Welcome to the Quiltblox 12 Days of Christmas! Each day until December 9th, I’ll share a word of the day that has meaning for me during this holiday season. Today’s word is: Creativity.
“Creativity is inventing, experimenting, growing, taking risks, breaking rules, making mistakes and having fun” Mary Lou Cook
I chose this word because:
Sometimes we downplay our own creativity. Why? I’m not sure, but it could have something to do with “imposter syndrome”. The reality is, we are all creative beings, and comparing ourselves to others is a pointless exercise. What would serve us better and help us grow is to acknowledge our creative accomplishments and enjoy the process of experimentation – without worrying if our efforts are “good enough”.
The word “creativity” is born in wonder. It begins the moment we see color and texture and imagine what could be. It’s rooted in play — that joyful part of ourselves that never stopped loving crayons, patterns, and possibility.
Creativity is the heart of every quilter. It’s what drives us to see beauty in scraps, to turn bits of fabric into something that tells a story. During the holidays, creativity shines extra bright—in handmade gifts, festive table runners, and the joy of giving something made with love. It’s our reminder that the best kind of magic comes from our own hands.
Our creative juices are more readily accessible if we are open to being the student rather than assuming we should be the teacher. Allowing ourselves to play with a new technique, without any expectations, can be liberating.
Just seeing something differently can ignite that spark of creativity and bring something new to your work. Here are a few examples that I’ve found helpful when I’m in a creative funk:
- Take a class on a different technique – learning even one new thing can inform my work.
- Wander with my camera (on my phone) – looking for patterns, the way the light plays on an object, or whatever else catches my eye. Turn some of those pictures into black and white on your phone – you’ll be amazed at how differently you see the image.
- When wandering through a quilt show, take a close-up look at different techniques used in the quilts that draw me in. I’ll often take very close-up shots of the portions of quilts that spark my imagination.
- Give myself a challenge, for example – pull three fabrics at random from my stash and create a quilt block using only these fabrics. This is also fun to do with a friend – having the friend choose your fabrics, and you choose theirs.
- Create a (digital) idea folder. I take a lot of pictures, and some of them are just to fuel my imagination for future projects. If you’d rather print them out – that’s awesome too!
- Adapt a block. I’ve done this one several times. The idea is to take a common quilt block (like a Bear Paw block) and turn it into something else. I once turned a Bear Paw block into a sunflower.
Ideas for taking some time to flex your creative muscles this holiday season:
I thought it would be fun to share some quilty goodies that might encourage you to explore your creativity, adding some ideas that could guide you in trying something unexpected to spark your imagination.
Follow Along
Each day, I’ll be sharing a new word of the day in the newsletter and here on the blog. I’m also sharing some other fun goodies in the Holiday Edition of the Quiltblox Newsletter – each day through December 9th. Be sure to subscribe today so you see it first.