Mid-Week Motivation

Sometimes, in the middle week, it's nice to get a little inspiration to carry oneself through the rest of the week. I thought it would be nice to begin a weekly post where everyone can share what they are working on or have recently completed for their family or themselves; or given as a gift. 

Miniature quilt I made for my father

One of the projects I made recently was a miniature quilt and pillow for my father.  It's for a stuffed animal that I gave him on Christmas.  The stuffed animal reminds him of his Corgi that he had back in the 1960s-70s.  Corgi (my parents, for some reason, didn't give our dog a name - just called him by his breed-name) was a was a gentle dog who was a constant and loyal companion to our family.  He as a great dog who went on camping trips with my dad and on family trips. 

When Corgi got leukemia when he was older, my father eventually had to bring him in to be euthanized.  Needless to say, it was a traumatic and sad time.  My father's grief, to this day, is still as raw it was when it happened many years ago.  Perhaps, even more so, because he has Alzheimer's Disease.  Things that happened many years ago can seem more "fresh" and recent than things that just happened yesterday - or last week - to him. 

“Creativity is inventing,

experimenting,

growing,

taking risks,

breaking rules,

making mistakes, and

having fun.”

~ Mary Lou Cook

So, back to the stuffed animal. I found one that was actually a red fox, but it looks an awful lot like Corgi. Although my father is aware that it is a fox, he sees it as Corgi.  My dad places the Corgi near him when he watches the birds from the front window, carries the animal around with him around the home at times; and has the stuffed animal with him at night. 

Because the stuffed animal is his constant companion, I wanted to make something special for him.  Since I made a memory and sensory quilt for my dad last Christmas which he has enjoyed and used daily; I thought it would be nice to make him a miniature quilt and pillow for his Corgi. 

The strips on the quilt are about 2" wide and cut in varying lengths.  There are six different fabrics used - all red with different patterns (with the exception of one plain red fabric).  I found ones in my collection with hearts, ones that say "I love you," and ones with stars.  I laid the strips out and then sewed them together within the rows first, and then I sewed the columns together. 

The 2-inch strips were cut at various lengths

for a more random-pattern quilt

The filling is two layers of fiberfill (so the quilt can be washed easily), and the backing is made from the fabric from a dress that has dragonflies on it. 

It was a project I completed in an afternoon, and one that brought me a lot of joy in making...and in giving it to him.

My dad with the quilt and pillow

I find it inspiring to see what other are creating and or have created for their families or themelves.  So, I invite you to put a link below to something you've been working on or just completed for yourself, your family, or that you gave as a gift. 

It can be a:

- handiwork project - maybe something quilted, felted, embroidered...whatever your speciality

- recipe

- poem or short story

- homemade natural product - soap , bath salts, or laundry detergent

- item you made for your pets or livestock

- new bird feeder or recipe for suet

- tutorial

- photograph

- anything creative...it's up to you!

“Creativity is contagious. Pass it on.”

~ Albert Einstein

Share your Mid-Week Motivation with the world! Or...with others who will read this post.  Put an image onto your blog, and write a little bit. When you're all finished, link back to this post (simply copy the address at the top of your screen and paste it into your blog post). Come back here to this post, and add your link to the photo list below!