Jill, The Quilt Rat

Please join me in welcoming today’s guest blogger, Jill – The Quilt Rat. I have been a long-time follower of Jill’s. Her experiments and ideas never cease to amaze me. I hope you’ll become a follower too and be inspired.

Have you ever asked yourself why you quilt? … What you love most about this art form? Do you follow the rules or do you break them? Do you stress over every cut, stitch and fabric selection or do you allow yourself to be immersed in the pleasure quilting can bring?

What draws me to quilting, is the fascinating variety of styles and techniques, the possibilities seem endless. For me, it is really more about enjoying the process than about the finished piece. I love to test out ideas, to try techniques that are new to me. I use my blog as a way to document the results of my experiments and to track my evolution as an artist.

Not having an art background or training means that I don’t know what you are NOT supposed to do, it gives me freedom, freedom from rules, freedom to explore and discover something new with every piece I create.

If you come by my blog, you will see pieces that have employed some unusual items such as rocks, leaves, paper, dryer sheets and other found objects. I quite often create my own fabrics using paints, inks, crayons, pens, pencils, sun printing, bleach, dye, image transfer, stencils and anything else I can think of. Most importantly, I do what brings me joy. Not everything turns out the way I plan but sometimes that can lead me into a whole new and wonderful direction.

I am delighted to be able to share my ideas and am thrilled to hear from others that something I have shown has inspired them to try some things they may have otherwise thought they could not do.

Nothing is more true, than the saying, "You never know until you try".

Visit Jill at The Quilt Rat.