Painterly

Just finished blocking my new shawl that I have been knitting over the last couple of months inbetween other projects. The pattern is called Painterly out of Artwork Designs in Magnolia published by Classic Elite Yarns. I knitted in Berroco Vintage DK .

Teaching

Fun day with 4 ladies, one from Canada.  I decided to design a mug mat that involved a bit of regular applique, some wool applique and embelishment using embroidery.

Lynne at the head of the table has barely lifted a needle before, achieved wonderful things and is already thinking of what to add next to her heart.

Hope I have the name spelt right Johann is sitting to the left bottom.  MIL to Carmela top left.  Johann has sewn before and became our fast stitcher.  Even finished her mat before time.  She is visiting her DIL for a while so will have a special self made souveniour to take home to Canada.

Louise to the right also got stuck in and is thinking a sewing basket is in her future with a needlecase made by herself.

This a Johann with her mat.

Lynne with her process so far.  Next she intends to add a scattering of beads in the heart.

Earth & Twig

January block done.  I can't wait until February, well I suppose I'll have to.

The looped bullions around the center total 69 giving a total number of wraps of 2070!

Mistakes, mistakes and more mistakes

Iris and Butterfly by Pat Van Cleve was the start of the comedy of errors.  Mistake number 1.  If I'd looked at the picture properly I would have noticed that the butterfly has canvas showing.  Oh well I suppose I'll have to change that, maybe a bit of stump work will be in order.

Finding it interesting shading by blending 3 different shades of DMC.

My problem started with the background.  As I hid some of my compensationing in the bloom areas I also continued to do the same in the butterfly area. 
















Next to my great excitement my first Sue Spargo block of the month arrived.  Unpacked it and decided to get stuck straight in.

Mistake number two.

Cut out some of the first pieces laid out and cut the rickrack to size.

Then proceeded to needleturn the green onto the wool.  Thank goodness I did this part separate from the main background.  Next stitched this onto the aforementioned background. 

The next day I happen to look at the instructions and to my horror notice that I had the block set in portrait instead of landscape.  This meant having to rip out stitches and then my rickrack was also too short as a result.

My luck was with me again as I had a piece of vintage rickrack in my supplies.

I vowed to read my instructions.  To no avail along comes mistake number three.

I start doing running stitch around the leaf area with one of my favorite threads, seagrass.  Again I happen to look at the picture, oh no it should be backstitch.  More unstitching.

On to the bullions and I mean bullions.  That is when I discover mistake number four.  The small circles are in two different shades and of course I manage to backstitch around the wrong ones.

At this stage I have to say it is a good thing I love Sue Spargo items or this would have ended up in the same trash can as my ANG stitch of the month.

Bey heck (as they say back in Yorkshire, England)  Sue Spargo does like her bullions.  When I've finished these looped bullions I think a count will be in order and then calculate the number of wraps.

Iris Butterfly

No New Year resolutions this year, however woke on on the 9th and felt the time was right to change my eating habits and restart with Sparkpeople.com.  Then yesterday the lady who always said she'd never run also decided to try Couch to 5K so she can join her daughter in the Girls on the Run 5K in May.  You never know if this all has the desired side effect of weight loss a photo of myself may appear on this blog.

Anyway since last year I have finished the fun part of my Sue Spargo Pomegranate runner.  It would have been bound and photographed but my sewing machine decide not to like me yesterday.  The fantasy flower piece is now assembled and also awaiting quilting and binding that may just get some outline quilting around the blocks.

My ANG 2011 SOM ended up in the trash as I just could not get it to speak to me and I ended up making a mess of it.  Such is life!

Now I have started working on the final ANG Cyberstitchers project for 2011 called Iris and Butterfly by Pat Van Cleve.  It has been a long time since I've worked with a line drawn needlepoint project.  This one is a study in shading by blending different shades of DMC on the needle.  Also seems to be a nice quick project.  So far I think I have some good shading in the leaves.  I have tried to make the leaf in the foreground standout by using a lighter shades.

Last week I treated myself to a new needle rest at Peacock Alley.  It is the cat at the top of the canvas.

Alright this is on it's side but you can see the detail in the Brick Stitch.

The Iris stems call for rows of stem outline stitch but I think I will wrap them instead so they have more of a 3D effect.

Then it is onto the background today in Holbien stitch.