ARE YOU READY?

There are seven principles of learning. The first is readiness. Are you ready or is there something holding you back? What holds you back from creating that special quilt – is it the fear of failure? (Flying geese are impossible.) Or maybe it’s fear of success. (Are you insane? Who fears success?) Sometimes the fear is that people will expect too much of you if you succeed. You’ll have to do better next time. Maybe there is too much responsibility involved. Maybe you’re afraid your friends will think you’re being snooty or smug, or acting jealous. Maybe you’re afraid your friends will reject you, tell you they don’t like what you’ve done.

WHO CARES? What matters is that you like what you have created. Even if you decide you don’t like your recent project (this is how UFOs happen), don’t let it just sit there cluttering up your sewing room. Attend the monthly UFO class at the Attic Window, finish that project and give it to the needy. All your work is never a loss. You learned something, didn’t you? Maybe all you learned is that you will never use those colors again, or you’ll never make that pattern again. Great! Move on. Let this learning experience be a prize at the next church function. Donate it to your favorite charity.

Let’s face it. No one is perfect, so don’t kill yourself trying. Brian Clark said in a recent article that accomplishing anything is better than doing nothing. So don’t be afraid to step out and take that risk. What is at risk if you finish that UFO? Start that new project? Choose some fabrics totally different from what you’ve ever used before? What’s the worst thing that can happen? Each time you take a risk you move forward, you build self-confidence. You won’t be alone when you take a class at the Attic Window. Join others in learning a new technique, mastering something like triangles, or paper piecing, or making a perfect binding, or appliqué. There are a myriad of classes you can take and things you can learn when you do. For instance, what is the pictured tool used for? Rummage through your old sewing supplies and you’ll probably find one. Don’t toss it out. Add it to your quilting supplies. Come to the Monthly Sampler and learn about this tool, as well as many other techniques that will be demonstrated during the following months. Don’t forget, if you attend 6 sessions, with your blocks completed, the 7th session is free!!
Are you ready?

Hot Spot of the Week: Fat Cat Patterns has added a new Baltimore Bliss BOM. It will run from Feb. 2009 through Jan. 2010. Hop on over and take a look.