Once Upon A Time...

in a land...well...um...not so far away really...a stitcher took a kit that had been languishing for so long she can't remember when it actually came to live in the castle and with a bit of floss, and a bit of thread, and a little bit of time, created...

A Gnome and a Toadstool...

 The Gnome at the front door to the Toadstool House...

And at the side window checking out the button flowers...

From a kit by Jodie of Ric Rac "Mushy and Gnome" that I bought so long ago that I can't remember actually when, but I think it was at an early Daylesford Makers' Market (do they still have them?).  Of course being a Jodie kit it went together awesomely well with no issues.  I couldn't be bothered changing floss colours and mucking about stitching three little daisies or whatever so I used little buttons instead, just because I could.

There really is no point to either the Gnome or the Toadstool except that they were cute and I liked them so I bought the kit...now I can finally have them decorate my sewing room shelf.

So that makes...drum roll please.....6, yes folks count 'em, 6 finishes for me since Sunday! and a good start to OPAM this year...

Happy Stitching...

To Catch a Thread...

...all you need is a thread catcher basket from the lovely Fiona!

Fiona had held a giveaway after her thread catcher production line went into overdrive and, Yay me, I won one! The fabrics are so pretty.  Thank you Fiona, I can assure you I will be putting this little basket to good use.

Happy Stitching...

From Little Things...

Well...um...more little more things really...Sunday I woke up with a sinusy headache and after spending the morning on the couch aimlessly wandering around the world wide interweb while begging the paracetamol to work eventually wandered into the sewing room with the aim of some hemming and ironing...boring but necessary evils that didn't require too much brain cell energy expenditure...the aim misfired and instead...I made a towelling car seat belt cover (you know the little wrap around jobs that stop it from sticking/digging in when it is hot) that had been needed for ages as the first attempt was well worn out, that took all of 1/2 hour going at the speed of a snail so why had I waited so long?...mmm what next...still avoiding the boring stuff...recently I finished up a little orphan stitchery (I think it is a Red Brolly/Bronwyn Hayes design) that had been going on for ever so I turned it into the front of a needlebook...

That took all of an hour...what next? (still avoiding)...the scrap of broderie perse applique sampling that I did at Summer School was flung on the cutting table...I said I'd use it for a pincushion or something and so...a pincushion it now is...not good enough for anyone but me but hey it's always handy to have an extra one lying around...

Next!...I was starting to flag again but still needed to actually do something rather than just aimlessly watch tele/DVD/iView and found a couple of why did I do this? traced stitcheries...so I started the one with the simpler and quicker design using a pretty multi-coloured variegated floss to stitch while watching catch up tele on the PC...finished  yesterday and became...another pincushion...

A fairly substantial sized pincushion from a Leanne Beasley design. With butterflies on the front it had to have butterflies on the back too!...

These little projects have cleaned up a few odd bits lying around the sewing room and hopefully kick started the creative mojo again...it has kept wandering off the last few months without leaving a forwarding address...and as for the boring stuff? well I've unpicked the old elastic on the mother's skirt and pinned on the new piece so that is a start...oh and K, I also stitched on all but about I think 4 of the front patches for the "joint project", progress!...

Happy Stitching...

Summer School - The Days 4 & 5 Report...

I gave up fighting the crappy internet connection while I was away so a couple of days behind but anyway...the final two days of Summer School 2013, Saturday & Sunday, I spent in an appliqué workshop with Rhonda absorbing her tips and tricks.  Rhonda is an amazing tutor and it was two days well spent (oh I just read that back, the first three days with Karen were definitely well spent too!).  For the class Rhonda designed an urn of flowers that can be used as the basis for all sorts of projects such as the centre of a medallion quilt, a cushion cover or, as Rhonda had done, quilted and framed in a nice wooden frame. Being a stitcher of amazing slowness in class  (I get distracted so easily by socialising, shopping, cuppas, any excuse really) so knowing from the get go that there was no way I'd achieve great and wonderous progress I asked Rhonda what to concentrate on...

Ironing the background for a photo would mess up the tracing...
that's my excuse and I'm sticking to it!...

...the result being a slightly more than half appliqued urn and some petals...I stitched the petals on Sunday when I was using most of my energy resisting the urge to crawl under the table, curl up and go to sleep - relaxing had taken a turn for the ridiculous! - and they should have been in remedial class.  Seriously hoping by the fifth incarnation of this flower in the design there has been improvement.

So that was Summer School 2013...wahhhhhh! sob sob it's over...reality is rushing back in but in the meantime...

Happy Stitching...

Summer School - The Days 2 & 3 Report...

Still at Summer School...still having fun...Day 2 (Thursday) was the second day of Karen's quilt workshop and I worked on "Anna", surprising myself by actually stitching in "class"...imagine!  I've now assembled two x three rows of coffin shapes for the side borders of the centre medallion...Day 3 was the hand quilting class with Karen - the class that involved Wretched. I was consoled by learning that everyone, including the tutor!, had trouble with this little quilt top that looked ever so easy and was completely the opposite.  I loved seeing the different fabric combinations and colours as well.  I managed to pin baste the quilt and then marked and stitched one motif...didn't want to over do it...

