Five Top Tips from Charlotte Angotti

1. All greens go together just as all reds and all blues go together and so on. After all, they have the same name. Hence the reason for them to be in the same family. We all have relatives that don't match. They still belong to the family. They give it spark and make us smile.

2. While sleeping under a quilt you really can't see that isn't perfect, so don't waste time worrying about those points while you are awake. Get as close as you can to perfect but just remember the next quilt will be better. You have to leave some room for improvement. Seriously.

3. Buy at least a yard of fabric when you think you only need a 1/2 yard. This will keep you from searching for the last piece of that fabric on earth. Trust me on this one. It will save you years of woe.

4. You really don't have to match up the fabrics in a quilt. Well, let's say if you use four fabrics they really need to love each other. If you are using 20 different fabrics not so much matching...more like melting together. So, it is easier to melt 20 fabrics into a quilt than to match just four fabrics. Really.

5. This is your hobby. Relax. Breath. Enjoy the quilt as it is being made so you can sit back and love it when it is finished. You have all that fabric to use so don't stop because you are too tense! And besides, there is a show coming up, more ideas, classes and fabric are just around the bend.

Life isn't about waiting for the storm to pass...it's about learning to dance in the rain.