February Inspiration Continues…

The search for daily inspiration continues, and this week my highlight comes from an unusual place – a breakfast restaurant we discovered in Madison Heights, MI.  It’s called ‘The Breakfast Club’ and while their food is yummy – think light, fluffy, omelet’s with bacon, spinach & gouda in a neighborhood-family-friendly-place  — and I was inspired by their tablecloths.  Don’t laugh!  They were these wildly colorful “flowers” with petals in all different colors and patterns.  It just made me happy!  It was a gray, cold, snowy, dreary day here in Michigan, but these tablecloths, all over the small restaurant, were just so colorful and happy, I practically had the giggles by the time our meals arrived.

What about this inspired me?  Just take a look at the photos!  What about these will translate into my work – maybe just to be a little more reckless/carefree/relaxed/uncontrolled in my color choices.  When I look at my Grandma Broyles’ quilts, and a lot of quilts from the early 1900’s, I see a wild mix of colors!  She did not go to a quilt store, buy enough fabric to fulfill the pattern requirements, go home with her zippy rotary cutter and begin a project.  She used whatever clothing had worn out that still had patches worth saving.  When you view older quilts, you’ll often see red and orange used interchangeably, along with yellow/tan/white used alternately, and many shades of green (some clashing!) where we would just go back to the quilt store and buy another yard of what we wanted.  I think it’s those slightly clashing fabrics, knowing she just used what she had, which make older quilts so interesting to study – or sleep under.

Inspiration can come from anywhere if you are paying attention!

Happy Sewing,

Beth

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