The end is in sight!

First I would like to say thank you for all the lovely comments you leave here. I really appreciate you calling in and looking at my work.
I find it so interesting to see that many times you prefer the things I think I have got wrong ;0)
So thank you again and I hope you keep calling. It is like having you round for coffee!

Well we get the last of Lenna's lessons today and will learn different ways to make our mini quilts into a book.

These are my last two quilts for this book.
With all the lovely sunshine we have had this week they have a decidedly sunny and beachy feel.



The pattern on the first mini quilt looked so like a row of beach huts I just had to sit my lady outside them sunning herself.
The other lady is sat with her feet in the sea happy with her fishing day.

The top image is a gel transfer to fabric and the second image is printed on cotton.
I have learnt so much in this Mini Quilts class.

Nearly finished!

I struggled with these first two quilts. I'm happier now they are finished but they are not my favourites.

It may have been the fabric I chose to use. In fact I'm sure it was. It is a great piece but really stands alone, I didn't make it better ;0(
But I did learn to do a rolled edge and that was the aim of the lesson.

So long since I did blanket stitch. It was a good exercise and made me realise I should do a little more hand stitching.
Not always easy with these silly hands but a little more would be good.






















I liked this third quilt I want to show you.
I said liked!
Fred (the dog) liked it too.
Actually it was the leather he liked. He thought it tasted very good!
He did look so pathetic when he realised what he had done though.
Funnily enough the quilt was not damaged, neither was the image. He had very carefully pulled off the leather then the image from that.
I have been able to put the image onto another piece of leather but the gems remain missing and Fred and I know it isn't quite the same!

A couple more quilts.

Here are a couple more mini quilts.

I painted the background fabric for these quilts. They are stamped using a stamp I made for my Creative Journey.

The first one has a veil of turquoise chiffon that covers it to over half way.
The second has a silk hydrangea flower as an accent.

I thought the first would be my favourite but actually I love the softness of the second one.

Egytian Influence

These little quilts have an Egyptian theme. They include stamped images on fabric.

The first one has the image printed on cotton and sewn to the background.



The second has an image that is a gel transfer to fabric.
I have never been good at this on paper and could never understand why people raved about the technique. Well when I saw we were going to do this to fabric I laughed.
But Lenna's approach was so easy to understand. I followed her instructions to the letter with great success.


So now I am raving about gel transfers too!

Mini Quilts

I'm doing an online class on Mini Quilts with Lenna Andrews at Joggles.


I am enjoying this as it has got me to put a couple of my favourite things together. Fabric and vintage images.


I have used images like this on paper but not on fabric. I don't know why, other than I don't think I thought of it.

Felt a little weird at first using the collage techniques I have used so often but on fabric instead of paper but I am really loving it now.


These are the first two quilts I have made. They are 5" x 5" and the images are printed on paper.
I have sewn them on to the fabric. The verses are actually glued on as I didn't want stitching on them.

I love the courses offered at Joggles.
They are diverse and well written and give you lots of ideas to have fun and play.

I'm a lucky girl!

This is the gorgeous padfolio that Margaret my swap partner on FAF sent for me.

The pictures do not do it justice.
It is made from the most beautiful velvet dyed in every shade of purple and pink. My favourite colours. It has such a rich an luxurious texture - very, very strokeable.

There is a lovely detail on the top right hand side.
The whole feel of this piece is lush and I will feel very special using it.

Thank you so much Margaret.

Padfolio for Margaret

This is the padfolio that I made for Margaret at FAF.

It's always worrying when you send to someone you don't know very well. Would she like it?
Yay! She did!

I made the cover by laying various sheer fabrics over hand painted cotton. I covered it with a black chiffon scarf and did lines of straight and zig zag stitch on my machine.
I didn't like it, it seemed bland and not my usual colourful type of thing.
It went in the drawer for a few days.

I got it out a week later and zapped it with my heat gun - I really didn't like it!
It looked better then, but not finished.
I layered on more fabrics - not all sheer this time - and some Glitterati for a bit of sparkle. Trapped it all with some Burgundy tulle and sewed lines as before.
The cord is sari silk wrapped with rayon thread on my machine. I even made some fabric beads for the ends of the cord.
Err, they both turned out different and I'm sure I did the same thing. Oh well that is serendipity.
The inside is some cotton I got from the curtain shop in the scrap bin! I think it was quite a find.

Alice in Wonderland

These are the pages I did in Claire's Alice in Wonderland book.



I have always loved this story - although I must admit Through the Looking Glass is my favourite.
Living close to Cheshire most of my life I have always been intrigued by the Cheshire Cat and his smile.


The Mad Hatter's tea party has always reminded me of my own family's parties and gatherings. Just don't ask!

Feeling the needle!

I've been watching with envious eyes the wonderful creations made using the embellisher machines. I just love the textures created.

As there is no way that I can have one of the machines for the foreseeable future I invested instead in a Clover needle felting kit.

What fun!
Just great to get fibres and fabric and punch with the needles and watch the fabric take shape.

When I first started to cross stitch years ago I got such a kick of starting with a blank piece of fabric and putting a design on to it. I got the same kick with needle felting only better.

I made several pieces but liked this one the best. It made these two ATC's.

