Exploring Collaboration - BYOC

 

These bimonthly posts with Karen Bolan exploring collaboration have been challenging and fun! Today we are both sharing something exciting that we've been working on for a long time - BYOC! 

You might be wondering exactly what those initials stand for. Blue yams on cake? Buy yarn on clearance? haha nope. It's Build Your Own Collaboration!

Maybe you are familiar with restaurant menus presented this way. Some places have a build your own pizza.... choose a crust (gluten free for me please), choose a sauce (I'll have the marinara) choose a topping (mushrooms and black olives anyone?) and a cheese (always mozzarella for me!). Or build your own sandwich (bread, meats, veggies, dressing, sides), or build your own bowl (I'm going with brown rice, grilled shrimp, all the veggies and gluten free teriyaki sauce). Is everybody hungry now? Yeah, me too.

Anyways, Karen and I got to thinking, what if there was a menu to help you plan your collaborations? And BYOC was born. We even created a BYOC bookmark for all of you! If you are attending Quiltcon this week, find one of us and we will happily give you one. 

Not going to Quiltcon? No worries! We've made a pdf printable you can access from home. Find that here. 

The menu is tried and true! We used it to plan our Welcoming Lamp quilt back in the fall, and we are using it again for our Mushroom project. Does its include everything? No, that would be impossible. In fact that could fill a book. Some things it does not address include Building your Collaboration Team, and Setting deadlines. Topics it does include? Great question.

What is the Purpose of your project? Is it a charity quilt or a quilt for a cause? Is it to educate people? Build Community? A gift or for exhibition? Maybe more than one of these things? You can always check more than one box, it's your project after all!

What is your Source of inspiration? Will it be a topical quilt? Maybe inspired by a photo or another art source. Could be a traditional block or pattern.

What is the Contribution type? Will each member contribute blocks? Maybe your quilt will be done in a series or round robin style. Will you split the labor (one person pieces ,someone else quilts, another person binds) or will it be non pieced art or individual projects that link together somehow? 

Where will you Source your fabric? Will group members work from their stash? Swap frabric? Purchase specifically for the project? Or maybe a combination of these things.

Lastly, how will you Finish your quilt? Will group members piece individually or as a group? will you pay a longarm quilter? Or maybe one of the group members will volunteer to do the quilting. A group quilting bee would be a fun option!

We hope you'll print out our BYOC menu or grab a bookmark from us at Quiltcon and use it to get to Collaborating!

Exploring Collaboration #5

 

If you've been following along, you already know that Karen Bolan and I have been exploring different aspects of collaboration together for several months. Recently we decided to offer up tandem blog posts twice a month diving deeper into some of the topics we've discussed. I hope you'll hop over to Karen's blog and read what she has to say today. I will tell you, today's post really challenged me!

One thing Karen and I have done together is develop a method for creating collaborative projects. We'll be sharing more about that method in part 6 of our series in two weeks. Meanwhile, we've been testing out our method by creating some collaborations of our own. Our first project done this way was the creation of Welcoming Lamp, which you can read more about here. We invited several other quilters to participate in the creation of this quilt.

Welcoming Lamp

For our next project, Karen and I are choosing to make a quilt just between the two of us. An important part of the development of any collaboration is knowing what your inspiration is. Recently, Karen has been inspired by a Netflix documentary called Fantastic Fungi.  Yes, you read that right! It's a movie about mushrooms. 

You need to know that I am not a science person. Not one bit. When Karen suggested I watch this movie with quilting in mind, I was skeptical. What could mushrooms have to do with quilters, specifically quilting in community? I opened up my mind and watched the documentary, taking notes and surprising myself with some of the insights that came my way. I have a lot more digging to do on this topic, but here are some of the revelations I've had so far.....

* Fungi are incredibly diverse. There are millions of different kinds of fungi, JUST LIKE PEOPLE! 

* Fungi are changers, creating evolution. Fungi are what changes corn into bourbon, for example. It networks with the environment to cause change. Don't we do that as quilters? We use our creative powers to change pieces of fabric into works of art. 

* Communities of fungi survive much better than individuals. The strengths of one type might influence and strengthen another. They work together to create things that are of mutual benefit. Sound familiar? When we work in community with other quilters, don't we thrive? We empower each other to create powerful works that reflect our combined strengths.

