Bias Strip Sheer Scarf....Using Solvy

Finally I can post this cool bias strip, sheer fabric scarf I made for the current round in the Homemade Holiday Swap I am participating in this year on HGTV Message board. July 4th/Summer was the assignment and since I didn't want to work with red, white and blue I made a Summer gift! I used the instructions from Threads magazine's site.It is approximately 5" X 80".  I knew when I got Linda's name I could make this for her and she would actually wear it! Fun.

Here is my wonderful gift! Sheri made this wallhanging/lap quilt. She put an incredible amount of work into this and I am grateful. I have been very lucky in this exchange so far!

Martha, me, Tracy, Elaine, Sharon, Marilee and Melanie all gathered at Mt. Pleasant Quilt Shop Saturday to make One Block Wonders! Martha graciously agreed to show us the in's & out's. We learned the trick is in the lining up and pinning the 6 layers of fabric. Once the cutting is done the magic begins! I love mine! No pics of it yet since it isn't pinned up, but I was driven by the outcome of each set of triangles...wanting to see the design pattern created with each one. In the pic we were getting silly, but if you look closely we are all demoing a couple of our blocks.

Here are a few of Tracy's blocks quickly pinned up. She used a Kaffe Fassett fabric. Awesome!

This is Martha's using a Jane Sassaman fabric. Lively!

 

This is the entrance to the quilt shop. Gorgeous gardens.

Busy week and weekend. Ian & Darcy were here enjoying the "country". They love it here. We dined at Cory's parents house Sunday night where they coerced me to the trampoline! My older, thicker body does not handle the exuberant bouncing like it did at 15!

Apparently I was running a child labor camp! Ian mowed and Darcy hosed the whirlybirds off the driveway! I already got a text from Darcy last night asking if they can come back next weekend.

This Saturday I have an all day Fabric Painting workshop through my guild. Promises to be another great learning experience!

I have learned:

1. I love many of the backgrounds for blogs on this Shabby blogs.com and am thinking of beautifying mine. I don't know how though so I may be thinking on it for a while! I like the poet & painter but I see they add to the selection.
2. Chester, my favorite old cat, has an over active thyroid causing his weight loss and ravenous appetite. I will give him a pill once a day and all better.
3. So You Think You Can Dance started last Thursday! Love that show.
4. I wish I had the pic that my son, Michael, took Saturday....of a very large snake coiled in the sun next to the deck while her baby was stretched out on the step. They have been here for years. Somehow it doesn't bother me. Now I know what Fiona is fixated on at the basement window! 
5. Great episodes this season on Law & Order SVU and Criminal Intent. 
6. Darcy downloaded the theme song from NCIS as my ringtone, from PhoneZoo.com....for free. Cool!
7. Dean (my greyhound) is a killer. Yep, a murderer. Walk on leash. Tug away briskly. I follow. Rabbit pinned. Gaping wound presumably caused by large paw. Pry Dean off poor defensless rabbit. Cry while delivering diatribe on murder to my once docile dog. Men ata-boy'ed him. Ugh.

Book RR Pages Finished

NURTURE page for Denise's book in the RR I am part of. The birds are the "peel" or "skin" I made with Gel Medium and a black & white photocopy. Layers of the gel are brushed on the image, letting each one dry between applications. I waited 3 days (to be sure all the layers were completely dry) then used water and a cloth to rub the paper off....fun!
I used the gel medium to adhere the peel to the fabric. The "nurture" definition is from an old dictionary...I put a few layers of gel over that too...made it more "cloth-y".

NEST/NESTLE is page 1. Denise's theme is nature inspired. Nest & nurture reference the mother in each of the participants.....and all mothers for that matter!
I loved working on these pages. A little mix of many things....thread painting, hand stitching, image transfer and coffee staining gauze (medical bandage from a CPR class!).

Handyman has been busy this week! Kitchen ceiling covered in wood, new halogen lights up, bathroom floor has nostalgic 1" hexagon tiles waiting for grout. Light gray. My studio is ready for MY hard work now. I need to sand the drywalled seam, prime walls and paint. Area rugs need cleaning....then all my cool stuff can be gathered round! The pleasure I get from improving my abode is priceless.

