A Short Video of some Motifs/Techniques Learned in the Free Courses!
This is a little late in posting...but I wanted to publicly thank my dear friend, Eileene, from Arkansas for a nice little surprise received in the mail last week.
Some lovely fabrics,
silk "fixative" and alligator clips to be my "extra hands" for holding threads when making cords for tassels. Even the little tobacco boxes that held all these goodies will be used in craft projects with Aidan.Thank you again Eileene...you are always a surprise! Sending big hugs girlfriend!!Stay cool! 
Working on a little ornament...here's the progress so far.
To start, here's the general layout. Only the letter and the flower stems are put on my tracing paper.
Then a reverse image of just the letter is traced on to paper-backed fusible web...I use Heat'n'Bond brand. This is ironed to felt, and then cut out.
The felt letter is then ironed to my piece of background fabric.
I'll be using regular DMC 6-strand floss in colors #3346, #783, and #1100.
The felt initial is a base, to be covered with satin stitch embroidery. I like to stitch some parallel lines of stitch to "try" to keep my satin stitch all going in the same direction. I never succeed at this to my liking...but I just keep trying to perfect my work by practice.
After the letter is stitched, I cover it with my tissue pattern....just using some pins to hold it in place.
Then, I stitch the stem. I was going to stitch the leaves too, but decided to just free-hand those instead.The tissue paper is torn away, and the little "bits" remaining are removed using some blunt tip tweezers...held parallel with the fabric. I also use a straight pin to "wrinkle up" pieces that are stubborn and don't want to come out from under my stitches...this makes them easily removed with the tweezers or a piece of sticky back tape.
Lastly, I add some French knots with the red DMC...and some detached chain stitches with a little red 4mm silk ribbon.Next will be to create the back of the ornament and assemble it. I'll be back with that when it is accomplished.
I've had Lorrie's block at my house for over a month. It is a bit larger than normal, but I like large blocks...so I'm okay with that. She asked for several things...and the hardest was to use some provided fabric to create 3-D butterflies out of. Since I was the last in the robin...and the other ladies smartly opted out of this request...it was up to me to give it a try.
Lorrie, I did my best...but feel free to redo every one of them if you like. It was not my "cup of tea"; even so, they do seem to be happy on the block.
I added a couple of seams...a featherstitch to echo the same style that Cathy L. put down...
and my favorite fan stitch.Mostly, I added several florals in hand dyed lace to bring tons of texture and color to the block.Then, butterflies by the bucketful...and crystals/beads for some magic.
Last was a tiny spider and her web...
Have you ever tried to stitch a perfect little sun...with rays? I know that I have, and it's hard to draw a pattern with all those rays aligning perfectly. Well, here you go!And, as an oval...this little design makes a really cute frame!
Okay...those of you that are "wizards" at Photoshop will think this is lame...but, I just got my software last month...and am having a real time trying to use it. Apparently, Adobe doesn't see the need to provide text books of "instructions" any longer (or at least not when you get the software via the Creative Cloud subscription route)....so I'm just muddling through.BUT, a blogging friend put me on to a site for instruction...that is having a free five day class on Photoshop this week! If you do Photoshop...go check out Jessica Sprague's site!Here is my Lesson One results...took Aidan's photo (above) and manipulated it several ways. Here is the result...cool right?!
But, that's only lesson one...Check out my Lesson Two endeavor! I did not make the background...that's another class...but I did manage to get the photo and some words on the page!
AND, this is the same site that I found the little class on Illustrator that helped me to figure out how to create multiple petal flowers...easily! And, that class cost me less than $3...yes, three dollars!So, seriously...go check out the site if you want to do more with Photoshop or Illustrator. Cause, if they can teach me...they can teach anyone! The only down side to this...I think that I have a new hobby! Geez!Oh! And talking about scrapbooking...if you are into digital scrapbooking...she is also celebrating her 5th Year Birthday with a blog hop...where you get FREE scrapbooking kits at each stop! Seriously!...go check out all the birthday goodie details for even more fun too!
Here's another little spiral flower for you. Save, print and stitch.Easily re-sized when you print...just reduce the print % or copy/reduce if your printer allows. I'm having fun in Illustrator creating these...so there will be more to follow I'm sure.Hugs!
