tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-128263762024-03-13T21:43:29.998-07:00Another Hobby BlogPeacockhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16567049263142856395noreply@blogger.comBlogger385125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12826376.post-10638925062875641452013-09-12T13:38:00.000-07:002013-09-12T14:19:34.571-07:00CQI lace and pearls block<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<br />Peacockhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16567049263142856395noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12826376.post-77492903174751115252013-07-31T15:33:00.000-07:002013-09-15T15:43:36.873-07:00Darlene's Art Noveau block for CQI<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<br />Peacockhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16567049263142856395noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12826376.post-46515819844636824342012-09-28T01:42:00.000-07:002013-09-12T14:19:23.878-07:00Tuesday Stitchers import: a little bit of everythingHi, friends!<br />
I apologize for missing my posting times last weekend and the weekend before-- I was traveling. I thought that I would be able to get internet access at some point during that time, but it didn't turn out that way.<br />
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Back home now, back to my own keyboard! Yay!<br />
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I also thought that I would get a lot of stitching time while I was traveling. It didn't work out that way either! Ack.<br />
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My mind has been on other things. My bunny, dear companion for the past six years, got diagnosed with bone cancer. Trying to coordinate his treatment plan with my vet (who was boarding him for me, thank goodness!) while I was traveling was an interesting experience. So now we're hoping for the best, monitoring his day-to-day status, and preparing for the eventual (but hopefully later, not sooner).<br />
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Enough of that! My grandmother is doing well, at least! :)
So here's what I managed in my stitching:<br />
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<a href="http://www.tahlia.org/Blogger/postpics/CQIFFT23/20120925%20cqifft23%20shellys%20block%20sunflower%20and%20bumblebee%20sm.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="280" src="http://www.tahlia.org/Blogger/postpics/CQIFFT23/20120925%20cqifft23%20shellys%20block%20sunflower%20and%20bumblebee%20sm.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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I finished the bullion bumblebee on Shelly's RR block. </div>
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I gave him irridescent tatted wings. :)
They turned out really great! A lot of metallic and shimmer threads are very difficult to tat with because either they are too thin and/or fragile, or because they are shimmer wrapped around a core and the loop-closing process shreds the threads. This irridescent was, I believe, one of the Kreinik braided threads sold for embroidery. It works suprisingly well!
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And I sent the block off in the mail for the next stitcher to work on. Also received the next RR block to start working on. :)<br />
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I had three birthday swap projects to finish up and mail while traveling:<br />
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<a href="http://www.tahlia.org/Blogger/postpics/2012%20CQ%20pcs%20and%20atc/2012092%20cq%20pc%20for%20Melody.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="600" src="http://www.tahlia.org/Blogger/postpics/2012%20CQ%20pcs%20and%20atc/2012092%20cq%20pc%20for%20Melody.jpg" width="350" /></a></div>
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a postcard for Melody</div>
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I forgot to take my own picture before putting it into the mail. Fortunately, Melody took this delightful picture, so I have something for my records and to share! I actually thought that I had forgotten to write the address on the back of the postcard, so I am absolutely delighted that it even got where it was supposed to!</div>
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an Artist Trading Card (ATC) for Judy</div>
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There's a little bit of everything in this one-- crossed chain, u&d buttonhole, herringbone, some tatting, whipped wheel on pistil stitch spokes, and finally some cast-on stitches! Several of the fabricss I used for this one came from my grandmother's scrap-and-quilt stash. Let's just say that my grandmother and I have very different color sensibilities! She seems to have loved yellowish browns, acid greens, oranges, and all of those colors put together. The 1970s were kind to her, I think!</div>
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It was a bit of a challenge working in this colorway for me, and I'm not sure how I feel about the red and blue as accents against the orange and green. hmm.</div>
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This one was especially interesting to stitch on this week because I did the finishing work (backing and binding) before I traveled, and before I did most of the stitching. Fortunately, I'm a fan of the scoop method, so it worked out pretty well for me.</div>
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ATC for Marja</div>
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The background fabric is a handwoven leftover from a university project back in 2003. Since my collection of threads was pared down for travel, I opted for a simple triad of red, yellow, and blue for the colorway, and relied upon the stitches for textural interest. There is a rose made of cast-on stitches, a tatted flower made with a modified tatting technique that I worked out while travelling, a crocheted daisy tacked on with a star center, and a whole bunch of French knots. </div>
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This one and the postcard were still raw-edged, so I had to pick up some background fabric on the go, and do the finishing work by hand.</div>
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I guess that's where September went! When I get a chance to look at the pictures as I'm typing about them, I realize that I did a lot more stitching than I give myself credit for. Especially when you consider the handwork that doesn't really show (like stitching the border around the pc and the atc by hand).</div>
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I did get a wee bit done on my peacock CQJP, but am still very far behind, and unlikely to get much finished in the next two days.</div>
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I played a bit with a couple of knotted Basque stitch variations. They were more interesting to do than to look at, I think.<br />
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I did some more tatting and added it to the block. Tatting turns out to be a pretty easy thing to do on an airplane. It's small and it doesn't take large arm movements (that might annoy the stranger sharing the armrest), so that's what I did instead of stitching during the flight.<br />
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I created this unique little combo-stitch that I like quite a lot! It's a fern stitch of four legs spaced very close together, anchored by a pistil stitch. I think it looks like little chicken footprints. A very odd, alien chicken, maybe. I think it would be very nice with a bugle bead or a seed-bead combo on the long float of the pistil stitch. :) Must try that out now that I am back home with access to my beads again!<br />
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and my crowning glory seam treatment for this week:<br />
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Now THIS is more like my colorway! Heh. The picture washes it out a bit and doesn't show the sparkle of the metallic, but I think you get the idea. This color combo could probably serve as emergency lighting in a power outage. ;)<br />
I started with a base of fern stitch in metallic purple. Then I remembered that I still wanted to do a decent exploration of cast-on stitch. I added a row of fuschia cast-ons, and then came back and added a row of smaller orange cast-ons to overlap them. So cool! I really liked how that turned out. As if that wasn't bright enough already, I added the bright yellow pistil stitch accents.<br />
I love it.<br />
I really really love it.<br />
It makes my heart sing. :)<br />
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Well, that's what happened to September.Peacockhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16567049263142856395noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12826376.post-5094398503772569672012-09-10T01:42:00.000-07:002012-10-07T01:42:38.276-07:00Tuesday Stitchers import; CQI RR for Shelly<br /><br /><br />Wow! Is it nearly the middle of September already? I can almost feel the weather changing! Soon it will be cold and windy and wet here in the Pacific Northwest. I'd better soak up the last of the sun before it hides for the winter!<div><br /><br /></div><div>My SharonB "Roses" blocks have been on hold, along with my CQJP peacock and my BJP mandalas so that I can work on this:</div><div><br /><a href="http://tahlia.org/Blogger/postpics/CQIFFT23/20120910%20shellys%20block%201600.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 600px; height: 611px;" src="http://tahlia.org/Blogger/postpics/CQIFFT23/20120910%20shellys%20block%201600.jpg" border="0" alt="" /></a>This is Shelly's block from the Crazy Quilting International round robin swap. I'm the first person to work on this block, so it was naked when I got it. All embroidery and embellishment came out of my needle. Whee!</div><div> It's kinda hard to be the first person to work on someone else's block: I have to set the mood for the block and I need to remember to leave a fair amount of space for everyone else to work, but not slack on my own share in the doing so! There are three more people who will stitch on this block, so I'm just about done with my share, I think.<br /></div><div>I wasn't entirely sure what to do with this block at first. I enjoy working with prints, so that wasn't the issue, but the color scheme is one that I don't work with very often, and I'm not entirely sure I understand the aesthetic of "Country French" which is what Shelly hopes for.</div><div><br /></div><div>The first thing I stitched on the block, just to get it going, was the little blue line at the bottom left hand corner. The stitch I used reminds me of Fleur d'Lis, so I thought it would be a good choice! </div><div>By the time I'd finished the foundation of that first seam (it expanded with additional blue detatched chain and yellow detatched chain and French knots later), I knew that what I *really* wanted to do was enhance the vine pattern on the chicken print fabric. </div><div><br /><a href="http://tahlia.org/Blogger/postpics/CQIFFT23/20120910%20shellys%20block%20closeup%20rooster%201200.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 600px; height: 450px;" src="http://tahlia.org/Blogger/postpics/CQIFFT23/20120910%20shellys%20block%20closeup%20rooster%201200.jpg" border="0" alt="" /></a><br /></div><div><br /><br />Isn't it precious? I used a silk thread and a wrapped stem stitch to outline all the vine curls. It barely shows, and I like it *SO* much! I love the delicacy of it, and I love the subtle textural surprise for the carefully observant. I also like the way it adds a little shadowing in changing lighting conditions.<br />Then I added some bugs. For the chickens to eat, of course! There are ladybugs and little gnats and maybe a caterpillar or two. I thought about adding a snail too. -- maybe I still will if there is time before I send it to the next stitcher.<br /></div><div><br /></div><div>The rooster at the top of the patch, where it seams against the center pear patch, was chopped in half, so I embroidered a head for him, and a little caterpillar for him to snack on. :) I cannot even begin to describe how pleased I am with the way this chicken came out! He's stitched with a nice soft silk thread, too, so he is incredibly pettable! I just hope he doesn't get too dirty from all the touching!</div><div><br /></div><div>Well, after stitching the bugs in the garden, I wanted to add a little spider and web! I think he turned out pretty nice, though he does steal the eye a bit-- partly because of his size and partly because he is so dark. I think that once the rest of the stitching on this block happens, though, that he will be just strong enough to hold his own. At least I hope so!</div><div><br /></div><div>Shelly mentioned in her letter that she likes tatting,k and you know how I love to do it! so on the seam above the spder, I added a stripe of tatted trim that I tatted up just for this block. :)</div><div><br /></div><br /><br /><a href="http://tahlia.org/Blogger/postpics/CQIFFT23/20120910%20shellys%20block%20closeup%20spider%201200.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 600px; height: 200px;" src="http://tahlia.org/Blogger/postpics/CQIFFT23/20120910%20shellys%20block%20closeup%20spider%201200.jpg" border="0" alt="" /></a><br /><br />She also mentioned that a sunflower might be nice, so I stitched a nice silk ribbon sunflower on the lower right of the block. It's my first significant attempt to work with silk ribbon, and I'm pleased with how it came out. I'm not sure it looks exactly like a sunflower-- it might also look like a daisy, but I like it anyway, and I hope she will too! The center of the sunflower is filled with French knots all in one color but of several different sizes (larger on the outside ring, smaller toward the center, like sunflower seeds). I think I've had my fill of French knots for awhile! ;)<br />To the right of the sunflower is the start of a bullion stitch bee! once I get that done, I might be ready to send the block on to the next stitcher! ...or maybe I'll get a chance to add that snail. hmm.<br /><br /><a href="http://tahlia.org/Blogger/postpics/CQIFFT23/20120910%20shellys%20block%20closeup%20sunflower%201200.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 600px; height: 460px;" src="http://tahlia.org/Blogger/postpics/CQIFFT23/20120910%20shellys%20block%20closeup%20sunflower%201200.jpg" border="0" alt="" /></a><br /><br />In between all of that stitching, I added some blue detached chain stitches and yellow detached chain stitches and yellow French knots to my Fleur d'Lis line, and the TAST sheaf stitch on the line above the chicken patch. :)<br /><br />It sure was nice to take a short break from my CQJP peacock and my BJP mandalas and my Roses cq blocks! I feel re-energized and excited about stitching again! :) Maybe it was because I was working on a different colorway that pushed me outside of my norms, or maybe it was because I get to send this stitching away when I'm done with it and don't have to look at it again! ;)<br /><br /><br /><br />Peacockhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16567049263142856395noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12826376.post-16700930578230411272012-09-02T01:40:00.000-07:002012-10-07T01:41:27.535-07:00Tuesday Stitchers import: end of August<br />Well, I didn't get much done on either my "Roses" blocks or my Peacock. I also didn't get my August BJP started. Ack!<div>Instead, I spent my time assembling new blocks. I'd signed up for a CQI new participant's round-robin exchange, and the mail-by date for the block was Sept. 1.</div><div>I thought it was going to be easy to just stitch-n-flip a block together, but when I sat down to my machine, that isn't quite what happened! Instead I ended up getting carried away with curves and compositions, and made 2 blocks that I couldn't part with! Ack! I just had too many ideas of what needed to happen to them that I couldn't in fair conscience send them out to be worked on randomly. As soon as I realized that, I set them aside, unfinished, and started on the next block. (photos will need to wait until I complete the assembly of the blocks, I think. I took pictures of them in half-finished stages, but they aren't going to be that interesting yet.)</div><div>But this is the third one, and I'm happy to send it out. :)</div><div><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-8FLXkvPjWjE/UEO19LeMbzI/AAAAAAAAAtE/TkTruDzVlQU/s1600/20120830%2Bcqi%2Bfft%2B23%2Bblock%2Bfor%2Brr%2Bsm.jpg"><img src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-8FLXkvPjWjE/UEO19LeMbzI/AAAAAAAAAtE/TkTruDzVlQU/s400/20120830%2Bcqi%2Bfft%2B23%2Bblock%2Bfor%2Brr%2Bsm.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5783666409129930546" style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 400px; " /></a>Now to get working again on my handstitching!</div><div><br /></div>Peacockhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16567049263142856395noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12826376.post-58630932741974049182012-08-28T01:39:00.000-07:002012-10-07T01:40:19.775-07:00Tuesday Stitchers import: CQJP AugustWell, I found the variegated blue-and-purple thread that I used for my buttonhole loops, but not before I gave up looking for it and used a different thread! Ah well, isn't that the way life works? What do you think? does the yellow-and-orange make a good finish to the line? Heh! I'm okay with it, anyway.<br /><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-X8t4ZO_BNOI/UDxb0n4R0aI/AAAAAAAAAq4/B_sxb__2MFE/s1600/20120827%2Bcqjp%2Bbuttonhole%2Bloops.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 61px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-X8t4ZO_BNOI/UDxb0n4R0aI/AAAAAAAAAq4/B_sxb__2MFE/s400/20120827%2Bcqjp%2Bbuttonhole%2Bloops.