Take It Further February - Day 1

I started stitching on my Take It Further February block yesterday:



I'm planning on using seam treatments with a "star" feel to them. What you see here is from my book.

I'd like to thank Coral-Seas for pointing me in the direction of the Apollo 13 logo:



I haven't figure out yet how to incorporate it into this block. I need to look at it a bit more. If I can't figure out how to make it work, I'll embroidery Apollo 13 on the block somewhere.

Elegant Crazy Quilt Seam Treatments EBOOK Now Available!

I'm pleased to announce that my E-Book, "Elegant Crazy Quilt Seam Treatments" Volume 1 is now available for purchase:



This is a complete guide to working Crazy Quilt Seam Treatments with Waste Canvas. Create perfectly spaced and sized stitches every time!

This book covers the how-to's of working with waste canvas on crazy quilt seams, what size threads to use, how to calculate, helpful hints and more.

Included are 72 charted border designs and 9 Bonus Feather Stitch designs.

Cross stitcher's will love this book too! Create beautiful one of a kind band samplers using the borders!

I've also set up a Flickr group for stitcher's to chat about the book and share photos of their stitching. It's a public group so all stitcher's who work with the designs in this book are welcome!

The book is available for purchase in my Etsy shop.

The Flickr group can be found here.

Take It Further Challenge - February

In trying to distract myself from the blizzard yesterday which dumped a foot of snow us, I spent the day sewing up a few new blocks. Among other things, I pieced my February Take It Further Challenge Block:



As I mentioned last week, Sharon's concept for this month is "what are you old enough to remember". While reading Sharon's post, the first thing that popped into my head was the Apollo 13 Space Mission in 1970. I was 9 years old. Years later, while watching the movie with Tom Hanks, it occurred to me that they must have had angels watching over them.

I decided to use this Victorian image of 2 little angels with the earth behind them as a focal point. It was suggested to me that I try to find an image of the Apollo 13 logo patch. That's a great idea to get my theme across without making it too obvious. I have to make all my blocks for this Challenge work together as I plan to sew them into a quilt at the end of the year.

I'll find that image, print it on inkjet fabric and then I'll appliqué it somewhere on this block with some pretty trim around it. I'll be starting on this later today so stop back for updates!

Oh! I'm also working my blocks with Sharon's color palette for each month!

A Few Finishes

I finished up a few things yesterday on my sewing machine. First, my little red cat doll for Cathy D. is ready:



Next, I sewed up the little band sampler that I used on the cover of my book into a doorknocker:



Last but not least, Kim stitched the Valentine Ornament design that I did twice. Once for herself and once for me. I finished them both exactly the same:



Thank you Kim!

Finally for today, I'm going to sew up the Sunflower Purse and get that finished. I also want to sew up my February Take It Further block. I added a dark blue cloud background to the little angels that I plan to use as a focal point. Remember, the concept is "what are you old enough to remember?" The first thing that came to my mind is the Apollo 13 Space Mission:



I noticed this morning that I'm having some trouble with my Corel Photopaint software. My brushes have disappeared and I don't know what to do. I hope I don't have to uninstall it and then reinstall it.

Words

I've often admired bloggers who are really good at taking photographs. Not just any photos but the type of photos that have an artistic flair. The kind of pictures found in the Somerset Studio magazines:



I have to admit, although I love to look a pretty images in magazines and on blogs, I never really did understand the use of "words" in this type of artwork. What is up with that? Is the subject matter of the created work not enough? Does a single word really emphasize the feelings & thoughts of the creator? Does one single word really take the created piece to some higher level of comprehension & understanding?

For me, words get in the way. You may have noticed that there are times when I will post a photo of my stitching and since I feel that my work speaks for itself, I can't find much to talk about in regards to it. So I keep my post short and sweet.

On the other hand, there are times when I just can't stop typing!!! And I'm sure there are times, when my dear husband, after 1/2 an hour of listening me ramble on and on, probably feels the need to run shouting & screaming into the woods!

While looking through these new magazines this morning, I pondered the use of words. I thought about my love of Classical music and the reason I like it. There are no words. And yet Mozart speaks to me on a level that I could never describe in words.

I have a terrible time picking out greeting cards at the Hallmark store. Most Birthday cards and Greeting cards are just too wordy. Mushy poems and overly sweet sentiments kind of gag me. Why don't they all just simply say, "Happy Birthday"? or "I'm Thinking Of You"? That's why I've been making my own greeting cards.

For the most part, I'm a quiet person. I keep to myself, I think a lot and I create things, without the use of words. Words are quite inadequate to truly express ourselves.

I will leave you with my attempt at a creative photo, and trust me, there are no words to describe it. Perhaps this one could use a word: