Poetry RR in the garden

 I love my yard!

Have I mentioned that before?

looking out from my favorite places to stitch I get this lovely view of my tree

( ignore the pile of old picknick table, I must put that away.)

the front porch.

 my SO gave me this wonderful wind chime for my Birthday this year, it resonated and sings so prettily in the slightest breeze.
 it sounds like a Nerada track.

 and then there are my Veggi boxes across the yard,

full of tomatoes, squash, carrots, pickles, radishes, lettuce, cabbage, broccoli, kale, sweet peas and corn.

I am also trying out brusselsprouts and artichokes this year.

I'm hoping to have enough of a harvest in some of this stuff to trade for fresh eggs,


as the new next door neighbors have chickens.

It's been raining so much the last few months that all 6 of my rain barrels are so full they fountain! I have to run around and make sure they all have open valves and spouts leading away so they don't flood and undermine the foundation of the barrels.


In this nirvana I have finished Janet's block for the poetry and verses RR in CQI.

She chose a children's book version of a Robert Frost Poem, the pictures of which are wonderfully charming!
As I was the last lady on this piece, I had 2 blocks to choose from.
I chose the cover page because it had the best convergence of fabrics for the idea I had.

I took elements from one of the other ladies blocks, the seam treatments in the upper left corner and top seam and then used several of the illustrations from the book for inspiration.

I hope she likes it!

I know I had fun, with the birds especially, I think I may place more critters in my blocks in future.

two new boxes in the shop

I have put two new boxes in the shop , now didn't these turn out nice?

i'm rather pleased with these two boxes,


 I layered some lace motifs at the bottom of the "birds of a feather box"


the diamond seam treatment turned out nice, the blue beads down the center show off that seem very nicely


 the embroidery on the birds is pleasing it's a pattern I've used before with various degrees of success

 I'm glad it turned out so well here




"the music lesson" turned out well too I was hoping the silkie would show better but no matter where I take a picture of it theres a glare and the picture is washed out, poo!

I wish too that the clock would have been a little more centered  but sometimes placement is tricky when your putting the final touches on.

and in order for the rest of the block to be shown well without cutting off anything vital the clock face got a little smooshed, also Poo!
I could just use the top as a template but where would the fun be in that?
besides I like the look of the embroidery wrapping around the edges and going around corners.

the land of Fairie

I must say i'm rather pleased with this block!

All the elements turned out to be just right. Not too heavy, even though I used a lot of big motifs.

Thats the challenge, though, isn't it?

As your technique evolves, to challenge yourself to use colors and elements that you normally would never put side-by-side.

to pick something so glaringly off and make it work within the confines of your block.

I try to do this with ever new project, challenge myself with color, technique or style.
I find it helps me with design choices and makes me a better artist over all.

 

"It's A Saturday Sharing Day"

  "It's A Saturday Sharing Day" at Pig Tales and Quilts"

and I get to share what I have been working on lately

I started this round of 3 fairies, done in purples and greens, master viola comes first,



 pretty heiliotrope,

 and lovely elderberry.








then there's Skellie, I've worked on her a little more she still needs one last arm, the background.
  the strings will come last

also waiting for my DD#2's plane to land she will be visiting for 2 whole months and I can't wait to see her!

Heritage CQ - Hungary

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  My grandfather was born in Austria in 1893 when it was still the Ausro-hungarian empire and raised on a farm, he ran away from home when he was 8 and eventually went to work in Vienna as an apprentice to an instrument maker.

depictions of peter and the dragon are everywhere

In 1912 he came to America and moved to Chicago. He became apprenticed to a painter, where he painted the stations of the cross in st.clements church.

I remember him as an old man, partially deaf, heavily accented, gruff, with a twinkle in his eye.
You never quite knew if he was joking or berating you. he taught me how to play chess and encouraged me to use more colors when I drew or painted.
He told me once "there are rule's, and they must be broken but you can't do it all at once, a little at a time or there is chaos."

It seemed silly at the time but I have gone back to those words time and time again.

This is the piece that was in the "crazy quilt are quilts too" contest over at Thearica Burrows blog "Pigtales and Quilts" so I had to wait until it was over to show off!

I chose this picture because she looks very much like me at an earlier age.

There are more of the flowers that the Baltic people like to depict in their artwork and embroidery here too.

skeletons are also depicted everywhere

there is one block left in the series.
Hopefully I will be done with that one soon.







It will be about Chicago the city I grew up in and some of the landmarks there that mean something to me

Heritage CQ - Ireland

the Irish are a maddening people contradictory 
 very into horses
Very musical and very religious

also superstitious and imaginative other wise we wouldn't have faeries and leprechauns in the same breath as st.Bridged and angels
 my g'ma on my Fathers side was 1/2 irish she was a tiny woman who raised 5 chldren 4 of them boys.
 I remember she would dress me up in "shirly temple cloths" and curl my hair in the portable blow drier.
she couldn't understand why I would prefer to read when there was a "perfectly good" TV on most of the time.

well with the itchy plastic hood and the dryer blowing hot air through it, it sounded like a jet engine landing on my head I couldn't hear the TV and books were more interesting to me, than whatever was on the toob.

She took me to church whenever I was in Lacrosse and tried to see to my religious "education" I liked playing dress up with Grandma but religion didn't stick.

Heritage CQ - Scotland

castle ruins

 I never knew a whole lot a bout Scotland before researching it for this block and
boy what a hard scrabble horrible life it must have been

fought over and persecuted like a dog toy by just about everyone it seems

warrior men

thistle and the lion

and they are still fighting (albeit legally now) for their independence

they are a hearty lot

go here to learn why
the blue ribbon 

not much more to tell, though the history is interesting, bloody and convoluted thanks to the French and the English who have fought over the general region since they could cross the channel

the scots are a simple people who like things to be simple so I didn't muck about to much with embellishments on this one

Heritage CQ - Norway

 I thought I would show you one of the was I transfer images onto my blocks.


first I trace what I want onto dress makers paper.
I use leftovers from patterns I have used in the past. I outline the motif first then I start to embroider over it.

I am doing this motif in beaux stitch to make it look "Vikingy"
I'm going to weave ribbons to make the wing but before I do that I pad it with a little felt

reindeer

and then the tail

 this method works well for most motifs and the paper rips and pulls out easily
Isn't she a cutie!

I added the pine boughs and now I'm looking at it
maybe I should have added more?



this seems to be a ubiquitous motif in norway, finland and sweden. the bundled greenery with red ribbon

 I did some very good seamwork on this block

and the antique buttons are from my g'ma's button box


 they remind me of the shields the vikings would put on the sides of their ships


I know you all have been asking what the significance of all these nationalities are, they are all me. this is where my family have come from.

as I have researched my heritage over the years I learn more of where my family has come from and they are all a part of who I am.

some of it has been a bit like learning I had great-great grandparents in the civil war on both sides (i did, on dad's side) and how so you reconcile that??

Or finding out your great-Aunts sang Opera (don't know which one) for the archduke of Austria, Franz Ferdinand in Vienna before he was shot in 1914 (mom's side)

as you can see it's a mixed bag. and not being this or that has been confusing
but useful.

.