After being so busy over the last year making lots of quilts, around the first of April I developed tendonitis in my upper right arm. Man! That will put a cramp (pun intended) in your style! It has been painful but more of a aggravation than anything.
I went to see an exercise physiologist about it and she felt that 4 visits with her would have me right as rain, along with some exercises to stretch the tendon. After the 2nd visit, around the first of May, I went to a weekend quilt retreat, where I spent one whole day cutting out pieces for a new quilt.
When I returned to see her the next week, she could tell I had been doing something because the tendon was very tight. When she asked what I had been doing, I told her "rotary cutting". She said I had to lay off that for a while. Enter sad face! I looked up tendonitis on the internet and found that the healing process could take 2-4 months. Well pooh! What happens when a quilter can't quilt? Loss of MOJO!
Every creative person experiences a loss of creative flow once in a while. Along with the tendonitis, I also realized that in spite of making so many wonderful quilts I had made no noticeable dent in my fabric stash. This was discouraging to me. Now to some quilters that is not a source of discouragement. To me it means that no matter how many quilts I can possibly make my children will have too much to dispose of upon my demise. Again to many quilters this is just one of the facts of life. But I also had to face the fact that I have a lot of quilts. And for me having a lot of quilts made me realize that I just don't need to make lots and lots more quilts that don't have a purpose. So I purged a bunch of fabrics that were not bringing me joy and made room for some of my quilts so I could enjoy the fruit of my labor instead of stuffing them in the closet. The first picture is of my fabric collection a year ago. The second is after making several quilts and purging fabric to make room for some finished quilts.
I still have plenty of fabric for many future quilts and I'm sure my mojo will return soon.
Meanwhile I am reading "real" books, looking at inspiration thru Instagram and Pinterest.
I have a spot that I display quilts and I usually only change them out with the seasons, leaving a whole lot of quilts hanging in the closet, not being enjoyed. So I have decided that when you don't want to sew, you can just play with what you've already made.
This quilt was an online mystery quilt. I named it Dance of the Dragonflies because there are dragonflies in the border fabric.
You can find this pattern on thisandthatpatterns.typepad.com by Sherri Falls
It is a free pattern on the right side called Mystery Monday's #3
So if your mojo has disappeared, fear not, just enjoy the world you are in as best you can and one day it will show back up and you will be better for the rest.
