Above: Omakase II: Out On The Town. Deconstructed garments (new and vintage) and additional cotton fabrics, machine pieced and quilted. 42 x 63 inches. $1140
Omakase II: Out On The Town
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Continue reading for the story behind this quilt.
Do you ever get decision fatigue?
Are you ever faced with so many choices, either good or bad, that your brain just wants to crawl under the covers and weep? We've all been there. Don't ask me to order from a case of baked goods because I want one of everything. And two of those.
Luckily, there's another approach.
Omakase Quilting
Omakase is one of my all-time favorite words. It comes from Japan, and has no direct translation into English. We can get kind of close by saying things like pre fixe, dealer's choice, or surprise me.
The phrase omakase, literally 'I leave it up to you', is most commonly used when dining at Japanese restaurants where the customer leaves it up to the chef to select and serve seasonal specialties. The Japanese antonym for omakase is okonomi, which means you are choosing what to order. In American English, the expression is used by patrons at sushi restaurants to leave the selection to the chef, as opposed to ordering à la carte. The chef will present a series of plates, beginning with the lightest fare and proceeding to the heaviest dishes. The phrase is not exclusive to raw fish with rice and can incorporate grilling, simmering and other cooking techniques. - Wikipedia
Omakase is an expression of mutual trust. I trust the chef to bring me the most delightful selections available, and the chef trusts me to appreciate the meal and pay whatever they charge. (Full disclosure, I've never actually done this at a sushi restaurant, but it's on my bucket list.)
I've been applying this principle to improvisational quilting. I dip my hand (literally or metaphorically) into the Cosmic Fabric Bin, pull stuff out, and make something with it. I trust the process. Enter the Omakase series.
Omakase I: The Blue One. I made this during the summer of 2021 and donated it to the Palliative Care unit of my local VA hospital.
Quilters call this a stashbuster. Most of us have more fabric than we will ever use (guilty). My rational brain wants me to use each fabric in a highly specific and planned way. My intuitive brain wants me to grab a handful and just go to town.
This fabric pull was mostly from donations, and became a quilt that I made and donated around 2015.
This is the essence of improvisation: I trust myself.
I trust my intuitive brain to make decisions and connections that I wouldn't otherwise make. I let go. I park my verbal brain in front of Netflix or an audiobook so it doesn't interfere with the creative process.
Omakase II includes bits that were trimmed off of Omakase I. Because food metaphors are my love language*, here's another one: It's like the pot of soup that never gets cleaned all the way out, so the soup's "secret ingredient" is the history of every soup it's ever held. Scraps from one quilt often go right into the next one.
* Think sourdough starter. Or a well-seasoned iron skillet. I could go on.
Like what you see, but want it in a different size?
Or with purple and green fabrics?
Or as a square instead of a rectangle?
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Step 1: Click here to answer your questions about ordering your custom quilt.
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Step 3: Book your call with me and we'll finalize the details. After I receive your deposit, I'll create your custom, made-to-order quilt!