If you haven't heard of or seen her Quiltspirations in action, check out this video for a few basics about what they are and how to use them and then read on for her Christmas Project!

I thought it would be fun to give you a sneak-peek into how I use Quiltspirations to add a little whimsy to my projects, or just get me out of a creative rut.  It’s especially handy around the holidays when you want to do something handmade, but get stuck thinking about just what to do!

I pulled a few cards from the pack of Quiltspirations, just to see what might result. The three cards I chose were, "Lend a Hand", "You are My Sunshine", and "Work Small".

Each of the cards in the pack gives you a suggestion of what to do, and reading through the cards, I knew I'd be doing a little hand embroidery, incorporating yellow, and working on something small and fast.  From those three prompts, I came up with an idea, and I assembled these materials for my project:

Working small can be interpreted in many ways. What I decided to do was work from a charm pack (isn't Marmalade divine?), and since I'm an avid die-cutting enthusiast, I grabbed a die to use for the project.  The card suggested "wonky stars" - and that's exactly what I found!

The "You are My Sunshine" card suggests incorporating yellow into a project, so a bit of Bella Yellow came to the rescue.

I cut some 5" squares from the Bella Yellow so they would match the charm squares, then I selected about 12 of the fabrics from the charm pack and fused Misty Fuse to the wrong side of each fabric.

I layered the fabric on the die to cut them and ended up with dozens of really neat stars!

Now what to do with these stars?  I recently purchased a set of six plain white kitchen towels, and I thought these stars would make great little appliques along one edge of the towel, so I fused a bunch of stars there.

Finally, the last card suggested doing a little hand embroidery.  I rarely, rarely undertake hand work, but I remembered that I had a stash of embroidery floss in one of my craft bins and a set of embroidery needles. Wouldn't the stars look great with a little running stitch outline?

It was very relaxing to take a little time out of my day to stitch this, but I thought the towel needed a little bit more.  I dug up some yellow rickrack and matching embroidery floss,
and decided to hand-stitch that part too.

This hand towel was really fun to make, and it looks really great and festive hanging in my kitchen:

What I find really neat about Quiltspirations is how it reminds me of things that I own but haven't used in a while, or suggest that I try something different that's out of my comfort zone.  Quiltspirations isn't about making a specific project, but is used more for a creativity spark. It's not a traditional card game to be played while sitting around a table, although it is something you can play with friends, or by yourself.

I've heard from quilt guilds all over the country that use them for mini-workshops and group challenges, but the most interesting story I have heard is how many people read through the entire pack of cards just for the entertainment value!

The card pack contains 40 cards, with a set of instructions and creativity prompts in seven categories. There are also a couple of wildcards in the deck to add a little more surprise to your play.
It's a great little stocking stuffer and a unique gift for the quilter in your life.