That is my way of thinking once I have a vision. I am steadfast on moving right along the course I have planned, but there are times when a design does not transpire the way I originally anticipated. This is especially true concerning the piecing aspect of my quilting. Gauging the amount of fabric required has been an issue for me in the past. Unfortunately, when I miss calculated the material needed, I needed to incorporate some major creativity in order to make the project work.
Case in point would by my Hula Hibiscus:
Originally I planned to use more of the color blue so that I would enhance the outer portions of the quilt. Obviously the end result was much different as I did not have enough blue and had to revise my plan of action!
Here is another example where I needed to abort the initial mission:
While producing the above small sample it became apparent that I did not have correct color thread. My intended goal was to match the thread to the background, well change of plans for this quilter! My color choice of thread then had to be altered to a shade that was similar, or kind of similar to the background. Again, not what I mentally manufactured for this design. Boy oh boy does thread choice make a difference! This little piece would appear completely different, if a blending thread had been used.
Regardless of the reason , sometimes being creative means revising again, and again, and again. It may not be that you have miscalculated the amount of fabric needed, or neglect to possess the correct thread color; it could simply be that mentally your vision is taking your design in a new direction. Whatever the reason, embrace what is being set before you and unleash the talent within.
Deviating from what you “thought” was the best plan, might just produce the most amazing plan ever!
Have you needed to revise, or deviate from your “original” quilt idea? If so was it due to not liking your design, or (like me) you misjudged your design requirements?
Lisa H Calle's Blog 
Some of my best results have come from just this kind of thing. I really love your end results shown here. That green thread is really terrific. Takes courage though to use contrasting thread like that.
Dear Lisa: Thank you so much for the “I will not deviate” column you recently posted on your blog. I think the quilts you posted are beautiful and I think only you as the maker would notice what you think went “wrong” with the plan. To those of us who didn’t know your original intent, we see only absolutely gorgeous work. That said, I have spent the last two months fixing four quilts I made several years ago when I was beginning to quilt. Each of them made me unhappy when I looked at them, and for three of them, I pulled out all the original quilting and re-quilted them after taking your iQuilt class. I learned a lot from this exercise and now I not only have three quilts I really like, but I also now have the confidence to repair quilts. And should someone bring me an unfinished or partially finished quilt, I also know several of the pitfalls to avoid – like ripping out all the old quilting before inserting basting stitches! LOL Anyway, this note was too long to leave in the comment section, but I wanted you to know how much I appreciated your iQuilt class and your blog. Cheers,Bernadette HoughtonColumbia, SC
Sounds like you learned a lot from those 3 quilts!! Glad you enjoyed the iquilt class!!
I’m currently working on a quilt that hasn’t gone the way I’d envisioned. The piecing was fine, but my quilting plan, though it looked good on paper, just left me completely cold. I wasn’t brave enough to pull out the quilting, so I’m adding more — lots more — in hopes that “more is better” is going to make a difference. 😉
I’ve often done that with success. Good luck.