Saturday, November 30, 2013

I am NOT a morning person...

...and usually when I do try to be more productive by 'doing' too early, or if I try something that calls for the little grey cells to be more active than they usually are before 10:00..or need my eyes to see something before they are ready to do that.... ..... ...well, let's just say ..sometimes it isn't worth it.

This morning I took my coffee into my sewing room and was eager to put together my latest little pincushion.. even had the machine all set up and threaded, because I was also trying some FME on open weave fabric yesterday ....easy right? ...just change feet, raise the 'dogs' and sew around the 3 sides of my pillow.


acckkkk!  .....wtfajita???.. ........ .....    dammit!!!   No way!!  I'm not picking out those teensy tiny stitches...NOT!

Obviously I wasn't even thinking, period; never mind thinking clearly.  Stitched around the 3 sides of what is going to be my newest pin pillow alright ... ..... but, totally forgot to put on the silk backing ...and the piece of thin cotton that backs the silk..... what a nimno!  I took it off the machine and looked at it and it still didn't even register ...'til I thought... now how do I turn this? ... there is nothing to turn...what have I done? .... Sheeesh...... So.... either pick it all out ..which did not happen, because it would have ruined the satin-one-side-crepe-y fabric, I just know it would've.  Instead...I put on the backing material..pinned and stitched it as I was supposed to do in the first place ...just barely inside the other line of stitching... whew!  It worked.  Happy camper, me. Saved my lovely piece of fabric and embroidering..

So, I have a slightly smaller cushion..but, not enough that anybody would notice or care... because there is no regulation size, of course......





























I particularly like this little area of webs and detached chain leaves.. peeking out from under the lace that runs across ...

















Now...just to stuff, close and stitch around the outside ...and my first off white cushion is a reality...



Sunday, November 24, 2013

colour..

... I decided to add a bit of colour...  the little pieces of white that I added with FME didn't stand out enough for me... they just seemed to disappear into the fabric when I got some stitching done around them.
It looks great up close ... but, just not enough oomph...















I love the way the bits of colour look with pieces of lace and organza built up on top of them, but, I think next time I'll let it ruch up a bit if possible...it is a bit too flat looking for me.                      















 I did add a few French Knots of yellow to pick up on the colour of the printed fabric.
Almost ready now to stitch up and turn and see how my first little off-white cushion looks....still looking for some off white fabric for the back side.. my silk is a bit too white...... might have to go shopping....  
   

                         

Friday, November 22, 2013

had an idea...

...while stitching on the paper....
Why not FME some lace and silk onto my new 'master sheet' for my next pin pillow....

so, I did.. then added a few French Knots and some tiny Forget-Me-Knot flowers, which have become a trademark of sorts.... and, here is what it looks like in my little pin pillow view finder... yes...I like it... lots more to add yet ...but, so far I really like it.















And.... this is blooming.... isn't it beautiful?


Thursday, November 21, 2013

working on something else.

....learning to do things with paper and fabric and FME and ...well, just about everything in Karen's latest class.  She's got us moving in all directions...  making sure the newbies taking a class for the first time know all the stitches and tricks  ..  ..and keeping us prior students interested as well... must be a tricky thing actually...but, she seems to manage it.

Making a page for my info/inspiration ledger...  I"m still trying to decide if I will give it a name or just put 'stuff' in it...hahhaha.... it's only for me really...and I know what it is and what's in there ...so it isn't that important...

Remember my fashion sketch? ... here is a rough one simulating the gown's bottom edge...  made to use for a page in my book  ...FME over bits of silk, organza and lace ..and the bits on the side? ..just some initial practice pieces and also... it adds balance to my page...















This little piece is silk with lace FME'd onto it... it ruched up like that.. probably because it was just a small piece and difficult to keep flat really.....but, wouldn't it look pretty as part of something to wear? ....















and, look at the back of my paper  ... wow... ....

stylized snowy trees.....aren't they lovely?




















Christmas cards spring to mind........ sorry... somebody had to say it....


Tuesday, November 19, 2013

Blog fodder/embarrassing moment..


It's hard to know the difference.