My son had asked me 1 1/2 yrs ago (really? ugh) to make him a quilt from all his football jersey's from age 7 to now, age 21. I prepped them months ago. This morning I got them out and put the puzzle together. I got his approval on the less than traditional assembly! I love how it is looking, so is he, which is all that matters.

I still have to add St John Fisher College football shirts. Not sure if it will need a border, but if I decide it does, I want it to be striped and mitered. The overall effect is so graphic. Cool.

I need to...

1. Finish edges on ?teen pieces for my little art quilt groups show in July/August. Be sure it will be artist's choice on what constitutes finished!
2. Fill out application for possible participant in GVQC's Project Iron Quilter at their quilt show at R.I.T. next June. 15-20 people will be chosen to make a quilt in 3 hours while attendees watch. I have chosen the 3 pieces that are representative of me to be included in the application. (photos only).
3. Prototype a fabric flowers/feathers/rhinestones bouquet for Melissa's wedding. So glad she is on board with unique!
4. Paint, paint & paint....
5. Gift for next Homemade Holiday. Don't know who I have yet. Not sure what next holiday is either. I have time.
6. Thread painting class lessons from Shirley on learningfa.yahoo group. I have some catching up to do.

I am sure there are more obligations that elude me right now!

I have learned:

1. Love the pools of light halogen light fixtures shed. Kitchen ambiance much improved.
2. N.C.I.S. theme song available as a ringtone. I want it.
3. Allentown Art Festival in 3 weeks!

Spring ATC's

"Hydrangeas" is what I call this little Spring themed ATC for the HEN swap. I mailed it to Lynn in MN Tuesday. I loved working on this! I used recycled wool (skirt from Sally Ann's for 1.99) that I dyed with DynaFlow dye. It is a gorgeous shade of blue. The flower heads were stitched on fabric with variegated crochet thread, which must be a size but I don't know what it is! I used silk ribbon to make the leaves on the base, then trimmed the french knot hydrangeas and stiiched onto the base over the ribbon. Two dragonfly buttons finish the scene.

This is the adorable ATC I got today from Lynn! I love it! It is cross-stitched and little sequins and beads finish it off. Love love love this! Thank you Lynn! It celebrates spring.

Weekend is almost here. It has been a long week. Busy days. One more busy day.

Quilt guild on Saturday. Always a good time. We will learn a few secrets that quilt show judges look for when we welcome Linda Hunter. then I plan to stay and sew with some friends after. That sleeve on our raffle quilt won't sew itself! Which reminds me, if anyone is interested in tickets, they are $1 each. Let me know if you are interested!

Denise's Book RR pages are just waiting for me to finish them. I will be setting aside time for them soon. I need to do my "nurture" side.
I am watching Fiona chase her tail and am finding it very entertaining~!

I have learned:

1. My contractor is back! My antiquated old house presented problems when he installed my light in my studio yesterday......but now I have light!
2. Kitchen ceiling will be covered with tongue and groove wood tomorrow, covering the water damage from the roof leak. Yay! 
3. American Idol.....Lee. My choice.
4. We have a new boss...bigger than the boss that thinks he is the "boss". Hoping goodness prevails. 
5. Shutter Island. The book. Starting tonight.
6. President Obama was in Buffalo today. Duff's for chicken wings.

Mother's Day 1988

When Melissa was moving out she came across this picture of me and her (and Michael in gestation!) on Mother's Day 1988. She was 5 1/2 years old. I was 27. Time does pass quickly. I am a mother first, before all other things. Life twists & turns. My love for them never changes. It is constant, 24/7/365 and the occasional 366!  Happy Mother's Day to me and you! (a day late since my cable/internet was compromised by the 60 MPH wind storm this past weekend.)

I spent a few hours stitching my gift for the Homemade Holiday Swap on HGTV. This one is Summer/4th of July, either theme. I chose summer since it is so vast. I didn't want to work with red, white & blue. I have Linda this round. I have met her at 2 retreats and she looks sweet and demure, but, whoa, she is funny and quirky! I can't show what I made yet (after June 1st I can post a pic) but can tell you I tried something new...it was fun and I love how it turned out! I am confident she will appreciate it.

