The Roman shade in that space has a diagonal pattern. During a virtual video session, the window treatment reflected onto the framed piece, and voilà – a new layout emerged to delight my eye.

I design in PowerPoint, but to achieve criss-crossing slanted lines in that software is not intuitive. A good friend is helping me on that score, but before I got her input, I was able to create several visually compelling arrangements without her instructions.

From there, I moved to cutting out circles – ¼” at first – and to lay them out in this new-for-me composition.

Motivated by the possibilities, I expanded my design. I created it horizontally, incorporating my Color Theory class learning with the goal of making felt look like it’s shimmering as influenced by one of Bridget Riley’s works I saw at the Morgan Library in June.

Excited about where this series of ideas was going, I sent images to my friend. The way they lined up in the text created something that excited me even more – a vertical formation!

Once I’m satisfied with the PowerPoint sketch, I begin to lay these out in wool. The circles are now 1” in diameter. I invested in a die-cutter that allows me to punch out 48 perfect circles in just a few minutes. Talk about Pennies from Heaven!

I’m showing you my work in progress here. I post regularly on Instagram and thrive on feedback. Often, I feel a tingle when I see something I love taking shape. But, like many creatives, I frequently lose sight of the beauty and have to step away. Self-doubt and self-criticism run wild.

Fortunately, I know this about myself and the process and take a break from the current piece. I’m excited to be working on a project with an interior designer that I’ll share more about as it progresses.

I’m also ecstatic to announce that I recently sold the largest piece I’ve made to date – a 24” x 30” wall-hanging which also evolved out of my Color Theory class and was admired and purchased by a longtime friend who now lives overseas.

You may remember from my last newsletter that I was missing wool yardage of several paler shades I needed in order to complete this work. The Wool Witch promptly provided what I was missing, and I was able to create the modulation in tints and tones I had designed.