One of the best ways to think about minimalism is as a tool to rid yourself of life’s excess in favor of focusing on what's most important. For example, think about how  summer ‘break’ takes on a decidedly different meaning for adults than it did during younger years. While it’s an escape from school and homework for school kids, as an adult, summer ‘break’ can mean even more work and responsibility. Whether it’s entertaining bored children or planning and executing a summer trip, sometimes it can feel as though you need to take a vacation fromtheir vacation. 

In other words, the complexity of summer could use a bit of minimalist treatment.

For these reasons and more, we want to revisit some of the mini quilts from our Minimalistic issue. We love the way contributors stripped away the unnecessary and found their voices in minimalism. We hope viewing these quilts will be a reminder to take a deep breath, to refocus on the moment, and to strip away the excesses in order to live more peacefully with minimalism.

i mini by Sarah Goer @sarahgoerquilts

When Goer was creating this quilt, she had a goal to use the alphabet in her design. She chose to use the letter ‘i.’ We love how the ‘i’ is recognizable once you know it was part of Goer’s inspiration, but that it doesn’t overpower the quilt with a literal translation of it. The matchstick quilting elongates the design.  

Party of Six by Isabelle Selak @southbaybella

Selak used fabric and thread to tell the story of her family in this quilt. It’s the story of a pregnancy that was lost. Selak says about the quilt, “I am beyond grateful that I get to chase after three beautiful kids every day…For eight unexpected, crazy, scary, amazing, fun weeks, I got to dream about chasing after four. I won’t get to do that, but I’m so grateful for those eight weeks.” The gentle curves of the quilting take on beautiful meaning when you know the story behind this quilt. 

Marking Time by Debbie Grifka @debbiegrifka

Grifka created this quilt at the beginning of a new year when new goals, schedules, and how time is spent were on her mind. ‘Marking Time’ is a fantastic representation of executing a concept in minimalist form. 

Shift by Mary Elizabeth Kinch @maryelizabethkinch

The tiny hand appliqued dots on this quilt measure at ⅜”. The ‘shift’ Kinch made in how she hand quilted the top of the quilt to that of the bottom is stark on this subtle but strong piece. We love that Kinch seems to have improv stitched the lines as it makes the quilt more organic and a good expression of a minimalist approach. 

Black Gray Blue by Sheri Schumacher @sheri_schumacher

Schumacher is a master of the minimalist line and form. The way she uses color inBlack Gray Blue conveys so much while still honoring a feeling of minimalism. The hand quilting adds texture and depth to the quilt. 

Minimalism Study by Victoria Van der Iaan @victoria_vanderlaan

We love the juxtaposition of the fractured lines in ‘Minimalism Study.’ The slice of subtle blue in the top left corner slowly draws the eye across the quilt. The machine quilting perfectly compliments the design. 

You can find these mini minimalistic quilts and more inCurated Quilts, Issue No. 3: Minimalistic. Purchase your copy today!

Find more examples of Mini Quilts featured in Curated Quilts on our blog atDo You Mini? andCurated Quilts Miniaturized.

For more information on how to submit your own mini quilt to Curated Quilts visit ourwebsite. 

By Brittany Bowen Burton