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5781596981253231010" /></a><br /><br />I added a nice little blanket-stitch serpentine. I'm thinking of adding French knot or seed bead accents to the line when I have some more time. :)<br /><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-JjjamWVsnR8/UDxct2cy9hI/AAAAAAAAArE/Q4G-fAE3NbQ/s1600/20120827%2Bcqjp%2Bblanket.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 119px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-JjjamWVsnR8/UDxct2cy9hI/AAAAAAAAArE/Q4G-fAE3NbQ/s400/20120827%2Bcqjp%2Bblanket.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5781597964417037842" /></a><br /><br />Another tatted tidbit, this time worked in a braided metallic (gold) and a variegated green perle. The metallic doesn't show real well in the photo. It's pretty glitzy in real life.<br /><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-Ezuvh275nik/UDxdcROorUI/AAAAAAAAArQ/EZal-VZ5s5s/s1600/20120827%2BCQJP%2Btatted%2Bmetallic.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 104px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-Ezuvh275nik/UDxdcROorUI/AAAAAAAAArQ/EZal-VZ5s5s/s400/20120827%2BCQJP%2Btatted%2Bmetallic.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5781598761879383362" /></a><br /><br />And then I started experimenting with the TAST Double Linked Chain stitch. :) I wasn't impressed with this stitch from the look of it on the challenge post, and I wasn't particularly impressed with it when I worked it according to the instructions:<br /><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-b4bUyUJeMVM/UDxf6GBG-9I/AAAAAAAAArs/S8cEJwvHrSE/s1600/20120827%2Btast%2BDLC%2Bdouble%2Blinked%2Bchain%2B001.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 57px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-b4bUyUJeMVM/UDxf6GBG-9I/AAAAAAAAArs/S8cEJwvHrSE/s400/20120827%2Btast%2BDLC%2Bdouble%2Blinked%2Bchain%2B001.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5781601473289190354" /></a><br />It's okay.. it just doesn't have the punch that I'd like. Maybe it would be better worked in a different thread, or with different proportions.<br />But it got me thinking about what I'd LIKE for it to look like. Then I played around with varying the construction method, and got these three results, all of which I particularly like! So the DLC itself isn't likely to be one of my go-to stitches, but these three variations I came up with sure are!<img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 39px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-Cqp4w-6w56o/UDxhstiHUwI/AAAAAAAAAr4/8NDPjTtZJzU/s400/20120827%2Btast%2BDLC%2Bdouble%2Blinked%2Bchain%2B002.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5781603442401694466" /><br /><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ITatPNzrVIA/UDxhs8sHr1I/AAAAAAAAAsE/JejwxzZN7XI/s1600/20120827%2Btast%2BDLC%2Bdouble%2Blinked%2Bchain%2B003.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 40px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ITatPNzrVIA/UDxhs8sHr1I/AAAAAAAAAsE/JejwxzZN7XI/s400/20120827%2Btast%2BDLC%2Bdouble%2Blinked%2Bchain%2B003.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5781603446470192978" /></a><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 54px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-TOvUbccxN7I/UDxhtLt8UiI/AAAAAAAAAsQ/1J53H78JGac/s400/20120827%2Btast%2BDLC%2Bdouble%2Blinked%2Bchain%2B004.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5781603450504368674" /><br /><div>One last seam treatment, a stitch combo including chain, straight, and French knot stitches:</div><div><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-H0lY7kjaqAk/UDxiN2XEPAI/AAAAAAAAAsc/Fi0O2eASZXo/s1600/20120827%2Bcqjp%2Bchain%2Bstraight%2Bfrench%2Bknot%2Bcombo.jpg"><img src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-H0lY7kjaqAk/UDxiN2XEPAI/AAAAAAAAAsc/Fi0O2eASZXo/s400/20120827%2Bcqjp%2Bchain%2Bstraight%2Bfrench%2Bknot%2Bcombo.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5781604011706956802" style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 84px; " /></a>So that leaves me with an August wedge looking like:</div><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-Nk_MWSwSPGE/UDxigsF9k1I/AAAAAAAAAso/5X-iW3CuB00/s1600/20120827%2B%2BCQJP%2BAugust%2Bsm.jpg"><img src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-Nk_MWSwSPGE/UDxigsF9k1I/AAAAAAAAAso/5X-iW3CuB00/s400/20120827%2B%2BCQJP%2BAugust%2Bsm.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5781604335368377170" style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 178px; " /></a>I'm hoping to get some more stitching done on the purple stripes before the end of the month, but I still have a BJP mandala to stitch up too! ACK!! where does the time go?Peacockhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16567049263142856395noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12826376.post-37862889614526438142012-08-19T20:21:00.006-07:002012-08-20T14:21:58.737-07:00Auditioning beads for Roses<span style="font-family:Georgia, serif;">Today I dug through my boxes of seed beads, charms, etc and pulled out the ones that could work on these blocks. I long ago trained friends and family to say 'thank you' and 'I love you' with beads and embroidery floss, so I have a few to choose from. ;)</span><div><span style=" background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255); font-size:medium;"><br /></span></div><div><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 387px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-T5X8WzplpcY/UDGtkB6ST3I/AAAAAAAAAqg/ANLVKpAWMcQ/s400/20120819%2Bauditioning%2Bbeads.jpg" border="0" alt="" /></div><div><span style="font-size:small;">(A note about the picture: I've thrown a little bit of every possible bead onto the squares, just as a way to see how the colors, textures, shapes, and sizes are working with the blocks, the embroidery, and each other. I really don't expect to use this many beads on the blocks, and they won't be so haphazardly distributed, either!)</span><div><br /></div><div>My favorite shape is the heart, so I have quite a few of those, and I think they're a perfect pairing for the roses.</div><div><br /></div><div>( I can't quite shake the voice of the head of my art department ringing around in the back of my head saying (about the hearts), "It's trite, it's cliche, and it's been done too often before", darn her! -- but I prefer to see hearts as a solidly established and fundamental part of our collective visual vocabulary. If I'm a writer, should I avoid using the words "I love you" because they're so common as to be trite and meaningless? No! I don't think so. and I won't shy away from hearts as a visual touchstone either. Touchstones of that familiarity can as easily be used for power as for triviality. I'm sure of it!)</div><div><br /></div><div>Anyway, aside from encoding the meaning of love and romance, the heart shape also combines angularity with curves, and that is a recurrent theme in itself in these blocks and in my body of work as a whole.</div><div><br /></div><div>By using just a couple shapes recurrently will allow me to use a whole lot more of them without overpowering my blocks. The subtlety of difference between one heart and the next will keep it interesting, and the sameness will give a sense of harmony and repetition.</div></div>Peacockhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16567049263142856395noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12826376.post-8553276808005149472012-08-19T04:37:00.004-07:002012-08-19T04:42:15.136-07:00No excuses<div style="font-size: 100%; ">I haven't put up any updates here for awhile. Not offering any excuses, just picking up today and moving forward.</div><div style="font-size: 100%; "><br /></div><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-IN3n6TAHa4E/UDCt8BmJpLI/AAAAAAAAAl8/P6sj_L1UzuE/s1600/20120819%2Bcq%2Bpatchwork%2Bprogress.jpg" style="font-size: 100%; "><img src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-IN3n6TAHa4E/UDCt8BmJpLI/AAAAAAAAAl8/P6sj_L1UzuE/s400/20120819%2Bcq%2Bpatchwork%2Bprogress.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5778309568648553650" style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px; " /></a><br /><span style="font-size: 100%; font-family:Georgia, serif;"><span style="font-size:100%;">This week my stitching was almost entirely devoted to one of the four CQ blocks I made for Sharon B's online cq class. I call this block "Patchwork" because it is composed of 4 sub-blocks that were created through the foundation piecing method.</span></span><div>This block is for a larger project I'm calling "Roses" because each block features an image of the valentine roses I got from my husband this year. (I printed the images onto ready-to-print cloth with my inkjet printer.) There are 4 8-inch blocks for the Roses wall quilt, and so far I've done embroidery work on just one of them-- on "patchwork".<br /><div style="font-size: 100%; ">Since the block's construction has so many straight lines and sharp angles, I am using a lot of curves in my embroidery to add counterpoint and to soften the flow of the block.</div><div style="font-size: 100%; ">close-ups (including the stitches from last week):</div><div style="font-size: 100%; "><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-kgYGOIgqMvQ/UDDHA2qKUOI/AAAAAAAAAn8/A76UY9Nh6xo/s1600/20120819%2Balgerian%2Beye.jpg" style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium; "><img src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-kgYGOIgqMvQ/UDDHA2qKUOI/AAAAAAAAAn8/A76UY9Nh6xo/s400/20120819%2Balgerian%2Beye.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5778337139402625250" style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 88px; " /></a><div style="text-align: center; "><span style="font-family:Georgia, serif;">Algerian Eye</span></div></div><div style="font-size: 100%; "><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-LQC5TIqPHaY/UDDHBzPA0qI/AAAAAAAAAog/JqB18R5C0Dk/s1600/20120819%2Bbuttonhole%2Bwheel.jpg" style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium; "><img src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-LQC5TIqPHaY/UDDHBzPA0qI/AAAAAAAAAog/JqB18R5C0Dk/s400/20120819%2Bbuttonhole%2Bwheel.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5778337155663319714" style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 100px; " /></a><div style="text-align: center; "><span style="font-family:Georgia, serif;">Buttonhole wheel</span></div></div><div style="font-size: 100%; "><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-0VQ8lidB0OM/UDDHMediPOI/AAAAAAAAApQ/0pRMXgcubXk/s1600/20120819%2Bud%2Bbuttonhole.jpg" style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium; "><img src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-0VQ8lidB0OM/UDDHMediPOI/AAAAAAAAApQ/0pRMXgcubXk/s400/20120819%2Bud%2Bbuttonhole.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5778337339065646306" style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 85px; " /></a><div style="text-align: center; "><span style="font-family:Georgia, serif;">Up-and-down buttonhole</span></div></div><div style="font-size: 100%; "><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-VIbkTMa0WtY/UDDHBBm40oI/AAAAAAAAAoI/GdocUJFtDVs/s1600/20120819%2Bbasque%2Bserpentine.jpg" style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium; "><img src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-VIbkTMa0WtY/UDDHBBm40oI/AAAAAAAAAoI/GdocUJFtDVs/s400/20120819%2Bbasque%2Bserpentine.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5778337142341685890" style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 48px; " /></a><div style="text-align: center; "><span style="font-family:Georgia, serif;">Basque and chain in a serpentine pattern</span></div></div><div style="font-size: 100%; "><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-1OmgmcoTVYI/UDDHLnEGSyI/AAAAAAAAAo4/Dv-NP1iPH98/s1600/20120819%2Bherringbone.jpg" style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium; "><img src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-1OmgmcoTVYI/UDDHLnEGSyI/AAAAAAAAAo4/Dv-NP1iPH98/s400/20120819%2Bherringbone.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5778337324195007266" style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 85px; " /></a><div style="text-align: center; "><span style="font-family:Georgia, serif;">Heringbone</span></div></div><div style="font-size: 100%; "><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-x310UQQNbyo/UDDHCUjL-1I/AAAAAAAAAos/BipOsGH75q8/s1600/20120819%2Bfly%2Bwith%2Bcurved%2Bbullion.jpg" style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium; "><img src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-x310UQQNbyo/UDDHCUjL-1I/AAAAAAAAAos/BipOsGH75q8/s400/20120819%2Bfly%2Bwith%2Bcurved%2Bbullion.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5778337164606307154" style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 105px; " /></a><div style="text-align: center; "><span style="font-family:Georgia, serif;">Fly stitch with a bullion tail (couched into a curved form)</span></div></div><div style="font-size: 100%; "><span style="margin-right: auto; margin-left: auto; "><img src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-qMV5T9ATAiE/UDDHL9UDgZI/AAAAAAAAApE/UW8q_vuQbI8/s400/20120819%2Boyster.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5778337330167513490" style="color: rgb(0, 0, 238); font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium; display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 80px; " /></span><div style="text-align: center; "><span style="font-family:Georgia, serif;">Continuous oyster, with long float couched down</span></div></div><div style="font-size: 100%; "><br /></div><div style="font-size: 100%; "><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-NI2tUou76MY/UDDHMysZiNI/AAAAAAAAApc/J_6C1MhCarU/s1600/20120819%2Bud%2Bbuttonhole%2Bpicoted%2Bwith%2Bbullion%2Bbuds.jpg" style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium; "><img src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-NI2tUou76MY/UDDHMysZiNI/AAAAAAAAApc/J_6C1MhCarU/s400/20120819%2Bud%2Bbuttonhole%2Bpicoted%2Bwith%2Bbullion%2Bbuds.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5778337344496699602" style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 73px; " /></a><div style="text-align: center; "><span style="font-family:Georgia, serif;">Up-and-down buttonhole with the float picot buttonholed, and bullion buds</span></div></div><div style="font-size: 100%; "><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-JB6fcL12w6o/UDDHBvKcbtI/AAAAAAAAAoU/kKg2WYOIJMI/s1600/20120819%2Bbullion%2Bbud%2Bcombo.jpg" style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium; "><img src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-JB6fcL12w6o/UDDHBvKcbtI/AAAAAAAAAoU/kKg2WYOIJMI/s400/20120819%2Bbullion%2Bbud%2Bcombo.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5778337154570415826" style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 161px; " /></a><div style="text-align: center; "><span style="font-family:Georgia, serif;">Feather stitch, detatched chain, bullion buds (pair of tornado-shaped bullions)</span></div></div><div style="font-size: 100%; "><br /></div><div style="font-size: 100%; ">I say my stitching time this week was almost entirely devoted to "Patchwork", but I still managed to find some time to slip in a couple other stitches on a couple other projects.</div><div style="font-size: 100%; ">I added two seam treatments to "Peacock":</div><div style="font-size: 100%; "><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-SixPwb1ofa0/UDC2wXL21QI/AAAAAAAAAm4/tjRZ1pXHXGI/s1600/20120819%2Boyster%2Bstitch%2Bsm.jpg"><img src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-SixPwb1ofa0/UDC2wXL21QI/AAAAAAAAAm4/tjRZ1pXHXGI/s400/20120819%2Boyster%2Bstitch%2Bsm.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5778319263890068738" style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 53px; " /></a><div style="text-align: center; "><span style="font-family:Georgia, serif;">continuous oyster stitch in hand-dyed DMC floss</span></div></div><div style="font-size: 100%; "><br /><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-2FgJKEReei0/UDC2w_-aRLI/AAAAAAAAAnE/YoYKAggZPfc/s1600/20120819%2Bbuttonhole%2Bpicots%2Bsm.jpg"><img src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-2FgJKEReei0/UDC2w_-aRLI/AAAAAAAAAnE/YoYKAggZPfc/s400/20120819%2Bbuttonhole%2Bpicots%2Bsm.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5778319274839524530" style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 62px; " /></a><div style="text-align: center; "><span style="font-family:Georgia, serif;">buttonhole picots</span></div><div><span style="font-family:Georgia, serif;">The buttonhole picots are not cast-on stitch, though the effect looks much the same. I worked them a little differently, is all. Cast-ons would work just as well.</span></div><div><span style="font-family:Georgia, serif;">Unfortunately, I ran out of the blue-purple variegated thread before I ran out of seam line! Ack! I'd like to continue the same seam treatment, but I've searched all through my thread supply and can't figure out where the rest of it would be (I thought I should still have some.. hmm.)</span></div><div><span style="font-family:Georgia, serif;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family:Georgia, serif;">And I did some catch-up work on the fabric ATCs and postcards for the 2012 birthday exchange:</span></div><div><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-dV-XRsl9Pig/UDC5qe7b1sI/AAAAAAAAAng/vZM8mU7Fr8o/s1600/20120819%2Bcq%2Bpc%2B002%2B600.jpg"><img src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-dV-XRsl9Pig/UDC5qe7b1sI/AAAAAAAAAng/vZM8mU7Fr8o/s400/20120819%2Bcq%2Bpc%2B002%2B600.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5778322461424342722" style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 251px; " /></a><div style="text-align: center; ">blanket, detatched chain, up-and-down buttonhole, herringbone, straight stitches</div></div><div><span style="font-family:Georgia, serif;"><br /></span></div><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-vWogPN99Mf8/UDC2KQTwOkI/AAAAAAAAAms/nnVJzIYnUKM/s1600/20120819%2Bcq%2Batc%2B001%2B600.jpg"><img src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-vWogPN99Mf8/UDC2KQTwOkI/AAAAAAAAAms/nnVJzIYnUKM/s400/20120819%2Bcq%2Batc%2B001%2B600.