Progress on my crazy quilt project "Hats" .

First I would like to show a view of my work set-up.  The day's here have been beautiful and as much as possible I like to work outside.  If the wind is light then sitting outside stitching and listening to music is the best!

Before I head outside I pick one block to focus on. I go through my stash and find the various threads, lace, ribbons and trims I think may work for that block.  I look for a varietey of weights and colors of threads and I try to find a special something for each block. Just a clean plain box top works great for making a safe way to transport my work from inside to outside.

Now it's time to start stitching.  These blocks are all in what I like to call a first phase.  I like to do most of the stitching with embroidery floss first.  I try to do an even amount of stitching across all the blocks.  When this phase is done I will move on to silk ribbon work and embellishments.  I like to work this way for several reasons:

1. It  gives my a chance to make a plan for each block. Picking something special to highlight while finding balance on each block as well as with all the blocks together.

2. I do silk ribbon work seperately so I can keep the ribbon smooth and so it doesn't catch as easily.

3. I work with the buttons and beads last as they can really get in the way and catch on everything. They also tend to sit up on the fabric and are harder to work around.  Finally, they are fun! But, a little goes a long way and it's easy to make an area look to heavy if you are not careful. Balance is key and having a plan already set is nice.

Focus items: vintage tatting, yo-yo, and a hexi.

Focus pieces: yo-yo's, textured ribbon, vintage edgeing.

Focus pieces: antique lace, hexi, vintage lace piece.

Focus pieces: yo-yo's, tatting, lace and wool thread.

Focus pieces: vintage lace, antique silk flower buds.

I hope you enjoyed phase one. If you noticed odd open spaces or unfinished areas that is because there is a plan in upcoming phases for those areas. I hope you will stop back and check out what happens next.

Thanks for stopping in.

Have a wonderful day!

MaryEllen

Gelli Printing!!

My gelli plate has arrived and now I'm experimenting!!!!

What a mess!!

The FIRST RUN.

experimenting with papers and fabrics.

For now I'm working with what paints I have on hand and scrap paper and fabrics.

Above are a few of the tools I used. These are just things I found around my studio to get me started.

The rollers I used!  Not what I was seeing on you tube but it was what I had on hand.

I thought I had some very interesting things happen and I learned a ton.  I'm sure I'll expand on what I use for tools but you don't need everything to be perfect before you try something new.   Always be open to just trying things, you may just find your true voice because of the experimenting and the make dos.

Below:

Because this is a new craft for me I'm trying to document things like type of materials and techniques each day.  You can also see were I'm marking each piece with the day I made it.   Now I can return to the pieces I liked and build on the techniques I thought were successful.

Oh boy, this is like eating potato chips, you can't stop at just one.  Look for more gelli plate pulls in the future.  And then, of course, how I end up using them.

Thanks for stopping in.

Have a wonderful day.

MaryEllen

The Butterfly Challenge--Making Fidget Quilts

Hi everyone! I'm so sorry it's been a few months since I posted anything but travel and just working on projects has been keeping me busy.  I'm sure everyone can relate to that!

Today's post is really about making something out of a mistake.  Ever have one of those projects that just didn't work out?! Now what do you do with something that's not really something you want or need.  

My local BEE had a summer challenge to use this wonderful panel.  Each member of the BEE received the same panel and we could do whatever - large, small, use lots of the panel or just a bit, our choice.

 

The panel was beautiful and so full of color!

"Awaken' by CHONG-A HWANG For Timeless Treasures Fabrics.

I jumped right in making a wall hanging, adding extra blocks, lots of sashing and tons of quilting.  The finished piece was fine but not my vision.  I didn't really have a space to hang it.  I hadn't planned on it as a baby quilt so I didn't use the best soft fabric for the backing.  Now what?.

Awakening panel. My attempt at designing a butterfly blocks.  Poppy blocks - patterns and tutorials may be found by several artists on Pinterest.  Cotton backing. 80/20 batting. Free motion quilting on my domestic machine.

If you follow me you may remember that I enjoy making fidget quilts for an Alzheimer/dementia charity.

So I picked up the rotary cutter and slash--4 pieces!

I then went to work adding the fun stuff.  Ribbons, yo-yo's, lace rick-rack. and various trims.

    A stitching detail to show how it can be used for extra texture.

I stayed with mostly trims and stitching.  Buttons and other things can be added to fidget quilts but great care must be taken that they are firmly on, so I decided to pass on using them for this project.

In the end I was super excited to use this colorful panel in a way that will truly brighten someone's day!

Thanks for stopping in.

I hope everyone is enjoying a wonderful day

MaryEllen