7 Tips for Planning Your Next Project

Every project has to start somewhere. The time spent planning your next work of art is arguably the most important part of the creative process. This is where you’ll decide what you want to make, why you’re making it, and how you’ll do it. Here are seven ideas for getting the most out of your next sewing project design session...

1. Have a resource library.

Whether you design your own projects or enjoy working from ready made patterns, it helps to have a library full of ideas to get you started. This can include books, magazines, patterns, blogs, websites, online idea boards, or a set of bookmarks on your computer. Having these resources at hand helps me when…

• I want a pattern that’s ready to go quickly.
• I need help with a specific technique.
• I’m stuck for ideas and need inspiration.

Keep in mind that you don’t have to limit yourself to sewing publications. I’m tremendously inspired by works about interior decorating, travel, architecture, fashion, general crafting, and vintage design. You are the curator of your library, so choose items that are important, useful, and meaningful to you.

2. Be a librarian.

Have a system for keeping your print items in order. Bookshelves are the most obvious solution for stashing your books and magazines, but wooden crates, heavy wire bins, and magazine files work too. I use all of the above options for different types of publications.

Patterns are also a part of your library, and there are plenty of ways to organize them. Keep each one in a separate file folder, school portfolio, manilla envelope, or clear plastic bag. Any of these options will fit neatly inside a wire basket or file box, where they’ll be ready when you need them.

3. Know what you like.

When you’re deciding what to sew next, be honest with yourself about what you like to make. We all have projects in our past that we started for some reason but abandoned because they just didn’t work for us. When this happens a lot, it can be frustrating to see that stack of unfinished projects.

The longer you sew, the more you’ll know what kind of projects you do best, and this will help you be both practical and thoughtful when choosing a project. Also remember that your tastes are going to change over time. The artist you are today is not the one you were even a year ago. You may find that projects, quilting styles, fabrics, or colors that once excited you, now seem to have lost their appeal. This is completely normal. Sometimes you’ll be surprised to find yourself falling in love with those items all over again later on, but if not, you can always pass them on to others who will be happy to give them a new home. Just remember that there’s no greater waste than investing time in projects you don’t love just because you think you’re supposed to.

4. Stretch yourself.

Don’t be afraid to try something new once in a while. This is how you grow. I’ve found that many things I was once afraid to try (zippers, bags, hexagons) became favorite projects, many of which opened up great opportunities for me. And even if you don’t end up loving that new technique, you’ve still gained valuable experience.

5. Stock an art station.

Keep a set of art supplies on hand so that you can capture ideas when you think of them. My workspace is always stocked with pencils, erasers, colored pencils, a ruler, graph paper, and unlined paper. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve run to my desk so that I can sketch out a design before it disappears from my head. Having these materials nearby is so helpful when inspiration strikes.

6. Choose your fabrics thoughtfully.

Are you going for a wild and crazy mix of prints and colors? Is this project for a child or an adult? Should you stick to a color palette? Having all these questions settled in your mind before you start pulling the fabric out of your cabinet will keep you focused when you're making decisions later on.

Also remember that if you don’t love it now, you won’t love it later. This applies to pretty much everything in the sewing process, including the prints you choose. Don’t start sewing until you love the fabric stack in front of you. Too often I've ignored that little voice in my head that said, "I'm not sure I like this" and lived to regret it...every single time.

7. Practice.

Scientist Linus Pauling once said, "The best way to have a good idea is to have a lot of ideas." It's so true. Designing projects, choosing winning fabric combinations -- these things take time and practice. The more you do it, the more you'll feel comfortable with what you like. Keep practicing every week and, if possible, keep a record of your work through a notebook, blog, or social media account. When you look back over that creative journey, you'll be surprised at how far you've come.

How do you choose your sewing projects? Do you prefer to work with ready made patterns, do you like designing your own, or a little of both? Any tips for the design table?