I also worked on an ATC for the HEN swap. I did take a picture but it is blurry so I will have to get a better one. It is hyrangeas made with french knots. I must mail it tomorrow.

The contractor is still MIA. I am very disappointed. It takes me so long to mull things over (sometimes years!) before I act. I finally found a handyman ad, called and got the quote and hired him......now I will have to start over.

I have learned:

1. I special ordered the ONE cat food Fiona will eat. Whiskas Choice Cuts with Tuna in Sauce. Picked it up, got it home, open up the box and it is Beef in Gravy. uh oh. I have to give it to her since that's all there is. The little vixen ate it! 
2. Just Breathe. Pearl Jam.

My "Loser" CQ Purse!

My entry in CQI's annual CQ purse contest! I  LOVE it and will use it for sure. After signing up to participate in this contest,  I realized I really didn't have enough time (working takes up entirely too much time in my creative process!) to do anything intricate so on to plan B. I removed all the silks from one of those treasured sampler books from my friend Ann's niece, Pinky, and designed a CQ done-my-way purse. I stitched all the squares & rectangles to a foundation first with a centerpiece area. My dilemma was how to get the stamp image (heart & wings were separate clear acrylic unmounted stamps I got in a set at Michaels, don't recall the maker) onto the fabric without using any visible marking utensil.

So I stamped it onto tracing paper, pinned to fabric and machine stitched, in matching thread for invisibility, all lines so I had the entire heart and wing design "transferred" and ready for my machine thread painting. I know, not very traditional, but oh-so-me!

The back side was another opportunity for free motion pebbling, one of my favorite things to do on my machine.


And a peek at the inside! A beautiful shade of blue recycled from a $2 silk blouse from Sally Ann's! Notice the velvet ribbon binding around the top edge....love that idea! Already did it again on "Kyra" in my previous post.
Well it came as no surprise I didn't fare well in the competition! The top 3 winners were spectacular and time consuming extravaganza's!(I know 2 of the 3 have no 40 hour diversions to contend with any longer.....yes, I am envious!) Apparently they aren't on the QI website yet so I will post that link when they are. They need to be seen. Awesome, talented woman and they are CQ Queens worthy of our adoration!

My friend Nicki won 3rd place. Her Mermaid bag is adorable and I know how many hours she put into it. I just checked her blog and she has posted lots of close-up pics. Do have a look!

Kathy's was voted 1st place. A very intricate depiction o "The  Queen's Garden". It is also posted on her blog.  Take a look at her bag and you will see she is having a give away to celebrate opening her online shop.

I am hand stitching hydrangea's with french knots for an ATC swap I am doing on HEN Embroidery Network A Spring theme.We will see how it turns out by Sunday since I must mail it on Monday!

I have my plan for finishing up Denise's books pages. Just need a block of time to get in the mode. Hoping for Saturday. This is undeniably my favorite collaborative project, ever.

My guild friend Vinny has invited me to view her sewing/craft room tonight! Her house is also a 1 1/2 story and I can get some idea's for my dream space......

Which brings me to my contractor conundrum. I haven't heard from him for 2 weeks. I did say I was flexible on time since he seems to have overbooked himself. BUT I am so anxious. I want my studio. I want it bad. Ugh. "Patience is a virtue" as Aunt Molly used to say. Patience is over rated. But instilled in these Irish bones!
I will give it a few more days.

I have learned:

1. My 27 year old daughter, Melissa, has officially finished grad school!!! She has her Masters in Special Ed. I am VERY proud of her accomplishment. It is a big deal. First in both my family and her fathers family.Good hard work.
2. My 21 year old son, Michael, has officially finished his junior year of college with a 3.75 GPA. Good hard work.
3. Our brains are 80% water.
4. I won a blog give away of RED embellishments from Vivika DeNegre. Check out her blog. She does wonderful work. Thanks!