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5778318609209113154" style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 278px; " /></a><div style="text-align: center; ">blanket, chain, laced herringbone, up-and-down buttonhole, twisted chain, feather, and herringbone couching a ribbon.</div><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-SMYjWYZv_L8/UDC2JnpmjVI/AAAAAAAAAmg/406rYzJ-Ktw/s1600/20120819%2Bcq%2Batc%2B002%2B600.jpg"><img src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-SMYjWYZv_L8/UDC2JnpmjVI/AAAAAAAAAmg/406rYzJ-Ktw/s400/20120819%2Bcq%2Batc%2B002%2B600.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5778318598294900050" style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 276px; " /></a></div><div style="font-size: 100%; text-align: center; ">Up-and-down buttonhole, chain (in metallic thread), Algerian eye</div><div style="font-size: 100%; "><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-HOPGwAUwK3k/UDC2JH8i5PI/AAAAAAAAAmU/iahStvcUK38/s1600/20120819%2Bcq%2Bpc%2B001%2B600.jpg"><img src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-HOPGwAUwK3k/UDC2JH8i5PI/AAAAAAAAAmU/iahStvcUK38/s400/20120819%2Bcq%2Bpc%2B001%2B600.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5778318589784417522" style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 271px; " /></a><div style="text-align: center; ">up-and-down buttonhole, feather, Pekinese, Casalguidi over blanket, knotted stem</div></div><div style="font-size: 100%; "><br /></div><div style="font-size: 100%; "><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-wHaVNe9n5Zw/UDDK_XrWYrI/AAAAAAAAAqE/1wVFe0gDFlg/s1600/20120819%2Bcasalguidi%2Bover%2Bblanket.jpg"><img src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-wHaVNe9n5Zw/UDDK_XrWYrI/AAAAAAAAAqE/1wVFe0gDFlg/s400/20120819%2Bcasalguidi%2Bover%2Bblanket.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5778341511952753330" style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 149px; " /></a></div><div style="font-size: 100%; text-align: center; ">Casalguidi over blanket</div><div style="font-size: 100%; "><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-zasrO9IJtvg/UDDK-3PPyjI/AAAAAAAAAp4/2d2DXHHX8P8/s1600/20120819%2Bpekinese%2Bheart.jpg"><img src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-zasrO9IJtvg/UDDK-3PPyjI/AAAAAAAAAp4/2d2DXHHX8P8/s400/20120819%2Bpekinese%2Bheart.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5778341503244945970" style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 386px; " /></a><div style="text-align: center; ">Pekinese heart outline (the looping thread is one of my handspun yarns), knotted stem numbers</div><div style="text-align: center; "><br /></div></div><div style="font-size: 100%; ">These ATCs and Postcards need to be pretty quick and brainless in order to get them finished and out into the mail, so, with a few exceptions, I tend to use the stitches that I feel most comfortable with-- the ones that I know how to do without looking up a tutorial, or the ones that I just plain enjoy doing. Pekinese made it onto the pc because I needed to do the TAST stitch, and the pc was what I was working on at the time! heh.</div><div style="font-size: 100%; "><br /></div><div style="font-size: 100%; ">Up-and-down buttonhole has definitely found its home in my Go-To stitches! Blanket, feather, and chain were already there. Herringbone isn't exactly one of my Go-To stitches, but it shows up pretty often nonetheless. bullion is slow, and it takes up a lot of thread, but I enjoy doing it, so it also claims a spot in my Go-To list.</div><div style="font-size: 100%; "><br /></div><div style="font-size: 100%; ">To catch up on my TAST stitching I still need to do some cast-ons, and I'd like to do some better Algerian eyes. ... and then, at some point, I'd like to go back through some of the earlier stitches and refresh my working knowledge of how to do them and what their names were. I think I've forgotten most of them already! ack!!</div><br class="Apple-interchange-newline"></div>Peacockhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16567049263142856395noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12826376.post-75174084388764120012012-08-19T01:38:00.000-07:002012-10-07T01:39:22.289-07:00Tuesday Stitchers import: this week's progress<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-IN3n6TAHa4E/UDCt8BmJpLI/AAAAAAAAAl8/P6sj_L1UzuE/s1600/20120819%2Bcq%2Bpatchwork%2Bprogress.jpg" style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 100%; "><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-IN3n6TAHa4E/UDCt8BmJpLI/AAAAAAAAAl8/P6sj_L1UzuE/s400/20120819%2Bcq%2Bpatchwork%2Bprogress.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5778309568648553650" /></a><br /><span style="font-family:Georgia, serif;"><span style="font-size:100%;">This week my stitching was almost entirely devoted to one of the four CQ blocks I made for Sharon B's online cq class. I call this block "Patchwork" because it is composed of 4 sub-blocks that were created through the foundation piecing method. </span></span><div style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 100%; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal; ">Since the block's construction has so many straight lines and sharp angles, I am using a lot of curves in my embroidery to add counterpoint and to soften the flow of the block.</div><div style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 100%; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal; ">close-ups (including the stitches from last week):</div><div><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-kgYGOIgqMvQ/UDDHA2qKUOI/AAAAAAAAAn8/A76UY9Nh6xo/s1600/20120819%2Balgerian%2Beye.jpg" style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal; "><img src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-kgYGOIgqMvQ/UDDHA2qKUOI/AAAAAAAAAn8/A76UY9Nh6xo/s400/20120819%2Balgerian%2Beye.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5778337139402625250" style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 88px; " /></a><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family:Georgia, serif;">Algerian Eye</span></div></div><div><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-LQC5TIqPHaY/UDDHBzPA0qI/AAAAAAAAAog/JqB18R5C0Dk/s1600/20120819%2Bbuttonhole%2Bwheel.jpg" style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal; "><img src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-LQC5TIqPHaY/UDDHBzPA0qI/AAAAAAAAAog/JqB18R5C0Dk/s400/20120819%2Bbuttonhole%2Bwheel.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5778337155663319714" style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 100px; " /></a><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family:Georgia, serif;">Buttonhole wheel</span></div></div><div><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-0VQ8lidB0OM/UDDHMediPOI/AAAAAAAAApQ/0pRMXgcubXk/s1600/20120819%2Bud%2Bbuttonhole.jpg" style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal; "><img src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-0VQ8lidB0OM/UDDHMediPOI/AAAAAAAAApQ/0pRMXgcubXk/s400/20120819%2Bud%2Bbuttonhole.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5778337339065646306" style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 85px; " /></a><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family:Georgia, serif;">Up-and-down buttonhole</span></div></div><div><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-VIbkTMa0WtY/UDDHBBm40oI/AAAAAAAAAoI/GdocUJFtDVs/s1600/20120819%2Bbasque%2Bserpentine.jpg" style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal; "><img src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-VIbkTMa0WtY/UDDHBBm40oI/AAAAAAAAAoI/GdocUJFtDVs/s400/20120819%2Bbasque%2Bserpentine.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5778337142341685890" style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 48px; " /></a><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family:Georgia, serif;">Basque and chain in a serpentine pattern</span></div></div><div><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-1OmgmcoTVYI/UDDHLnEGSyI/AAAAAAAAAo4/Dv-NP1iPH98/s1600/20120819%2Bherringbone.jpg" style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal; "><img src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-1OmgmcoTVYI/UDDHLnEGSyI/AAAAAAAAAo4/Dv-NP1iPH98/s400/20120819%2Bherringbone.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5778337324195007266" style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 85px; " /></a><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family:Georgia, serif;">Heringbone</span></div></div><div><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-x310UQQNbyo/UDDHCUjL-1I/AAAAAAAAAos/BipOsGH75q8/s1600/20120819%2Bfly%2Bwith%2Bcurved%2Bbullion.jpg" style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal; "><img src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-x310UQQNbyo/UDDHCUjL-1I/AAAAAAAAAos/BipOsGH75q8/s400/20120819%2Bfly%2Bwith%2Bcurved%2Bbullion.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5778337164606307154" style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 105px; " /></a><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family:Georgia, serif;">Fly stitch with a bullion tail (couched into a curved form)</span></div></div><div><span style="margin-right: auto; margin-left: auto;"><img src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-qMV5T9ATAiE/UDDHL9UDgZI/AAAAAAAAApE/UW8q_vuQbI8/s400/20120819%2Boyster.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5778337330167513490" style="color: rgb(0, 0, 238); font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium; display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 80px; " /></span><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family:Georgia, serif;">Continuous oyster, with long float couched down</span></div></div><div style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 100%; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal; "><br /></div><div><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-NI2tUou76MY/UDDHMysZiNI/AAAAAAAAApc/J_6C1MhCarU/s1600/20120819%2Bud%2Bbuttonhole%2Bpicoted%2Bwith%2Bbullion%2Bbuds.jpg" style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal; "><img src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-NI2tUou76MY/UDDHMysZiNI/AAAAAAAAApc/J_6C1MhCarU/s400/20120819%2Bud%2Bbuttonhole%2Bpicoted%2Bwith%2Bbullion%2Bbuds.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5778337344496699602" style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 73px; " /></a><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family:Georgia, serif;">Up-and-down buttonhole with the float picot buttonholed, and bullion buds</span></div></div><div><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-JB6fcL12w6o/UDDHBvKcbtI/AAAAAAAAAoU/kKg2WYOIJMI/s1600/20120819%2Bbullion%2Bbud%2Bcombo.jpg" style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal; "><img src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-JB6fcL12w6o/UDDHBvKcbtI/AAAAAAAAAoU/kKg2WYOIJMI/s400/20120819%2Bbullion%2Bbud%2Bcombo.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5778337154570415826" style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 161px; " /></a><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family:Georgia, serif;">Feather stitch, detatched chain, bullion buds (pair of tornado-shaped bullions)</span></div></div><div style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 100%; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal; "><br /></div><div style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 100%; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal; ">I say my stitching time this week was almost entirely devoted to "Patchwork", but I still managed to find some time to slip in a couple other stitches on a couple other projects.</div><div style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 100%; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal; ">I added two seam treatments to "Peacock":</div><div><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-SixPwb1ofa0/UDC2wXL21QI/AAAAAAAAAm4/tjRZ1pXHXGI/s1600/20120819%2Boyster%2Bstitch%2Bsm.jpg" style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 100%; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal; "><img src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-SixPwb1ofa0/UDC2wXL21QI/AAAAAAAAAm4/tjRZ1pXHXGI/s400/20120819%2Boyster%2Bstitch%2Bsm.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5778319263890068738" style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 53px; " /></a><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family:Georgia, serif;">continuous oyster stitch in hand-dyed DMC floss</span></div></div><div><br /><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-2FgJKEReei0/UDC2w_-aRLI/AAAAAAAAAnE/YoYKAggZPfc/s1600/20120819%2Bbuttonhole%2Bpicots%2Bsm.jpg" style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 100%; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal; "><img src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-2FgJKEReei0/UDC2w_-aRLI/AAAAAAAAAnE/YoYKAggZPfc/s400/20120819%2Bbuttonhole%2Bpicots%2Bsm.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5778319274839524530" style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 62px; " /></a><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family:Georgia, serif;">buttonhole picots</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family:Georgia, serif;">The buttonhole picots are not cast-on stitch, though the effect looks much the same. I worked them a little differently, is all. Cast-ons would work just as well.</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family:Georgia, serif;">Unfortunately, I ran out of the blue-purple variegated thread before I ran out of seam line! Ack! I'd like to continue the same seam treatment, but I've searched all through my thread supply and can't figure out where the rest of it would be (I thought I should still have some.. hmm.)</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family:Georgia, serif;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family:Georgia, serif;">And I did some catch-up work on the fabric ATCs and postcards for the 2012 birthday exchange:</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-dV-XRsl9Pig/UDC5qe7b1sI/AAAAAAAAAng/vZM8mU7Fr8o/s1600/20120819%2Bcq%2Bpc%2B002%2B600.jpg"><img src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-dV-XRsl9Pig/UDC5qe7b1sI/AAAAAAAAAng/vZM8mU7Fr8o/s400/20120819%2Bcq%2Bpc%2B002%2B600.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5778322461424342722" style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 251px; " /></a><div style="text-align: center;">blanket, detatched chain, up-and-down buttonhole, herringbone, straight stitches</div></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family:Georgia, serif;"><br /></span></div><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-vWogPN99Mf8/UDC2KQTwOkI/AAAAAAAAAms/nnVJzIYnUKM/s1600/20120819%2Bcq%2Batc%2B001%2B600.jpg" style="font-size: 16px; font-family: Georgia, serif; "><img src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-vWogPN99Mf8/UDC2KQTwOkI/AAAAAAAAAms/nnVJzIYnUKM/s400/20120819%2Bcq%2Batc%2B001%2B600.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5778318609209113154" style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 278px; " /></a><div style="text-align: center;">blanket, chain, laced herringbone, up-and-down buttonhole, twisted chain, feather, and herringbone couching a ribbon.</div><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-SMYjWYZv_L8/UDC2JnpmjVI/AAAAAAAAAmg/406rYzJ-Ktw/s1600/20120819%2Bcq%2Batc%2B002%2B600.jpg" style="font-size: 16px; font-family: Georgia, serif; "><img src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-SMYjWYZv_L8/UDC2JnpmjVI/AAAAAAAAAmg/406rYzJ-Ktw/s400/20120819%2Bcq%2Batc%2B002%2B600.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5778318598294900050" style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 276px; " /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;">Up-and-down buttonhole, chain (in metallic thread), Algerian eye</div><div><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-HOPGwAUwK3k/UDC2JH8i5PI/AAAAAAAAAmU/iahStvcUK38/s1600/20120819%2Bcq%2Bpc%2B001%2B600.jpg" style="font-size: 16px; font-family: Georgia, serif; "><img src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-HOPGwAUwK3k/UDC2JH8i5PI/AAAAAAAAAmU/iahStvcUK38/s400/20120819%2Bcq%2Bpc%2B001%2B600.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5778318589784417522" style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 271px; " /></a><div style="text-align: center;">up-and-down buttonhole, feather, Pekinese, Casalguidi over blanket, knotted stem</div></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-wHaVNe9n5Zw/UDDK_XrWYrI/AAAAAAAAAqE/1wVFe0gDFlg/s1600/20120819%2Bcasalguidi%2Bover%2Bblanket.jpg"><img src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-wHaVNe9n5Zw/UDDK_XrWYrI/AAAAAAAAAqE/1wVFe0gDFlg/s400/20120819%2Bcasalguidi%2Bover%2Bblanket.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5778341511952753330" style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 149px; " /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;">Casalguidi over blanket</div><div style="text-align: left;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-zasrO9IJtvg/UDDK-3PPyjI/AAAAAAAAAp4/2d2DXHHX8P8/s1600/20120819%2Bpekinese%2Bheart.jpg"><img src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-zasrO9IJtvg/UDDK-3PPyjI/AAAAAAAAAp4/2d2DXHHX8P8/s400/20120819%2Bpekinese%2Bheart.