I spent today working on this block for the Cocorico Traveling Bee.  Charise sent me two beautiful starter blocks for her quilt.  One depicts a well dressed woman holding a suitcase looking off into the distance.  The other is a camera photographing the Eiffel Tower.  Charise normally works in a recognizable palette of aqua, lipstick pink, cherry red, and the occasional mustard.  These blocks were no exception and I wanted my block to fit her palette. I also wanted to create a larger block toward which the woman could be gazing.  I decided she was looking at a passenger ship.  It felt more romantic to me than a plane. I drafted the paper pieced portion and included a bit of the lipstick pink solid that Charise sent along for continuity. The rest of the fabrics are mine but blend with her choices.  I improv cut and pieced the curves for the smoke and waves.

Here are Charise’s blocks along with my passenger ship. I think I will make one more small block before passing it on to the next bee member but I am not sure what yet!  Suggestions are welcome!