Here's to New Beginnings

"And suddenly you know...

 It's time to start something new 

and trust in the magic of new beginnings."

                                                                                             - Meister Eckhart

"...the magic of new beginnings." What a perfect description of my little quilt pattern adventure! It really was stepping out blindly into the unknown when I published my first patterns on Craftsy. I had no idea that anything would happen, and then, suddenly, out of the blue, I had a little business and so many new friends. It did feel like magic.

I hope to continue trusting in the magic as I work on my craft. I'm trying to make my New Year's resolutions reflect that intention.

1. Learn new skills.
Study new techniques in sewing and quilting.
Learn how to use a new computer program for designing quilts. I want to broaden my design base and I can use any bit of help I can get.

2. Be creative every day.
Spend at least some time every day working on a creative project or new ideas.

3. Practice brainstorming.
Write down or sketch every thought, no matter how wild or out of the box it may be. I have notebooks that I hope to fill with ideas for new crafts. Pinterest is a great place to go for helping with this.

4. Finish some of those UFOs.
I know I won't finish all of them, but I at least need to take care of some of them.

5. Surprise people with unexpected gifts I have made.
This is will be fun!

6. Use more scraps.
This will be a challenge. I do use scraps, but I need to design more entire projects that use nothing but fabrics already in my stash.

7. Purchase less new fabric just because I like it.
This may be my greatest challenge. I must stop buying those fabrics that draw my eyes and win my heart just because they're so irresistibly beautiful. As it is, my drawers of fabrics overflow!

8. Pay attention!
Beauty is everywhere. I need to keep my eyes and my mind open to everything. That's how the magic begins.

9. Publish a blog post every week.
Even when I think that I have little or nothing to say, the very act of writing will make me think harder.

10. Show gratitude.
My life is filled with blessings large and small, with people who lift me up and make me whole. There are as many was to show gratitude as there are days in a lifetime. I hope to remember that, list every way that comes to me, and act no them.

It's the dawn of a New Year. 

Step out bravely, and discover the magic!