Sometimes I used to think it would be almost too embarrassing to show you some of my erroneous or downright stupid stitching moments...but, hey, it's definitely nothing like all of Rob Ford's regular life ..so what's the big deal?  I'll just blurt it out and carry on like nothing out of the ordinary is happening.

Here's the morning's effort...

Merrily stitching away on the machine...which is not my fortè anyway...but...onward... it must be used for FME.  Well, I suppose you could spend all day doing backstitch by hand over a rather large area....but, no... not that necessary to waste time doing that.  I need a new 'master sheet' of fabric from which to cut some new pin pillows/cushions.... and I do need to get on with it...I want at least one finished before Christmas.

This sheet is off white compared to the pristine whites I used for my first sheet  ....   and I've found some lovely bits of fabric including a piece of satiny one side stuff...it might be crepe of some kind...I'm not all that knowledgable about fabrics.

Anyway..back to my story...which by now is reaching novella length and I'm not even into it yet...hahhaha.... I'm going to say it.....I sound like Karen.... whittering on at length... ooooh, there; I've done it...I'll be on the "naughty step" in our class for sure now.....

oh, sorry....another detour...it's like driving around our city..you can't find your way on any of the streets just now due to construction, road repairs and so called flood mitigation antics ...

Pay attention to where the edges and corners of your fabric sheet are once you get whizzing along, doing great circles and chortling to yourself about how wonderful it is looking..... with the stitching creating lovely artistic swirls and satiny bumps that look like little pearls......sigh.............because sure as the dickens, something like this will happen while you are congratulating yourself.

Can you see it?















Yes, I did.  Stitched the front to the back with FME .... and it's even stitched it into the darn hoop.  What the ?? .... aarrgghhhhhh!!!@%&*

Great.  This could take a while..... where is my trusty little picker thing-a-ma-jig?...



















Found it.  Picked it and ..yes, I did say some blue words......but, mostly under my breath, while trying not to ruin my pretty satiny fabric... cuz it will leave marks if I poke around willy nilly.





















HAH!! Salvaged it.  And, it looks fine if I say so myself.  Okay then.... now, I can brush my teeth and get on with the rest of my day.....
















Tip of the Day:::  pay attention to what I am doing.    Think before pressing the pedal.


Friday, November 15, 2013

Fashion sketches..

I've always loved the way fashion designers draw the stylized, long and lovely bodies  ....and then design gowns for them.  As a kid I used to love cut outs and would often try to make them some additional dresses ... nothing like this, of course, but I loved giving it a go.



















Maybe I should have had a class or two on how to draw the bodies ... what fun that would have been, but, even for my doll making I never did do what I was supposed to do most of the time.  And, my bodies were never as short and stumpy as the pattern indicated.
I did watch a tutorial or two on the net, but, then, I always get impatient and think ... too slow ... I hate to have to actually learn some things... just want to "do"..so I try it on my own a lot of the time.  I'm definitely a "fly by the seat of my pants" type person some days.... okay, most days I guess...

The originals are by Monique Lhuillier... she does some beautiful things.... have seen her drawings around ... and I love them.  So..I figured I could print some off... sit down with a pencil and eraser and try to get something similar for the first page of my new class ledger.

Some inspiration!  ... ... here is my effort....very happy with her, although, any of you artists will probably notice all sorts of things I don't see ... just don't burst my little happy balloon okay?    hahahha...




Thursday, November 14, 2013

The new "class" ...

... that isn't really a class...but, more a following along of Karen as she shows us how she works through her creations ...  Simply Stitch 3 if you want to check it out.  Side bar on her blog.

During it all, of course, there are many questions, and the answers come in the form of demonstrations ...not really lessons..hahahha... so as you can see it becomes a bit more of a class than it's supposed to be, but, it's all in good fun and lots of entertainment and learning goes on... and so many great photos are being posted to the Flickr site for inspiration for us all.  Sadly, I can't give you that address..it's private for the group.. can't give it all away ..

There is paper involved this time...as you can see by all the info and photos on Karen's blog...so there is still plenty to see... and we are encouraged to do some ourselves...