When Karen asked for help with Show & Tell after lunch I was happy to play hold up quilts (really, any excuse to stop work!).  She has had the most gorgeous little bird pincushions made, one for each day, as the daily door prize.  As I was on stage I did the draw...I scrunched up my eyes, turned my head away from the box of names and rummaged around as Karen remarked "wouldn't it be funny if she pulled out her own name"...and...I did!!! It was hilarious, I was laughing so much I couldn't even pick which little birdie I wanted for a couple of minutes.  The one I really really coveted was chosen by the day before's winner so I went with this sweet little blue bird...

Isn't it just divine, hand stitched and gorgeous....lucky me, he is way too beautiful to have pins stuck in him and will join my little china thimble collection and have the job of adorning my sewing room.

Today starts an applique workshop with Rhonda, only ever so slightly terrified - her work is amazing! 

Happy Stitching...

It must have been my lucky day yesterday...I've just discovered I also won one of Fiona's gorgeous thread catchers! Thank you Fiona, you know how much I loved your versions and Mr Random must have too!

Summer School 2013 - The Day 1 Report...

Summer School 2013 began today yesterday (thanks to Blogger and dodgy internet it's now tomorrow)...after the initial annual catch up with Summer School friends it was time to start.  I'm spending the first two days with Karen Cunningham in her quilt workshop but, I don't want to start any new large complicated quilts, I'm filing the pattern and brought along "Anna" (a previous Karen Summer School class project) to work on.  The first quilt Karen is teaching  this year focuses on the appliqué technique of broderie  perse.  After listening to Karen's description of the technique and how it was employed by stitchers of bygone days I decided that, rather than working on Anna for the morning, I'd pilfer some fabric from the project box and "have a go". A 5" charm square and some motifs cut from a toile scrap were pulled to sample stitch the three methodologies of this type of appliqué and see which, if any, I preferred or even liked doing...

For the rooster in the centre I used the usual blind (appliqué) stitch, for the little urn underneath the rooster (the detail is lost in the stitching), blanket stitch and for the bit of tree at the top (which looks suspiciously like a blob), running top stitch.  None of these methods are raw edge, in all three the seam allowance is neatly turned under. Immediately I started the urn I knew I wasn't enamoured with blanket stitch for the type of 18th Century reproduction quilt designs that Karen produces.  The blind (appliqué) stitch method is well, nothing new, and I didn't mind at all the running top stitch which is done in small even stitches using cream thread regardless of the fabric colour. I changed to a cream thread and the stitches blend right in even though they are on blue.   And when it all comes down to it, it's just applique, nothing mysterious at all.

So the votes were 50/50 for the blind (appliqué) stitch and running top stitch and a big fat 0 for the blanket stitch (prefer to use blanket stitch on raw edge appliqué projects).  The ladies of old would then highlight aspects of their motif with little bits of embroidery like french knots or feather stitching but I didn't go that far on the sample.

Before we knew it the day was over and I hadn't put a stitch into Anna, oh well there's still today for this class.

Happy Stitching...

Wretched...

Wretched 

Pronunciation: /ˈrɛtʃɪd/

adjective (wretcheder, wretchedest)

• of poor quality; very bad:
• used to express anger or annoyance:

Oxford English Dictionary 

Yep I've named the crib quilt...or rather it has named itself...I don't do the quilt naming thing well and there is generally no sentiment attached, as evidenced by quilt tops being known by monikers such as The Quilt Whose Name I Don't Remember, The Never Ending Wagga, The Red Quilt...but this one is...Wretched.  Wretched it is and wretched it makes me feel...it is so not getting its outer pieced border...even with the borders on it isn't stable...the fabric seems to just give and stretch in every direction, it's like it has no grain and is 360 degrees of bias...might has well have made it out of jersey...the horror of the prospect of trying to deal with the outer pieced border is just beyond my endurance so I've made an executive decision to piff it...call it a design modification...it so isn't flat, it so isn't square and I so don't give a rats...after all it's for a technique workshop, a square of calico would have served the purpose...which if I'd thought of a square of calico earlier I would have cut one out and drew on the patchwork design!  But on the plus side it is the perfect size for my little camping table and I do so like the colour/fabric combination, just not the fabric behaviour.

Happy Stitching... 
 

A Little Crib Quilt Top...Almost...

After months of waiting, time has flown by and now it is nearly time for the quilty highlight start to my stitchy year...Summer School starts Wednesday week, wahoo!...it seemed Sooooo Far Away, I blinked and now...It Is Almost Here!...this year I'm booked in to a couple of technique classes...applique and hand quilting...I've had the requirements for the applique class packed for a few weeks having found supplies in my travels up to Singleton in November.  For the hand quilting day we were sent a pattern to get to top stage in readiness...a small crib quilt...I'm not keen on machine piecing, never have been and this little disaster zone is just proving my point, let's just say that it looked simple enough but it has had other ideas...grrrr...I wish so much I'd had time to hand piece it but alas the calendar just didn't have room to indulge...

But onwards we forge, after all I'm leaving on Friday to travel to Blackheath via I haven't decided yet and the machine isn't coming with me, so there isn't any option of chucking it in the corner or starting over, I simply don't have time...thank goodness the quilting workshop is with a tutor who knows me and will understand when I just want to hide under the table...it is destined to be a bit of a table cloth so for the intended use it will be fine...

OK, now to face the pieced border...can only imagine what new horrors await me with that part of the exercise!

Happy Stitching...