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5778341503244945970" style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 386px; " /></a><div style="text-align: center;">Pekinese heart outline (the looping thread is one of my handspun yarns), knotted stem numbers</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div></div><div style="text-align: left;">These ATCs and Postcards need to be pretty quick and brainless in order to get them finished and out into the mail, so, with a few exceptions, I tend to use the stitches that I feel most comfortable with-- the ones that I know how to do without looking up a tutorial, or the ones that I just plain enjoy doing. Pekinese made it onto the pc because I needed to do the TAST stitch, and the pc was what I was working on at the time! heh.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">Up-and-down buttonhole has definitely found its home in my Go-To stitches! Blanket, feather, and chain were already there. Herringbone isn't exactly one of my Go-To stitches, but it shows up pretty often nonetheless. bullion is slow, and it takes up a lot of thread, but I enjoy doing it, so it also claims a spot in my Go-To list.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">To catch up on my TAST stitching I still need to do some cast-ons, and I'd like to do some better Algerian eyes. ... and then, at some point, I'd like to go back through some of the earlier stitches and refresh my working knowledge of how to do them and what their names were. I think I've forgotten most of them already! ack!!</div><div style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 100%; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal; "><br /></div>Peacockhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16567049263142856395noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12826376.post-86612057765406012302012-08-13T01:37:00.000-07:002012-10-07T01:37:58.741-07:00Tuesday Stitchers import: a break from the peacock<br /><span style="font-family:Georgia, serif;"><span style="font-size: 100%;">This week I had to take a break from my peacock cq. I signed myself up for Sharon Boggon's online CQ class again (I took it last year and found it so rewarding that I thought I'd take it again!), so I had a lot of homework to catch up on! It's a six-week class, and we're just finishing up week 3, so I am really far behind on my embroidery for it! ack. I blame dancing. My husband and I do swing dancing (Lindy Hop type), and we've been a bit busy with being out of town, having people visit from out of town, etc. Plus there is grandma to visit and family up for the summer... it's been hectic.</span></span><div style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 100%; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal; "><br /></div><div style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 100%; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal; ">Anyway, I ended up sewing up 4 blocks for the Sharon B class, though I will probably only get one of them stitched up during the remainder of class.</div><div style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 100%; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal; "><br /></div><br /><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-TmFQS3kVVJk/UClmGZFpfsI/AAAAAAAAAlk/PGAQ4EIQ4gs/s1600/CQ%2Bblock%2Bvictorian%2B2.jpg" style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 100%; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal; "><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 393px; height: 400px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-TmFQS3kVVJk/UClmGZFpfsI/AAAAAAAAAlk/PGAQ4EIQ4gs/s400/CQ%2Bblock%2Bvictorian%2B2.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5776260257079197378" /></a><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family:Georgia, serif;">"Victorian" because it required Victorian overlap-and-baste construction technique.</span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family:Georgia, serif;"><br /></span></div><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-Ai5vfoli_M8/UClmFwrRi7I/AAAAAAAAAlY/1Nv-FHu_QZM/s1600/cq%2Bblock%2Bsnail%2Btrail.jpg" style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 100%; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal; "><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 378px; height: 400px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-Ai5vfoli_M8/UClmFwrRi7I/AAAAAAAAAlY/1Nv-FHu_QZM/s400/cq%2Bblock%2Bsnail%2Btrail.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5776260246231157682" /></a><div style="text-align: center;">"Snail's Trail" from the traditional patchwork block.</div><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/--xruNhnhM14/UClmFZ6VE6I/AAAAAAAAAlM/0mXvT85FLzg/s1600/cq%2Bblock%2Bpatchwork%2Bscan.jpg" style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 100%; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal; "><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 375px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/--xruNhnhM14/UClmFZ6VE6I/AAAAAAAAAlM/0mXvT85FLzg/s400/cq%2Bblock%2Bpatchwork%2Bscan.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5776260240120288162" /></a><div style="text-align: center;">"Patchwork" because this block is made up of four smaller pieced blocks.</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-TPfTlMoxMW0/UClmE-vlYrI/AAAAAAAAAlA/OSjj305B1Vk/s1600/cq%2Bblock%2Bhouse.jpg" style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 100%; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal; "><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 382px; height: 400px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-TPfTlMoxMW0/UClmE-vlYrI/AAAAAAAAAlA/OSjj305B1Vk/s400/cq%2Bblock%2Bhouse.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5776260232827462322" /></a><div style="text-align: center;">and "Home" because it looks like it has front porch steps and a roof. :)</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">Originally I was only going to try one block, but I sketched up several while I was travelling (and couldn't sew), and Sharon encouraged me to make a set and combine them into a larger project. So now I know what I will be doing when the peacock is done! Ha!</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">The rose bouquet motifs are printed onto ready-to-print washable cotton printer cloth. I don't like it as much as the cloth I prepare myself with Bubble Jet Set, but it was there, it was quick, and it's good enough. Plus, I caught a great sale on the ready-to-print sheets and have been intending to try them anyway. good deal.</div><div style="text-align: left;">The rose bouquet motifs are also photographs of the Valentine's bouquet that my husband bought for me this year! Yay!!! I loved the bouquet, and now I love all the pictures I took of it! Who would have thought the joy could last so long!</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">As you can see, I barely got started on my hand stitching. I hope to make up for that today.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">The weather's been really HOT here, so another thing that took me away from sewing was re-organizing my house. I took my sewing area out of the upstairs room where it has been for so long and moved it downstairs into the utility room. It is MUCH cooler there, and it is conveniently located next to the laundry. I did all of the piecing of these four blocks down in my new sewing area, and I have to say, I like it. And I am very grateful that I managed to get it all moved a few weeks ago before the heat of summer really kicked in! Now I just have to figure out what I DID with everything when I moved it! My organization system is temporarily shot!</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">I do have to say, I love the embroidery that I did get accomplished on "Patchwork". -- especially the feather stitch vine with bullion buds. The bullion buds are the "tornado" shape that so frustrated Nancy when I showed her how to make bullions over lunch. The "tornado" shape (bulky at one end, tapered to nothing at the other) is something that frustrated me for ages, too! I worked SO hard at getting my bullions all nice and even from one side to the other... and then I saw a vintage handkerchief that made use of the tornado shape to make realistic flower buds! Yay!! ... so I had to remember how to make the tornado shape all over again after having eliminated it from my vocabulary. ack. I think I got it, though!! Basically, once the needle is wrapped, I twist very slightly in the loosening direction and push the wraps down toward the needle eye so they bunch up on that end, then pull the other end snug when I pull the bullion taut to the ground cloth. :) </div><div style="text-align: left;">I used a single (doubled-over) strand of DMC floss to make the bullions, and used 5 wraps on one petal, 7 wraps on the other. The base end of the bud spaces the two bullions a thread or two apart to create a wider bud base, but the two bullions share the same hole at the tip end. After snugging down the bullion, I then carried the needle a thread or two further from the bud tip before bringing it to the back of the cloth to create an even finer tip to my buds. The end result is pretty close to what I was trying to achieve! yay! and anyway, I like it. :)</div>Peacockhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16567049263142856395noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12826376.post-4539741259965617702012-08-10T01:36:00.000-07:002012-10-07T01:36:43.451-07:00Tuesday Stitchers import: CQJP progress end of July and early August<span style="font-size: 100%;">I am so glad that I got so much done in early July because I didn't get a lot of extra stitching time before the month ended.</span><div style="font-size: 100%; ">I did get a chance to try Basque stitch, and enjoyed it:</div><div style="font-size: 100%; "><br /><div><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-jPCTx5EMdPY/UCS71sbvE7I/AAAAAAAAAjU/lAHTVSIfr0g/s1600/seam%2Btreatment%2Bbasque%2B2.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 172px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-jPCTx5EMdPY/UCS71sbvE7I/AAAAAAAAAjU/lAHTVSIfr0g/s400/seam%2Btreatment%2Bbasque%2B2.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5774947153330770866" /></a><br /><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ooqUz7Zxnd4/UCS8G3aPMdI/AAAAAAAAAjg/a7r_v4SVtvo/s1600/seam%2Btreatment%2Bbasque%2B1.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 245px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ooqUz7Zxnd4/UCS8G3aPMdI/AAAAAAAAAjg/a7r_v4SVtvo/s400/seam%2Btreatment%2Bbasque%2B1.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5774947448335053266" /></a><br /></div></div><div style="font-size: 100%; ">I added a fly-stitch + bullion variant:</div><div style="font-size: 100%; "><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-m06Re_BEXa8/UCS8ol8BkvI/AAAAAAAAAjs/5zTxdgX8uiI/s1600/seam%2Btreatment%2Bfly%2Bvar%2Bwith%2Bbullion.jpg"><img src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-m06Re_BEXa8/UCS8ol8BkvI/AAAAAAAAAjs/5zTxdgX8uiI/s400/seam%2Btreatment%2Bfly%2Bvar%2Bwith%2Bbullion.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5774948027760481010" style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 93px; " /></a>I must have done this bullion rose and herringbone combo because I don't see it mentioned in a previous post:</div><div style="font-size: 100%; "><img src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-sbnl79mCV-Y/UCS9KAKkeoI/AAAAAAAAAj4/7to-FJxeZYU/s400/seam%2Btreatment%2Bherringbone%2Bvar%2Band%2Bbullions.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5774948601736493698" style="color: rgb(0, 0, 238); display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 203px; " />My very favorite, though is this lovely little chain-stitch serpentine line with French knot accents. The chainstitching is done with a lovely little DMC floss that I dyed myself! :) SO happy with the way that color set came out:</div><div style="font-size: 100%; "><img src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-HhmPs06uc3w/UCS9w6sJMUI/AAAAAAAAAkE/dMK7f4aGcXw/s400/seam%2Btreatment%2Bchain%2Band%2Bfrench%2Bknots.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5774949270281597250" style="color: rgb(0, 0, 238); display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 111px; " />It's even prettier in real life. :)</div><div style="font-size: 100%; ">I also managed to finish up my June bjp (which only got half-finished in June) and my Junly bjp. :) Yay!! ... except that I still need to turn under the excess fabric to finish up the medallions. </div><div style="font-size: 100%; "><br /></div><div style="font-size: 100%; "><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-iYMNmcSG370/UCS-VoxUvHI/AAAAAAAAAkQ/0T3yLaw56SA/s1600/bjp%2Bjune%2B1200.jpg"><img src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-iYMNmcSG370/UCS-VoxUvHI/AAAAAAAAAkQ/0T3yLaw56SA/s400/bjp%2Bjune%2B1200.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5774949901126646898" style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 389px; height: 400px; " /></a><div style="text-align: center;"><span style=" ;font-size:100%;">June</span></div></div><div style="font-size: 100%; "><br /></div><div style="font-size: 100%; "><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-dmQVtAxA9tQ/UCS-WLrvPBI/AAAAAAAAAkc/UskZvhyHUok/s1600/bjp%2Bjuly%2B1200.jpg"><img src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-dmQVtAxA9tQ/UCS-WLrvPBI/AAAAAAAAAkc/UskZvhyHUok/s400/bjp%2Bjuly%2B1200.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5774949910498458642" style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 389px; " /></a><div style="text-align: center;"><span style=" ;font-size:100%;">July</span></div></div><div style="font-size: 100%; "><br /></div><div style="font-size: 100%; ">Okay... apparently I got more accomplished than I gave myself credit for. That seems to be a running theme in my head--what is it that I'm expecting from myself that I always feel like I 'haven't accomplished much'? I think I need a minor mental adjustment. :P</div><div style="font-size: 100%; "><br /></div><div style="font-size: 100%; ">Plus, I managed to get a nicer picture of one the seams I showed previously. It's a multi-strand orange herringbone laced with purple:</div><div style="font-size: 100%; "><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-2scUq6eHdEs/UCS-9lFzu1I/AAAAAAAAAko/3OozOWoDVyQ/s1600/seam%2Btreatment%2Blaced%2Bherringbone.jpg"><img src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-2scUq6eHdEs/UCS-9lFzu1I/AAAAAAAAAko/3OozOWoDVyQ/s400/seam%2Btreatment%2Blaced%2Bherringbone.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5774950587333589842" style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 112px; " /></a></div><div style="font-size: 100%; "><br /></div><div style="font-size: 100%; ">As for the posting schedule, <span style=" ;font-size:100%;">I have one more big dance weekend coming up this coming weekend, so I know I'm going to miss my Sunday timeslot. I'll get my post up as soon afterward as I can manage! :)</span></div><div style="font-size: 100%; "><span style=" ;font-size:100%;"><br /></span></div><div>So now I have three TAST stitches to catch up on: oyster, Algerian eye, and cast-on. I should be able to incorporate oyster and cast-on without much problem, but I anticipate some problems incorporating Algerian eye. Most of the fabrics I used on this project are a bit fine and tightly woven, plus I interfaced a lot of them, so pulling open the eye of AE will be a little tricky to say the least! And the support fabric beneath the decorative fabrics is not one that I would want to have show through. ack. I'll figure something out. :)</div><div><br /></div>Peacockhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16567049263142856395noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12826376.post-40423985741411732532012-07-16T01:35:00.000-07:002012-10-07T01:35:26.068-07:00Tuesday Stitchers import: CQJP July progress<span style="font-family:Georgia, serif;"><span style="font-size:100%;">Halfway through July, and for once I'm making decent progress! </span></span><div><br /></div><div style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 100%; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal; ">After a rough start with bonnet stitch on June's patch, I got the hang of the stitch and started to really like it. I discovered that the over vs under are equally easy to do, depending upon which direction I lay my thread trail as I create the stitch. Once I got the hang of it, it went smoothly and quickly.<br /><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-rghb-nKeUPs/UAJpXp7-mgI/AAAAAAAAAdE/bRnYcB6ArvU/s1600/20120714%2Bcqjp%2Bjuly%2Bbonnet.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 200px; height: 26px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-rghb-nKeUPs/UAJpXp7-mgI/AAAAAAAAAdE/bRnYcB6ArvU/s200/20120714%2Bcqjp%2Bjuly%2Bbonnet.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5765286328102984194" /></a></div><div style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 100%; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal; "><br /></div><div><div><span style="font-family:Georgia, serif;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-pl4gni-_PYI/UAJpXSo3rrI/AAAAAAAAAc4/8LousX1kmY4/s1600/20120714%2Bcqjp%2Bjuly%2Bbonnet%2Band%2Bexperiment.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 200px; height: 51px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-pl4gni-_PYI/UAJpXSo3rrI/AAAAAAAAAc4/8LousX1kmY4/s200/20120714%2Bcqjp%2Bjuly%2Bbonnet%2Band%2Bexperiment.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5765286321848823474" /></a></span></div><div><br /></div><div><span style="font-family:Georgia, serif;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-CCZR2FW4C-8/UAJpXVdv0eI/AAAAAAAAAcs/NMGtINxZ3GI/s1600/20120714%2Bcqjp%2Bjuly%2Bbonnet%2Band%2Bblanket%2Bexperimeht.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 200px; height: 36px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-CCZR2FW4C-8/UAJpXVdv0eI/AAAAAAAAAcs/NMGtINxZ3GI/s200/20120714%2Bcqjp%2Bjuly%2Bbonnet%2Band%2Bblanket%2Bexperimeht.