AM I scattered and disorganized?

 I'm still trying to decide if i'm feeling scattered and disorganized because 

I AM scattered and disorganized or I have actually been busy.

I have quilted 9 customer quilts, 10 charity quilts, 

made 5 baby outfits for a friend
who's daughter had a baby, 

some outfits and a quilt for my grandson, a skirt for myself, 

I'm still working on the tumbling block CQ, 

a bunch of family stuff, 

going to scrap pack, going to Tuesday sew days, 

and doing my secretary of the guild thing.

Gardening, I built a bed by the studio out of retaining wall blocks

and dug in the Dhalia bulbs I got from my friend Margaret 

Finished the Parham owl Etui kit 

for the last 4 months.

I now need to gear up and sew some cloths and a quilt for my newest grand baby coming to us in September,  

It looks like the girls each need new cuddle quilts 

because these ones have just about had it

I still can't believe they take these poor decrepit things out in public!

Oiy, with a side of vey!

OK, now that I have written all that out even aggregated over 4 months

 it's been busy. 

All the better to be busy so we don't dwell on the desecration of our democracy*sigh*

My second side Quest

 I made a thing, a very fun thing

I ordered for myself 2 Jenny Adin-Christie Kits,

And immediately had to make the Parham Owl

the minute I received them.

I have been coveting this bad-boy since I first saw him during covid

and finally got the filthy lucre to get him!

(after some froo-fraw with usa customs which wanted $287 ransom fee, outrageous!)

The kit is marvelous easy to follow with big clear pictures of each step.

If you have been thinking of making one, go get one, I highly recommend.

Isn't he Handsome!

More Tumbling around

More Tumbling Blocks are afoot
I am even sewing them all together

Here we have a sword pierced sacred bleeding heart picked out in satin stitch and goldwork, a basket of SRE flowers and a nosegay of blue SRE posies

Turkey-work moth, an Antique Tatted purple glove surrounded by SRE flowers and a Bullion Bee, Lacy Bead Owls ,seam treatments with more beads

Phases- Goldwork in couched Silver passing thread and couched braided silver flat cord, Glass Bead Pineapple,
Stumpwork Swan and lily pad

All seeing Eye made with Beads, Fairy in satin stitch with goldwork wings,

Satin stitch mouse climbing down a branch

Satin stitch cat, split stitch fox, Yellow SRE flowers and a woven wing butterfly.

 

Goldwork on damask

 I have embarked on this goldwork adventure

the way I embark on most of my adventures

by doing the research, buying a bunch of books,

These are two of my favorites

 

watching a bunch of videos and pictures, 

inhaling the the knowledge within, 

And then trying out the techniques, 

through small projects and kits 

that is to say 

enthusiastically jumping in with both feet

SO far, so good

Gerry's Block

It was past time for my own project

So I took an old Embroidery Idea I used for the 

False gold Round Robin with Crazy Quilting International

In which we used all the cheep left over christmas ribbon, 

gold lame and what-not we could find. 

This was the block I did for Gerry Kruger,^  somewhere around 2012

re translated that block for this project and

Working from the goldwork masterclass book

Using actual tools and techniques this time

I am coming up with much better results

outlined in gold passing thread the pomegranate and leaf 

looks much better It's such a tiny detail but it adds so much

Mr.Snail got his Shell using 1 strand of  a 3 strand 

silk wool, I don't know which brand 

this is a remnant that has been kicking around 

for a decade or more.

I needle wove it separately with a simple stumpwork Detached Buttonhole  stitch

Then tacked it down around the batting shape and stuffed it a little more

of frogs and felt

This is a felt form for goldwork

can you guess what it will be?

Well yeah, just testing.

So this will be my first fore into my own design based on Clara Worschauer' s cleaver tiny frogs, which I ordered the kit for but was too impatient to wait to get, so I started my own.

This is BTW the way most of my adventures start.

I see something I really like, draw a sketch of it for later, then it morphs from there, whether I understand the technique or not I just wade right in and go for it!

