourself to do – rather than the only thing you know how to do?

In her book, It’s Okay If You Sit On My Quilt, Mary Ellen Hopkins encouraged quilters to try the unusual, not just stick with the tried and true. Sometimes she imagined the possibilities with graph paper and colored pencils, and sometimes she just sewed until she got done. If she didn’t like it, she cut it up and put it together in a new way. Sometimes it’s fun to not to know the ending to a story.

So tell me about your experiences.  Have you ever been bitten by the creative muse in the wrong place?  Years ago, I was asked to create a trunk show on this topic – you can read about it here.

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