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5765286322607477218" /></a></span></div><div style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 100%; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal; ">I particularly like the braided look that I got by letting the bonnet stitch legs touch. (purple stitches in upper picture, orange stitches in lower picture). </div></div><div style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 100%; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal; "><br /></div><div style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 100%; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal; ">I also really enjoyed up and down buttonhole stitch, which I am sure will be a go-to stitch for me!</div><div style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 100%; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal; "><br /></div><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-s7wM1LN26Pc/UAJppM2g9EI/AAAAAAAAAeA/a9jleFOgc40/s1600/20120714%2Bcqjp%2Bjuly%2BUnDbutton%2Bherringbone%252C%2Bsatin%252C%2Bcouching.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 200px; height: 118px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-s7wM1LN26Pc/UAJppM2g9EI/AAAAAAAAAeA/a9jleFOgc40/s200/20120714%2Bcqjp%2Bjuly%2BUnDbutton%2Bherringbone%252C%2Bsatin%252C%2Bcouching.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5765286629533086786" /></a>For some reason I decided that I needed to couch threads for the palm fronds on one piece of fabric, and use herringbone and satin for the flower motif on another piece of fabric even though both were only partial motifs! The herringbone was particularly time consuming, but I enjoyed doing it.<div><br /><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-y0ruCfhj1tM/UAJpX4ZeEMI/AAAAAAAAAdQ/4RUrFIPcT48/s1600/20120714%2Bcqjp%2Bjuly%2Bbullion%2Bvs.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 200px; height: 25px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-y0ruCfhj1tM/UAJpX4ZeEMI/AAAAAAAAAdQ/4RUrFIPcT48/s200/20120714%2Bcqjp%2Bjuly%2Bbullion%2Bvs.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5765286331984777410" /></a></div>I worked a zigzag line of bullion stitches (I'm not convinced the end result was worth the effort)...<div><br /></div><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-Qb-zfoQsI8c/UAJpYM0C-2I/AAAAAAAAAdc/39i3yl2CJDQ/s1600/20120714%2Bcqjp%2Bjuly%2Bknotted%2Bbuttonhole.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 200px; height: 36px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-Qb-zfoQsI8c/UAJpYM0C-2I/AAAAAAAAAdc/39i3yl2CJDQ/s200/20120714%2Bcqjp%2Bjuly%2Bknotted%2Bbuttonhole.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5765286337464957794" /></a>a line of nice familiar knotted buttonhole...<div><br /></div><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-%20LNvWszuwjLE/UAJpo1bTWfI/AAAAAAAAAd0/TGghZlqoXCU/s1600/20120714%2Bcqjp%2Bjuly%2Bscalloped%2Bbuttonhole.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 200px; height: 44px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-LNvWszuwjLE/UAJpo1bTWfI/AAAAAAAAAd0/TGghZlqoXCU/s200/20120714%2Bcqjp%2Bjuly%2Bscalloped%2Bbuttonhole.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5765286623244933618" /></a>and a row of scalloped blanket. This stitch is worked at first just like blanket stitch (aka plain buttonhole), but before making the next blanket stitch, you work a series of little half-hitches around the post of the previous blanket stitch. <div><br /></div><div><span style="font-family:Georgia, serif;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-U75sOQayxR0/UAJpo9vK8yI/AAAAAAAAAdo/AEaNrHZKZEs/s1600/20120714%2Bcqjp%2Bjuly%2Bprogress.jpg"><img src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-U75sOQayxR0/UAJpo9vK8yI/AAAAAAAAAdo/AEaNrHZKZEs/s200/20120714%2Bcqjp%2Bjuly%2Bprogress.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5765286625475752738" style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 200px; height: 74px; " /></a></span><br /><div style="font-size: 16px; font-family: Georgia, serif; ">So maybe this month I'll be able to catch up again!</div></div>Peacockhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16567049263142856395noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12826376.post-18874824706793067682012-07-15T01:33:00.000-07:002012-10-07T01:34:18.044-07:00Tuesday Stitchers import: CQJP June and six-month revealI'm back! I was offline for awhile because my beloved laptop got a huge crack in the screen. (I forgot to take a picture before my husband took it apart for me to replace the screen.) I thought I was only going to be computerless for a week or so, but the replacement screen that got sent was the wrong one and we had to wait for a replacement for the replacement before my husband could get my laptop up and running again. Fortunately, he's good at that kind of thing, and I'm back in business! Yay!<div><br /></div><div>So I missed the last part of June and the June reveal and the six-month block combo reveal, so here's my catch-up for that! It's been so long I've forgotten which stitches are which, so please forgive me if I mis-label some of them!</div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-yqgevrLy6QQ/UAJtWy5lw6I/AAAAAAAAAfM/oub6XAKdpbo/s1600/20120714%2Bcqjp%2Bjune%2Bpalestrina%2Band%2Bcable%2Bchain.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 140px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-yqgevrLy6QQ/UAJtWy5lw6I/AAAAAAAAAfM/oub6XAKdpbo/s400/20120714%2Bcqjp%2Bjune%2Bpalestrina%2Band%2Bcable%2Bchain.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5765290711375528866" /></a><div>The little row of "fish" like stitches on the top is some sort of experimentation with a detached cable chain stitch (I think), but now I can't remember how I even did it! It was just some sort of different way of wrapping the thread as I made the stitch, and then catching the loop with a couching stitch (like for fly stitch and bonnet) before it pulls snug... but I'd need a magnifying glass and a contortionist's handbook to figure it out again, I suspect! </div><div>The bottom row (pale lilac silk on pale lavender background -- the photo washes it out almost completely) is either knotted cretan (TAST wk 22) or palestrina (TAST wk 26)-- I'm not sure I know how to tell the difference from the look of the stitch once it's completed. </div><div><br /></div><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-WWseeH1iAcU/UAJqkbNy10I/AAAAAAAAAe8/__FPwyGDSYQ/s1600/20120714%2Bcqjp%2Bjune%2Bknotted%2Bcretan%2Band%2Bbonnet.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 123px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-WWseeH1iAcU/UAJqkbNy10I/AAAAAAAAAe8/__FPwyGDSYQ/s400/20120714%2Bcqjp%2Bjune%2Bknotted%2Bcretan%2Band%2Bbonnet.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5765287647001106242" /></a>The diagonal line on the left is another line of knotted cretan (or palestrina, maybe). It's actually two lines of knotted cretan (or whatever) interlacing each other: one of lavender and one of orange. The camera apparently doesn't like that combo and washed it out completely. I'm going to have to try to take some of these pictures again and see if I can't get better results. argh.<div>The diagonal on the right is my first attempt at bonnet stitch (TAST wk 27). From this first attempt, I was pretty sure I was going to despise the stitch because it felt cumbersome, like each stitch took forever: make a straight stitch, then figure out how to get the needle under the stitch without catching the ground fabric or splitting the thread, then adjust the tension, then down and up again and catch the loop... ew. </div><div><br /></div><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-RXRmM6MkYYQ/UAJqjwjHJ1I/AAAAAAAAAek/z2ruIO1QFfg/s1600/20120714%2Bcqjp%2Bjune%2Bblanket%2Bfan.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 316px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-RXRmM6MkYYQ/UAJqjwjHJ1I/AAAAAAAAAek/z2ruIO1QFfg/s400/20120714%2Bcqjp%2Bjune%2Bblanket%2Bfan.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5765287635547793234" /></a>Then came TAST wk 24 and buttonhole fan stitch. Really? Isn't buttonhole fan stitch just buttonhole stitch in a different shape? Does that really count as a different stitch entirely? Well, I guess it does. :) ... or maybe there aren't really any different stitches at all, and knotted cretan is palestrina is just a variation on feather or fly or whatever. I'm SO confused at this point!!<div>But buttonhole fan was the assigned stitch of the week, so I found a way to experiment with it. The scalloped line of buttonhole fan at the top of the pic is nice, but nothing out of the ordinary, but my little "spiderweb" pattern below it I'm particularly proud of! I used a variegated grey thread (not sure I'm exactly pleased with where the color breaks ended up, but oh well) and played around with stacking buttonhole fan in rows on top of each other, and alternating the leg lengths as I did. The result seems sort of lace-like, or maybe reminiscent of a cobblestone street. Mmm. Happiness.</div><div><br /></div><div>At that point, I was in Leavenworth (and the bonnet stitch mentioned above had not yet happened-- pictures don't capture the sequencing very well) for a dance performance, and I had no access to any stitch directories or online inspiration or CQ books to look at. I had to pull from my own imagination and my own personal set of go-to stitches. </div><div><br /><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-QGu-4_pcSro/UAJqkNrPzqI/AAAAAAAAAew/CQA2Wq6uLW8/s1600/20120714%2Bcqjp%2Bjune%2Bcable%2Bchain%252C%2Bfrog.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 206px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-QGu-4_pcSro/UAJqkNrPzqI/AAAAAAAAAew/CQA2Wq6uLW8/s400/20120714%2Bcqjp%2Bjune%2Bcable%2Bchain%252C%2Bfrog.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5765287643366543010" /></a>I started with the bullion rose (or peony?) and rose buds (or whatever buds), added some chainstitch stems (three strands DMC floss of three different colors) which looked a little cumbersome and stiff all on their own, so I added straight-stitch grass around the base (single strand DMC of each of the colors I used in the flower stem). </div><div>I remembered that buttonhole fan could also be used to make a buttonhole butterfly, so I had to try and see if I could remember how to do one from memory. Not too bad! He looks somewhat butterfly-like. He has a bullion stitch body, a little bullion stitch (in a circle, couched down) head, and pistil stitch antennae. Then I figured I needed some sign of movement: a relationship between the butterfly and the flower, so I did a little running-stitch loop-de-loop. That was allright, but it seemed really weird the way he was loop-de-looping all nice and playful like but then all of a sudden the last bit of his path is a straight bee-line (are bee lines all that straight, actually?) up and away...hmm... so he must have been spooked into avoiding something, right? So that's when I stitched up the little frog. Does it look like a frog? I really can't tell! It's either cute or really scary, and I don't know which! It's not exactly the frog I was trying to stitch, and now I don't have the perspective to look at it with unbiased eyes. </div><div>Somewhere in all that stitching I put ladybugs into the grass, added a line of brown blanket stitch below the grass (dirt? roots, maybe?) and ran a line of cable chain (TAST wk 25) up the diagonal. I think I used a crochet thread for the cable chain, and I really like how it turned out.</div><div>The little grey row of blanket stitch triangles was stitched much earlier, so I think I talked about that one already.</div><div><br /><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-FduQlt90q-I/UAJqjYIJWII/AAAAAAAAAeM/JqmFtzUc-Ys/s1600/20120714%2Bcqjp%2B%2Bjune%2Bstars%2Band%2Bmagic%2Bchain.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 136px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-FduQlt90q-I/UAJqjYIJWII/AAAAAAAAAeM/JqmFtzUc-Ys/s400/20120714%2Bcqjp%2B%2Bjune%2Bstars%2Band%2Bmagic%2Bchain.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5765287628992239746" /></a>I revisited the metallic stars that I had stitched a while back and decided that I liked them better pulled closed at the center instead of open like they had been. I also decided that the cloud pattern printed on the cloth (very faded after having been worn as a pair of slacks and then jammies for several years) needed to be enhanced with tiny little stitches. I did most of the clouds with back stitch (which worked very well), but on one cloud (the center bottom one) I used running stitch which turned out a little differently and which effect I didn't like quite as much, but didn't dislike enough to pull it back out again.</div><div>Under the clouds is a line of Magic Chain --the red and green loops at the left edge that transition into yellow and orange at the right edge (I used a variegated crochet thread), and then I took the remaining length of yellow and orange and laced it back through the row in the other direction. It didn't do quite what I thought it would do, so I ended up adding some couching threads to hold it in an interesting shape. Ah well. Experimentation does not always yield the results one was hoping for.</div><div><br /></div><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-1Jo4iu6Ok3A/UAJtW0HzB5I/AAAAAAAAAfY/XKMRzH-IWhc/s1600/20120714%2BUnD%2Bbuttonhole.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 59px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-1Jo4iu6Ok3A/UAJtW0HzB5I/AAAAAAAAAfY/XKMRzH-IWhc/s400/20120714%2BUnD%2Bbuttonhole.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5765290711703553938" /></a>Then came TAST wk 28 with up and down buttonhole stitch. I rather liked this stitch, and I can see it ending up in my set of go-to stitches. <div><br /></div><div>So that wraps up June! </div><div><br /></div><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-qWMb--O-o8M/UAJtXGXy_eI/AAAAAAAAAfk/5uj9TamvPjs/s1600/20120714%2Bcqjp%2Bjunesm.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 154px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-qWMb--O-o8M/UAJtXGXy_eI/AAAAAAAAAfk/5uj9TamvPjs/s400/20120714%2Bcqjp%2Bjunesm.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5765290716602498530" /></a><div>and six months of CQJP progress!!</div><div><br /></div><br /><br /><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-mLfFPeumtM4/UAJqjp9MGTI/AAAAAAAAAeY/hGAUz1-mZSs/s1600/20120714%2BCQJP%2Bfull.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 258px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-mLfFPeumtM4/UAJqjp9MGTI/AAAAAAAAAeY/hGAUz1-mZSs/s400/20120714%2BCQJP%2Bfull.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5765287633778121010" /></a><div>Well, that was a lot to write, and I imagine it's a lot to digest, too! So I'll wait to talk about my progress so far in July until Monday. :)</div>Peacockhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16567049263142856395noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12826376.post-56705123054922856772012-06-20T01:32:00.000-07:002012-10-07T01:32:57.275-07:00Tuesday Stitchers import: May reveal and June progress<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
Well, it took longer than I'd planned to find my camera, get fresh batteries into it, take the pictures, find the cable to connect my camera to my computer, edit the pictures to a decent size and cropping, and get them ready to post. Ain't that the way of things! It's not just the stitching that takes all the time.<br />
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As previously mentioned, life has been treating me like a ping-pong ball of late, and I'm trying to just smile and go with the flow. I'm a little behind on things across the board, but I still find a couple of minutes every now and then to make a stitch or two, and they do eventually add up!</div>
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Here's what I managed to get done for May:</div>
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-aI1Lzy55Zso/T-I0F0Rqu9I/AAAAAAAAAZs/kqXCuDZjS3g/s1600/20120620+cqjp+may+reveal+1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="136" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-aI1Lzy55Zso/T-I0F0Rqu9I/AAAAAAAAAZs/kqXCuDZjS3g/s320/20120620+cqjp+may+reveal+1.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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I didn't manage to get an embroidered applique done yet for May or for April, but I do know what will go onto each one, assuming I find time to get the sketches and the stitching done.</div>
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-VeeuBOjwLxc/T-I0qoQmO3I/AAAAAAAAAZ0/Wgr6kcuBjF8/s1600/20120620+cqjp+may+detail+butterfly+chain.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="203" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-VeeuBOjwLxc/T-I0qoQmO3I/AAAAAAAAAZ0/Wgr6kcuBjF8/s320/20120620+cqjp+may+detail+butterfly+chain.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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I added a butterfly chain, with the chain done in a variegated sewing thread.</div>
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-0m8m35JXFPI/T-I0v9G3-xI/AAAAAAAAAZ8/URnPOAMisAw/s1600/cqjp+may+detail+v+explorations.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-0m8m35JXFPI/T-I0v9G3-xI/AAAAAAAAAZ8/URnPOAMisAw/s320/cqjp+may+detail+v+explorations.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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and I played around with the V-formation ideas as I was working.</div>
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Then May was over, and it was time to start on June! Ack!! Where does the time go?</div>
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I added another butterfly chain on June's block, with seed bead accents this time.</div>
