Creativity in a Rut? 3 Exercises to Rekindle Your Textile Mojo

We all know that feeling — you sit down at your sewing machine or sketchbook, surrounded by threads, fabrics, and good intentions… but nothing happens. Your hands hesitate, your ideas feel flat, and suddenly, making anything feels like a mountain climb.

If that’s you right now — take heart. Creative ruts are not a failing; they’re part of the process. Sometimes they sneak in after a big project, a busy season, or just from life’s general busyness. The good news? You don’t have to wait for inspiration to magically return. You can invite it back in.

Here are three of my favourite low-pressure, high-play exercises to jumpstart your textile mojo.

✂️ 1. The 10-Minute Stitch Storm

Set a timer for ten minutes. No planning. No perfection. Just grab a handful of fabric scraps, threads, or trimmings within reach, and start stitching — any direction, any technique, any colour.

Why it works: It removes the pressure of making something “good” and gives your hands permission to move. Limiting the time and materials helps bypass decision fatigue, and you’ll often surprise yourself with what appears.

Bonus tip: Try this with unusual materials — packaging, paper, or leftover thread nests. Let go of the outcome.

🎨 2. Colour Out of Comfort

Pick a colour palette you don’t normally work with. Maybe it’s bold primaries, soft pastels, or muddy neutrals — anything unfamiliar. Lay out a mini bundle of fabric, threads, or embellishments in that palette and create a tiny stitched composition.

Why it works: Colour deeply influences how we feel when creating. Shifting your palette shakes up habitual choices and opens the door to fresh thinking.

Bonus idea: Choose a colour palette from a photo or painting you love — even if it’s not “your style.”

👀 3. The Texture Walk

Take a short walk (outside or even around your home) and actively look for textures — tree bark, brick walls, crumpled paper, peeling paint. Photograph or sketch a few, then back in your workspace, choose one and interpret it in stitch using only line and texture.

Why it works: It gets you looking differently — paying attention again. Translating real-world textures into stitch is a powerful creative challenge that sidesteps “what should I make?” and replaces it with “how can I show this feeling?”

💬 Final Thoughts

These exercises aren’t about producing masterpieces. They’re about breaking inertia and returning to play. Textile art — like all art — thrives on experimentation. When we stop trying to get it “right,” the joy returns. And joy, more than anything, is what keeps creativity flowing.

So next time you feel stuck, don’t wait for a spark — stitch your way back into it.

Over to you:
Have you tried any creative warm-ups like these? I’d love to know what works for you when your stitchy energy is low. Drop a comment or tag me on Instagram @yourhandle if you give one of these a go!