"Kyra" Quiltlet & Image Transfer Peel

Meet Kyra, Michaels girlfriend, Karyssa's dog! I took this picture of her last summer when I visited Karyssa'a beautiful home in Vermontville, NY....in the Adirondack's. We had a really great weekend with her parent's Paula & Dale. Kyra is a most interesting animal. Such a personality. I wanted to take this image and capture it for Karyssa to have in her dorm room at school. After printing it onto fabric I hand stitched some bits around her face and frame....some line quilting (love the lines), free motiong XOXOXOXO's. The blue fabric squares and the little red heart are silk scraps.
I used velvet ribbon to bind it but now came the what-the-heck part.....I used acrylic felt on the back which stretched so that my piece was concave (or convex). Not good, will not hang or lay flat....it did make Kira look like she was reaching out for you! Cool, but not right, so I remembered this frame I bought at Ollie's a while back~Yes, that's it! I used Tacky glue and now she lays flat! I love how it turned out!

This is my image transfer peel! Can you see that it is transparent? This is the image I printed Sunday of two chickadees. I used the Golden Gel Matte Medium (a jar of gluey-ness) and painted 5 layers of it waiting for each layer to dry in between. I couldn't wait another day for it to cure so came home from work and picked it up.....to the sink, with trash can to catch all the papery residue that rubs off the transfer. Minutes later I was left with a really cool "peel"! My image is now on the medium. I am going to use this in Denise's book. It will be my right page....my "nurture" page. (left page is the "nest" page) It will represent my 2 offspring, the ones that I have nurtured for 27 & 21 years! Coming together.

My self portrait ATC that I am swapping with Tammy. The fish are from a stamp on a postcard. I am a Pisces. I am not all zodiac but the fish were great so I saved them and found a use! I cut Irish from an old dictionary since my moniker on the HGTV MB is Irish and yes I am Irish. The pic is weird but it is a self portrait. I used red silks from a home dec sampler book a good friend gave me. I have gotten much mileage out of that book! Thanks Ann!




I have learned:

1. I just read a comment that resonated with me.... babies are born, but on that day a mother is also "born". So obviously true.
2. Cliffy misses Melissa. 

Weekend of Quilt Shows

Amherst Quilt show Friday with Tracy & Rushville Quilt show yesterday with Melanie, her mom and Aunt Nancy & Uncle Richard, our driver! Very good shows. Click here to see some pictures. The album cover quilt was done by a 19 yr old who also dyed her own fabrics.

Hunted down Ina Randall at the Amherst show to book her for a program at my guild. A few of us were noting how interesting her pieces were and that she does in fact do trunk shows! Here is one of my favorites.

 I love how she used her background to build this under the sea piece. Her seaweeds were great (but my close-ups were blurry..ugh). I love the one on the left...it appears Ina used sheer fabric and thread painted circles on it. I hope to find out how she did it when we see her (hopefully in August!).

I did manage to do a little creating today but nothing is finished (seems I always have troubles with that part....bet that says something about me!). I made an ATC for Tammy. A self portrait. She wasn't able to participate in the swap on the HGTV message board in the fall. I like the card itself but am not a fan of seeing my face on it. I could still change it to only represent me figuratively, am thinking....

I also printed a pic of Karyssa's dog Kira. I am working on a little quiltlet (it's not a PC, not an ATC, not a mini...so what else can you call a small quilty thing?). There's a little hand stitching, machine quilting, free motion quilting and a slide frame! As soon as it is near-finished I will post.

I experimented a little with image transfer onto fabric. I took a copy I printed of little chickadee's and used Gel Medium to adhere that image to fabric. Well...first I put the medium on the linen and burnished the image but it left a layer of medium on the fabric. Don't think that will come off, its like glue. SO then I put medium on the image and burnished to the fabric. This allowed more control as to where the gel residue was. There is still gel all around image. Maybe when it dries I can rub it off? Not sure. NOW I am making a "peel" out of the gel and image...multiple layers of gel and a long drying time should yield a skin of an image on the rubbery-like dry medium.  We'll see. I'll figure it out.

I have learned:

1. SpecialK has a new 90 calorie bar, to me anyway. It is pretzel & chocolate and yummy.
2. Black, ivory with pale pink accents for Melissa's wedding. Like.
3. I think Clifford is mauling me right now...he is a cat that knows what he wants, when he wants it and stops for no woman!
4. I really want an embellishing machine. Badly. 
5. I NEED to learn how to get this extra large print off my laptop. What did I do? How do I change it? I know Jody will have the answer.