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Chain stitch is becoming a go-to stitch, and I'm liking the way the variegated thread worked.</div>
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Blanket and buttonhole have always been go-to stitches for me. I'm particularly enjoying playing with spacing and leg lengths.</div>
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I'm also really liking variegated threads lately.</div>
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Chain stitch on the left.</div>
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Feather (or is it Fern?) on the top, worked in a variegated metallic thread and varying leg lengths.</div>
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The star fabric was pretty faded (I reclaimed the fabric from a much-loved and worn-through garment), so I traced over the stars with metallic running stitches, and have started tracing over the cloud patterns with little white rayon running stitches.</div>
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The bottom is a magic chain worked in doubled-over space-dyed crochet cotton with the (now yellow and orange) ends woven back through the chain and couched into place. It's not my favorite line, but I'm leaving it alone anyway.</div>
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-f0yinYjpRCw/T-I1MZOXjiI/AAAAAAAAAaM/5brV-cV5hiU/s1600/20120620+cqjp+june+detail+double+chain+over+ribbon.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="32" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-f0yinYjpRCw/T-I1MZOXjiI/AAAAAAAAAaM/5brV-cV5hiU/s320/20120620+cqjp+june+detail+double+chain+over+ribbon.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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This is double chain (chain worked back two links instead of one) worked over a satin ribbon for spacing control. Originally I'd planned to slide the ribbon out after the line was finished, but I caught the ribbon too many times with my needle and it wouldn't budge, so now it's staying. I kinda like the result anyway. :)</div>
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-TJ1y1o5ACrY/T-I1PF3lybI/AAAAAAAAAaU/7Qg8fy3b2j8/s1600/20120620+cqjp+june+detail+couched+chain+with+knots.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="65" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-TJ1y1o5ACrY/T-I1PF3lybI/AAAAAAAAAaU/7Qg8fy3b2j8/s320/20120620+cqjp+june+detail+couched+chain+with+knots.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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and this is my least favorite seam so far. It might come out because it isn't getting better with more layering and it might be puckering my fabric. Ah well. It's a chain stitch with the chains held open by fly stitches and then the open spaces filled up with French knots.</div>
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I'm finding that strongly dislike working on this project with the thicker threads. They feel cumbersome, and they distort the fabric base more than I want to tolerate. I think they'd be okay couched down, but stitching them through the cloth is just proving to be one frustration after another.</div>
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So it's back to thin threads and detail work for me!</div>
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Well, now I'm off to my weekly CQ meetup, without which I might not get any sewing at all accomplished! </div>
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I won't be able to post this weekend, as I'll be busy with dance performance again, so I will aim to get my next post up by Monday evening, or Tuesday afternoon.</div>
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</div>Peacockhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16567049263142856395noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12826376.post-31894910062227702652012-06-17T01:31:00.000-07:002012-10-07T01:32:04.287-07:00Tuesday Stitchers import: life sure got away from me!I feel like I owe you all an apology for not having posted for a couple of weeks now!<br />
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Life kinda got away from me --what with my grandmother's injury, dance obligations, a twisted ankle, and a bout of maybe-I-should-just-stay-in-bed-all-week, I am really far behind in everything. My garden is weedy and caterpillary, my laundry is piling up, my plans are all taking longer than I think they should, etc.<br />
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So I'm feeling rather accomplished to have managed a stitch or two every other day or so. I'm falling behind in that too, but at least I'm still moving forward.<br />
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I thought spring was supposed to be the season that brings an infusion of energy and strength! ... but I guess for me that usually coincides with the arrival of Rainier cherries in the grocery stores in early summer instead. We're only just now beginning to see the first batch of Rainiers, and they're still 10+ dollars per pound, so I guess it's still early in the season, really, and this June has been a two week stretch of clouds and rain, so I don't even have the sunny weather to trick me into thinking that winter has passed.<br />
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((local humor:<br />
Where do Seattle folk spend their summer?<br />
---Well, if it falls on a weekend, they go to the beach.))<br />
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I still need to get photographs of my CQ work, but I let not having them be a procrastination already last week, so this week I am going to just write this note now to reconfirm my devotion to all of you and to the project I'm working on, and I will follow this post with pictures, and start catching up on my read-and-response of everyone's amazing work by Wednesday.<br />
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Hugs all!<br />
<br />Peacockhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16567049263142856395noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12826376.post-26497732867465860722012-05-21T01:30:00.000-07:002012-10-07T01:30:53.889-07:00Tuesday Stitchers import: CQJP progress<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
It's been a very slow week. I got three seams done. That's all, just three seams. They're good seams, but that leaves me with a lot of work to do still before the end of the month! Ah well. Celebrate what IS, right?</div>
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-_oW5yuHrXDg/T7qtGUKswII/AAAAAAAAAZg/t-vHh4QEWS0/s1600/20120520+cqjp+detail.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="205" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-_oW5yuHrXDg/T7qtGUKswII/AAAAAAAAAZg/t-vHh4QEWS0/s320/20120520+cqjp+detail.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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I added needle-woven picot leaves to my line of bullion roses, and then surrounded them with an abundance of French knots in a variegated perle thread. I added a line of tatting, and I added a row of crenellations in green DMC floss using a single strand each of three colors of green. I worked the row over a scrap of aida cloth which I then removed afterward by pulling the aida out one thread at a time. It worked great in some ways: it was quick and easy and kept my stitches very uniform, and the aida was easy enough to unravel when I was ready to remove it. But it also caused my row of stitches to be looser than I like (because of the thickness of the aida), so after I removed the Aida I had to readjust the tension of the row. Since it was just straight stitches that wasn't too hard to do except for the two places that I split the threads and couldn't draw the excess past that point, so at those points I just hid the excess on the back and couched the loop to keep it from escaping back to the front again. Also, I somehow managed to get a gap in one of the stitches despite the use of the Aida! argh. Oh well. Stuff like that happens.<br />
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This coming week I might accomplish even less-- there is a huge dance workshop weekend coming up, so I will have no time at all to stitch after Wednesday. That leaves me a total of 5 stitching days remaining this month, and a whole lot of stitching to accomplish. If it weren't for the supportive community of fellow stitchers here on the blog and in real life, I might have already gotten distracted from this project! So thank you for helping me stay focused. :)Peacockhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16567049263142856395noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12826376.post-23557401483397090112012-05-13T01:28:00.000-07:002012-10-07T01:30:00.459-07:00Tuesday Stitchers import: April reveal and early May progress<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
Oh dear. Another week slipped by!<br />
Okay, so I did a bunch more work on April before deciding that I needed to set April aside and move on to May.<br />
Here's my reveal for April:<br />
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-hz8fS1jw18s/T69TOmb_DBI/AAAAAAAAAYQ/L24xyNFzLuc/s1600/20120512+CQJP+April.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="362" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-hz8fS1jw18s/T69TOmb_DBI/AAAAAAAAAYQ/L24xyNFzLuc/s640/20120512+CQJP+April.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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And some detail shots:<br />
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-FKmaGytFJSc/T69TWPejMBI/AAAAAAAAAYY/QNyWYlC7qrw/s1600/20120512+cqjp+detail+003.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-FKmaGytFJSc/T69TWPejMBI/AAAAAAAAAYY/QNyWYlC7qrw/s640/20120512+cqjp+detail+003.jpg" width="428" /></a></div>
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A modified wheatear made with fly and chain stitches. The thread is a hand-dyed silk carried with a thread of irridescent Sulky thread.</div>
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-oIPAlWJplXo/T69TaVtA2pI/AAAAAAAAAYg/FZnJprPl0yc/s1600/20120512+CQJP+hibiscus.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="506" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-oIPAlWJplXo/T69TaVtA2pI/AAAAAAAAAYg/FZnJprPl0yc/s640/20120512+CQJP+hibiscus.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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The hibiscus outlined in buttonhole and chainstitch with a stamen of cast-on stitch and French knots.</div>
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ntM4Ey_7HSc/T69Ta7ZX68I/AAAAAAAAAYo/3EEwYRfTPCQ/s1600/20120512+CQJP+seams.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ntM4Ey_7HSc/T69Ta7ZX68I/AAAAAAAAAYo/3EEwYRfTPCQ/s640/20120512+CQJP+seams.jpg" width="636" /></a></div>
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From left to right: </div>
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Row 1 --(in the upper left corner) a row of cast-on stitch flowers with french knot centers, augmented with green lazy daisy stitch leaves.</div>
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Row 2 --The purple row is TAST stitch crossed blanket (crossed buttonhole to some)</div>
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Row 3 --A row of metallic threads in feather stitch augmented with french knots. The thread that looks bright white in the photo looks like subtle grey under most viewing conditions, but it is reflective and so in low light conditions it bounces back available light and gleams. In this picture, it is bouncing back the light of the flash. Come to think of it, this would be a great thread to use for angels' wings or halos. :)</div>
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Row 4-- whipped chain stich with the purple whipping couched down at the points.</div>
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Row 5-- tatting made of silk 100/3 thread that I picked up at Threadneedle needlework shop. I've been spending a lot of time tatting while I drive back and forth to visit family. It is easier to carry than my needlework, easier to work on under distracting conditions, and less heartbreaking should I forget it somewhere or spill something on it. hence, you will probably see a lot of tatting show up in my CQJP wedges over the next few months!</div>
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-2T_hHE7ucrY/T69TbSNgsnI/AAAAAAAAAY4/EZBhrv52bf0/s1600/20120512+cqjp+detail+005.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="216" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-2T_hHE7ucrY/T69TbSNgsnI/AAAAAAAAAY4/EZBhrv52bf0/s640/20120512+cqjp+detail+005.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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I added gold French knots to my original wheatear seam. The thread I used is Sulky's holographic gold machine embroidery thread.</div>
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-nTx_PkSIpRE/T69TbAPkRXI/AAAAAAAAAYw/jtVPEicZFOY/s1600/20120512+cqjp+detail+004.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="408" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-nTx_PkSIpRE/T69TbAPkRXI/AAAAAAAAAYw/jtVPEicZFOY/s640/20120512+cqjp+detail+004.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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More of the Sulky holographic gold machine embroidery thread, this time used as staggered running stitches to give one of the larger patches a more dynamic feel.</div>
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I'd like to add more to April (and March) but time keeps slipping forward, so I'll settle for just chipping away each month in its own time right now and maybe adding filler when I get all caught up or at the end of the year . o O (whichever comes first. Yeah, right.)</div>
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Four seams so far on my May block:</div>
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-7x1fmItvx_w/T69W9j1uXKI/AAAAAAAAAZU/fWGEsJRv6xw/s1600/20120512+CQJP+may+detail+03.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="196" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-7x1fmItvx_w/T69W9j1uXKI/AAAAAAAAAZU/fWGEsJRv6xw/s640/20120512+CQJP+may+detail+03.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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A row of boullion roses in a Caron Impressions (half silk, half wool). It's a lovely thread to work with! So soft and enjoyable to the fingers. I think I'm going to get more of this thread in various colors and run some overdye experiments at some point. . o O (like I need another project!)</div>
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-TNwj1G2C9jg/T69W9REh_zI/AAAAAAAAAZM/M7REAjLOTFo/s1600/20120512+CQJP+may+detail+02.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="170" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-TNwj1G2C9jg/T69W9REh_zI/AAAAAAAAAZM/M7REAjLOTFo/s640/20120512+CQJP+may+detail+02.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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This line of lollipop trees is what happens when I remember that the TAST stitch of the week is half-chevron, but I don't recall what chevron was, nor do I recall the instructions for halving it. I made a long backstitch, came up in the center of the stitch and created a perpendicular line terminating in a French knot (three wraps). I used a variegated thread, working the short lollipops in one direction, and the taller lollipops on the return to intersperse the colors.</div>
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-07b77764Nmg/T69W80z9piI/AAAAAAAAAZE/ctVBSV8FUiw/s1600/20120512+CQJP+may+detail+01.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="250" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-07b77764Nmg/T69W80z9piI/AAAAAAAAAZE/ctVBSV8FUiw/s640/20120512+CQJP+may+detail+01.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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The top line (peach color) is a stitch I like to call "Fleur-de-lis" when it's done in a thread and to a proportion that will hold a nice curve. In this case the thread was much softer, so I got sharp angles instead of the circular look that made me call it Fleur-de-lis to begin with. I still like it in this form, though. Again, I terminated the ends of the tallest stitches with French knots. That was one of the TAST stitches recently, and since I haven't been able to work on my postcards, I seem to have gone overboard with including them on my CQJP this week!</div>
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The purple line is a weird little experimental line of stitching that I can't recall how I did. I'm going to need to look at it in full sunlight with a magnifier and see if I can figure it out again or trigger my memory. It involved some interesting wrapping and knotting of the light purple thread (somewhat inspired by Palestrina and Basque knotted stitches, but worked completely differently ) and then some whipping and couching and knotting with the darker purple thread. I put it in that location because there was a deep wrinkle in the cloth that I could not press out. That's the beauty of crazy quilting! You can hide wrinkles and mis-joins and fray spots in the fabric, and all sorts of things by clever embellishment!</div>
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Well, that's it for this week. May your needles always be smooth and your scissors always sharp. :)</div>
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</div>Peacockhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16567049263142856395noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12826376.post-81656529828398835982012-05-06T01:27:00.000-07:002012-10-07T01:28:44.938-07:00Tuesday Stitchers import: CQJP, TAST, etc<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
Well, according to my stitching progress, it is still April. :) I haven't begun working on May yet, but I'm almost caught up with the things I didn't get to finish in April!
