Think Spring

It finally feels like spring.

I'll dismiss the fact that

the weather on Wednesday, May 1,

is predicted to be 38 degrees

and, guess what?

SNOW!

So I'll hurry to take this picture

of my finished pillow

  "Sweet Violette"

with my very stunted tulips.

The pattern called for lace and no border.

I added a border and rick rack.

This Amy Butler fabric called

 Deco Dots

was the perfect color and 

added some whimsey to counterbalance the 

formality of the embroidery.

I liked how it turned out.

Another sign of spring is

 The boys of summer are back.

The pelicans have arrived.

A wonderful bird is the pelican

His bill will hold more than his belican.

 He can take in his beak

Food enough for a week,

But I'm damned if I see how the helican.

         Ogden Nash

Welcome back, Pete the Pelican

and all the other Re Pete's.

Enjoy spring while you can.

Until Next Time-

I'm Still Transitioning

Back in February when I started

working on the wool project

"Folk Art Album"
by Primitive Gatherings

it was suppose to be a quick transition project 

from winter to spring.

But I had forgotten several things.

1.  cutting and fusing small pieces of wool can take

a lot of time.

2. I'm a fast  button holer and even with 

my secret elf's help, all those small
pieces have taken a lot of time to stitch around.

3.  Then the blocks needed to be sewn together

 with the pieced lattice.

4.  When the borders are intricate wool applique pieces,

they take as much time as the blocks.


The only saving grace is that
winter has clung on here in Colorado.
Last weeks snow accomulation was
over 15 inches.

Our elusive spring has thankfully given me more
transition time.
So I'll keep on stitching.

Until Next Time-
Kyle

An Elf?

 Do you remember the story of the 

Elves and the Shoemaker?

At night the shoemaker would leave pieces of leather

on his workbench and in the

morning he'd find  a new pair of shoes
 magically stitched together.

The poor shoemaker was thankful to receive this

 help from his mysterious helpers.

The same thing has been happening to me.

I had started one of my wool blocks, but
hadn't had time to finish it.

But look what I found!

The block was finished with

beautiful buttonhold stitching 

around every wool piece.

In the fairy tale

the shoemaker eventually discovered

who was helping him.

I think I've discovered my 

secret helper too.

Thanks, Elizabeth!

  Until Next time-

March Thread Madness

My  project for March 

has turned into the

"March Thread Madness".

The wool pieces for the
Folk Art Sampler
are fused onto the background pieces.

They're ready for the buttonhole stitching.

One of the reasons this project had
been set aside
was getting the right
perel cotton thread colors to match
the wool.

trip #1
10 spools of Valdani perel cotton
which were the recommended colors for the quilt.

trip #2
5 spools of Valdani perel cotton
to match the wool that I actually
ended up using.

trip #3
5 more spools of Valdani perel cotton
to match the wools that I actually used
that I forgot to get on trip #2.

There, I'm ready.

Now where is that diet Pepsi and chocolate

when I need it!

Until Next time-

Crayon Box Colors

When I worked at the quilt shop,

it was always a challenge to interpret what

color a customer was looking for when they asked for

a "crayon box color".

A "crayon box color" is a  color word,

like:

Hunter Green

Desert Sand

Sunset Orange

Based on experiences or the ready 

availability of a crayon box, we each

could have a different interpretation  of 

what that lovely color looks like.

  Last week as I making some progress on 

my February wool transition project,

or my 11 Progress Process Plan

 I remembered another reason why

I had quietly set this project aside.

The pattern listed the required wool with color names.

I had gotten frustrated looking for the 

right colors to fit the names.

I needed:

spring green

meadow green

grass green

sage green

moss green

holly green

evergreen

I could definitely see the  differences,

but those descriptions or words just got in my way.

I finally reminded myself to use my eyes instead.
I really needed

7 greens ranging from light to dark,
and from bright to muddy.

That helped me.

I also needed:

Christmas Red

Garnet

Saltware

Rust

Wine 

and others

I really needed 8 reds that worked well together

and had enough difference that you could tell

one from the other.

I love the names of colors.

I love the images that it brings to mind.
 Wouldn't you love to have a job where you got to

name the color on paint chips or crayons:

Timber Wolf

Tickle Me Pink

Cedar Chest

Aqua Pearl

With this project
I just needed to use my eyes to 

select my colors and

not  get hung up on a those fun
descriptive words.
It worked better when I did.

Until Next Time-

Itching To Get To Work

Here it is the middle 

of February
and I need to get

started on my February transition project.