The Return of Fabric Auditions

One of the best things about getting my fabric stash organized after our move was that it got me excited about doing fabric auditions again. I am absolutely crazy about my new Sterilite chocolate colored plastic woven baskets which I'm using to sort my prints by color. They're large enough to hold a lot of fabric, and they perfectly match my great-grandfather's old cabinet where I keep them. Now that I can see all my prints so easily, it's been a lot of fun to get back into my weekly habit of putting together stacks of fabric for real or imagined projects. I try to share at least one of these bundles on Instagram each week, and it's been great to start building up my collection of ideas again.

I call this stack "Librarian," and it reminds me of old libraries and vintage books -- two of my favorite things. I really like this mix of colors along with all the black and white prints. I don't have a project in mind for these fabrics yet, but I really would love to turn them into a quilt.

This stack was inspired by the Rifle Paper Co. note card on the right. I named it "Summer House," and it reminds me of lazy August picnics and lush fruit orchards. This stack could work as is, but I'm not sure if I'm done rearranging and adding to it yet. The more I play with this bundle, the easier it will be for me to decide what I want to make with it. That's the great thing about fabric auditions: they're a good way to get the creativity flowing whether I have a project in mind or not.

Take a few minutes today and try creating a fabric audition of your own. For your inspiration, start with a color palette, a theme, a picture -- anything that you're loving right now. Share it with me through a link in a comment below or tag me on Instagram @fabricmutt with the hashtag #fabricaudition. I would love to see what you put together!

Fall Mug Rug

From the moment my calendar turns to September, I'm ready to welcome fall back with open arms. That means pumpkins on my dining room table, molasses cookies in the oven, and sweaters in my closet -- even if it's still too warm to actually wear them. I also had fall on the brain when I was doing this week's fabric audition, a stack called Autumn Bonfire, which I put together to make a mug rug for my dad's new desk. 

This was the original bundle that I pulled for the project. I ended up changing a few prints slightly, but I basically stayed with this mix of gold, tangerine, and navy blue. 

A Charley Harper print took center stage, surrounded by the other rectangles, giving me a mat that measures approximately 9 x 12". I backed the piece in a wonderful map design by Tim Holtz and used a brown wicker print by Juliana Horner for the binding. 

And there it is...another little glimpse of fall in my house. How I love it!

Fabric Audition: Palm Springs

It's been a while since I've posted a fabric audition on the blog, but I'm hoping to share at least one or two of these each month from now on. Along with a curated stack of fabric, I'll be sharing a Pinterest board of photos to go along with the theme as well as a project made from the auditioned prints. I always enjoy auditioning fabrics, and adding these last two steps to the process has been so much fun!

Audition Stats (top to bottom): Barcelona City Map in Saffron by Zen Chic for Moda, Essential Dots Black on White by Moda, Modern Home Little Leaves by Monaluna, Nicey Jane Picnic Bouquet in Tangerine by Heather Bailey for Free Spirit, Sun Print Feathers in Onyx by Allison Glass for Andover, Botanics Foliage in Tangerine by Carolyn Friedlander for Robert Kaufman

Today's stack is inspired by the sunny shades of Palm Springs, that famously lovely desert spot located just over an hour away from where I live. I've had some wonderful vacations there with family and friends over the years. The heat is intense, but beautiful views and great food make up for it. You'll find some fabulous examples of retro design there too, several of which you can see on my Palm Springs Fabric Audition Pinterest board.

I decided to make a simple striped pouch from this audition. These prints look great with yarn dyed Essex linen in leather, and I love the orange Aurifil thread that I used to quilt the front and back. The pouch is lined in the floral Heather Bailey print which is such a happy thing to see each time I open that zipper.

I have more fabric auditions in the works as we speak, but feel free to let me know in the comments below if you have any themes or color palettes that you'd like to see me tackle this year. If I put something together with your idea, I'll be sure to give you and your blog a mention in my post!

Graph Paper QAL: Fabric & Themes

It’s been wonderful to hear how many of you are going to be sewing along with us for the Graph Paper Quilt Along! There's a lot of freedom built into this event on purpose. I want it to be a fun, relaxing experience for all of you.  Remember that the only requirement is that you use patchwork squares – any size, any fabric, any pattern. Just to get you started, I’ve pulled together some ideas that will work for either your quilt or your small projects. Take a look and see what you like!

