Finishing up 2017 and getting 2018 ready to go

I finished the last of my weekly stitching pieces this week.

Here's the whole years worth of Signs Of Life: The five universal shapes

Next year I think I'm going back to leaves, at least I'm starting out with leaves. I have several of the botanical/eco printed leaves on silk that I've decided to use. This is what I have for a start, if I decide to keep going with it I will have to print more.

I'm going to stitch them onto canvas, in the picture above I have the leaves laying on top of the individual pieces of canvas. I've yet to decide what I will be doing with them after they are stitched. One idea is to attach them to each other and make an accordion fold book, I've never done that which adds to the appeal.

2018 Daily stitching
 This will look very familiar, I'm using another piece of the fabric I printed and am doing #3 in the series.

It's fused to a piece of felt and ready to stitch.

After taking a bit of a break from daily stitching this month I'm eager to get back to it. I found I really missed having it to do in the morning to get me ready to work in the studio. In fact I've really been quite aimless this month, I haven't really focused on much of anything. I did get my try at English Paper Piecing appliquéd onto purple silk and wrapped around a 10 inch square canvas.

I'll be linking up to "Off the Wall Friday" and "Slow Sunday Stitching"

Weekly Stitching coming to an End

A short post this week because the only thing I have to show is the stitching done this week on my weekly project, one week to go and another year of stitching will be done.

Weekly Stitching
Signs of Life:The five universal shapes

I'm loving the texture that the stitching is creating in this piece.

My big dilemma now is "What do I do next year?"

Merry Christmas everyone!

Linking up with "Off the Wall Friday" and "Slow Sunday Stitching".

Christmas Postcards and a try at English Paper Piecing

My last blog post seems like a long time ago, but when I checked it was about two weeks ago. I spent most of that time sick, I had been concerned about getting the ugly bronchial mess my husband had but instead I got a deep sinus viral mess. High fever, terrible headaches, etc for about a week, I'm now almost back to normal.

I took my usual process pictures of what I was working on with my phone camera as usual and then discovered when I went to write a blog post that my phone and my computer have stopped working together. Today I finally found my camera, I had put it in my suitcase when we went to NY and had never taken it out, so I do have a few pictures.

I started to make my Christmas postcards like I've done for the past ten years or so and was finally honest with myself and admitted that I am so tired of making postcards. I made less than half of what I normally do, finally used up the bolt of timtex that I'd had for years and called it done. It felt like such a relief, I have been doing postcards since 2000 and I think I've made my last one.  Even more telling was a day later I read my horoscope (something I rarely do) and it said I'm like a snake shedding my skin to get rid of the old and start new. The postcard photos are on the phone.

Since I finished my daily stitching with a month left in the year I thought I would try something different. Several months ago I saw some English Paper Piecing in a shape that made a cross when four were stitched together. I ordered the pieces and they've been sitting here waiting for me. This summer I ordered some recycled silk sari fat quarters and decided that the two should go together. I thought I could work on them for the whole month, I lasted less than two weeks, But I did get a small piece made.

Once I get the paper pieces off the back I will appliqué it to the piece of purple silk that's underneath it in the top two photos. I've also decided that although I love the results of what I did, it is something I will probably never do again. I took the bottom photo so you could see the scale, they are one inch pieces.

Weekly Stitching
Signs of Life:The five universal shapes
wks 49-50

I'm working on the outer border now.

I'll be linking up to "Off the Wall Friday" and "Slow Sunday Stitching"

2017 Daily Stitching #2 done

We had a fabulous Thanksgiving, a houseful(10 extra) for three days. Thanksgiving morning the kids, grandkids and I did our usual 5k Turkey trot and had our after race coffees and smoothies.

We had purchased a new front door and my sons installed during the afternoon, fortunately we had unseasonably warm weather. The door was a bit of a project but went quite smoothly. We replaced a 32" door with a 36" one.

Before

During

After

The view of the pretty tree across the street from the really cool window.

As you can see it needs some finishing touches, my hubby is set to do that but he has had a very nasty bronchial infection.

