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Wednesday, October 7, 2026

Monsoon

"It looks like giant raindrops", said Lesley, when I showed her a picture on my phone. Hence, I named him Monsoon.

Work in progress

Working on improvisational piecing helps me destress. The process is the focus - making small decisions - color, shape, size, and setting - keeps me in the moment. The destination will reveal itself.

The first block

For background, I used a white fabric I purchased several years ago from Mook Fabrics in Pennsylvania when Mari and I went to the Lancaster Quilt Show.

Eye-popping price :-D


Working with scraps from a long time ago, I pieced triangle leftovers with white background. Then "tried" matching those very fiddly points, in the base of the triangles. Similar shapes were easy but pairing a long skinny triangle with a lumpy one was challenging.


Decisions, Decisions


Columns of Diamonds


I celebrated well-matched points and accepted those that misbehaved, giving myself permission to just be. Combining small blocks with bog ones and skinny ones with wide ones, I assembled similar sized units into columns, using coping strips to bring them to size.

The batting is Thermore. The backing is scrappy and pieced. I quilted in one direction with squiggly lines. The binding matches the white background.

Monsoon finished at 47" by 60". Time for pictures!

Thank you, Bob


It was a busy day at Lake Anne and I could not get exclusive time with Bob. 

Thank you, Paul


Thank you, Wooden Horse



Monsoon

If there is a mirror-like surface, let there be a reflection.

Mirror Image

Good Picture, Bad Resolution

Easy Being Green :-)

Let get closer.

Get the Point?



A Pointed Discussion


Tall & Short


Small Points


Labelled


Whatever tiny scraps I did not use, I discarded.  This is new for me. I am certainly past the mid-point of my life and I have begun to carefully examine what I need vs. what I need to lose.

In other news, I resigned from my stressful job.  Paul's unwavering support gave me the courage to cut loose. On my last day, I received this card from a sweet co-worker (she understood my reasons).

Yes, Kristen. We are!


I have joined a Yoga class. It is time to focus on my health and well-being. I am anticipating more quilting, blogging and commenting :-) And of course, more cooking for Paul. All's well in this household.

Two quilts of mine were published in two different magazines. That blogpost is next. 

28 comments:

  1. Hooray for saying goodbye to the stressful job! I love that card your coworker gave you. Monsoon is a beauty! Your points look perfect - not that any of us would really be looking at them. I always enjoy your fun quilt photos, Preeti!

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  2. I second Diann's comments. life is too short to deal with a stressful job. Your co worker got it right! That's a person you will miss. The rest. . nope! Onward! Your pointed quilt is super! Having tried improvisational piecing on points I know that is a challenge to get them close to matching! Your points all look great!

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  3. I just love your Monsoon (aka raindrops) --lovely improv work, Preeti.
    So happy that you now will be concentrating on "you" ;))) Life is so short -- everything changes before you know it...[I am still resting my hands at least through the up coming weekend...]. Enjoy...
    Hugs, Julierose

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  4. Good-bye stress! Hello quilt studio! YIPPEE!! So happy for you & Paul. I think yoga classes are a great start to "retirement". Looking forward to your next post! ❤️

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  5. Congratulations on retiring !!! I wish you well (more beautiful quilts in the future)
    Dorothy in W WA

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  6. I love Monsoon! It looks like a fun puzzle to assemble.
    Congratulations on leaving that stressful job behind. Will you be looking for a new job? Enjoy having more time for yoga and quilting and taking care of yourself.

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  7. Hooray for putting yourself first. No job is worth making yourself crazy and, as I recall, you had a long commute. Time to take care of you (and Paul , of course).
    Pat

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  8. It's good to hear you have finished your stressful job. Along with decisions about the size of the scraps you NEED, it sounds like it's time to decide on what is important for your own wellbeing. Wishing you a lovely time piecing, yoga-ing, cooking for Paul and whatever else feels right. ♥

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  9. Yahoo on leaving that job that didn't deserve you! Life is far too short for that kind of stress. Now you can spend your time doing what matters most to you and enjoying the important things...like Paul and quilting!
    Monsoon is beautiful! Every triangle has its match and you found how to make them all dance together. Great work, as always, Preeti!