Fabric Auditions

Unless you have a stack of prints that you’re dying to use in your next project, you may be looking for some inspiration. Here are a few auditions from my own stash: 

I love these colors together. They remind me of summer sunsets.

1. Go Solid: a project made with only solids is so clean and modern. Limit your color palette for special effect.

I used the print on the left from the Grey Abbey collection to guide the rest of my choices.

2. Go Low Volume: Use prints with a predominantly white or cream background for a look that’s quiet but still full of personality.

I love mixing up a rainbow of colors with kid friendly prints.

3. Go Juvenile: Kid friendly novelty prints make wonderful “I-Spy” projects, perfect for games and storytelling activities with the little ones in your life.

A portion of my embarrassingly large Denyse Schmidt stash

4. Go Designer: We all have our own private hoards of fabric by our favorite designers. Instead of letting those prints languish on the shelf, this is your chance to showcase them in a practically foolproof project.

Of course, there are plenty of other themes to choose from. Pick a design element like dots, flowers, or geometric prints. Take the color palette from one favorite print and pull other fabrics to match. Use two complementary fabric collections from different designers and mix them up for a totally new look. The possibilities are endless!

Close up from my first Mosaic Bag - a loose variation on a plus pattern

Pattern Ideas

There’s nothing wrong with just spreading your squares out randomly and sewing them together, but some of you may be looking for something a little more unique or would just rather work off an established pattern. Here are some links that might interest you. 

1. Modern plus pattern

2. Granny squares

3. Pixelated heart

4. Super simple squares

5. Stashbuster Block

6. Tiny Nine Patch

Remember that this quilt along is all about fun and creativity. If you decide to add some borders or a rogue half square triangle to your pattern, I'm not going to kick you out on a technicality. Try to stick to the square pattern as much as you can, but if something amazing is calling your name, then answer the call! Now is the time to start choosing fabric and a pattern, and then you'll want to get to work on cutting out all those beautiful squares. I'll have a few cutting tips for you on Monday along with our first small project tutorial link. Is it a good pattern? Let's just say that I want to make a million of these...

Sunday Stash (Better Late Than Never)

Pineapple Upside Down Cake -- the very first Fabric Audition

Yes, my Sunday Stash Link-up post was meant to be up yesterday, but we'll just smile and pretend that I'm not late to the party that's supposed be happening at my own blog. Sigh. Just when I think I have all my ducks in a row, one of them goes swimming off to the deep end of the pond... My thanks to our gracious hostess Fiona of Finding Fifth for not banishing me from Sunday Stash link-ups for life!

This year I've started a fun little habit here at Fabric Mutt that I call "Fabric Auditions." Every week or so, I pull a stack of fabrics according to a certain theme. Some of them end up becoming actual projects and some are just a pretty stack, but it's all good fun and great practice for the design portion of my brain. I highly recommend that you give it a try with your own stash at least once a month.

This week's stack is called Autumn Sky, and it's destined to become a lap quilt for my father. My dad was loving the colors in my California Road Trip bundle (which you can still purchase from Tactile Fabrics here, by the way), so I tried to come up with guy-friendly prints that were along those lines. I ended up with a bundle of fabrics that were a bit more saturated and almost woodsy in flavor. This will be the first quilt I've ever made for my dad, which I'm kind of excited about too. I'm hoping to have finished pictures in the next month, so stay tuned.

Have some fabric in your stash that you'd like to share? Take some pictures, write a post, and show it off!

Fabric Audition: Rainbow Sherbet

My little Bear inspired this fabric bundle with the prints she chose for her quilt over the weekend. These bright, saturated colors make me think of frosty scoops of rainbow sherbet.

My girls would definitely approve.

Fabric Audition: Patriotic Picnic

It seemed like Independence Day deserved its own fabric audition. This little stack reminds me of the Fourth of July festivities we had every year in the small town where I grew up: a parade down main street, picnic concerts in the park, and flags everywhere.

Happy Fourth!

