I am so excited to be participating in the Around the World Blog Tour, started by Jen Kingwell. I was invited by Amber of Gigi's Thimble, who was asked by Amy Smart (Diary of a Quilter). What an honor to be included with such lovely women. I admire all three of them so very much.
I met Amber when we were both asked to teach at a local retreat. I instantly her (which isn't hard because she is adorable). And I love her new book, Vintage Vibe. It is filled with the most wonderful projects. It is people like Amber that make me proud to be a part of the quilting community.

So as part of this tour I get to tell you a little about my life right now...
First off... I am going to tell you what I am working on right now. I am completely entrenched in my fabric design process. My deadline is just two weeks away and I have four prints to finish! And by finish I mean start. I do this to myself far to often. I do have three prints finished, though, which means I am making progress. I wish that I could share a picture with you, but, as I am sure you know, I can't. Instead, I will show you a little about what I do in this process.
Usually I start from some kind of doodle. Often these doodles are on an old envelope or scrap of paper. Sometimes getting my sketchbook feels like a huge commitment and makes me feel like I have to come up with something great. Random scraps can mean a lot less pressure for me.

When I have a doodle that I like, I make trace it all in Illustrator, change things, mix in some other things, and...

Voila! Okay, so there was a lot of work in the inbetween steps that you don't see here, but you can see the leaf before and the leaf finished.
The other thing I am in the middle of right now is planning and booking space for the 2015 Find Your Lula retreat. We are looking at some major changes and I am super excited and nervous! I will hopefully have some awesome news on January 1st (or shortly after) about what we are doing differently. I have a meeting to explore this place on Wednesday morning. I hope it is a perfect fit!
The next thing I am going to tell you about is why I do/create the things I do...
Originally, I started quilting as a way to help bring myself out of major depression. I had 1 year old twins that I loved dearly, but that had also sucked the life out of me. I had completely lost any identity. So I started by making other peoples patterns. Eventually I realized that all of the schooling (interior design, fashion design, art...) had taught me the skills I needed to start creating my own patterns.
Now, 6 years later, I do it for a completely different reason. I do it for other people. I have a deep desire to help other people find and embrace their own personal creativity. So whether that is through one of my sewing patterns, or fabrics or ultimately through my Find Your Lula retreat, I am happy.
So there is a little about me and my creative life! How about we hear from some other wonderfully creative women??
First I am going to tag my friend Melissa Mortenson!

Melissa writes the blog Polka Dot Chair, has written a crazy cool book...

AND has her first line of fabric out with my favorite fabric company, Riley Blake Designs!

I have had the opportunity to get to know Melissa a little bit over the last few months and I totally adore her! I am sure you will love her, too! Head over to see her post next Monday!
Hugs and Fishes,
Amanda