Literally and Figuratively! Went to a new doctor today...and am having some "old" tests re-done.Of course, labs were today...so I'm pooped out after "donating" four vials.Tomorrow...eye exam.Thursday...mammogram.Tuesday...Consult for sleep apnea study.July...OBGYN (super yuck).Some time this summer...the actual SA Test...No major things...just a real disruption to my routine.But, necessary.Hugs to all!I might not be getting a lot accomplished but I'll be moving forward...and thinking about that CPAP machine...perhaps it will "work" this time around? Do you have one? Has it helped? My first sleep study was over 15 years ago...and the night I slept with the machine...I woke up feeling just horrible. I told the doctor that every joint in my body hurt that next morning...and there was no way I would be using that machine.Well, I'm sure things have changed. And wondering if the darn thing had a bad filter on it? Is that possible? You see, I have allergies...a special pine tree and a shrub are both moderate level allergies...but, I have High and Extreme allergies to roach poop (yes, they must poop)...and common house dust! Seriously!Just shoot me now! I hate to dust!I am in a constant state of drainage...and when it gets out of control, my GERD acts up and my SA acts up...and that kicks in my CFS so I'm extremely tired a lot when my sinus is stirred up.Really, it's a monumental task for me to get anything done on those days.And, if I weren't so "ornery" as Eileene might tell you...Ha!...I probably would not get out of bed! I just won't give in or give up! Anyway...a question for all of you other sleep apnea folks.Do you have a CPAP? Do you use it? Has it helped?Seriously, I'd love to hear about your story.Email me if you don't want to post a comment.My address is in my profile.Hugs!
Here's another little embroidery design for you. Just print the image and size as you need.I'm playing around with Illustrator as you can tell!Enjoy.
Finished up a little six inch block for Lynn, over on the HGTV Message Board. Here are the close up photos.
This is one is a set of six that the group is doing. The other block included already in the set as finished has lot's of beads...and I have tried to follow that lead here too. Of course, I had not problem with that...since I love beads!
and isn't it just wonderful! Just gorgeous!Thanks go to the talented stitchers in the round robin...not to me.Huge thanks to Lorrie R., Lyn G., Meg W., and Cathy L.These ladies really did a super job with this block.Want to see some close up photos?Of course you do!
Isn't this a gorgeous pillow!Sheila...a dear "follower" was kind enough to send me this photo and let me post it. THANKS! This pillow will be a gift to her sister.It is very nice to see when someone finishes a project with one of my free designs.You may remember that the entire alphabet of free "Wednesday Wine Country" monograms was posted last year.Great to see them being put to good use!
You know that it can only last as long as it takes for all the plastic parts to melt!Oh, I surely hope to have to "eat those words"...and that the Emerson folks prove me wrong!Today, after two days of back-breaking work...seriously...I made a trek to WalMart with my SIL...to get a new television for the sewing room. It is 22" size...cute little thing...about 2 inches thick...on a little plastic stand...and still cost a whopping $160 before taxes! I know, it's "unseemly" to talk about money...but really...for less than 5 lbs of plastic?The one good thing about it is that it has a connector for a computer...so I can use it as a monitor too. And since I need one of those for the desktop computer...perhaps it will do "double" duty.After another trip to town tomorrow...for the right cable at Radio Shack of course! Sure hope the extra load of being a television and a monitor doesn't cause it to melt faster!Oh, the back breaking work part was re-shuffling all of the "stuff" in the craft room, the sewing room, and the bedroom (half of this little house!) to make room for a double-recliner (think loveseat on steroids) in the craft room.Only, it now is not a craft room...cause it was only about 8 x 10 feet in size to start with...and the addition of the new furniture and moving my largest television in there (with a reading lamp for stitching of course, and side table) sucked up all the space. The only evidence left of crafts is my design wall, a long 8 ft table on one side (with sheet covering the legs...so don't look underneath)...and a family of plastic drawers holding tons of stash!The television came from the sewing room...so a replacement was needed. Took me three days to push, pull, nudge, tug, and shove...and hours more time to organize, vacuum, dust, etc as I went...just to end up with a "space" in the sewing room that needed a new television.I'm so sore, tired, and "kinked up"...that I could not sleep last night. Seriously, not a single minute...so got up finally around 3 a.m.after rolling over and over in bed like an alligator had me at the bottom of the swamp marinating for his dinner! Aidan was asleep, and I was too tired to stitch...so read instead. Hope, that I get some sleep tonight!Thanks for hanging in there with me these past couple of weeks...I know that I have not posted much. But, just have too many "other" things going in the family right now.I'm too tired to cook! And, almost too tired to eat...yeah, I said ALMOST! Got some deli meats and cheeses today...so that Aidan doesn't starve before I get my energy back. Or, some energy...think, I'll go drag the Geritol bottle out and take a swig...wonder if that will keep me up tonight?Well, we'll see.... BTW...received my Midnight Fantasy Garden block back in this afternoon's mail...and the ladies did a spectacular job with it. I just adore it...and will try to get a photo tomorrow to share.
