Learning and Growing

Some of my blogger friends choose a particular word to use as a theme for the new year. I tried it once or twice and it didn't take long for me to forget what that word was.

I've never been one for New Year's Resolutions either; they always set me up for failure. 

That being said, it's impossible not to note a new beginning and the opportunities it brings.

2019 for me was a year of growth as a quilter. I became a really confident paper piecer. Those dirty cats can just wash themselves; truly, I'd now rather paper piece than give a cat a bath. This was a huge accomplishment for me. I'd studied paper-piecing with Sarah Bond initially when I took her New York Beauty class (what kind of a fool starts paper piecing with a New York Beauty?) and did an independent study with Bobbi Penniman. I'd done an 80-minutes-a-day project that grew the skill I had. Last summer I took two classes that involved paper piecing. The Dragonfly Dance class with Sheri Cifaldi-Morrill helped me to work with teensy pieces and an intricate design. Pickle Dish with Debby Kratovil was the final step in my growth; she taught a method unlike the others and it clicked.

The Seminar at Sea quilting cruise gave me three full-day classes with Karen Combs and I learned all kinds of tricks and different approaches. I became aware that -- without my intending so -- 2019 had been a year of growth for me as a quilter.

I am hoping that learning and growing will continue in 2020. When I filled out the quilt camp evaluation and came to the section of what else do I want to work on, I wrote Y-seams and curved piecing. When the class selection for 2020 is published, those are the classes I will look for. I don't want my growth to be willy-nilly; I want to learn things I will actually use.

Two opportunities have presented themselves already. The first is sponsored by the guild and is a day-long introduction to EQ8. I initially was excited about this but the more I thought about it, the more I knew that this wouldn't be something I would actually use.  Another possibility is the class that my friend Bobbi is planning to teach: making a fabric bowl. The one she made for her friend is beautiful. No date has been set for this as yet, but I think I am likely to give it a try.

I've thought about trying to gain more skill in free piecing, in making letters, and a couple of other things. Right now I'm working on the challenge of binding angles other than 90 degrees as I finish my Triangles quilt. 

Learning and Growing -- the plan for 2020. Let's see how it goes!