The Week

Well, I'll tell you...it's been quite the week around here. Our internet service has been dying a slow death, which is why the blog has been a bit more quiet than usual. Every time the internet is working, I'm in the middle of something, and every time I'm ready to post, it's down. A new internet router is supposedly coming to our rescue and should be arriving by mail tomorrow. Unfortunately the old router and our car's transmission seem to have made a suicide pact when we weren't looking, so we're taking our minivan in for what will in all likelihood be the most expensive auto service appointment in history tomorrow morning. Perhaps all this explains why I suddenly wanted to burst into happy tears when I found this package in my mailbox today.

This is my California Road Trip blogger bundle that I put together for Jennifer at Tactile Fabrics, and I have to say, it looks even better in person than it did on the computer screen. I can hardly wait to start cutting out pieces for a summer quilt from this happy little stack of fabrics. It looks like the bundles are definitely selling, so head over to Jennifer's shop if you want to grab one for yourself before they're gone. You can get a fat eighth bundle for as little as $16.25, which should still (hopefully) be in even my price range after we get tomorrow's repair bill from the auto shop.



I also wanted to show you this wristlet that I made on Sunday night for a friend of mine. I used a navy print from Bonnie and Camille's Happy Go Lucky line, definitely one of my favorite fabric collections of the past year. My friend and her husband love to travel -- in fact, he just finished leading a tour group through historical European sites relating to the Reformation -- so I tucked a little travel journal inside just for fun.

My dad and I were commiserating over the dinner table this evening about the unending parade of disasters we've had this week -- did I mention that his recliner broke beyond repair last night? seriously -- and I couldn't believe the list as I ticked off everything that had died over the past seven days. My dad just shook his head, "Ah, the week of death..." Then he grinned, "Well, as long as none of us dies, I think we're doing okay."

And now I'd better press the "publish" button before my computer blows up or something...

Linking up to Finish It Up Friday.

Blogger Bundle & Zakka Set

I'm thrilled to announce that my blogger bundle is now up for sale at Tactile Fabrics on Etsy! Jennifer was kind enough to let me have some fun with the wonderful modern prints she has to offer in her shop, and I absolutely love the result. California Road Trip is a fabric stack that reminds me of many a trip I've taken on Pacific Coast Highway, my home state's famous Route 1. I chose a palette of aqua, yellow, orange, cream, and white -- with a few text prints in there too (you know I couldn't resist!). It's everything that reminds me of summer, and I can't wait to get one of these bundles myself to start working on a picnic quilt to use with the kids. You can buy either a fat quarter or fat eighth set, depending on where your fabric budget is this month. If you make anything with this stack, please do share pictures with me. I hope you enjoy it!

I ran out of time for last week's Zakka project, but I'm back on schedule with today's adorable tea cozy set. Picking out the fabrics always takes the most time, but what fun it all is!

I switched the order of "tea" and the teacup only because I liked the colors better this way. I've been saving some of these prints for a while, and it's great to finally see them in use.

I absolutely love this teabag caddy. Such a simple but incredibly useful project. Wouldn't a larger version of this be perfect for holding note cards?

I used a hair elastic instead of string, and the button is from a set that I purchased on Etsy from RetroNaNa. She has an incredible selection of buttons on there if you have time to take a peek.



And don't forget that this is week 3 of the Let's Get Acquainted New Blogger Blog Hop. Stop by Plum and June to see all the great bloggers who are sharing with us today!

Linking up with the Zakka Along and the Let's Get Acquainted Monday Linkup.

Fabric Audition: Bells & Whistles

I'm getting ready to make a baby quilt next week for an old friend of mine who's expecting a little boy. This week's fabric audition is my preliminary fabric pull. I may add a few more prints to this, but so far it's working for me. The colors are happy and the prints are very child friendly -- just what a baby quilt ought to be.

"Bells & Whistles," I thought suddenly as I was thumbing through these fabrics, and the name stuck. I love making baby quilts, and I can't wait to start working on this one.

By the way, there's a very good chance that one of my fabric auditions will be hitting the big time soon (i.e. you will actually be able to purchase one for yourself if you like what you see). I'm more than a little excited and will be quite happy to give you all the details when I have them.



Don't forget to stop by this week's set of bloggers on the Let's Get Acquainted New Blogger Blog Hop. In week two we're visiting...

