Quilt

I had some strips sewn together that were left from the first time I went to a Nancy Crow retreat years ago. There were two sets, so I layered and slashed them before sewing up the top. The quilting is done by couching a metallic thread along the main color areas.

 

Blogger put it sideways which might actually be better!

Class

I'm taking a class at www.joggles.com from Margaret Applin-Happ and really enjoying it.Here are the impressions of some simple stamps I made for the second class. I can see lots of possibilities of interesting repeat patterns with these.

Here is a larger, more complex one that is stamped twice. I like this one the best. This could be a new addiction!

Book

Back to the felted books. This is number 4.The button is plastic but an older one. The ribbon is one of the fancy ones I can't resist ordering. The felting is steamed then machine quilted before the book is assembled.

The lining is a painted fabric. The signature cover on the left is painted paper. I think both were down using marbling technique with shaving cream-who would know we would be using shaving cream to create art.

quilt

I love batiks and just made simple blocks to arrange on the design wall. This is the quilt that resulted. It's machine quilted along the triangle seams. This will be given as a lap quilt once I decide who needs it the most.

Class

Last week I started a class at www.joggles.com with Margaret Applin on creating papers and fabrics. Her idea to use simple shapes is great, because they can become more complex by how you use them.

I had paint left and never wanting to waste any, I grabbed a page I'd painted several years ago at Art and Soul and printed on it.

He really isn't on his side now but loves his tummy rubbed, so it isn't an unusual place for him to be. Now his ears are up.

Now they are down again. This is normal for a German Shepherd. They grow so fast that there isn't enough nutrients and the ears flop up and down. The vet calls it the Goofy ear stage.

Quilt

This is the other piece I did for the Fiberactions neutral challenge. I love color but found that this challenge was easy, because the fabrics talked to me.

The gray shapes are raw silk. The couching of the metallic cord is the quilting. It's done by machine with the zigzag stitch.

Fiberactions

Here is the Discharge fabric piece I did for the Fiberactions challenge-link at right. It's a piece I discharge outside with bleach when two friends and I got together to see what we could do with discharge. Can you imagine the sight when the UPS man came and saw three old ladies bouncing around the yard with fabric on the ground and wearing aprons, gloves, and masks and carrying bleach? We do have fun.

Here's the detail showing the quilting by couching metallic cord down. The beading is on the vertical rows.

Book

This is the third felt book. The button is an antique metal one. The felting has machine quilting over it and is blocked with lots of steam.

The lining is hand painted cotton. The signature cover is layers of paint on card stock.

Thanks to everyone who comments. Right now a big part of my time involves the puppy who is not yet allowed in the office with all it's wires.

Book

Here's the next book. The button is a leather one that has been sitting around here for ages. It feels good to be putting some of these things to use. I used a thick and thin yarn and the embellisher to make the cover.

The batik on the left is the lining. The purple paper with the butterflies is a signature cover. The paint was lifted through a stencil to get the butterfly design. First you paint the paper, then when it's dry, you paint a coat over it, put the stencil down, and use a damp sponge to lift areas of paint off.

Books

Quite a while ago I decided to do felt books to have on hand for gifts. I love working with the fibers, so it's a good excuse to use all the things I've collected--and continue to collect in spite of trying to use things up!

 

To a base of craft felt, I used the embellisher to felt down a thick and thin yarn-love the way it creates random rows. Then I used metallic and machine quilted it. I always steam the felt several times along the way to block it. The ribbon was given to me by a friend. The button is from my stash.

It's lined with a hand painted cotton. It has 3 signatures that are covered with heavier hand painted papers. This one was painted, then plastic wrap was laid on the wet paint to create the crystal pattern. I always use another button on the inside when sewing one on the outside, so use doesn't rip the cover.

Quilt

I'm back to the motif I like to use for a patchwork square. The fabrics are hand dyed and batiks. The quilting is done by couching a metallic cord in a square spiral. I kept trying to design it to follow the patchwork pattern but it wouldn't work. Then I realized I could just overlay a large design that had the feel of the patchwork.

Here's a detail.

My Garden

This is the embroidered piece I showed ages ago and finally made into a small wall hanging.

The center is a monoprint that I put painted cheesecloth over. Next came a layer of machine stitching using a programmed pattern of leaves. Then I hand stitched Feather stitch. The flowers are various circular pattern, some are needle woven. The stems were done last which seems weird but worked. Some of them I whipped to change the color a bit. The threads were Perle cotton, embroidery floss, and matte silk. Some were hand dyed by me.

Here's a detail. I do love to hand stitch.

I had planned to carry the design out into the border, but it just didn't work. I also had sewn a dark border on the outside which really overpowered the center and was removed. Pieces just want certain things and won't settle for others!

Bead Journal Project

Here's the latest cuff. Browns and pinks are not my thing, but they seemed right for November when the leaves have fallen and the days are gray.

Fleece is needlefelted to a base. Then I stitched on the odd shaped pearls using seed beads to be sure they stayed put. Ther is only one hole through them even when they are lone. The redish pearls seemed to want to go down the center but needed seed beads to echo them. The edge is beaded picot.