DAY FIVE OF SKETCH TO STITCH

 I woke up not feeling well.  I think it's the over-fragranted room and bed I'm sleeping in.  Good grief.  I feel like I didn't get much sleep.  But, I got up and went into the school early.  I was there at 6:30am since I was planning on leaving early to beat the traffic.

I did get to finish the second block, which I made a block and a half because of the long strips.

My total finish is 2-1/2 blocks for the week.  A few of the folks will have theirs completely finished and sewn together.  Mine may take a bit longer. 

That's Leeanna's on the left. 

It was a great workshop.  I really enjoyed myself.  It's always a pleasure to be in a classroom with Irene Roderick.  She's full of great ideas and suggestions.  She makes the best recommendations without being pushy.  Thank you Irene!  See you next year.

I left at 11:45am and still got into a very long backup on I-5 after 175th NE.  Waze had me get off at 85th and head over to 99.  There was a slow down there too starting at the Aurora bridge, but it cleared out by the tunnel and it was smooth sailing after that.

It's always nice to come home.

DAY FOUR OF SKETCH TO STITCH

 Sewing, sewing, sewing, picking out another seam, resewing, etc.

Lots of measuring and fussing.  I need to get my project very close to the drawings so it all matches up.  This isn't what this workshop should be about.  I'm sorta wishing I'd done a different kind of sketch.  But, I'm thoroughly enjoying making this Dalek.  It is so cool looking!

After class, a bunch of us went out to dinner.  I sketched a bit.

DAY ONE OF SKETCH TO STITCH

 I headed out for Coupeville on Whidbey Island around 6am this morning.  It's Day One of Irene Roderick's Workshop "Sketch to Stitch".  I drove north to Mukilteo to catch the ferry.  I didn't have much of a wait and got right on the ferry.

I was early to the Pacific NW Arts School and picked a table at the back of the room.  I saved tables for my Brave Patch friends, Mickey and Leeanna who soon arrived.  We got busy setting up our machines.  

Irene soon got us busy drawing out our sketches onto twenty 12" by 12" papers and pinning them to our design walls.  Now we just need to reproduce the drawing into fabric.   And so it begins.

DAY 4 OF VOLTRON!

 I haven't been sleeping well and woke up feeling really bad.  I'm a bit anxious about Darrell's family coming next week.  We have so much to do to get ready for them.  So, I decided to go home today.

I did stay through lunch and get a little more work done before I left.

I took pictures of the other's projects, too.

Here's what mine looked like before I packed it up. 

DAY THREE OF VOLTRON!

 I got up and went for an absolutely gorgeous walk up by the Ebey's Landing National Park Visitor's Center.  I think the trail is called the Pratt Trail.  It was very windy, but the temperature was perfect and the air smelled of the sea, fresh!

Then it was back to working on Voltron! at the Pacific NW Art School with Irene Roderick.

SATURDAY AT COUPEVILLE

 I finally got back up to Ebey's Landing Lookout for a morning walk.  It's been too windy and cold previously.  It was cloudy and breezy today, but not too cold.  I took my binoculars and spotted a few birds, too.

It was a nice walk through the fields and into the trees and out again.  Foggy but nice.

Then it was back to the workshop to wrap up our week.  I put together some more pieces then pinned all the parts to my design wall flannel and rolled it up to take home.

I left early and headed north across Deception Pass to make a stop at Julie Drake's, our workshop assistant, Open Studio.  She has the best studio I have ever seen, very well laid out and planned in a building her husband and her had built.

This is the studio!  Her husband's space on the left and Julie's on the right with a gallery up above.

WORKSHOP DAY THREE

 Day three with Irene Roderick in Coupeville - we had a critique this morning which was very informative.  She first talked to us about how to look at a piece and think about what you like and why and what is bothering you.  

Then it was back to working.  

This is how I left it at the end of the day.  I was burnt out.  I think I want to expand it and put blank space in between some of the pieces.  I think it's too busy, chaotic.

So, too tired to start that, I left early and went out for some fun.

First, I stopped across the street to sketch this rescue helicopter.

While I was there, the operators showed up and wanted to buy my sketch to use for a card or something.  I told them I'd bring it to their office tomorrow.

Then I went down to the waterfront for some ice cream.  Half way through my big bowl of ice cream, I thought I should probably get some dinner first.

There was a little hotdog vender truck by the wharf, so I got a bratwurst with sauerkraut and sat at a picnic table and really enjoyed this beautiful afternoon.

It's so nice here.

SECOND DAY OF WORKSHOP

 It's the second day of the Dancing With the Wall Workshop with Irene Roderick in Coupeville.  I got up early and thought I'd go back up to the Ebey Landing Lookout and walk the loop trail up there.  But, it was too windy and cold.  So, I headed back into Coupeville, where it wasn't windy and walked around there for a bit before class.

It was a beautiful morning!

The wharf in Coupeville.

I walked up the trail next to the wharf.  This is looking back down to the wharf.

Looking back down to the main street in Coupeville.

The workshop starts at 9am.  We started right in working on our projects again.  Irene came by one time and we got to talking about shapes and particularly shapes in the negative space of things.  I noticed the ironing boards legs and the shapes they created.  Life is interesting.

Here is how my project looked at the end of the day.  I made a lot more progress today.  

I'm using mostly Kona fabrics, Espresso, Snow, Medium Pink and Oyster, along with a Kaffe shot cotton in the orangy-pink.  I also threw in that Raspberry fabric that I've had for years (probaby 30 years).  It's dull, but somehow it works.  Late in the day, I added the Yarrow, a golden yellow.  It works very well with the Espresso.

ON MY WAY TO COUPEVILLE

 I left early this morning to catch a ferry from Mukilteo to Whidbey Island.  I'm taking a Dancing With the Wall Workshop with Irene Roderick this week.  

The traffic was very light and I got there faster than I needed.

It was a beautiful morning.

Boarding the ferry at Mukilteo

Uh oh, there's a large bank of clouds over the island.

I love ferry rides.

Yep, it was very foggy on the island.

Since I arrived early, I thought I'd go up to the Ebey Landing Lookout.  But this is all I saw it was too foggy.

I wonder what the lookout looks out onto, hmmm.

Well, that didn't work out.  I still had an hour before class started, so I headed up the road to Oak Harbor to find a Starbucks.  I picked up breakfast and lunch, too.  Then I headed back down to Coupeville and unloaded my sewing machine, fabrics and supplies.  

The workshop is being held at the Pacific NW Arts School in Coupeville.  We jumped right in and started working on our projects.

Here is how my workwall looked at the end of the day.

Afterward, I was very tired and went straight to my room at the Coupeville Inn.