Of course this is simplistic and selective. There are dangerous mushrooms that can weaken and even kill us. There are magic mushrooms that can cause us to hallucinate. But I'm choosing to stick with the positive impacts of fungi. 

How will all of this knowledge evolve into a quilt? That's a very good question; one I don't have the answer to just yet. Karen and I will continue to explore and create and you get to have a front row seat to our process. Buckle up, this promises to be a bit of a wild ride!

Exploring Collaboration: part 4

Today is the fourth installment of Exploring Collaboration, a series of blog posts offered up twice a month by Karen Bolan and me. We've really enjoyed sharing our thoughts with you and look forward to future conversations about collaboration with many fellow quilters.

For this week's exploration of collaboration, I have a specific idea that you might try with a group of friends.  Hopefully the world will soon begin to open up again and we will be more able to join with fellow quilters on retreats, for quilting days, workshops and other in person activities. Here's a collaborative activity you and your group might like to try! A friend and I came up with this idea a couple of years ago (pre-pandemic). It will work best with a group of 4-8, if you have more just split into two groups!

To begin this activity, each participant arrives with an already completed 24" block. For my example, we each start with an improv log cabin. They can be wonky (or not), symmetrical (or not), prints, solids, you name it. The important thing (for ease) is that all of the beginning blocks are 24" square. Each person also needs to bring a 2 1/2" strip of their "signature fabric" cut into 4 6" rectangles.  

Participants should be seated in a circle of sorts so that projects can easily be passed from one to the next. First up, everyone passes their block to the person next to them (clockwise passing works well!) Now take the block you have received and cut it into 16 equal 6" squares. If you have a 6"x24" ruler this will be easy to do!

Now gather up the squares you have cut and pass them to the next person in line.

Mix up the squares you have received. Randomly choose four of the squares, add one of your signature rectangles to the mix and sew them into a strip (you can insert your rectangle anywhere you want. In this example, the orange strip between blocks 3 & 4 is the signature strip).

Now pass your strip and the remaining squares to the next person. Repeat the strip sewing activity until each block is in four strips. Can you find the four different signature strips in the photo below?

The next person gets to rearrange the strips into a pleasing arrangement of their choice and sew them all together.

Return the completed, reconstructed block to it's original owner to be quilted and bound. 

It would be fun to try this activity with other kinds of blocks too! If you try it, I hope you'll share your process and results with me on Instagram @ellynz.

Exploring Collaboration: Myths

If you've been following along, Karen Bolan and I have been exploring different aspects of collaboration together, then reflecting on our conversations on our blogs. You can find the first two entries in our series here on my blog and on Karen's blog as well.

 This week Karen and I are exploring some of the myths that might keep you from jumping on the collaboration bandwagon. If you're like me, you might make up stories in your head about things that "might happen" if you collaborate with other quilters. And, I'm not going to lie, some of them might! But there are ways to avoid them and ways to deal with them when they do. Here are just a couple of collaboration myths that I've faced.

#1 Others in the group might not follow through.

Possible. However, in my experience, it doesn't happen as often as you might think! Most people who sign up for a collaborative experience really want to be there. If you've carefully selected your collaborative partners and established clear rules for the group as I discussed in my earlier post, chances are everyone will do their best to participate fully. 

What do you do if members are not reliable? Here are some things to consider...

 

- if you are in charge of the group, you can talk to the person and work out a solution. Often life just happens and the collaborator might be overwhelmed or embarrassed that they can't do their part. Communication is key! Can a deadline be extended? Can someone else fill in for the person until they are able to rejoin? Does the person really need to back away permanently? All are valid.

- show lots of grace! I've found that this is an important factor in all aspects of life, but especially when I'm collaborating with others. Forgive and move on.

#2 I won't end up with enough blocks to complete my quilt.

This is closely related to myth #1. First of all, you will ALWAYS have enough to make a quilt. It may not be the king sized bed quilt you envisioned, but it will indeed be a quilt! Some things to think about...

- try to go into collaboration with an open mind. Expect the unexpected! You may end up short a few blocks, blocks may be different than you had originally pictured. Colors may vary, sizes, techniques... it's ok. Whatever you receive reflects the group you are working with.

- if you want the quilt to be bigger, add more blocks of your own, add sashing or borders to the blocks you receive or even lots of negative space. It's your quilt in the end! 