First of all, there were two birthday ATCs that I finally got into the mail yesterday. One birthday is on May 6 and is in the UK, so that one will almost certainly be late. The other is in the US and is onn May 12, so it has a reasonable hope of arriving on time.
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Despite taking these photographs in natural lighting (or possibly because of?), the colors are very wrong. The middle stripe of that second atc, for example, is actually a really lovely shimmery deep purple almost black, but in the photo it looks like dark denim. Go figure. And the line of green feather stitch next to it is not just pale green, it's make-your-eyes-bleed-neon green!<br />
Seriously. That was the first line of stitching I applied to that atc, and boy did I regret it! I had to keep looking at that intense contrast (neon green on dark purple) for the rest of the stitching, and while it wasn't TOO bad in incandescent lighting, it almost gave me a migraine under natural light! Argh!!<br />
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Another point of interest on that second atc is the lower right hand corner half-circle. It started out as a seamline of herringbone in varigated floss, alongside which I added some bullion curves. Then I used the bullion curves as a foundation row for buttonhole stitch netting (in a varigated red-white-paleblue thread-- I don't particularly like how the varigated thread worked out colorwise). The net wanted to stay all flat, so I had to use couching stitches to pull it open. That looked pretty lame, so I added two rows of chain stitch in a graceful curve around the couched edge. Now I think the combination turned out pretty neat! But boy did I think it sucked every step of the way until the very last!! :)<br />
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There's not much to tell about the first atc. Except that the diagonal row of stitching just to the right of the central floral motif is a weird little combination of blanket stitch and chain stitch. Two blanket stitches in opposing directions, then a chain stitch.<br />
As I was working the line, I started wondering how it would look if worked in the "magic" method (two threads of different color in the needle, and working one thread as the active thread each time, letting the other thread pull to the back without getting caught in the tensioner, like for magic chain). On the chain stitch the uncaught thread nearly disappears (if you go back down a few threads away from where you emerged) or does disappear entirely (if you go back down through the very same hole you emerged in), but on the buttonhole/blanket stitch I think that the uncaught thread would travel at a diagonal line, creating a little triangle of two colors. I'm thinking I might try it on one of my random samplers, or maybe on my CQJP at some point and see if what result ends up looking like my expectations!<br />
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As for my CQJP, I chipped away at a few more seams:
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I managed to work a line of wheatear, for which I developed my own working method that does not match any of the tutorials I've yet seen: I created the two diagonal barbs first, but instead of making them two straight stitches, I worked them as a fly stitch with a tiny tail. Then I worked the chain by starting from the pointy end a stitch-length away from the fly, and then weaving the curve of the chain underneath the barbs of the fly stitch before finishing off the chain stitch at the pointy end again. Another fly stitch secured at the pointy end of the new chain, and repeat as desired. It took awhile to get the rhythm established, and the resulting line definitely has "character" -- in other words the angles and spacing aren't particularly consistent!<br />
I don't mind much. I can cope with it. :)<br />
No, really. <twitch, twitch><br />
<br />
<twitch, twitch!="">I also tried "crossed buttonhole" (IMHO, should be crossed blanket, but don't get me started!), and that was a real letdown of a stitch for me, TAST-wise, because it is one of the variations that I explored when we looked at buttonhole/blanket stitch back in January, and it will (perhaps) be a particularly limiting stitch to work one of my postcard samplers on. :P ... but I'm way behind on those postcard samplers at the moment, so I'm not sure whether I will try to catch up with them or not! I might just start folding the TAST stitches into my CQJP and just leaving it at that for awhile, or I might start up with the TAST postcard format again, but start up with the newest stitches and let the lost ones be lost for awhile. </twitch,><br />
<twitch, twitch!=""><br /></twitch,><br />
<twitch, twitch!=""> And then there's the outlined flower worked in a combination of buttonhole and chain. :) </twitch,><br />
<twitch, twitch!="">I only have about half of the April wedge done this week, so I'm going to have to think creatively if I want to get May completed on time!!
</twitch,></div>Peacockhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16567049263142856395noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12826376.post-72156703899678408492012-04-29T01:25:00.000-07:002012-10-07T01:27:06.292-07:00Tuesday Stitchers import: bjpWell, it's been a week of emotional rollercoasters, and I have a lot of stitching to accomplish before midnight tomorrow. I will very likely never get the hang of finishing ahead of schedule!
Grandmother went back into the hospital with pneumonia early this week, but is now doing much better again. Yay!! She is very exhausted from all of the set-backs, and I am exhausted as well.
Back in the beginning of the year, when I hadn't forseen any of these personal challenges to my time and emotions, I signed up for a couple of swaps to stitch alongside the CQJP, BJP, and TAST. WWIT???!! So a good chunk of my time this week went to stitching sane quilt blocks for swapping:
A block of my own pattern based on my partner's color preferences:
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A block of my own pattern in black and white fabrics:
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And a set of 8 12-inch blocks in a scrappy around-the-world pattern.
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Unfortunately, the first set of around-the-world blocks ended up the wrong size once they were all stitched together, so I had to spend yet another day and a half re-doing them to the right sizes. Rather than rip the seams and resew them, I started over from scratch:
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Phew! Those blocks are done with and now I know better than to sign up for more! (I hope.)
There are also the birthday ATCs and Postcards throughout the year that I can't duck out of. (Le Sigh!) I was way behind schedule on one of them, so I packaged it up and put it into the mail without remembering to get a photo of it first. bummer. This ATC (2.5 x 3.5 inches) is due May 6th, and another (that I haven't started yet) is due May 12.
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I haven't started my French Knot or my Wheatear postcards for TAST yet-- they can wait. CQJP and BJP are higher priority. I did stitch my TAST for stem stitch, though, because I felt the need for some very brainless stitching after totally screwing up the first batch of around-the-world blocks:
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Since I got such a strong start on my BJP earlier this month, I was able to finish them both. Yay!! Progress!
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So now I have one extra BJP (the one that I made in January and used for February when I got behind schedule) in case I fall behind again. Hopefully that won't happen, though, as I much prefer the BJPs to reflect what is going on in my life in the month that it is made, and even if it's just a matter of color choice, the choices I make have a strong connection to my emotions and the events of my life.
And then there is CQJP. I am SO far behind!!! I was a bit silly and let myself get all wrapped up in one very complicated and time-consuming seam rather than spreading the love around the entire wedge. It's a pretty little seam, though!
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Now I just need to get the rest of the wedge done between now and tomorrow night! Yipes! :)Peacockhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16567049263142856395noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12826376.post-1990187300169551702012-04-22T01:24:00.000-07:002012-10-07T01:25:15.473-07:00Tuesday Stitchers import: TAST wk 12- barbed chain, CQJP, BJP
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April has been quite a month! It started out with Easter weekend at Norwescon science fiction writers' convention (always a busy week for me). Immediately afterward I got sick with strep throat and had to take antibiotics. I was feeling pretty sorry for myself until I got the call the following Saturday that my grandmother (age 98) had fallen and broken her hip and would be going in for hip replacement surgery on Sunday morning. Boy! That sure put things into a different perspective! Naturally, I rushed over to Bremerton to see her before surgery and to wait with my family for the results of her operation. She's an amazing woman-- she came through surgery with flying success and then spent only a day and a half in the hospital before progressing on to the physical therapy recovery center.<br />
<br />
My own achievements seem paltry by comparison, and my reasons sound pitifully inadequate.
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Grandma bounced back from hip surgery in two days. I didn't get much stitching done because I had strep throat. Hmm. Maybe there's a life lesson or two to be found in there somewhere!<br />
<br />
At any rate, I didn't get a lot done, and I do have valid reasons (the busy convention weekend, strep throat, visiting my grandmother and my family). Now I am asking myself whether I am: 1- hiding behind excuses instead of doing my Work, 2- being unrealistically diminishing about the work that I do accomplish, 3- unaware of my deepest priorities (like spending quality time with friends and family) and, because of that lack of awareness, thinking that I have more time to do my (e.g. stitching) work than I really have... or some combination of the above or some unspecified addition to the list.<br />
<br />
For the sake of my sanity, I'm going to run with the working assumption that the best description is option 2: I'm being too hard on myself. I'm actually doing quite a bit of work, and it is good work, but it doesn't measure up to the imagined goal I set for myself, so I don't realize right away what I HAVE accomplished because I am too focused upon what I have NOT accomplished. :P<br />
<br />
What I have NOT accomplished this month:<br />
I have not yet started stitching on my CQJP wedge.<br />
I have not yet started the current TAST challenge (wk 16: French Knot)<br />
or the previous TAST challenge (wk 15: Stem Stitch)<br />
I have not added to TAST wk 11 (whipped wheel) which at least got started (barely).<br />
<br />
Okay! That's enough whining!!<br />
<br />
What I HAVE accomplished is so much better to talk about!<br />
<br />
I made a BJP for February! yay! yes, it's April now, and yes, I had a BJP for February, but it wasn't the one that I WANTED to have for February, it was my spare January BJP that I misplaced (so I had to create a second January BJP). Ever since, I've felt determined to make a real February BJP, one featuring heart-shaped beads. :)<br />
<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-NUQ1uoDAIuU/T5ODUEqkMyI/AAAAAAAAATw/VguI6hjG1-Y/s1600/20120421%2Bbjp%2Bfebruary.jpg"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5734071131445670690" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-NUQ1uoDAIuU/T5ODUEqkMyI/AAAAAAAAATw/VguI6hjG1-Y/s400/20120421%2Bbjp%2Bfebruary.jpg" style="cursor: hand; cursor: pointer; display: block; height: 313px; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; width: 400px;" /></a><br />
<br />
I also got a good start on my April BJP, and am confident that I will be able to finish it before the end of the month. It features a charm with a labyrinth pattern to represent the explorations of imagination and fiction (the science fiction writers' convention) and also the joys of gardening (by connection with the idea of hedge mazes). I had been thinking of the colors of the tulips that arose in my garden this month (orange-reds against the green foliage), but the beads I chose were closer to turquoise than green, so it's ended up with more of a southwestern feel: turquoise and agate, Tucson Arizona where we used to visit my husband's father.<br />
<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-kb7d7Gy-R-I/T5OEb6jSqXI/AAAAAAAAAT8/KysmLGkIn_4/s1600/20120421%2Bbjp%2Bapril.jpg"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5734072365681387890" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-kb7d7Gy-R-I/T5OEb6jSqXI/AAAAAAAAAT8/KysmLGkIn_4/s400/20120421%2Bbjp%2Bapril.jpg" style="cursor: hand; cursor: pointer; display: block; height: 279px; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; width: 400px;" /></a><br />
<br />
I did some work on TAST 14: Satin stitch<br />
<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-gJEpN9ftZDM/T5OGdPHkYSI/AAAAAAAAAUI/d-H39HjZv_Y/s1600/20120421%2Btast%2Bwk%2Bsatin%2Bstitch.jpg"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5734074587405377826" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-gJEpN9ftZDM/T5OGdPHkYSI/AAAAAAAAAUI/d-H39HjZv_Y/s400/20120421%2Btast%2Bwk%2Bsatin%2Bstitch.jpg" style="cursor: hand; cursor: pointer; display: block; height: 259px; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; width: 400px;" /></a><br />
<br />
And I added significantly to TAST 12: Barbed Chain. I had a lot of ideas of experimental variations that I wanted to try, and some of them turned out pretty nifty! Although the magic chain variation did not turn out the way that I had hoped it would, it's still kinda interesting.<br />
<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-dtAs9diC-l4/T5OLtLWrJuI/AAAAAAAAAUg/dcf7AjTrdL4/s1600/20120421%2Btast%2Bwk%2Bbarbed%2Bchain.jpg"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5734080358831040226" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-dtAs9diC-l4/T5OLtLWrJuI/AAAAAAAAAUg/dcf7AjTrdL4/s400/20120421%2Btast%2Bwk%2Bbarbed%2Bchain.jpg" style="cursor: hand; cursor: pointer; display: block; height: 271px; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; width: 400px;" /></a><br />
<br />
And while I did not start stitching on my CQJP wedge yet (It requires a level of focus and thoughtfulness that hasn't been available to me at the busy convention or while my head was blurred with fever or while my family needed my attention), I did get some busywork stitching done on my CQJP prototype! This little peacocky tail fan is the prototype that I stitched up as a concept test before investing all my time and materials in the larger silk version. Since it is made entirely of printed fabrics, I decided to let the fabrics take primary focus and use my CQ stitching in a supporting roll by controlling the color spectrum of the threads that I would use. As much trouble as they are, somehow metallic threads seemed the best choice-- they would stand out against any of the prints, yet still read as "neutrals", plus they would add a nice shimmer and textural interest. I've chosen gold threads against the greens, and copper threads against the purples. <br />
<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-RfIW8fMFW7s/T5ONWXLL0NI/AAAAAAAAAUs/R08bRlwbfoQ/s1600/20120421%2Bcqjp%2Bprototype%2Bdetail%2B2.jpg"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5734082165890339026" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-RfIW8fMFW7s/T5ONWXLL0NI/AAAAAAAAAUs/R08bRlwbfoQ/s400/20120421%2Bcqjp%2Bprototype%2Bdetail%2B2.jpg" style="cursor: hand; cursor: pointer; display: block; height: 363px; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; width: 400px;" /></a><br />
