Pick the Path with Pansies

Last year at AQS Des Moines, I took a piecing class.

Gasp.
I know.
What, Robin took a piecing class??
Yes, & I think it was my first piecing class in about 4 years!

But this class wasn't like most piecing classes.  Kathryn Schmidt was teaching "Rule-Breaking Quilts" based on her book.

I purchased this book a year or so before & couldn't quite bring myself to work through her steps.  It was a letting go issue.  It was an "oh no, I'm going to cut fabric & mess it up & ruin it" issue.  You know, basic fear.

So when I saw she was teaching this class, I decided to jump for it & force myself to work outside the box.

I grabbed a set of fat quarters from my mom's stash that I didn't care about:

And was determined to conquer my fear.

Well the class was amazing.  Kathryn is an fantastic teacher- if you ever get the chance to learn from her, I say jump at the chance!  She brought an amazing display of quilts based on her "rule-breaking" method & everyone was jaw droppingly inspiring!

By the time the class ended I felt confident in my ability to cut, slash, chop & sew back together without fear & yet, still have a cohesive/balanced quilt in the end.

I went home & finished project.

Here is the end result:

Overall I'm very pleased with it, I even challenged myself to try some new free motion quilting designs!

Now I just have to add a hanging sleeve so I can have this on my wall in my studio, always reminding myself to try something new, challenge myself, and not to be afraid of a new path.