This bee quilt was intended to be for my queen sized bed, but some blocks did not arrive! I added tons of negative space. When folded right, it makes a beautiful bed runner across the foot of my bed.  When a few blocks arrived late, after I had already pieced the quilt, I made some matching throw pillows and was able to use them all.

I wanted my Japanese x and + quilt to be bigger. Making one giant block added interest to my quilt and went faster than creating four extra blocks

- you can always make a smaller quilt! Small wall quilts can be very impactful.

These are just a couple of collaboration myths you might encounter. Karen is addressing different myths on her blog today. Check back in two weeks when we'll have more thoughts about collaboration!

2021 year in review

 Whew! What a year! While it would be easy to focus on all of the crazy negative things going on in the world right now (no, I'm not going to list them. you already know!) I'm choosing to focus on the positive. And there sure was a lot of it in my world this year. Here are the highlights.... so I never forget how blessed I was in 2021.

Urban Emergence

In February, my group quilt, Urban Emergence was part of Quiltcon Together, the virtual MQG show that replaced in person Quiltcon this year. It was my very first quilt accepted into Quiltcon. Imagine my surprise when I won first place in my category! As if this wasn't enough, it was chosen for publication in the Quiltcon magazine! What an honor!

Later that month, Sarah Goer and I formed a pARTnership, inspired by Danielle Krysa's In 

tandem Art project. Sarah and I have continued to meet on Zoom every two weeks all year long, encouraging each other in our artistic journeys. One of the greatest things to come out of our friendship is the start of our new improv bee, Quilts Unscripted. This group is incredibly talented and inspiring! 

Again in 2021, I was able to participate in the Virtual Quilt Guild where I met so many amazing quilters. One relationship that came out of that group is my collaboration with Karen Bolan. Karen and I have also been meeting often on Zoom and have shared a collaborative quilt project (Welcoming Lamp), a series of blog posts (Exploring Collaboration) and coming soon..... a published article on Collaboration in Curated Quilts magazine! This was completed in 2021 and will be arriving in mailboxes early 2022.

Welcoming Lamp

One other thing I am so proud of this year is the completion of my Through Ellyn's Eyes project. When I set out on a six month personal journey to create a cohesive body of work and explore my creative voice it seemed daunting at best. The more I worked through it, the more joyful it became. I am so lucky to have had the time and the resources to complete this project and look forward to sharing it with guilds in the coming year.

Through Ellyn's Eyes quilts

So, 2021 proved to be a productive, fun year for me. Most of these things were not even on my radar a year ago, so who knows what 2022 will bring? Regardless, I look forward to sharing it with you. Happy New Year everyone!

Exploring Collaboration - tips and tricks for forming a bee or swap group

 Here we are, round 2 of Exploring Collaboration! Last time, Karen and I discussed different kinds of collaborations that we enjoy. Today, let's chat about how to form a collaborative team to make those projects happen!

Bees

Some tips and tricks for forming a bee group:

1) Establish your goals. What are you hoping to accomplish through your bee? Do you want to make traditional blocks and hone your piecing skills? Do you want to experiment with improv? Make charity quilts? Write it all down so you can share these goals with potential bee members.

2) Set rules. I know, I know, quilting is supposed to be fun and rules are for the birds. Trust me, once your bee gets rolling you'll be glad to have some rules in place. When will prompts come out? How will they be communicated (email? Instagram DM? Facebook? In person?), when are blocks due? What happens if you can't complete your blocks on time? Having rules in place will help you avoid drama later on.

3) Decide who to invite. Will your bee be made up of friends from your local guild? Instagram friends? Random strangers? Honestly, I recommend inviting people you know at least a little bit. Think about people who fit in with your goals, and who will be reliable.

4) Consider diversity when you ask people to join you. Quilters of different ages, ethnicity, sexuality, etc can all learn from each other and frankly, make more interesting quilts! 

5) Make sure potential members are aware of the group goals and rules before they commit. Give them the opportunity to gracefully say no if joining your bee is not for them.

Urban Emergence, my 2020 bee quilt made by the Solid Seven Bee.
first place group quilt at Quiltcon Together in 2021,
will hang at quilt con in Phoenix in February, 2022

Block Swaps

  Tips and tricks for forming a block swap group:

1) Decide who to invite. Again, will it be a local only swap, where blocks can be swapped at a guild meeting or delivered in person? Or an internet swap where blocks will be mailed? Are members willing to mail blocks internationally or should the swap be restricted to members in one country?