I may not still quite grasp the ins and outs of all of it yet...but, I'm checking out my stock of papers.  No need to buy any, that's for certain.  I have plenty.  Years ago I thought I might do some cards and other paper things...even took a short class ... but, that didn't happen.  However, us crafters never throw anything out.  Just a minute... I think that's our motto.  "It might come in handy"...hahhaha...and look ...it did.

I got me a big spiral bound mixed media book of paper ... nice weight.. for use as a place to save bits of fabric and also as a drawing paper...and as luck would have it ..plenty of pages to tear out and use separately to stitch on (they are even perforated at the spiral edge) or to just take out and dispose of if I don't like what I scribbled.  It is thick enough that when I get 'stuff' in there on several pages ...even if I take out a lot....I'm thinking it will still be stuffed.
The cover was mostly just advertising...so I 'prettified' it.  with a great piece of paper from my stash.  Hey, this is fun already!















Not only will I use it for demos to myself and for show and tell in the class  .. I will be writing down new information and keeping any 'notes to self' from previous classes ...now....it will all be in one place.  Hah!  Good for something already.  Like Karen always says...if we walk away with only one thing.... she feels good about that....

She has several books she uses for saving her bits and pieces...but, they are pages with drawings or patterns on.  I looked at a few books that might have worked...but... decided on plain, pristine paper to work with.  I like plain.  I can add little bits and bobs of my own design or pics of fun things.  You know my dolls and bears will show up somewhere in there...ya just know it!  Well, they won't want to miss out on all the fun will they?  Not those guys.

Some of the women are worried about not being able to draw or paint... not me... I will use some splashes of colour if I want them..using other people's art, or I will sit right down and copy things I see that I like.  Copying is always good.   Or, how about pieces of somebody else's art?  Like these soft, watercolour napkins  ..how pretty and I've had them for years... sitting in a drawer in my hobby room...doing nothing...waiting ..... opportunity knocks....





























Playing with paper ... oh, and of course, still working on pin pillows and ...a little something for my Christmas tree.... sorry Karen, I know you don't want to hear it yet....but, it's not too early for me ...I need to begin now..or it won't get accomplished.  No waiting til the last minute this time.  It'll be on us before we know it and there is a lot to do yet........ must keep on top of things.


Wednesday, November 13, 2013

So, I drove over to deliver some books....

.... and, erm.... wasn't quite sure if I should get out of the car when I saw this on the lawn.  I know elk can be dangerous...but, a deer ...well, I suppose if they get spooked or ticked...they could lash out.  But, the thought of seeing that particular elk almost kick an idiot that was photographing it lingered in my brain ... I sat there for a few seconds more.

It doesn't look that big in the photo...but, man...that head was huge when I was standing closer... the ears alone had to be about 9 inches tall ... no lie!















Finally, I decided she didn't seem to be too bothered by me... and I also noticed there was another one on the neighbour's lawn....and  .. . a third, much smaller, one on the lawn across the street....what the? ...??  The place was positively littered with deer!  What's going on here?






























I was even a bit more concerned now... what if they were guarding the smaller one? ..or worse yet... the little one was wounded or something... I sure didn't want to scare them up and cause more damage if they felt they had to move in a hurry...

Still I sat there and waited ... then, decided I would get out quietly, walk up the lawn about 20 feet over to the left of her and just talk softly, to nobody in particular, while doing it.  I had to go behind a big shrub too...so I quietly warned her I was about to saunter out from behind it as I was doing it... managed to sidle along the lower part of the porch and got to the steps that way...whew...she didn't even budge... and I found out they had all been there for some time already.

I was there for several minutes.... quietly went back the way I came;  got in the car and drove away.  Then, thought...darn it, I wish I had my camera.  Went to the bank to do some business... drove home, got my camera and immediately drove back.  They were still here.  I got a shot of each through the window so I didn't scare them off and drove away.  It made my day.

They may still be there .....


Thursday, November 7, 2013

I broke it!!

Waaaahhhhhhhh!!!
my cute little spoon rest from Portugal.  I dropped the pepper grinder on it and it cracked the end of the handle right off!

I got it a couple years ago when we visited my friend Maria there..... it took me soooo long to choose from hundreds, if not thousands, at a special pottery shop that we stopped at on one of our little day trips.

