on rare occasions . . .

I work because we need me too. My job is okay, and since we need me to have it, I'm grateful that I do! I used to have the freedom to do more projects that were more my interest (I love graphic design, and I love designing products in Autocad/Fabcad), but things have changed over the past year or so, and it's ... different.

Anyway, today was a rare day in which I was able to play with a passion (quilting) at work!

One of our customers owns Grand Oak Retreat -- a wonderful quilters' retreat establishment out in Scottsboro (click on the picture to go her website).

In fact, we did the rails for it several years ago when she first built. It's a beautiful place with a marvelous view, and I happen to have experienced it as a quilter when I went with our Stitcher's group on retreat, last year. I blogged about that trip here, here, here, and here. I wasn't able to join them this year, but I'm already on the list for February, 2012!

Anyway, she is interested in getting a driveway gate. My boss wanted to design something a little different for her, so he asked me to come up with a geometric quilt block that we could build in flat bar, and insert in the gate.

Happy to oblige (especially on the clock), I headed over to QuiltersCache.com and dove into their abundant stash of quilt blocks. I saw several I liked, but finally settled on this charmer . . .

The Lucky Clover block.

Next, I pulled up autocad and put the block to lines and put it on point . . .

And finally, I transferred the quilt block into the gate he'd drawn for her . . .

It will actually be twice the size of the one pictured. This is the one I did to his original dimensions, but when he saw it, he told me to double it!

Anyway, I think it's the perfect drive gate for a quilter, and for the entrance to a quilters' retreat!

Fun stuff and a nice departure from my normal work day!

:)