Best Laid Plans

Quilts are not always a cut and sewn proposition. Sometimes there are bumps along the way and decisions that quizzically impair the over taxed brain. This is what I refer to as “a quilt block.” Not the traditional 8x8 or 12x12 or even the gigantic 14x14 sized piece of pieced material, but a snafu or glitch that throws the entire quilt design into disarray. Hence, the quilt is blocked and needs a quick kick to get it revved up again.

I just was not happy with the black and white printed logos… they were too black and white. The rest of the quilt was swimming in color and then up pop these awful black and white squares. Don’t get me wrong, I love the logos… they are the beautiful art work of Salem-Keizer students through the years. It was the combination of the colorful fabric and the black and white logos. It was the default option, as the Foundation does not have digital access to all the color logos for the past 30 years. However, the contrast between the very colorful fabrics and the black and white of the logos was stark and dowdy. I was not feeling the Awesome 3000 charm.

The Awesome is not a black and white affair. It is drenched in color and excitement. The craziness of kids putting sparkly dye and huge ribbons in their hair so mom and dad can recognize them from the stands!! It is the gigantic nature of GEO and Clifford as they mingle with the crowd. There is the pancake breakfast… not to be consumed before running!!! And the activity village where one can spend a few moments between races and maybe complete a fun gift for mother’s day! The Awesome has grown from a small race with 300 kids to an event that not only raises money for teacher grants, but encourages families to spend a fun healthy morning together. Through it all there have been growing pains and changes for good and not so good, however the end result and overall consensus is, “Let’s do it again next year!”

Back to the quilt… I needed a fresh take, a new idea, or something that would make the logos pop in the quilt. I tried coloring the alligators in with green pens… that only produced big alligator blobs without definition or detail. I then attempted to color the fabric with diluted acrylic paints…

It had worked on another project. That seemed to wash out the color and design. Thankfully, Louise and her computer oriented husband put their heads together and digitally colored a couple of the blocks. The alligator came out vivid along with the reds and yellows interspersed in the logos. The colors were not exactly like the original designs, yet it gave just enough pizzazz to pop the logos from their white backgrounds and make the gators come to life! We also decided to ditch the neutral colors and stick to eye popping primaries. Yes we would have to re-print all the logos and buy more fabric, but in the long run, it would be worth it.

The Awesome 3000 is an event meant to be relished and relived. The quilt needed to exhibit those same qualities and be cherished for lifetimes to come! Which means, sometimes you need to step back, assess the plans and happenings along the way and change those things that need changing... sometimes it works and sometimes it doesn't, regardless, the Awesome was, is, and always will be...

AWESOME!!!