It is a clean break...and I did toy with the idea of mending it ..but, at some point, I'd probably put it in the sink ...the piece would fall off and I'd stab myself with the razor sharp edges...so no...I have to let it go I guess.

Good bye little hand painted pottery piece....


Wednesday, November 6, 2013

Best laid plans....

"I don't think we are supposed to be playing with it"...
                                                                                 











"Don't worry....  I won't get my wet nose on it or nuthin' "......

"Okay, ..well, maybe I could touch the lacy bit just once too"...

"Oooooh... yeh...feels nice".....















"Uh, oh..............busted" .........




Tuesday, November 5, 2013

Hi, my name is Vee, and I have an addiction...

But, ... it's a simple, harmless, pleasurable little addiction... that's what it is!!  This is my fourth little pincushion.  And .... I put the blame squarely where it belongs.  On Karen!

I love them all and I love making them.  There.  I've admitted it.  That was lovely and cathartic.  Whew.















Take some pretty bits of fabric. Stitch them together.  FME seams.  Embroider and add tiny bits of favourite trim or snippets of vintage hankies or whatever you like.. et voilà !!  A "pretty".















Little hearts of cross stitch with some pink knots inside the top part of it... makes them look like cute little strawberries to me ..















Some cross stitch on a snippet of a vintage hanky that Mom gave to me eons ago.... when I was just a kid....















I love making these little Forget-Me-Not type flours... just 5 French Knots around and one for a centre...

















Buttonhole lace edging on the bit of lace covering one corner.. and still need to do that all around the outside of the whole pincushion.


Uh, ohhh......
already looking at another area of the 'master sheet'..... deciding on bits and bobs....hahahhahahahha
like I said in the beginning..... ...addictive....


Monday, November 4, 2013

Want a cookie?

..... Sorry.... that's teasing.  I wish it were that easy.















It's almost that easy though.... I'm giving you the recipe for these.  I love them.  Kind of like a breakfast cookie if you know what I mean.

A great thing to do with those leftover Rice Krispies that have been sitting there too long...and then, guess what?  You will be forced to go buy some more to make another batch of these.  Well, that's what happened around here anyway.

I thought I was doing a good thing; using up some past due Krispies .. and lo and behold, the recipe was so good and so versatile... I make them often now.

And, ...   I've discovered they don't make small boxes of Krispies anymore.....man... I had to buy a HUGE box.... so, I baked several batches...with different nuts, raisins, some with cranberries...and froze 'em.  Still working on the box ...but, hey...it's good til 2014 ... I'll definitely be buying a new one before then...even if it is a whopping 500 grams of snap, crackle, pop!

They are called Crunchy Jumbles... but, I call them Rice Krispie Cookies... and it's from a magazine I bought a few years ago.  Says it makes 36, but they'd have to be tinier than I make.  I usually get about 32.

115 g or  1/2 cup butter
225 g or  1    cup sugar
1    egg
5 ml   or   1 tsp. vanilla
175 g or   1 1/4 cups plain flour
2.5 ml  or  1/2  tsp. bicarbonate of soda
        pinch of salt
115g   or   2   cups crisped rice cereal
1    cup chocolate chips  (needless to say this is waaay too much for me!)


Cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy.  Beat in the egg and vanilla.
Sift together flour, soda.  Add cereal.   Fold into the creamed butter mixture.
Add chocolate chips, nuts etc and mix thoroughly.
Drop spoonfuls of dough onto lightly greased cookie sheets.
Bake in 180C /350 F or Gas 4 oven..... for about 10 - 12 minutes.


(for crunchier cookies add 1/2 cup walnuts, coarsely chopped, with cereal and only 1/2 cup of choco chips and use a couple teaspoons less butter.)  (I've also taken to adding sunflower seeds or raisins, or dried cranberries, ..whatever I have on hand.)  I don't grease sheets ...but, it will depend upon what type of cookie sheet you use... test bake one.  Sometimes, I also add a tiny 'sprink' of nutmeg, cinnamon or maybe even ginger... these are so versatile...just add or subtract whatever you like after you try your first batch and get a feel for them.

okay, I"m off to make a cuppa and have one ....or two ...  or three....  sigh..... they are a bit like popcorn...can't just pop in one kernel can you?