I’m not seeing any hands up out there.
It may surprise you that while I was on a Zoom conference one day (total transparency – I’ve re-enacted the shot for this article) I got an inspirational hit. Can you see it?
Here are some clues starting with a bit of history: A couple of years ago I created a textile wall hanging that was influenced by my friend Jennifer Paganelli’s brilliant palette. It was the first piece of mine that I had framed, and proudly hung it in my living room.
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.

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