2) Make sure swappers know the rules of the swap. What is the block to be made? Does everyone have access to the free pattern if blocks will all be the same? What fabric should be used? What size should the blocks be?

3) Set a total for blocks to be made. This can be flexible! Many swaps that I have participated in have a maximum number of blocks. Often, however many blocks you send is how many you receive in return. Send 10 blocks/receive 10 back.

4) Set a deadline for the swap leader to receive all of the blocks. If a swapper doesn't send their blocks in time, they are not included in the swap. 

5) Cover your postage! As a swap leader, you should not be responsible for shipping everyone's blocks back to them. Some ways to do this: charge a flat fee to enter the swap paid through PayPal or another online method, have each swapper include a postage paid, self addressed envelope with their blocks, or arrange for in person delivery and pick up.

Bees and swaps are meant to be fun! By carefully planning, setting goals and establishing rules, these groups can be drama free and create lasting friendships among quilters.

my Dresden block swap quilt
made in 2017 with blocks from members of
McKinney Modern Quilt Guild

Exploring Collaboration - Bees and Block Swaps

 I've really been enjoying exploring different aspects of collaboration with fellow modern quilter, Karen Bolan. You might remember reading about Welcoming Lamp, the project we collaborated on several months ago. Our conversations have continued since then and we are working on a series of blogposts to open up conversation in the quilting community about collaborating.Karen and I will offer articles on this topic twice a month and encourage you to join in by sharing your thoughts in the comments.

For our first posts, we are sharing our thoughts about the different types of collaboration. You can read my thoughts on quilting bees and block swaps here, then hop on over to Karen's blog to read more. 

Bees

Maybe some of you have participated in quilt bees. This is one of my favorite ways to collaborate. Basically, a group of quilters commits to working together for an extended period of time. Each month, one member of the group is the queen and gives the other members a prompt, block pattern, color palette or other specifications about what they desire for finished blocks. Bee members have that month to complete the requested blocks for the queen. Then the next person becomes queen and the cycle begins again.

Bees can be traditional, based on block patterns that everyone has access to (either original designs by the queen, free tutorials available online or a pattern all members have purchased), or less traditional, based on thematic prompts or improv methods of quilting. I've participated in both types and enjoy them for different reasons. Also, bees can be made up of all local quilting buddies or quilters who live at a distance, requiring blocks to be mailed.

My most recent traditional bee quilt was made in pinks and oranges using the japanese x and + block.

made by members of the McKinney Modern Quilt Guild

Just for fun, I enlarged the block to add one giant block to my quilt. It was fun to see the fabrics each bee member used in their blocks and how they all played together in the end.

Recently I've been enjoying improv bees. First I was a member of the Solid Seven Bee and more recently, the newly formed Quilts Unscripted Bee. I haven't had a turn to be queen in the Quilts Unscripted Bee yet (soon!) but I have several quilts completed by the Solid Seven. One of my favorites is my This is 60 quilt with blocks they made to help me celebrate my 60th birthday. I gave the bee members a bright, happy color palette and asked that they include at least one triangle in each block.

made by members of the Solid Seven Bee

When the blocks arrived they were all different sizes. Puzzling together improv blocks is my favorite part of the process! 

Block Swaps

Another kind of collaboration I love is block swaps. Again, block swaps can be held among local quilty friends or with quilters all around the world. During the Covid lockdown, I organized a house block swap among my local quilty pals. 

of course I added my little red car to the mix!

Each quilter dropped their finished blocks off at my house. When I had received everyone's blocks, I mixed them all up and gave each quilter back as many blocks as they had given me. There were so many wonderful takes on the house block... from patterned houses to totally improv ones. 

A couple of years ago, I organized an internet block swap of bird blocks based on the free tutorial here. Quilters mailed me their blocks (you should have seen the hundreds of bird blocks that flew into my house!). Again, I scrambled the blocks and mailed new ones back to each participant. My finished quilt is one of my favorite quilts ever.

Have you ever participated in a bee or block swap? In an upcoming post I'll share some tips and tricks for organizing and participating in your own collabs.