Rosie and I are taking the pilot class for Loon Tunes by Ann Strite-Kurz. The class is sponsored by the San Bernadino chapter of ANG so it’s been great fun to meet people we had only communicated with via email before. The class is held in a local bank’s conference room which has an outside entrance. The room is large and bright, which makes for the perfect stitching environment.

We had done some pre-work outlining the loon and the side borders. Day One, we did the two upper left sections of the loon’s head and neck. Ann used Blackwork to simulate the stripes of the lower left section of the loon’s head. Ann provided the start for the Blackwork and encouraged us to use that to learn how to do the rest. The upper left section is a combination of pearl cotton and Kreinik which gives a wet look to the loon’s head.

I’ve learned a lot about carrying threads in open canvas and keeping the threads straight in the border diamonds.

Rosie and I went to dinner at Kishi’s, a Japanese steakhouse, with Ann, Pat C from SBANG, and Kathy, another student in the class from out by the coast. It was great fun with a lot of interesting discussion.

Ann is an interesting teacher who provides lots of background commentary, knowledge of other needlework teachers, and detailed information on the piece. I am thoroughly enjoying this piece.

Here’s our progress after Day One. Mine is the gray, Rosie’s is the blue. We’re eager to see the comparison of the different color ways once completed.

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