My daughter surprised me and asked me to teach her how I've done my current daily stitching.
This is what she is starting with.

When they left she had the moon done.

The younger grandkids wanted to learn how to carve stamps and did a great job.

All in all it was a wonderful three days.

2017 Daily Stitching
Done! I was going to try and stretch it out till the end of the year, but that didn't happen.

Here's the two of them together, I think I'll do one more starting in January.

 Weekly Stitching
Signs of Life:The five universal shapes

wk#48

I'll be liking up to "Off the Wall Friday" and "Slow Sunday Stitching"

Excellence in Fibers

Earlier this year I entered the 2017 Excellence in Fiber competition and while I was in NY the rejection email arrived. This week I got the great news that my first daily stitching piece for this year was selected to be in the online gallery, a selection of pieces that didn't make the final cut, you can see all of the selected pieces here. I'm really honored to be in this selected group, do check out the gallery, there is some fabulous work there. This is my piece, "Happiness"

This is a real quick post this week, I have ten family members on their way here for a few days of Thanksgiving.

Weekly Stitching
Signs of Life:The five universal shapes week #47
The big triangle got filled in and the spiral has been started.

2017 Daily Stitching #2

More background done and just one corner to go.

I'll be linking up to "Off the Wall Friday" and "Slow Sunday Stitching"

A herringbone quilt top

While we were in NY I watched several videos on facebook that were from Quilt Market in Houston, one of them was Victoria Findley Wolfe demonstrating how she does a herringbone quilt. I loved the effect and over the weekend I pulled out a bunch of multi colored hand dyed fabrics and started cutting them up. On Monday I finished up the top, it's about 52" x 60"I just sewed until I ran out of cut strips.

I'm happy with it and I think I'll even keep it for myself, but with a very busy week or two coming up it will have to wait to be quilted.

Also finished the stitching and mounted the discharged wet cyanotype leaf.

Weekly Stitching
Signs of Life: The five universal shapes
Week #46

Two shapes done, the yellow in rows of chain stitch and the red in rows of blanket stitch.

2017 Daily Stitching #2
Days #157-162    Filling in the background and I'm working slowly trying to stretch it out till the end of the year(it's not going to happen).

I'll be linking up to "Off the Wall Friday" and "Slow Sunday Stitching"

I'm back

I have been traveling for the past couple of weeks, went to Wallkill, New York  to visit family and to be tourists. We celebrated our 30th wedding anniversary.

Went to a nieces wedding where I met up with all three of my younger brothers, first picture together in many years.

We borrowed my brothers car and drove to Corning, NY to visit an uncle of Don's and to spend some time at the Corning Glass museum. Then on to Niagara Falls since neither one of us had ever been there.

Then back to Wallkill to just hang out for a while before flying back home. It was a good to see my family and to just hang out with no real agenda.

Weekly stitching
Signs of Life: The five universal shapes weeks #43-45

 Weeks #41-45

Only seven weeks left in the year! My next group will probably last for the whole seven weeks. I'm going to be stitching on a piece of silk noil that I had used soy wax paste on. When steaming it I incurred a problem with bleeding both from the dye and the newspaper I had rolled it in. I did this early last spring was disappointed and just put it aside. Since I need to get another one started I decided that if I covered it with stitches the bleeding would be hidden.

It looks better in the photo than it does in person. I've started pulling out some threads to work with and I don't plan on using french knots, but we will see what happens.

2017 Daily Stitching #2
 I'm down to just filling in the background on this one.

Since returning home I've also started machine stitching another small leaf piece.

I've also been knitting a lot. I finished a pair of socks while in NY, so have started another pair. I'm making this pair out of yarn leftover from previous socks.

I've also started a cardigan made from several different single skeins of yarn from my stash. Most of these are yarns that I would not have purchased for myself, but they were all gifts from my hubby. I'm usually cool in the house so this will be my sweater of many colors to keep me warm. I'll also use up the yarn!

I'll be linking up to "Off the Wall Friday" and "Slow Sunday Stitching".