Take A Stitch Tuesday 2012 Challenge - Week 9

Here is my exercise in couching for week 9:


and here is February's "page":

I had fun with this one. I've done couching before, but usually as borders or ways to hold down very log straight stitches as embellishments on top of needlepoint or cross stitch. In this one, I added some scraps from Rainbow gallery (ribbons and a suede thread and couched it with chevron stitch. But if you look further up the page, you will see I also used another piece of grosgrain ribbon in my chevron stitch exercise.

2012: A Year of Challenges - week 8

I can't believe it! I FINISHED "Sewing with Mama!" Cursing as I stitched but it's done. Have to say, I'm not a fan of the finished product --- the issues I had form the beginning with the colorways in the kit were magnified when the top stitching went on. A lot of it simply can't be seen. For example, can you find the eyeglasses in this photo? I can only because I know that that little sprinkle of white "confetti" near the sewing machine base is the silver filament used to stitch them --- no matter what light I used to photograph this beast, those glasses simply do NOT show up!

Oh well, it's done and now I can move on... to "Kimono - Revisited"! OMG

Oh, and FInishing Frenzy this week brought out a needlepoint piece I designed myself (!!!) back in 1974! It's now a pillow and I need to buy more polyfill  because this little 12 x 12 pillow ate it all up!

Take a Stitch Tuesday 2012 Challenge - Week 8

The Chain stitch --- I have as many back-of-fabric issues with this one as with the Lazy Daisy/detached chain. Don't know why. Anyway...

I added three new GAST colors to the mix: Cherry Bark, Buckeye Scarlet (even though it pains me!) And Raspberry Parfait (# 0380). And added beads to the two examples on the right...

And February's "page" looks like this right now:

IHSW February 2012

Again, I didn't exactly act like a hermit! In fact, I was SUPPOSED to be working on my taxes, but I kept finding excuses not to, so all I got done there was the category summary reports printed out for the year 2011.

I had forgotten about FInish Frenzy for the week so I worked on that over the weekend and got these seven ornaments sewn: 

The dated from back to summer 2002 and are the first seven pieces in my photo album for that year.

I also stitched on "Sewing with Mama! You may not be able to make out much difference from where I was at the start of the weekend, but I did get all the backstitching done and a good portion of the straight stitches and Lazy Daisies: 

Basically, I got the cream parts of the curtain drapes behind the sewing machine done (even though you can't see it in this picture as it really doesn't show up well), the outlines of the thread spools and the tea cup, the bottom of the pin cushion (again, not that obvious), the rest of the gold decoration of the machine itself, and I threaded the machine!

2012: A Year of Challenges - week 7

This week, I got the decks cleared! I completed week 7 of TAST (detached chain), the last Bargello Club entry  (Medallion), and my February CQJC/BJP/color palette challenge.  I forgot to do an FInish Frenzy, even though I have the pieces picked out... and the threads still aren't here for outlining my "Kimono - Revisited" (although I have an email saying that they've been sent!),  meaning all I worked on since Wednesday was "Sewing with Mama!"

I SHOULD be celebrating but, having gotten halfway through the drape behind the sewing machine, I realized I was using the wrong color thread and that meant I spent a day ripping out! Kind of put me off my feed, so to speak, and I simply couldn't face picking it up again yesterday.  So this is not as far as I should have gotten but I did get the lace in the drawer done before that frog moved in!


This is International Hermit and Stitch Weekend - February, but, what with taxes to do (my accountant's questionnaire arrived this week), I probably won't get a lot done on "Sewing With Mama!"  or anything else, for that matter.

Take A Stitch Tuesday 2012 Challenge - Week 7

Detached Chain --- I tried to get "arty" with a tree and falling leaves but it was too small to come across. Oh well...


I threw in some beads to spice it up a little.

Guess I'm not a big fan of detached chain because it made me tense --- the back of the fabric is  a mess as for some reason, I couldn't get the thread to tighten between stitches...

Crappy picture and for some reason, when click on, it gets all squashed up... Sorry!

Anyway, February's page looks like this so far - you can see the detached chains easier on this:

Two completions...

"Medallion" from the Bargello Club for February 2012:

Backgorund stitched in Kreinik fine (#8) white braid (032); medallions stitched in GAST Maple Syrup and Bittersweet, DMC 30676 and Kreinik  fine (#8) dark orange braid (027).

Crazy Quilt Journal Challenge/Bead Journal Project/ Color Palette Challenge block for February:

Lots of acknowledgements to announce! This piece was influenced by the color palette challenge issued byJudy Laquidara and Vicki Welsh. The Crazy Quilt Journal Challenge requires at least a 6 x 6 block and I used the grid from block 39 of Sharon B's" (of Pin Tangle) "I dropped the Button Box" project, modified to accommodate ten fabrics. In addition, three stitches from the Take a Stitch Tuesday challenge adorn the seams: Cretan, herringbone and chevron. The Bead Journal Project aspect of the piece was the beading throughout the seam treatments.

All fabric was from my stash of quilting cottons. Mill Hill beads, DMC floss and scraps of ribbon and lace from my stash completed the piece.

This means I can stitch on "Sewing with Mama!" while I wait for "Kimono - Revisited" threads to arrive!