Preparing to defend my thesis

And so it begins. Well, I suppose it also ends, in a sense, as this is the culmination of the program that prompted the quilt's birth. This is the beginning of my super-intense preparation for my thesis defense, but also (hopefully) the end of the road to getting my Masters and all the things that come with that degree. I admit to being very eager to go up that rather huge notch in the salary tree...

I was up for critique this week, and it was an interesting experience. it was the first time I'd seen the quilt laid out after it had been (mostly) pieced together. As a painting major during undergrad, I was used to stepping back from my work while making it so I could see the whole of the piece. That was impossible as the quilt grew because I simply didn't have the floor space. Seeing such a large chunk of it so close to being fully assembled was wonderful. After working on it so hard for so long, I'd grown nervous that no one but I would be able to see the work that went into it.

There's still much to do for the show. I need to baste and quilt one more section (the one on the far right in the second picture) and prep the edges for the borders. I need to attach the borders around each section and join the sections together. I need to wear-out and shred the tulle covering the borders to they look a bit more like well-loved fishnets.

Then I need to decide exactly how to exhibit this giant beast of a project. Yeah, I don't foresee a ton of sleep in my future.