I love working with wool and have 

done lots projects over the years,

but I always forget how wool makes

my hands feel.

They get very tingly.

Not really itchy,

more like little pins lightly pricking my fingertips.

Tracing the pattern on to the fusible web

was no problem, no wool involved.

Deciding which pieces should be fused with which wool pieces

involved touching lots of wool.

Here comes the tingle.

Cutting out the pieces, of course, is next.

Every so often

I needed to give my hands a break.

I've always been sensitive to wool, but I

think the dry cold weather has increased that sensitivity.

Now I could wear gloves while I buttonhole stitch, 

but I might end up stitching my gloved fingers to the block.

I'll just have to work bare handed.

What we quilters are willing to endure!

Until Next Time-

A Transition

I may be wishing for spring,

but it is still winter here.

So until the tulips are in bloom,

 my next project 

from my 11 PPP list, 

or my 11 project progress plan,

is a combo of wool and spring flowers.

I'm calling it my transition project.

It's Lisa Bongean's Folk Art Album pattern.

I've had it prepped for quite awhile,

wool, flannel, and the perfect perel cottons threads

all collected together.

It's interesting to think about
 the different factors that can 

cause me to get distracted and abandon
a project I love and move on to something else.

It can be as simple, as seeing what someone else is working on,

or it can be the complications of life.

It can be a mistake that I've made that can halt me right
in my tracks especially if it seems too big of a huddle
at the time,

or if I don't have all of the supplies handy it can
cause me to look for fun somewhere else.

The reason I stopped on this particular project
was not having all the right colors of perel cottons threads.
 It meant remembering to bring
the color numbers that I
needed when I went to the only shop
in the area that carries the Valdani brand.

Not a big deal, but by then I had moved on.


But over the course of a year,
 I have collected what I needed and

I'm ready to tackle this sweet wool applique project again.

It will be the perfect transition into spring,
some wool for the cold days left
and the flowers designs for the anticipation of warm days to come.

Until Next Time-

Thinking Spring?

Isn't Spring suppose to come quicker

when you work on a spring project?

 Well, no luck in changing the seasons,
 but I did have luck finishing
 my Daffodil Daze pillow,

  the first of my 11 Progress Project Plan.

I used a yellow and green print
for the border and backing

and I actually had the light yellow large rick rack
 on hand to add as a trim.

French knots can have a distinct personality.
 So, instead of French knots for detail,

I used seed beads for a little bling.
 It's a cute design and makes you smile

 as you imagine the little spring time chicks
 peeping happily
 as they carry off daffodils on their shoulders.

Until Next Time-

Eleven Projects

It's good to have a gimmick.

You know something that's unique or clever

enough to stand out from the usual.

A list of "to do" projects is a good idea.

It helps to remind me of what I've either started

or what I want to do.

But that list is long and can look very daunting

and not very fun.

Last year, my quilt group, "the Quilting Buddies",

started a plan, The 11 Project Progress Plan,

or what was affectionately referred to as the

11PPP.

That was so successful for me, I'm ready

to try it again only with a few slight changes.

Instead of choosing projects that have been

 hopelessly lingering, I want to include

some new projects.

Also instead of designating only 11 specific projects,

I have * about 20
and at the beginning of 

each month I want to take a look at those *'s

 and make a choice based on

what the coming month has in store or

even how I feel.

So I guess I might have to change the name of my plan,

but the purpose is the same,

 to progress a project forward

without feeling bad about having so many on a list.

First project, which is actually my newest addition,

is some spring embroidery,

from a pattern called Daffodil Daze

by On Pins and Needles.

It's a good remind that 

winter doesn't last forever.

Until Next Time-

The Project Process Plan

Way back in January 

the Quilty Buddies 

embarked on a wonder plan,

The 11 Project Process Plan.

 

 

The idea was to choose 11 projects

that had been looming in the depths of each of

our quilting studios and progress them forward.

 

We each made a list and numbered each project.

Each month a number was drawn and 

that was the item we were suppose to

work on.

 

 

 

It didn't mean you had to finish it,

although, many of us did,

but do  just enough to see that it 

wasn't in the same spot as before.  

Maybe that literally meant moving it from one shelf to another!

 

 

Well, out of the eleven things on my list 

I worked on and finished seven.

 

 

I liked how this plan worked for me.

It was my own self motivation plan.

 

 

I love lists and 

I love crossing things off lists.

 

 

So what about the 4 that were left?

I'm not sure if I can rally the Q. Buddies 

to do it again, but I think I will

revisit the list, 

adding and subtracting items

and start again in January. 

Until Next Time-