turkey feathers

Stitching up a Storm

 

Making a bit more progress on my Field & Forest quilt.  I haven't had a lot of time to work on this and have just been passing through the studio and stitching up one or two blocks at a sitting.  Sometimes when waiting for the tea kettle to boil.  Sometimes to recover from mopping the floor.  Then a soft chair is an oasis and my quilt project a happy little respite. 

I am also finding it immensely satisfying to be able to use up a bunch of scraps, odds and ends and left-over jelly-roll strips.  The colors seem to go together in a weird sort of way.  The green ties everything together, I think.  Once I removed the blue blocks the colors worked better.  Funny, because it started out as a summer themed quilt (with the cool blues and greens), but then, was transformed into "fall".  I will have to do something else with the blue blocks now.  

These seams are just begging for some feather-stitching and fancy embellishment though, don't ya think? 

  

Remembering Tasha

It's Tasha Tudor Day! 

I still like to remember dear Tasha and the spirit in which she lived her life, and today is her birthday.   She resided in the New England area, from her birth on August 28, 1915 in Boston, Massachusetts to her passing in Marlboro, Vermont on June 18, 2008 nearing the age of 93.  She was an American illustrator and author of nearly a hundred children's books; who was highly creative and quite imaginative and who lived a thoroughly authentic and eccentric life. 

If you are not familiar with this amazing woman, there's the Tasha Tudor Society that carries on her memory with events and chapters to join, as well as her family's charming tribute website and shop found HERE with a little bit of everything that Tasha found charming.  I wrote this blog post at her passing and shared some more pictures and my thoughts at the time. 

Raising a cup of tea in honor of Tasha today.  Cheers!

  

 

August Gift

Today is the day you arrived in this world!  Always cherished, always loved.  A bright, beautiful little flower; the first of a colorful bouquet.

Still Stitching

Here's an update on my Field & Forest lap quilt.  I'm still experimenting with the colors and layout.  A few of the blocks are already sewn together, with other "floating sections" laid out on my design wall, which I am still using and absolutely LOVE.  (Some of you may remember this project, introduced way back HERE in 2006!) 

Anyway, the design wall is great for small projects like this.  I may rearrange everything a few more times before I'm done. I've got another stack of embroidered squares to be trimmed and sewn into blocks waiting in the wings.  Hope to get to those later today.  It's cooled down quite a bit here with clouds and everything--a good day for stitching!

 

Let It Shine

August has arrived! Summer is in full swing around here.

With all the smoke and fire and heat here in the west, cool hues and shades of green gleaned from our travels (and from our rambles through the backyard) are welcome and appealing to me just now--bringing a bit of calm as well as inspiration into my stitching projects today.  So far though, this is the only sighting of the elusive blue butterfly I've seen.  Keeping watch . . . 

 

Summer Stitching

In between a flurry of travel and other summer activities, I'm contentedly stitching these small embroidered blocks with the Field & Forest pattern set (I introduced here).  It's been great digging into my stash of fabric scraps again in the spirit of 'Use What You Have, since I don't really have a grand plan for this project. 

In fact, it's all very random at this point.  But while I'm concentrating on keeping my chain-stitches evenly spaced, and trying not to stab my finger with the needle, I am envisioning a colorful quilt, a sort of lap throw, of embroidered blocks connected by strip-borders constructed Log Cabin style.  Well, more or less.  Keeping in mind, that none of my blocks are the same size and they are not square.  The result being more abstract than the traditional quilt block.  Also my fabric strips are a bit random, as I'm just pulling "left-overs" together. 

So, no telling what's going to happen here.  We shall have to wait and see where this leads.  It could be wonderful. It might be tragic.  But I guess that's what makes this little experiment so exciting!

 

 

 

Field & Forest

Every summer, mother nature provides us with an ever-changing meadow nearby. It's always a surprise.  Last year it was mostly field daisies.  Before that, teasel and tall grass. This year it's dandelions mingled with Queen Ann's Lace.  To some; only weeds.  But others see wildflowers!  Certainly miracles.  Rain or shine it takes care of itself.  Gentle breezes make it dance.  Bees and butterflies come and go.  Ladybugs lurk.   Nothing more is needed.  It's free for the taking: a little calm within a chaotic world.  A gift.

It's always interesting to see what 'volunteers' arrive each summer.  Mostly from seeds carried on the wind or dropped by birds and other small critters that have made homes in here. 

My lavender and lilies share a stage together, harmonious counterpoints, though their performance is brief. 

At the height of the season, and even beyond it as bright colors fade into muted mossy tones, I take joy in every blossom, seed and leaf.  It's always a little sad when the show is over.  However, I can still preserve a few snippets for remembrance with needle and thread. 

 

 

And, best of all, I can share it with you!  I've made a revised version of a vintage pattern I call, Perennial Garden Quilt #7300.  The original (above) has twenty-four 8" x 8" block motifs connected with lattice strips.  It's a striking quilt on it's own with lots of pattern and variety, and a wonderful companion if you are looking for a big lap-stitching project to while away the hours. 

However, I wanted to make a smaller quilt, like a lap throw, with smaller 5" blocks, so basically I pulled out and resized some of the motifs for this purpose.  Just over forty little snippets in all.  Plenty enough variety for my purposes and plenty to share as a "new" pattern:  Field & Forest  #6589. 

So, that done, I started my project with the dragonfly motif.  These harmless critters come in an array of amazing colors; reds, gold, orange, purple, as well as blues and greens--so anything goes.  Not wanting to get overly technical, colors are just randomly placed.  I'm using a pale silver for the wings which is quite nice.  A plain linen background really makes the colors pop.  I will also be combining blocks with bold background colors too.

 

Yes, I know...my stitching is a bit loose and messy, but that's the effect I'm going for, so no worries.  I'm using the long-and-short stitch and a bit of satin stitching for fills.  A jittery running stitch gives the illusion of movement, or vibration in this case.  Still have a ways to go on this one, and then I'm going to do ladybugs next. 

If you are interested in following along, I'll be posting my progress here on the blog and on my Instagram--when I remember!  

Oh! And PatternBee is back online...happy summer stitching everyone!