Needlework - embroidery

I'm lucky to have the knowledge to do many different needle crafts that I enjoy doing. My mom taught me to knit as a child and when I was a teen, working as an usherette in a theatre, I learned, along with my fellow usherettes how to crochet. I remember looking in a book and following the steps. I'm pretty sure my mom helped along the way with that too. 

In home economics, in grade 6 or 7, I remember that the first project we did was Swedish Huck embroidery on a towel. I found this in my linen cupboard and the colours I used were purple and green. 

I enjoyed doing it.

There are a few stains where the fold is so I should probably soak it in some Oxy.

It appears as if I still use that combination of colours. 

When my son's twins were born, we didn't know the gender and so I made a cross stitched card with those colours (which are really a lot brighter than the photo.)

Just a little quilt

There is a little quilt that I have wanted to make for years. I'm a tad late since it's really a fall quilt.

It was in a magazine and I finally decided I was going to take the time and make it.

This is what I liked.

It reminded me so much of the time my dad took me and my brother on a drive and we stopped at a big pile of leaves that city workers had made (in the rich part of the city.) my brother and I were allowed to jump into the pile. It was so much fun - except when I lost my brand new turquoise moccasin. It took a while but we did manage to find it.

This is how they showed you could display the little quilt. I don't have a little stand like that so mine will go on the wall.

I wanted a blue sky for my background instead of some beige fabric.

There is a little bit of 3D embroidery.

The shoelaces were fun to make.

Here's my version of the finished quilt. I made the binding the same way as with the little red bird quilt - bringing the backing to the front. 

I'm on to other quilts now - and maybe some knitting.

Once again

I have been absent from the blog, but for a very good reason. Once again, I have been in Kent, England visiting my daughter and her family.

My daughter Ayla and her son, Atticus. 

I was visiting to celebrate little Atticus' first birthday. I was there when he was born 11 weeks prematurely. It was a very scary time but he's doing very well now.

Just before I left, I was busy working on this little quilt.

Ayla has an English Springer Spaniel and wanted a small quilt for Atticus to use as a blankie. She saw the Spaniel as part of a bigger quilt by Karen Brow at Java House Quilts.

Once I enlarged the little dog, I auditioned borders and for some reason, everything came together quickly.

I stretched it on my smaller boards and started quilting it.

I kept the quilting simple. There are circles and half circles in the outer border.

The background was just quilted in the ditch.

I knew I had a template or stencil for animal paws and a dog bone. It was in my sewing room and when I went to look for it, it almost jumped off the shelf and into my hands.

This is the backing fabric I bought specifically for this quilt. It was purchased several months before I knew exactly what the front of the quilt was going to look like.

The quilt label - embroidered on Aida cloth. You can see the circle quilting I did for the outer border.

My daughter was totally surprised. She had no idea I was busy working on this quilt just before leaving.

Here's their English Springer Spaniel, Vixen. She's so good and patient with Atticus.

I still have more quilt show photos so I shall post them in the next day or two.

Just a little sewing

Here's an update on what my silk ribbon embroidery looks like.

There are just two more flowers to go. The next one is a rose bush.

This is the little outfit I'm in the process of making for little Teemu (all of three months old now.) I can't believe that, even though this pattern says 'Easy,' the shirt collar is made in two pieces. I have made many, many little shirts for my two sons and grandsons and the patterns I used had the collar as one piece only. A lot 'easier' and so much quicker. I shall make it the way the pattern suggests but I've already had to alter the pants. It seems that the parents think the legs are too wide. 'Skinny' pants are in don't you know...(?)
 Little Teemu's California grandparents are here visiting so he's getting lots of hugs and attention. He  loves smiling and talking and dislikes a wet diaper.

What I've been up to

As I mentioned in an earlier post, I am taking one of Kathy Shaw's free courses. This one is on silk ribbon flowers. I didn't get a good start since I was concentrating on the Row by Row quilt. I also didn't like the first background that I painted for the course. After getting it done, I read the instructions and Kathy recommended to Not use muslin. I, of course, did and so I had to find something else to use. Luckily, it wasn't too hard to locate something that could be used and in this case, I found some linen. I found it terribly hard to transfer the embroidery designs of the trellis and the tree using my makeshift light table but I got it done in the end.

 This is the completed first scene. There is wisteria, daffodils, foxglove, long stemmed roses and irises.

This is the beginning of the second scene. The first flower in this part of the course is the climbing rose.

