Spring and Stitch

In the gardens, spring has sprung!

Flowers are bursting through the ground

 The magnolia tree is in bloom, too!

 There are so many flowers this year.

Wow!













I finished this block for my Purple Project, thinking to send it away to The Kindness Quilt Project promoted by Vickie Boster, and then realized it was too large.

Ratz!













 So I trimmed another of the purple blocks to the correct size, and  then had fun embellishing it.

This block will be in the mail tomorrow. If you'd like to know more about The Kindness Quilt Project, click  here








The next block in the Purple Project is awaiting needle and thread.

Although I've been busy in the gardens, there has been a bit more stitching.........

All the padded satin stitching is finished on this flower, and I've begun adding the petal outline in a dark blue. sorry this is a bit blurred

Here's how the 2 flowers look together. I hope to make more progress on the crewel piece this coming week, maybe even finishing flower #2.

More machine stitching has been added to the silk panel, somewhat distorting its shape.  Since this is a garden panel, and since gardens are seldom exact, I think the distortion adds a bit of character and interest.  (which is really good, because I think ripping out all that stitching at the bottom would be a bear)
The next step is to add hand embroidery using a variety of threads.

The wrapping cloth piece also received a little time. The third prairie point is filled with bullions, and the beginning of some french knots is shown.

Some embroidery has been added to the lace portion to help  (I hope)define and enhance the flower shapes. Lots more stitching needed yet.

The tatted piece is sewn to the front of a card that went out in the mail.

I first stitched this flower design on the inside flap then the border was created when the tatting was added to the front.

I liked it so much, I made a second card, but used a different thread in the bobbin to make a second flower on the inside flap. 
These were fun to do.

That's my week. I hope yours was filled with sunshine and creativity.


Hugs from Suz
Thanks for visiting.
 

A Little Progress

The weather has been fabulous the last several days, and in spite of spending several hours in the gardens each day, I've managed to make some progress on my projects. I was absent last week. My sister was here visiting for several days as we celebrated her birthday. One of her gifts was this fancy wine bottle holder I made just for her. Blue is her favourite colour.

Sis loved it! I had fun creating this and then making the beaded dangles for a touch of bling. I wonder if she will gift it away, or keep it for display.

I added lots of blue thread to the silk panel.

and some purple, too.

There is some altering in the size of the panel as I stitch. I'm not too unhappy about it, as it creates an organic feel to the piece.

Lots more stitching and other additions are in the plans for the silk panel. I expect this will be a slow piece evolving over the next several months.

 The wrapping cloth piece has seen some additions, too, over the last 2 weeks.
french knots, Josephine knots, a dorset button

more french knots

a beaded Josephine knot cluster, and a tatted frill

dangly bits with buttons, a shell sequin, and a sparkly bead

a row of bullions on the pocket top

and another on the pocket bottom

beads added to the frill

more beads added to the dorset button and the Josephine knot cascade

and some on the pocket, too

The edges have been buttonhole stitched, and this piece is now complete.

Next is this wrapping cloth piece. It includes a pocket from my favourite white blouse. Once the tacking is finished, I'll be adding some fun embellishments.

I hope you've had a pleasant, sunny and creative week.

Thanks for visiting.
Hugs from Suz