100 Day Project: Celebratory Wrap Up and Reflections

100 Blocks in 100 Days!!

Back on April 7th, I outlined my goals and rules before creating my first Design by Dice block as part of my first foray into a 100 Day Project. Fast forward a few months, and here is my final Design by Dice, Block 100/100!!

• Instead of rolling the dice, I challenged myself to see how many colors, values, elements of art and design principles I could incorporate into my final composition using 80+ tiny triangles cut from the fused scraps used throughout this project. 
• I believe I successfully incorporated all the elements of art: Line (flowing line of triangles), Shape (triangles and squares), Value (light to dark included), Size and scale of the fabric prints used, Texture (again different prints as well as metallic accents), and Space flowing in and around the triangles.
• Here is my critique with regards to incorporating the principles of design: Well-balanced triangles and square accents, range of contrast in colors/values/prints including the metallic accents (with some of the darker values and teals and blues blending in with the blue background), lots of movement achieved with the triangles flowing throughout the block and metallic squares dancing throughout the background, a strong pattern of overlapping triangles, everything works well together creating a unified design. The only question mark relates to emphasis--as your eye moves all around, but ultimately the focus is on the rainbow of flying geese. 
• "Life throws challenges and every challenge comes with rainbows and lights to conquer it."-Amit Ray, Indian author, yogi, and spiritual master

100/100!!!

I thought I would share a few final thoughts and reflections from my journey:

1. The Time is Right...

The timing of this year's 100 Day Project coincided with the Covid-19 Pandemic, which meant I now had several months off from traveling and teaching, as well as a need for some kind of structure and purpose in my daily life. It also supported my 2020 Goal of Making Studio Time a Weekly Priority. 

At the onset, I started my blocks earlier in the day, but over time, they were created in the afternoons, early evenings, and soon it became my closing activity of each evening. Some evenings, I would just be heading into the studio around 11 PM to roll my dice and start my block (with a few finishes completed past midnight). And while I was absolutely exhausted, I also came to enjoy this quiet time to reflect upon my day and channel those thoughts into my block.

Set Up for Success

2. Have a Game Plan...

In addition to creating daily art, I hoped to stretch my own creativity and artistry in the process. So I set out to study color theory, the elements of art, and design principles, especially as they relate to one another. Of course I had to incorporate some fun factor, so I structured my explorations with a playful twist. Each side of a die was assigned a different color combination, element of art, and design principle...making for 216 different combinations when I rolled all 3 dice! 

I also set myself up for success by gathering the necessary supplies which included: books on design, a color wheel, 3 dice, lots of fused scraps (more on that in a bit), fast food trays to stay organized, an iron, parchment paper to protect my iron and ironing board, scissors, and rotary equipment. 

And while I began with a framework, I was open to new possibilities. After the first 25 blocks, I switched Form to Size and Scale. In light of the protests and Black Lives Matter, I skipped a day of posting for the social media blackout. I also started to add a new challenge layer of finding quotes to accompany each design.  

3. Fun with Fabric...

Quickly into the process, I sorted my scraps by color. This saved me so much time and hassle. Once I rolled my dice, I chose the colors and could simply grab those bins and dive right into the design process. Oftentimes I would dump the contents of the bin to see what I had to work with and those scraps helped inform the design.

Even after designing 100 blocks, I barely made a dent in my fused scraps! I started with a smaller pile of yellow and orange scraps, so I did fuse a few more scraps midway through my project. But otherwise, I used what I had on hand. 

I had fun playing with some non-quilting fabrics including metallic bathing suit fabric which added wonderful accents and texture to several of my compositions.

Bring on the Bling

I remembered a drawer of fused fat quarters leftover from a workshop with Sue Benner, which included several sheers. Wow! I loved how the sheers played with the other fabrics and will definitely be incorporating more sheer fabrics into future projects!! 

Sheer Delight

And I really enjoyed the using 4 different ombres for the background squares. Each quarter featured a new background fabric, which added a new twist and challenge.

1st Quarter: Blocks 1-25

2nd Quarter: Blocks 26-50

3rd Quarter: Blocks 51-75

4th Quarter: Blocks 76-100

4. Finding Inspiration...

I never knew what I would create until I rolled the dice to determine the color scheme, element of art, and design principle. Usually I started by selecting the colors, making note of the blocks hanging on the design wall to see which colors were missing. Once the colors were chosen, I dumped the bins out on my cutting table and looked for inspiration in the prints or shapes of the scraps.

Some days I drew inspiration from nature...

Flora Fun

Other evenings, I tried to process events from earlier in the day or week...

Daily Inspiration

Oftentimes, the fabrics just stared back at me. If I was stumped for ideas, I would start by making one small decision, such as cut out simple shapes (ie. squares, rectangles, triangles, circles). As I continued to cut out that one shape over and over, new design possibilities would start to emerge...

Back to Square One

Another strategy was to start by breaking up that background with wiggly or straight lines. I could then focus on filling in these newly created spaces with more simple shapes: wedges, arcs, triangles, circles, lines, and more!

Divide and Conquer

5. Creative Connections

One of the wonderful outcomes of this journey was all the amazing connections I made with other artists! 

First was discovering a treasure-trove of fabulous artists that were working in all different mediums for their 100 Day Projects. Some of my personal favorite projects include:

• @margaretfleisher who recreated book covers in fabric
• @ana_buzzalino and her graphic mark making designs (that I would love to see printed into fabric!!)
• @alisacreates spectacular 100 papercuts based on her travels around the world
• @cherylthomsonquilter and her 100 days of improv piecing that featured incredible designs that employed some truly technical piecing skills!!

Cheryl reached out early in the 100 Day Project to inquire about my design by dice idea. She asked if she could adapt the idea for her own project, and her results were spectacular. Over the following weeks, I received several inquiries about my Design by Dice idea. I was happy to share my Dice Design matrix and encouraged them to adapt for their own creative goals. If you would like a copy, you can use the contact me form on my website and I am happy email you the word document. 

I also had the honor of sharing my Design by Dice blocks in interviews with Lyric Kinard (who authored one of the books that I used as a reference) and Pokey Bolton (you can click on the links to watch the full interviews).

Last but not least was all the lovely comments posted on my Instagram feed and blog posts, noting connections to the various designs and/or feeling inspired by my project and/or selected quotes. These comments totally made my day and help me keep creating...so a big thank you for joining me on this wild and crazy journey!!

Love Lines, 12" x 12" is a remake of Block 14/100, which was inspired by all the fabulous connections I've had during this Pandemic

To learn more about my set up and/or blocks, please visit my blog posts:

• Day 1 of the 100 Days Project: Elements of Art and Principles of Design Goals and Set Up
• Weekly Updates:  Week 1, Week 2, Week 3, Week 4, Week 5, Week 6, Week 7, Week 8 and 9, Week 10, Week 11, Week 12, Week 13, and Week 14

While I met the 100 Day mark, I have a few more plans in the works to continue this project. The first involves assembling the blocks into one or more finished projects (quilts, banners, flags?). And I hope to share this project with a broader audience through a few more ideas that are the works, so stay tuned!!

I know several folks expressed disappointment that my project was coming to a close. Working on Block 100/100 was bittersweet, as I have loved both the journey and the many wonderful outcomes. And that is why I have decided to start a new 100 Day Project that kicks off on July 20th (yes--tomorrow!?!) I hope you will join me on this new journey--whether it is to check back and see what crazy game plan I have in the works, or to cheer on my progress, or better yet--join me by starting your own 100 Day Project!!