Today's lesson

This is how I begin my work based on my own drawings. The first image is a composit of stylized poppies. The sketch was one of six I summitted to a hospital for a commission i"d been given.

This one was not selected and in a way I was really happy about that. The quilt needed to be 5 feet wide by 12 feet long and would have been a little difficult to machine quilt on a home machine.

The hospital choose another design for their new addition which I constructed in 3 modular pieces that were easy to handle.

See photo image 2. From the original sketch I decided to use a portion of it for my newest work.

The last image is the full size carton drawn on the wax side of freezer paper. I will cut this cartoon up, one piece at a time and use the pieces as templates.

The entire quilt will be pieced and measures as a drawing 36 inches wide by 63 inches long. The quilting, blocking and final squaring will leave the finished quilt about 2-1/2" less in both width and length.

Will keep you posted on my progress.

Today's lesson: What not to do on a day when you really want to be in your studio.

1. Don't leave the house for any reason short of the house being on fire. Had an appointment with my attorney. A whole nother story that would require its own blogsite.

2. Don't stay up late the night before you have to get up early. Now 9:00 AM might not seem like early to those of you who are chickens and roosters, but to us owlish folks, noon is a much better wake up time.

3. Even a bad cup of coffee won't keep you awake when you haven't had your usual 8. Believe me when you love Starbucks, McDonalds is a bad cup of coffee. I drank a whole large cup, 2 creams please.

4. Don't get back in bed. Especially not a warm one. Then again it was a good thing I did because I had left the house without turning off the heating pad I use as a foot warmer. I got the rest of my 8 and it was much later than I had planed it to be when I wake up again thanks to a phone call from my son in Rhode Island reporting on his 19 inches of the white fuffy stuff. Then it was time for dinner or late lunch for those of us who are not on a normal schedule.

5. Never pick up your knitting. No matter how strongly you tell yourself that you will only knit an inch worth. You never do. At least I don't. Five inches more and now here I sit at the computer having gone into my studio only long enough to turn on the lights and assure my self that I still liked what I am about to make.

I guess you are thinking tomorrow will be better. I don't think so. I have to get up early again but not as early as today. First I am off to teach a sewing class for beginners who have machines that were never taken out of the box prior to the first class meeting four weeks ago.

Oh such fun.

I really am not complaining. I love to teach. The pay is good. The facility is great.

Who knows one or two of them just might be the quilters of note in 2-3 years.

After the class I have to trek into the city to Probate Court.

Hope your day was more productive than mine. I'm sending hopings heavenward, that my tomorrow and yours will be a good one.