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  10. I am so happy for you! And I do love Monsoon, with all her fabulous points!

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  11. Monsoon is really fun, congrats on following your inspiration to a wonderful completion. Not working is scary, but you were wise to leave a stressful place. Life is too short to suffer that way.

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  12. First of all - I'm glad you are going to focus on yourself. That job wasn't allowing you to do that. And second - this is a gorgeous quilt!! Wow!! I love the colors, but really am impressed with how all the different sizes and shapes of raindrops work together. Great job!!

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  13. Ohh Monsoon - you are so pretty - and you want to send us moisture(Here at my house specifically haha) What a fun one and a great way to use those fabrics. congrats on this new phase - I hope you will enjoy it to its fullest!!

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  14. I'm so glad you are in a place you were able to leave the stressful job. I hope that all continues to be well (if not even better)!! And what a delightful improvisational quilt. Monsoon is a great name for it, and I love how it was inspired. Delightful photography as always!

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  15. Very original, I like the idea behind this quilt ! Somehow different from what you usually design.

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  16. Loving the new quilt, Monsoon. Who knows how rain drops are shaped; they fly by so fast. Your quilt reminds me of a poem from the Winnie the Pooh collection (When We Were Very Young, or Now We are Six) about John and his raindrop friend racing down the window pane.

    Congratulations on leaving a PITA job! I've had more than one of those in this lifetime and those employers definitely did not deserve me and what I had to offer. Good Job! YOU are worth it.

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  17. I love Monsoon! it's nice to see Bob again, too. He's going to need something to keep warm very soon! Big hugs!

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  18. Beautiful quilt, you did great merging big, small and smallest rain drops! Congrats on leaving a stressful job Preeti!!

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  19. Well matched points are always worth celebrating! Happy retirement and bravo for focusing on your health. I wish I'd listened to my mom so many years ago when I did not b/c I'm paying for it now. But I do think daily stretching just might be one of the most effecting things...that and walking.

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  20. Hooray!! for quitting a stressful job! It is not worth it.
    On my lst day my boss of a very short time said to me, " you just do not know how much I like you." I replied, " it damn sure doesn't show."

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  21. So sorry to hear about your job, but oh so glad you are focusing on your health. Love Monsoon--it's free and easy and very tranquil--how I'm hoping you are now. Thanks for sharing on my weekly show and tell, Wednesday Wait Loss. https://www.inquiringquilter.com/questions/10/07/wednesday-wait-loss-505

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  22. Good for you for quitting that job AND focusing on your health.!!

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  23. Oh, I'm glad you got rid of that stressful and exhausting job. Now it's time to focus on your well-being, and quilt of course! Monsoon looks like giant raindrops indeed, lovely pattern! Hugs

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  24. Monsoon is wonderful. It has the look of colored glass. I love all the places you took it for the photos. I'm glad you're free of a stressful job, moving on to better things. Like yoga and more published quilts! Have a great week.

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  25. Congratulations on choosing YOU and only those triangles that worked for your process! The workd thatcame to mind for me was "sparkly", that's what those now diamonds evoked to my eye. Love the staging with Bob even if it had to be in a crowd --- good quilts love to share space with other people!

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  26. That is beautiful. The colors are lovely together, and when I see it reflected in the water, it evokes the feeling of a lake. Well done. Hopping over from Oh Scrap! https://stitchinggrandma.wordpress.com/

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  27. Hi Preeti, good for you for making the hard decision (not the quilt but the job!) I only through out scraps when I'm working with them - then I let myself ditch the tiny ones if I didn't use it. Thanks for linking up to I Quilted This! Best of luck.

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  28. Congrats on making that hard job decision! Retirement's the best. Your quilt is lovely. I'm like you, it's hard to throw away those scraps...but I'm trying too! Thanks for sharing with us at Monday Musings.

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