Which is why The finished project, 

if it is ever finished,

Is usually lumpy, misshapen, some odd color

Because I didn't like the ones available,

Bigger or smaller than the original,

And generally serves as my mock up.

So anyway I learn as I go.

No instructions    No pattern

Just have an Idea aaaand .....GO!

Sometimes it works out

This might be one of those times where

It's a process

I mean he does't look thA bad so far, right?

 

A covered Tape measure

Or how to make a cheep plastic tape measure look awesome!

 I started with a robins egg blue Shirred silk

and embroidered about 2 dozen french knotted circles 

Whew!

 It was part of my travelling project, whilst my DDH drove us all around the Midwest and Canada this summer,

 I needed something to keep my hands busy till It was my turn to drive.

WHAT? You only see 7 here!

Yep, those are the best looking ones  

the rest will show up on something else at some point

I cut a circle +2" all the way around and tacked them down to a piece of muslin for a little more stability and strength in the latter stages

When I was done I sewed around the outside edge with a very loose straight stitch and pulled the ends, smoothing it out, until I got two circles about the right size and Iron it around the edges.

I used a piece of ribbon about the right width tho go around the whole thing and sewed that to both sides, don't forget to turn your Edges and leave openings for the tape and the chain (unless your's doesn't have one) I finished it off by covering the tacky plastic pull for the tape

And Bob's your Uncle!

Skelly #2 done!

Once done with all that beading I needed to decide how to mount the piece on a backing, 

so after staring at it for a day or two, decided on an oval. 

Cardboard boxes are endlessly accommodating!

I also decided to add some quick embroidery to the seams

The CQ around the edges looked really empty.

So I slapped on some simple seams in plain black size 8 DMC just enough to be there but not enough to distract from the rest

With all the busy, busy of about a bazillion black charlotte's  and all the flowers, how could you tell? 

Idunno, I just could.

I also needed to place the sre flowers and beads

I had fun with this part

All of the silk ribbon flowers are put on individually  

each one is made on single 1" bits of  light non-woven interfacing (NWI) 

I do this by placing a lager piece of NWI in a small hoop, tacking down a 1" square and sewing the individual silk ribbon flower to that 

This makes it easier for me to handle than each individual 1"sq piece free hand

You can then cut them out of the hoop and cut away or fold  the edges under and sew them down more precisely.

Here are both my Skellies together for the first time!

I will probably have this one framed eventually also

But I think she came out well.

Merry Christmas Everyone!

 

Skelly #2 more progress

Almost There

 

I'm Theeisss close!

It might look like progress!

          

Start the music!

You know the one I mean,

the one that starts with the brass section and the drums

At 4 or so beads at a time this is going to take a while

So I'm allowed to have a sense of humor about it

Anyway I had an epiphany of sorts, while in mega circular hell

That if I didn't want to work on this thing 

because sewing one large concentric circle 

is boring as fuck. 

Not only is it boring to work on

It's boring to look at

 So................You know

Maybe, don't do that?

So here I am not doing that

Because what could be less boring than one LARGE concentric circle?

A zillion smaller ones!

Ok so maybe not a Zillion

There are like 30, 

Yes I counted. 

I'm already counting beads 4 at a time, so why not?

I'ts not going to make me any crazier..................Right?

And what do you know!

Not boring any more!

Skelly 2

When You start a project with no clear idea of what you are going to do with it 

You tend to go back to it and wonder "What was I thinking?"

I started Skellie 2 over a year ago and got the sudden urge to work on it again.

So I set up a frame, found the parts, discovered I need more beads for it, Again.

Really looked at it 

aaand ripped a bunch of it out.

I decided to put in an actual zipper with teeth so accommodations must be made.

So now I have a plan.........

A plannie plan, to plan, a plan, planingly....

OK

I've got nothing

But I'm making progress!

A new Skellie

I started another Skellie last year

If you thought couching was dull,

Wait till you try stumpwork!

For those who don't know

Stumpwork is the fine art of wrapping floss around a base.

The base in question here is differing thicknesses of thread

I have a plan

Beads are now involved

And I chose a size 11 faceted seed beads

because I'm insane

This is going to take a vEry long time