Size Does Matter

There's two old fashioned favorites starting up in the garden right now. The tiger lilies are blooming, with glaucous plume poppies leaves in the background. The gladiolas are opening up as well; they make wonderful cut flowers, and only their lack of fragrance keeps them from utter perfection. Here they are with cannas and the asparagus behind them:

Both of these plants are pleasing and commonly grown because they are visually engaging--they are satisfyingly large. You know you've got something worthwhile when the display catches your eye from a distance. It's also important that when you get up close, there's lots of detail in the shapes and colors and markings to hold your interest.

In the studio, I have finished piecing Plume Poppy. It's enormous, somewhere in the neighborhood of 7ft. x 8ft. I am probably certifiably insane to tackle something so large. But once I started, there was no turning back. The scale and proportion had to be right for the subject and my interpretation of it, and in this instance that meant an imposing size. I will be kicking myself the entire time I am wrestling it under the machine for quilting, but cie la vie......the design turned out very well, and I am excited by it, so the the excitement will carry me through the slogging parts of construction. And the quilting will add another level of detail and texture to catch and hold your interest when you get up close.