OK Rosie get a cuppa...
At Maldon on retreat (what seems like a million years ago) I started the second Rosalie Quinlan Dance of the Heart embroidery using Cosmo thread (8073) I bought at Urban Stitches. I chose the thread colour when I bought it just because I liked it...a lot...not because I had any particular use in mind for the embroidery when it was finished...it took me a few weeks of occasionally putting in a stitch (well I did spend a lot of time on retreat scrabbling around on the floor picking up hexie papers that made a bid for freedom - why is it always a pack of 1,000 that is picked up upside down and open! - making cuppas, eating freddos, chatting, cuppas, freddos, wandering the room looking at what others were actually achieving, freddos, going down the street to the shops, cuppas, freddos, playing show and tell with Rosie's project and generally not actually putting needle to fabric) so it didn't get finished at retreat but eventually a couple of weeks ago it became a finished stitchery...
This time I used backstitch not chain stitch and it took just as long! You'd have thunk that :J...
The Bag...after making the tote bag from Natalie Bird's Red Home book for a present with the first Dance of the Heart embroidery (last post) I was quite keen to make one for myself and last week my overloaded brain cells emerged from their fog and found some stitchy space. I was absolutely wrapt to find that two pieces of green fabric I'd bought ages ago at Threadbear, because they yelled at me that I needed them to make a bag, matched perfectly with the 8073 Cosmo thread in the finished embroidery - serendipitous indeed.
Just the right shades of green, cream and brown in the fabric and the thread. I'd bought a metre of each fabric at full price no less, I know - imagine! and the fabrics had become "precious" in that I just couldn't seem to find the pattern that spoke to me to use them and now they'd found their Perfect Match...wahoo!
I added the chocolate browns from the fabric boxes so it was a free project, no shopping required!!! and used bag batting again rather than pellon to give it structure...the lining is the non-floral green...I still love the two fabrics.
The colours in the photos are a bit dodgy...it's winter, the indoor lighting is not up to scratch for photo taking...the second photo is the only one that is true to the colours of the thread and fabrics...but you get the idea close enough.
I've given the bag a test drive and it passed with flying colours...
The Book...Cinderberry Stitches Elfin Delight Needlebook...
This was a project from Daylesford Craft Experience maybe last year, maybe the year before...the stitcheries (there are two of the same design, one on the inside and one on the outside) have been on the go for months and were finally finished. Feeling rather over confident after finishing the bag in two nights after work I thought, oh it will only take 1/2 hour to put this little needlebook together...yeah, really should know when to pack up and go to bed...it took considerably longer than 1/2 hour and involved much reverse sewing on one seam...you'd think I'd never sewn before...it has "issues" but I was not reverse sewing that seam again, I'll just live with the dodgyness...
The buttons are self covered with motifs from Natalie Lymer fabric...way cute...
The Pair of Shoes...the shoe block for Some Kind of Wonderful...
It's not that big of an achievement as I only had the words "gorgeous shoes" to go to be able to tick this one off. The SKOW box has re-appeared on the couch for an airing, need to do some back basting prep on the remaining blocks...
Whew...now I think it's time for me to go make a cuppa...
Happy Stitching...
At Maldon on retreat (what seems like a million years ago) I started the second Rosalie Quinlan Dance of the Heart embroidery using Cosmo thread (8073) I bought at Urban Stitches. I chose the thread colour when I bought it just because I liked it...a lot...not because I had any particular use in mind for the embroidery when it was finished...it took me a few weeks of occasionally putting in a stitch (well I did spend a lot of time on retreat scrabbling around on the floor picking up hexie papers that made a bid for freedom - why is it always a pack of 1,000 that is picked up upside down and open! - making cuppas, eating freddos, chatting, cuppas, freddos, wandering the room looking at what others were actually achieving, freddos, going down the street to the shops, cuppas, freddos, playing show and tell with Rosie's project and generally not actually putting needle to fabric) so it didn't get finished at retreat but eventually a couple of weeks ago it became a finished stitchery...
The Bag...after making the tote bag from Natalie Bird's Red Home book for a present with the first Dance of the Heart embroidery (last post) I was quite keen to make one for myself and last week my overloaded brain cells emerged from their fog and found some stitchy space. I was absolutely wrapt to find that two pieces of green fabric I'd bought ages ago at Threadbear, because they yelled at me that I needed them to make a bag, matched perfectly with the 8073 Cosmo thread in the finished embroidery - serendipitous indeed.
The colours in the photos are a bit dodgy...it's winter, the indoor lighting is not up to scratch for photo taking...the second photo is the only one that is true to the colours of the thread and fabrics...but you get the idea close enough.
I've given the bag a test drive and it passed with flying colours...
The Book...Cinderberry Stitches Elfin Delight Needlebook...
Whew...now I think it's time for me to go make a cuppa...
Happy Stitching...
9 comments:
good to see you have been doing some sewing in your absence. Love your new bag.
the fabrics look perfect and a new needlebook to boot.
Will we see lots of SKOW blocks appearing?
Gorgeous bag, the parts match perfectly. There was a reason those fabrics were refusing to play before.
Nice needle book, too bad the fabric was playing hard to please. It looks ok from here.
Cute shoes. Hope they don't expect you to wear ones like that.
Enjoy your SKOW blocks.
Beautiful bag Annette, and the fabrics are really lovely, I love it!!
Press on with the SKOW you will get it done eventually, my friend!
Hello! You've been so busy... that bag is fantastic, the stitchery and colours are perfect, what a neat thread colour you chose. I love that if it's already in your stash then it becomes free...LOL...
Sweet needlecase and block too, great work.
I notice Freddos featured prominently amongst your retreat and I just wanted to validate you. Ive found that Chocolate is an essential part of the retreat process- it helps you think about what you’re actually going to do with the project. Anyhoo ...your stitchery looks wonderful and even better as a bag and Im sure the Freddos are responsible.
I love your needlebook..that stitching is very cute! And shoes always warm my heart so that block is the bomb. LOVE the fabric you used for the shoes.
sounds like a perfect retreat.... love the end result bag.... those variegated threads are so lovely.... how cute is your needlecase and littl buttons...
Hugz
Some beautiful projects and I love the bag
such beautiful work Annette,i really love that bag.xx
The bag there looks beautiful with your stitchery! Lovely SKoW shoes, good luck with all the other blocks :-)
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