Where to Find Quilt Inspiration
I’m sure you’ve heard people say that making a quilt is a labor of love. It’s so true, too! Countless hours go into it… Have you ever looked at a quilt and wondered how long it took to make it, and where the quilt inspiration came from?
Every quilt tells a unique story. I’m not just talking about how the patterns and colors weave together, either. Sometimes the inspiration behind a quilt is really what makes it special and beautiful. For example, I recently made a quilt for a friend whose mother had passed away. I incorporated photos and fabric from some of her mother’s old shirts. The inspiration for the quilt came from the clothing items that were selected. I wanted the quilt to be special and something that could be a keepsake for my friend. You can learn more about it in my blog on how to make a photo quilt.
Here's a photo of the quilt:
Where do you get your quilt inspiration from? In this post, I’ve listed several places you can look for quilt ideas. I’d love for you to share where your quilt inspiration comes from, too. Be sure to leave a comment below!
Join a Quilting Group on Facebook
One of the best places you can go for quilt inspiration is a quilting group on Facebook. There are thousands of them! Madam Sew’s quilting group has over 63.5k members. It is a fun and active group. It’s all about creating and sharing. We’d love for you to join, too!
Sewing and quilting can be a bit of a lonely hobby if you don’t find ways to connect with others who enjoy the same pastime. A quilting group on Facebook is a great place to meet others who have similar interests. Plus, you can scroll through countless photos of quilting projects and get quilt ideas.
People are constantly posting their finished quilts in Madam Sew’s quilting group. Here are just a few beautiful examples:
In addition to looking at photos on Facebook, you can also ask other group members for help. For example, maybe you want to make a quilt using only black and white fabric… You could go into Facebook and ask, “Will you show me your black and white quilts?” You’ll be amazed at all the quilts people will share with you, and they can inspire you on how you want to do your next quilt.
Take a Quilting Class
If you’d rather connect with other quilters in person, consider taking a quilting class or joining a quilt guild. Obviously, the available opportunities for this will be different depending on where you live, but quilting is popular enough that most places have some way for quilters to connect. When you see what others are working on, it can give you some inspiration for your next quilt, too.
For a while, I would go to my local quilt shop every month to participate in their block of the month program. It was a great way to learn new techniques and practice my quilting skills. I had a lot of fun and it kept me motivated to work on my quilt projects. There was also a short amount of time dedicated to each class for “show and tell” where people could share their latest quilt makes or progress. I got a lot of quilt ideas from that!
Here are some blocks I made in a block of the month program:
Do Some Fabric Shopping
Another easy way to get some quilt inspiration is to visit a local quilt shop or fabric store. I don’t know about you, but I could spend hours browsing the aisles and looking at fabric. You might find a fabric that you love and then start to match other fabrics to it until you have a vision in your mind of what you want a quilt to look like. You can do this with or without a quilt pattern in mind.
Some quilt shops even have quilts on display for you to get some inspiration, or quilt kits you can buy. Here are a bunch of quilts on display at my local quilt shop:
Some online shopping can help motivate and inspire you to start a new quilting project, too. I know I always feel like working on a project when I get a new tool. Go checkout all the innovative quilting tools Madam Sew has added to its shop lately.
Also, while you’re out shopping for fabric, don’t forget to pick up some quilt pattern books or quilting magazines. My local quilt shop has a rack full of them where I like to get quilt ideas.
Explore Blogs, Pinterest, and Instagram
Where would we be without the internet? There are tons of websites where you can go for quilt inspiration. Pinterest is my favorite place for all craft ideas, but I read a lot of blogs, too.
Pinterest is a visual search engine for finding ideas like recipes, home and style inspiration, and crafts like quilting. You browse based on images, which are called “pins.” With billions of pins on Pinterest, you'll always find ideas to spark inspiration. There is a search bar to find pins about a topic. When you see pins you love, you can save them easily to boards to keep your ideas organized and easy to find. You could make boards with “quilting blocks”, “machine quilting”, “quilting applique”, etc. You can also follow people or companies on Pinterest, like MadamSew.com and all of their new pins will show up in your feed.
Instagram is another visual platform. Whereas Pinterest is used to curate and save images and links uploaded by others, Instagram is more about sharing your own images and videos. Pinterest is more about discovering than Instagram. I follow a lot of creators and quilters on Instagram, so quilt inspiration shows up in my feed. If you don’t know who to follow, start with MadamSew’s Instagram page. Through hashtags you can look for specific topics and people on Instagram. You can also ‘follow’ specific hashtags like #quilting or #machinequilting.
While Pinterest and Instagram are great if you’re just browsing for quilt inspiration, blogs can give you a lot more details on a project. I’m obsessed with Kimberbell. She has tons of quilt designs that incorporate machine embroidery. I also like reading Fresh Lemon Quilts and Diary of a Quilter.
Who are some of your favorite quilting bloggers? Let us know in the comments below! We’d love to make a list. Who are some of your favorite quilters on Instagram, too?
If you haven’t done so already, be sure to subscribe to our blog here at Madam Sew. Quilting is one of our favorite topics, and we often share free patterns and tutorials.
Here are some recent quilt posts you can check out:
Cara Stromness,
Blogging for Madam Sew and Sewing Society
