Class Tester

Here's the second book I made testing SueB's new class Creative Book making being offered in September at www.twocreativestudios.com It has a ribbon closure and is using some of the scrapbook paper I can't resist buying and then just store.

Some of the pages inside are from those lovely sacks merchants use, and I can't throw away. Some form sleeves with the openings at the top or the sides depending on the size of the sack.

The lining is painted tissue. Another fun book to make.

Beads, cord

When Quilt group met on Wednesday, our hostess showed us how to do this crystal bracelet. It can also have seed beads crossing in one or both directions. I liked the crystals so well that I didn't want to cover them up with seed beads. The crystals change from copper to olive which doesn't show very well in the photo in spite of my trying to alter the color. This part I finished in about an hour, so it is a quick project. Finally, I used the Diva cord maker that I bought from www.joggles.com ages ago. It will be used on a felted purse.

Swaps

This month's theme for the Unlimited Textiles Yahoo group was Birds, Butterflies, and Bees. See what June sent me. The birds are fused with inked legs and feet. Isn't the beaded tassel clever? Val http://homeleightigger.blogspot.com sent this postcard for the Calendar Girls http://calendargirls2008.blogspot.com exchange. It's pieced and machine embroidered and very lovely. The mail yesterday was super.

Class Tester

I'm testing another class for SueB http://www.twocreativestudios.com/ called Creative Bookmaking and am very pleased with the book I made.

The shapes on the cover are grundboard which was easy to cut with my paper dedicated rotary cutter. I added beads-size 8- to the stitching as I bound the book.

The lining is a printed tissue that a friend gave me. She bought it at an Estate Sale of a Portland artist. The page is construction paper with acrylic paint on it. The paint is thick enough to draw a comb-one from the hardware store for texturing walls-through it to create a pattern.

Beads, felt

A friend taught a class on how to make a beaded cuff by beading on an interesting fabric. I used a batik scrap and made the lower bracelet. After I finished the felted purse, there were pieces of felt left, so I decided to make a cuff. I didn't want to bead too much and hide the felting design, so I only did a bit with more on the area that would be shown when worn. It only takes a 2" wide strip of felt the length of your wrist plus whatever you want for the overlap. The beaded one is satin stitched by machine around the edge, but the felt one only needed a straight stitch to join the front to an Ultrasuede lining. I had used a fabric marker to color the edge before assembling it. Both have a strong interfacing to support the beads.

Notecards

I've been going to make notecards for ages but never got around to it. SueB's directions at http://www.twocreativestudios.com/ was the incentive I needed. Here are just a few.

They are done by fusing painted fabric to blank notecards. I didn't have cards just envelopes, so I made cards from cardstock-just cut to size and fold. One piece of fabric is silk; one cotton. It worked with both fabrics. It's a great way to use up scraps. Now I have to decide where to send them. So many people just throw things out that I want to choose those who will understand that these are special.

Quiltie

The theme this month for Unlimited Textiles is Birds, Butterflies and Bees.

I used a piece of hand dyed cotton as the background and fused a butterfly on it. Then I machine embroidered the main areas with metallic thread and beaded around the edge.

Calendar Girls

For http://calendargirls2008.blogspot.com this is the image we were inspired by for June.

Here is my interpretation. The green and yellow-orange parts are painted canvas. Ultrasuede forms the edges. It needed something, and I found a scrap of felted wool from the purse to use. The road is machined.

Award, Quilt

This is another of the strip pieced series-one that took off in a different direction. It just needed the irregular bottom. It's called City Lights, because it reminds me of windows in apartments.

Marty http://crackpotbeader.blogspot.com gave me the Attitude of Gratitude award and said such nice things about me on her blog. I'm supposed to upload the symbol, but, of course, it won't work for me. I'm also supposed to say what I'm grateful for which is easy.

My returning health and energy.
My wonderful friends.
Online Sue http://suebleiweiss.typepad.com who kept emailing to keep my spirits up/
Locally I only told two people until the surgery was over.
Catherine: emails, phone calls, visits, cards, a plant. She would call every day once I was home to check that I was resting and eating.
Lois: calls, emails, rides, chocolate, books and so much support.
My quilt group once they knew.
My husband who took such good care of me.
Jake(dog) who wouldn't leave my side.
And now at last I seem to be getting back to creating. I even worked out at the gym yesterday for the first time and don't hurt today.

Quilts

Here are two more quilts in the strip pieced series. This is All Squared Up. I've always liked the Log Cabin type blocks but wanted to do something that looked like my own version. Here is Reflections. Can you guess that I like color? Each one is an opportunity to try different color schemes. I'm not one of these people who can instinctively use color. I've had to learn how. The more you work with it, the more you learn.

Again, thanks to everyone who visits. It's fun to get to know you. I check out the blogs of those who comment and try to email everyone I can.

Bead Journal Project

One of the things I was able to do after the surgery was bead, so here is the finished Bead Journal Projects for June. I had these wonderful, tiny MOP buttons and wanted to use them. I kept the piece simple as was my life for the past 5 weeks. Like the rest of the world, last evening we had a terrific wind, rain, thunder and lightning storm. The power was only out for 2 1/2 hrs., but that took care of dinner-salad and sandwiches. It was a good excuse to just read as long as it was light. It's amazing how much we depend on electricity.

I'm pleased to see I have followers, so I know I'm not just talking to myself and love the comments.

Quilts

Everyone seems to like the quilt that is my blog header, so I thought I would show some of the quilts in the series that lead up to it.

A number of years ago I took a week long retreat with Nancy Crow and learned so much. We had done sets of strips in class to use in some exercises. When I came home, I decided to use them with black seeing how many ways I could change them. This is Dancing with my Shadow. It is using curved piecing to join the strips with the black.

Here is Pick Up Sticks-it reminded me of the child's game.

Then I used navy and did squares. This is Broken Pathways.

I used one of the Kaleidoscopes that are clear to look at the blocks, rotated it to see what would happen and came up with so many ideas. There are more to this series and many sketchbook ideas waiting to be made.

Quilt

Several years ago I took a workshop from Else Aviks in which we monoprinted then stitched rows and rows of running stitches. The fabrics we used were nontraditional. This one is a bumpy curtain fabric.

I decided to do a wall hanging with stitched motifs with the background done in the same way. I think the centers will be beaded once the stitching is done.