And this is what I will be working on shortly. A little man sewing but first I have to make a couple of super-hero capes for two little boys. I have so much poly-cotton fabric so it will be nice to use some of it up.

Family time and class progress

To celebrate Eric's birthday, we took in a Blue Jays game last night. They didn't win against Philadelphia but we had fun nevertheless - even in the heat and humidity.

The Rogers Centre...

formerly known as Skydome. I took these photos early on and that's why the stands look a bit sparsely attended.

We had a great view of the CN Tower and we sat in the shade. Eric knows where the best seats are since he's been here once or twice (several times, actually) before.

As I said, an early photo where the seats were not filled yet.

Believe it or not, it's not this little guy's first baseball game.

All decked out for the day. Sunglasses to shield young eyes and earphones for the all the loudness. He was a little trooper and good as gold throughout the whole game.

And here's my progress on the silk flower embroidery class.

Daffodils, wisteria and irises. I do love making the irises.

Not idle - just slow and a special day

I had a few bananas and so I decided I would treat my family to some banana bread.

The one on the right has chocolate chips and the one on the left has raisins and sunflower seeds.

I had signed up for Kathy Shaw's free silk ribbon embroidery class and although I am one of the last to begin the course, I am slowly moving on it. After the initial painting of the background and embroidering the trellis, I am finally making some silk ribbon flowers. They really are a lot of fun and so pretty.

On a personal, family note, way back in 1982 on this day, I gave birth to my fourth child and second son, Eric.

So,

HAPPY 

BIRTHDAY

ERIC!!!

Fortunate blogger

Last month, two of the bloggers that I follow were giving away patterns that they have made but no longer wanted. I was the fortunate recipient of them.

A Canadian quilter, Lesley The Cuddle Quilter purchased this pattern, made it and now that she is finished, she wanted to gift it to someone else - along with some of the leftover fabrics. The pattern is Lynette Anderson's Fernhill. It's not a big wall quilt - just 28 inches square but it has embroidery, piecing and a bit of applique.

And then there are these cuties. Kate of Kate's Quilting and Other Arty Stuff, who is from the UK, was giving away a whole lot of cross stitch patterns that she too was finished with. These arrived in the mail. They are all small and won't take much time to complete.

Thank you both. 

It seems that I now have a lot of little things that I can complete in the future.

I Finished

My Beginner Crazy Quilt Class, given by Kathy Shaw at http://www.shawkl.com/, has come to an end. I finished the piece yesterday and was able to cross it off my list.

The block as a whole.

 

The silk ribbon embroidered rose vine and the feather stitch seam with French knots and various beads.

 

 Yellow sequin flowers.

 

Woven roses (everyone's favourite because they were so easy to make.) More flower beads.

 

More silk ribbon roses.

My very favourite parts - the irises and all those French knot flowers.

I urge you all to take a class with Kathy. She sets a manageable pace and is so very giving in her knowledge and praise. Both this class and the intermediate class were free. I will be taking the intermediate class in the future. There is so much to learn and silk ribbon embroidery is not hard at all (just in case you thought it would be.)

I'm linking up with The Needle and Thread Network and with Esther's WIP.

Go take a look at what other people are working on this week.

A couple of handmade gifts

While I didn't make many gifts last year, I did manage a couple that have already been used.

My eldest daughter, Laila, bakes a lot and in our family, we have always covered our rising dough with a linen tea towel. Well, at the end of 2010, on May Britt's blog, she mentioned embroidered baking cloths. It seems that it is mainly a Norwegian thing. There, they have a separate cloth just for the purpose of covering your baking. I had purchased some linen from a church bazaar and made this. It's a variation on a design by Lisa Young. This photo was taken on Christmas day 2011 just hours after my daughter opened the gift.

 My middle daughter, Maili, wanted another beret. White this time, she said. It just so happened that I had a skein of bulky white yarn and so, I made this. It took the whole skein and Maili really likes it. She said that it's warm. Since we seem to have our first snowfall of the season today, she is wearing it.

Finishes

I am trying to finish a few things today.

I'm really close to finishing this book. It was our book club selection for January.

I'd like to finish this little Ursula Schertz frog. There's not much left to do.

And this little sweater only needs the side seams sewn up and the the tails buried.

And now, why not take a look at what other Canadian's are doing this week.

The Needle and Thread Network is a wonderful site where you can see other Works In Progress on this Wednesday.