Julie @ Jolie Maxtin

Melissa @ Melia Mae Quilting

Adrianne @ On The Windy Side

Molli @ Molli Sparkles

Laura @ Little And Lots

Sarah @ Duck Egg Threads

Kelly @ My Quilt Infatuation

Cari @ There's A Thread

Valerie @ Between Quilts

I have several wonderful friends on the list above, and I know that every one of these ladies has great things to share with you. Be sure to stop by and leave them some encouragement in the comment box!

Fabric Audition: Pocket Full of Posies

This bundle reminds me of the little flower shop just over a block away from the house where I grew up here in Southern California. I absolutely loved going in there with my mom when she needed to order flowers for some reason. That greenhouse smell, the buckets of daisies, the rack full of little cards to tuck into a bouquet...

Okay, now I need to go order some flowers...

Playing with Fabric

One of my fabric auditions finally got the part: Breakfast in Bed is now a happy little runner for our dining room table. I played with the bundle a bit more before I finally settled on the right mix of three inch squares.

I used black yarn dyed Essex linen on the sides, two strips of Chicopee that I pulled from a jelly roll for the binding, and some Happy Dishes by Melody Miller for the back. It's a rather quirky side of spring, but I like it just fine.

I love these little ducklings by Heather Ross. Somehow they didn't make the cut for Nursery Versery, but I've been wanting them ever since I first saw them on Spoonflower.

Speaking of Heather Ross, have you seen the news about the Briar Rose contest that's being sponsored by Pink Castle Fabrics, Threadbias, and Windham Fabrics? Create a lap quilt using the new quilt design tool at Threadbias for a shot at enough Briar Rose fabric to actually make the quilt. I'm absolutely loving her latest fabric collection, so of course I jumped right in this afternoon and put together the design you see above. This was my first chance to play with the quilt design tool, though I've heard plenty about it in the past few months. It only took me a few minutes to get the hang of it, and I can absolutely see why people are excited about this little gadget. Just pop over to the Pink Castle Fabrics blog here to get all the details about the contest. It's free, it's fun, and you get to play with virtual Heather Ross fabric. What could be better than that?

Linking up to Fabric Tuesday.

Fabric Auditions: Breakfast in Bed

I am so in love with the colors and prints in this little bundle. Wouldn't this make a wonderful table runner for spring?

I haven't made anything from any of my fabric audition bundles yet, but I'm awfully tempted by this one...

I can't tell you how impressed I've been with the tutorials that our Girl Friday Sews blog hoppers have been sharing with all of you. Yesterday, Taryn showed a tablet pillow stand that is both useful and cute at the same time. I love her patchwork design! Lori is posting today, showing you how to make a beautiful file folder organizer that will brighten up your wall and get the clutter off your desk -- complete with labels! She also has a fat quarter bundle of Robotic to give away from the wonderful people at Fabricworm, and after I got a look at those adorable prints, I had to buy a few myself last week. The graph paper covered in doodles is my favorite. I can't wait to make a zipper pouch out of it...

Since we've been talking about organization in the Girl Friday Sews Blog Hop, I thought I'd throw in one more tip today. I've struggled with keeping my house clean...well, pretty much forever -- it just got harder when the kids came on the scene. With seven people living in our house (my parents, my husband and I, and our three girls all under the age of seven), managing the clutter can seem almost impossible at times. Recently I ran across a website called Fly Lady, and it has changed my life. Every time I say that, my husband teases me that I've joined a cult, but I can't tell you what a difference this is making in my home. The website is free, and the message in a nutshell is this: anyone can clean for fifteen minutes a day. She has a whole stack of ideas for building habits and routines (for grown-ups and kids) that make life unbelievably easier, and she encourages you to take things slowly without burning yourself out by trying to get everything perfect at once. Need more proof? Just take a look at that kitchen counter in the photo above. It's clean. It's white. It's not covered in stacks of worksheets, magazines, and kid's meal prizes. If you knew the full extent of that miracle alone, you would leave this blog immediately and go here. No one at Fly Lady is paying me to say this, by the way, though if anyone reading this wants to send me some free fabric, I certainly won't refuse...