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-YbBHfFlznsg/T5ONWmflYfI/AAAAAAAAAU0/DAMFp2kVooU/s1600/20120421%2Bcqjp%2Bprototype.jpg"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5734082170002432498" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-YbBHfFlznsg/T5ONWmflYfI/AAAAAAAAAU0/DAMFp2kVooU/s400/20120421%2Bcqjp%2Bprototype.jpg" style="cursor: hand; cursor: pointer; display: block; height: 261px; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; width: 400px;" /></a>Peacockhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16567049263142856395noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12826376.post-88521162821652654302012-04-15T01:15:00.000-07:002012-10-07T01:21:57.056-07:00Tuesday Stitcher import: chatter<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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Despite strep throat, fever, lack of energy, unpacking from travel, etc, etc, etc this week, I managed to get some work done. Yay!! I finished a BJP medallion for February (bumping the medallion that I showed off in February into reserve status again-- a spare in case life gets in the way some month-- possibly this one. Heh)<br />
And I got most of the beading done on a medallion for April. Yay! Woo-hoo!! I totally rock.<br />
Pictures will need to wait though, because I got a phonecall today saying that my grandmother took a bad fall and will be going into emergency surgery for full hip replacement tomorrow morning. Bless her heart, she is 97 (I think), and they are estimating her odds at an even coin toss.<br />
So I am packing up my bags tonight and driving over to Bremerton to sleep a few hours in a hotel room so that I will not need to drive all the way over to Bremerton in the morning.<br />
My brother and his wife, and my mother and father will meet me at Grandma's hospital at 7:00 am(Pacific). She goes in to surgery at 8:00, and they expect it to last an hour or two. <br />
So far the nerves haven't hit me. That's another good reason to do the driving tonight.<br />
Prayers and wishes are welcome energy. For Grandma, for my father (this is his mom), for all of us-- to have the emotional fortitude to endure whatever may occur with grace and mutual support.<br />
<br />
Bless you all and I will submit this week's review post and pictures as soon as I am able-- Monday if I'm lucky.<br />
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UPDATE ON GRANDMA:<br />
Grandmother (she was born in December of 1913!) came through initial surgery very well. The surgery itself took about 40 minutes, and now she is in recovery. She will be in the hospital for three days, and if all is well then she will transfer to a recovery center for an additional six weeks or so before transferring back to her assisted living center all mended up. That's the optimized prognosis, of course, as at age 98 it is difficult to know whether a body or spirit holds enough energy in reserves to fully complete the healing process. <br />
She was delighted to see us all, and coherent enough (despite the disorientation of pain meds) to recognize us and to carry conversation. <br />
I and my brother (and his wife) were there, and my father (grandma's son) and my mother, and one of my father's (two) brothers and his wife. (Father's other brother is on the east coast, and his sister passed on several years ago). We met up for a chance to give her some positive energy and let her know our love was with her just before she headed in to surgery, then we had breakfast in the hospital cafeteria (decent food, too--chef was on his A-game!) and waited for the results. When she got to recovery, we poked our noses in again briefly and then headed out to lunch so that grandma would have a chance to rest.<br />
<br />
It was a remarkably decent family gathering. <br />
(Our family is not close, and there is a long history of differing opinions and inflated egos bruising each other, so generally I dread family get-togethers of any kind!)<br />
<br />
My mother even offered a blanket apology and statement of responsibility for her choices and actions, and an offer to start putting her energy into building a positive relationship with me. I am stunned. I hope she follows through, because that would be a nice outcome and one that cannot be reached by my efforts alone.<br />
<br />
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Over lunch quilting was a topic of conversation, and my mother, and brother and his wife, and I made plans to make family friendship blocks to exchange with each other. After much debate we decided to leave the colors and techniques and even the size open to creator's interpretation, so this could be a very interesting hodgepodge to try to integrate into a single quilt-- anything from geometric piecing to applique to crazy quilt are possible. <br />
If we each only make one block per person, that's only 4 blocks total, which would be a very small quilt (or more likely a wall hanging), but I'm thinking that those of us who sew might make blocks for other members of the family to write on. I'm not sure when I'll find time to add this new project in to the work basket! but there you have it-- momentum inspires more momentum. :P<br />
<br />
I still need to get photographs of my week's progress before I can write that post, but I figured you'd all like an update on Grandma.<br />
</div>Peacockhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16567049263142856395noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12826376.post-19867864308134622652012-04-08T01:14:00.000-07:002012-10-07T01:15:07.502-07:00Tuesday Stitchers import: Easter weekendNo work at all this week. <br />Wait, that's not entirely true... on Wednesday I did finish up the applique that I wanted to put on my March block. Yay!! <br />But no progress yet on April<br />No catch-up work on previous TAST<br />No progress on current TAST<br />and no photos to show you the March applique.<br />I blame Easter weekend. <br />I spend Easter weekend every year helping out at Norwescon Science Fiction writers' convention. <br />So all of last week was spent prepping for the convention and then helping out at the convention. Great fun, but not conducive to a lot of stitching.<br />By Wednesday I should be settled back in and more-or-less unpacked again.<br />In the meantime,<br />Happy Easter!!Peacockhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16567049263142856395noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12826376.post-86556778997872354132012-04-01T01:13:00.000-07:002012-10-07T01:14:01.892-07:00Tuesday Stitchers import: BJP, CQJP marchWell, it's been a busy month, with a lot of time spent away from home and away from my stitching. I do carry my CQJP along with me, but most of the time I am out of the house, I find myself in boisterous and chaotic environments that don't allow the meditative calm or stretches of attention that I find conducive to stitching.. at least the level of calm that I need for my CQJP anyway! <br /><br />Despite the distractions, I did get a reasonable amount of work done on my CQJP:<br /><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-CqYw_kNZbog/T3fcXpdUrnI/AAAAAAAAASw/-SsUIWyQu3k/s1600/20120331%2BCQJP%2BMarch%2Bsm.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 263px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-CqYw_kNZbog/T3fcXpdUrnI/AAAAAAAAASw/-SsUIWyQu3k/s400/20120331%2BCQJP%2BMarch%2Bsm.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5726287750048820850" /></a><br />(The semi-transparent gray mask is my attempt to obscure the blocks from past and future months and clarify where March begins and ends.)<br />The wedge shape makes photography challenging, so here are a couple of detail shots as well:<br /><br /><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-nzJzIqUg6Lo/T3fcX27YTHI/AAAAAAAAAS8/WwskuCAPrMo/s1600/20120331%2Bcqjp%2Bmarch%2Bdetail%2B01.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 373px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-nzJzIqUg6Lo/T3fcX27YTHI/AAAAAAAAAS8/WwskuCAPrMo/s400/20120331%2Bcqjp%2Bmarch%2Bdetail%2B01.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5726287753664547954" /></a><br /><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-SLwnyAN50Ww/T3fcYMwzpNI/AAAAAAAAATI/SnXpZopNG8U/s1600/20120331%2Bcqjp%2Bmarch%2Bdetail%2B02.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 255px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-SLwnyAN50Ww/T3fcYMwzpNI/AAAAAAAAATI/SnXpZopNG8U/s400/20120331%2Bcqjp%2Bmarch%2Bdetail%2B02.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5726287759525782738" /></a><br /><br />And the BJP, which I find can only be worked on at home, got done too!! And I even got a picture of it before I misplaced it this time! Ha!<br /><br /><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-50pTmdLfYQA/T3fcYXo6EDI/AAAAAAAAATQ/ZyPtRqoc_Oc/s1600/20120331%2BBJP%2Bmarch.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 385px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-50pTmdLfYQA/T3fcYXo6EDI/AAAAAAAAATQ/ZyPtRqoc_Oc/s400/20120331%2BBJP%2Bmarch.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5726287762445439026" /></a><br /><br />Spring weather and gardening has been on my mind a lot this month, despite the miserable cold wet windy weather we've been having (or maybe because of it?). I spent several hours of my precious at-home time getting vegetable starts potted up in containers so that I'll be able to look forward to fresh peas and lettuce and green beans as the weather gets warmer. :) Yum! ... and spending all that time out in the yard (soaking up that much-important Vitamin D producing sunlight!) inspired much of my stitching and color choice this month.<br /><br />I have a slightly longer essay on the topic on <a href="http://another-hobby.blogspot.com/"> my blog.</a><br />Personally, I'm just grateful that I got this much done on my block this month! .. I do still want to add an embroidered applique, like the valentine bouquet and the intruder cat from previous months, but that didn't get done before midnight tonight, so I'll have to find time to squeeze it in next month instead (I hope!)Peacockhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16567049263142856395noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12826376.post-52876957520389701052012-03-31T21:34:00.004-07:002012-03-31T22:10:34.597-07:00End of another month already?Where in the world has March gone to? Was it washed away by the rain? blown away by the wind?? I only just got accustomed to the idea that February was over, and now March is gone too?? Who authorized that?!<br /><br />March was full of many distractions for me. There was travel, and dance events, and travel for dance events. There was miserable drenching rain and billowing winds, and there was alluring sunshine. The sunshine was particularly devious: it made me want to attempt a garden. Doh! As a result of the weather, I ended up with several plant starts that needed repotting, so now I have five slivers, dirt underneath my fingernails, quite a few containers of potted vegetable starts outside in the yard, and several flats of five-year-old seeds taking over my dining room table that decided to germinate much to my shock and awe. (The seeds decided to germinate, not the table. ...though a germinating table would definitely hold a higher shock and awe factor than some sprouting seeds, even five-year-old seeds.) Yay! The beginning of a vegetable garden for the first time in YEARS! woot! My mouth is already watering with the thought of fresh peas and lettuce and green beans this season! I hope that my plants grow and thrive and produce produce! .. it would probably be more likely if I quit nibbling on the poor things long enough for them to get established. Heh. For the past two weeks I've been making a morning round of my container garden, peeking in at all the little plants and encouraging them to grow (Pep-talks help, right?)<br />And each morning I pull off one or two leaves from any plants that look big enough to spare them. :) Yum! spinach leaves and lettuce for breakfast! ... except that the plants are so small that I only get about three to five leaves total before I decide that I'd better not take any more or risk killing the poor things before they get a start in life.<br />(Patience is not my best virtue.)<br /><br />All of which means that I ended up doing less stitching than I had anticipated over the course of the month. The travel and the dance events were very unfriendly to stitching, so instead, I took my tatting shuttles along with me and I made some tatted trims. You'll spot a couple of them on this month's block. The others will most likely find their way onto future blocks.<br /><br /><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-CqYw_kNZbog/T3fcXpdUrnI/AAAAAAAAASw/-SsUIWyQu3k/s1600/20120331%2BCQJP%2BMarch%2Bsm.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 263px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-CqYw_kNZbog/T3fcXpdUrnI/AAAAAAAAASw/-SsUIWyQu3k/s400/20120331%2BCQJP%2BMarch%2Bsm.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5726287750048820850" /></a><br />(The semi-transparent gray mask is my attempt to obscure the blocks from past and future months and clarify where March begins and ends.)<br />The wedge shape makes photography challenging, so here are a couple of detail shots as well:<br /><br /><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-nzJzIqUg6Lo/T3fcX27YTHI/AAAAAAAAAS8/WwskuCAPrMo/s1600/20120331%2Bcqjp%2Bmarch%2Bdetail%2B01.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 373px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-nzJzIqUg6Lo/T3fcX27YTHI/AAAAAAAAAS8/WwskuCAPrMo/s400/20120331%2Bcqjp%2Bmarch%2Bdetail%2B01.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5726287753664547954" /></a><br /><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-SLwnyAN50Ww/T3fcYMwzpNI/AAAAAAAAATI/SnXpZopNG8U/s1600/20120331%2Bcqjp%2Bmarch%2Bdetail%2B02.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 255px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-SLwnyAN50Ww/T3fcYMwzpNI/AAAAAAAAATI/SnXpZopNG8U/s400/20120331%2Bcqjp%2Bmarch%2Bdetail%2B02.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5726287759525782738" /></a><br /><br />I also managed to create my BJP mandala for March! woot!<br /><br />Gardening and spring flowers definitely influenced my stitching this month in all of my work. The crocuses, grape hyacinths, and daffodils have come up in my yard to greet the spring weather (all three crocuses, two daffodils, and five-hundred-thousand-ish hyacinths that survived the floody-wet winters, anyway.) It's the color combo of spring greenery, daffodil yellow, and hyacinth purple/blue that determined my color selection for this month's BJP. :)<br /><br /><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-50pTmdLfYQA/T3fcYXo6EDI/AAAAAAAAATQ/ZyPtRqoc_Oc/s1600/20120331%2BBJP%2Bmarch.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 385px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-50pTmdLfYQA/T3fcYXo6EDI/AAAAAAAAATQ/ZyPtRqoc_Oc/s400/20120331%2BBJP%2Bmarch.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5726287762445439026" /></a><br /><br /><br />I didn't get much done on my TAST postcards, even with this past week designated as "catch-up week"-- so little, in fact, that there's really not much to show for Whipped Wheel and Barred Chain... I'll have to chip away at them as I can, and show them when there's something to show. CQJP and BJP take priority, and I'm really quite delighted to have accomplished as much as I did on both of those!Peacockhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16567049263142856395noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12826376.post-83915904172498205622012-03-25T01:11:00.000-07:002012-10-07T01:12:58.014-07:00Tuesday Stitchers import: away from keysWell, I'm pre-posting this, so I don't have much to show yet. I don't have anything to show yet, actually! It's been the deadest week so far in terms of actually picking up a needle. The pressure is really mounting! <br />Spring weather came to Issaquah this week, and I must admit that I spent several hours out in the sunshine (drizzly, wet sunshine, but bright nonetheless) putting starter plants into pots. If all goes well, I will have fresh green peas, lettuces, carrots, and other assorted yummies to munch on this summer while I stitch and dream!<br />Tomorrow I spend the day catching up on laundry and packing because Friday my husband and I are driving to Idaho for a swing dance workshop weekend. Wish us luck getting over the passes-- it's snowy and icy and we might need chains. We should be able to drive home again on Sunday, but not in time to write this post. <br />I will bring my stitching with me, but the chances are really really really low that I'll have any time to pick up a needle while I'm away. (Sadly, I can't stitch in the car.)Peacockhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16567049263142856395noreply@blogger.com0