Padfolio

Well, here is my padfolio.

I really enjoyed this.
It was lovely to get immersed in something after a shaky start to the week with Roger being rushed into to hospital and spending two days there. He is fine now but a scary time was had by all.

Now just got to decide on colours and a theme for Margaret's padfolio for our swap.

More Waves

This is another piece of fabric I am working on. In fact to date this piece has taken 2 months!

I started it before Christmas and then.....well you know what happened.

So, the fabric base is a heavy cotton that I painted with Dye-na-flow then stencilled the lotus flower motif with Plaid Glaze.

This week I layered strips of organza on it and covered with chiffon and stitched those wavy lines. I love the way the stencil motif shows through the organza.
I stencilled a Chinese character in places with gold Plaid Glaze - a bit subtle.
Not sure but I think it will become my test run for the Padfolio swap on FAF. I'll let you know.

Just playing

I went to Craft 4 Crafters at Westpoint in Exeter last weekend. I got some great goodies and have been playing with them all week. I have had a lovely time just putting them together and seeing what happens.

This is one of the pieces I came up with.
The picture isn't very good - camera trouble I fear - there is a lot more depth than you can actually see here.
I layered lots of fabrics over some space dyed velvet then covered it all with a chiffon scarf and stitched wavy lines.
I included some lovely little flower sequins that Jan sent for an extra bit of sparkle.
The motif is on one of the fabrics. I stitched round the gold frame and then cut away the chiffon. You can't see it properly but the flower motif puffed up like a little cushion.

I have a recurring theme on lines and linear things at the moment.
Could be my age or maybe it reflects ordered chaos - typically me - or all those lanes at the swimming baths that filled my early life.
Who knows. But they keep turning up and I'm happy to let them for a while.

I don't really fit.........................

.....................but you are NOT moving me now!!!

Bitrhday Book

It is my Aunty Edith's 70th Birthday party this weekend. It is a surprise, but it is OK she doesn't read this blog - I hope!


She is a watercolour artist and a very good one, so I have made her a little note book to take out with her.
I filled it with watercolour paper and wanted to do something on the cover to reflect nature as she loves water and trees.






I also made a card to match in with the theme. I hope she likes them.

Who's bed?

Well! Fred's new bed arrived today but Mitzi decided that I would do her just fine. Fred thinks she has a bit of a cheek but he will get her out one way or another.

I missed the photo, but just after this Fred squashed himself into Mitzi's bed. She was not impressed but still would not move.
I think another bed is on the shopping list.

ATC's

Jan and I have been friends for longer than either of us can remember. We live hundreds of miles apart now but our friendship is stronger than ever.
We started City and Guilds Embroidery years ago as we fancied going back to school together. Jan finished but I didn't, but it is thanks to her that I am back playing with textiles.

Anyhow, the thing is we swap ATC's regularly with some other friends.
I received these today.

This is from Jan. I admire her style so much.


















This is from Fiona, our most recent friend. She is just starting out in the textile world and I think her work is so vibrant and fresh.

Kilt Pins

I joined the "Kilt Pin Swap" on ANUK.
What a great idea of Kari's.

I thoroughly enjoyed making these. As they were for Valentines Day I felt they needed a heart on them hence the fabric hearts.
The hearts were pieces of textile that I had over from another project I just cut them to shape and zig zagged the edges. A bit fiddly but well worth it I think.
I now have a little box of hearts!

The first pin went to Jill and the other I have been using myself but maybe it will go to Laura (my daughter) as she comes home for a few days this weekend.

Challenge

On the Creative Challenge group we had to use a polystyrene tray in our work.
My theme is North American Indians and I had a drawing of Anasazi pots that I did for the last challenge so drew some patterns from that and carved them out of the polystyrene.




















This was great fun in itself.
I then used them as stamps and used various paints to stamp them to paper and pre-painted fabrics. Here are some some of the results.

Studio

Well here is my studio.
The colour is not what I would choose but we will be painting it later this year. I fancy a nice pale green.

The archway is wonderful. It is the space under the stairs and as you can see it stores all my drawers and boxes perfectly.

I have pinched Rogers desk as it doesn't fit on the other side of the room.
What a shame! ;0)
It is much bigger than the other desk and after all I NEED more space.



The computer is over near the window so I can look out on the garden.
Despite the Cobb wall at the side the light just floods into this room.
Wonderful!

White

On ANUK this month the Chunky Book swap theme is White.
I got a little carried away with this idea and created quite a bit of background card. I used the "serendipity" technique and stuck down samples of every bit of white or nearly white paper I had. I was really happy with the results so did it again!!!
Think white will be popping up in my work for a while.
Here are some results.

This is Becky's page for the Chunky Book Page swap. I hope she likes it.
I made the textile heart from some pieces I had made for another project.
I enjoyed making it and really like the result. I will make these little embellishments again.














I am a chunky angel! Yes honest!
The idea is that if someone can't fulfil their commitment to the swap for whatever reason (and I have been there a few times recently) then an angel will help out.
So this is the second page. I will hang onto it and if it isn't needed it will go in my book at the end of the year.








And some ATC's.
Over the last month or so people have been so kind and tolerant with me and my problems so some RAK's are in order. I think these will go as RAK's.