kerrykatiecakes

CQI Christmas DYB Round Robin - Jakkie's Block

2007-03-04T21:07:00.000-08:00

Finally catching up on round robin blocks - this time it is Jakkie's Christmas DYB Round Robin. Jakkie and Debbie have both been so patient with me as I struggle to catch up - thank you ladies so much! Once again, I had a beautiful block to embellish. With all the golds and creams on the block I couldn't resist adding some of the trims I got from Mokuba in Toronto. I used some lovely buttons I obtained recently. It was a great chance to play with all my new "toys"! LOL Other than that it was seams, lace, ribbon and beads and, of course, some counted cross stitch/waste canvas motifs - two this time - both the cardinal and the Christmas tree. I hope that Jakkie will like what I have done on it.

New Babies!

2007-03-04T00:41:00.000-08:00

Well, I thought I would post a picture to show what has been keeping me busy the last week or so. We have five of these little darlings born in the last couple weeks and I have been playing "Momma" to one in particular who has been rejected. She was on the bottle every four hours around the clock and it was tiring me out to say the least - lol! She is now feeding every six hours so it is much easier to get some sleep! They are worth it though - there is nothing as sweet as a baby lamb!

CQI DYB Christmas Round Robin - Debbie R's block

2007-03-02T21:13:00.000-08:00

This is a DYB block I just finished for Debbie R. in a CQI Round Robin. For some reason I found the Christmas theme a real challenge. One thing I did on it that I had never tried before was the "snail trail" of beads on the right hand side. I really enjoyed doing that and I think I'll be doing more of them. I also did a waste canvas bird house. These were beautiful blocks that Debbie had made and they already looked wonderful before any stitching was done on them. Maybe that is why it was so hard to put needle to fabric in this case!

2nd block for Dee's quilt

2007-02-09T09:38:00.000-08:00

This block combined two challenges for me. First off it was another block for Dee's quilt and secondly it used a package of bits & pieces that was part of Magpie's Challenge, the challenge being to use them all in a block. Once again I had fun with the seams - the challenge from Magpie's goodies for me was using this much lace. I don't ordinarily use much lace so it was something different for me. Not that hard though since everything Magpie sent was beautiful! In the center of this block is a black cat done using waste canvas. He has a tiny little bell around his neck so the birds will be warned when he is coming. He was modelled after Dee's cat, Gonzo, who sadly passed away soon after I made this block. He was notorious for planting himself in the middle of whatever quilting Dee was doing and quite often made an appearance in any pictures of her work she showed us.

1st block for Dee's Quilt

2007-02-07T03:16:00.000-08:00

A little while back I had the privilege of being part of a group making a love quilt for a dear friend, Dee. Everyone put their talents together and in the end were able to present Dee wuth a great quilt full of love and meaning.

This is the first block I did for Dee's quilt. This one was to commemorate her wedding.To explain the symbolism, the guitar I did in outline stitch on the piano fabic patch is because Dee played the guitar at her wedding. In fact she played it so much that suddenly they became aware the guests had all gone home and they were still playing! The locket has a photo inside of Dee and Lou in their wedding finery. There are a couple charms - a set of wedding rings as well as a clock - wishing them many yars of happiness together. The yellow flowers symbolize Dee's wedding bouquet. The snowflakes are to remind them of the magic of the snowy night sky when they came outside that evening. Other than that there are lots of hearts and flowers for romance! lol I enjoyed making this block for Dee and being part of her quilt. I also had a lot of fun expeimenting with the seam treatments on this block - taking myself a little bit out of my comfort zone of herringbone and cretan stitch.

Two weeks of flu over!

2007-02-07T03:13:00.000-08:00

Wow - what a killer flu that was! I have been down and out for a couple weeks now and am just finally feeling myself again! Next year I will save myself the grief and get my flu shot like I'm supposed to! lol

Haven't been stitching while feeling poorly, so will show some older work to get back in the swing of things...

So Much to Learn!

2007-01-09T03:17:00.000-08:00

As I am exploring keeping a blog and the herringbone stitch this last week I was struck by the same thought in both instances - there is so much to learn! So, I beg indulgence as I learn about the blog especially. This week's blog challenge for myself will be learning about how to link to other sites. If I am neglecting to link to those who give me such inspiration please know it is only through a lack of knowledge of how to do so and not bad manners. I will rectify this situation this week with the help of my computer guru friends. So, please bear with me! Thanks!

Take a Stitch Tuesday - Herringbone Stitch

2007-01-08T19:32:00.000-08:00

Here is my first sampler page for the Take a Stitch Tuesday Challenge. This first week was herringbone stitch which was very nice for me because it is one of my favourite stitches for seam treatments. I should have allowed myself more time to work on it and I could have done a lot more but I will continue to work on it spare moments. Tomorrow the next stitch will be introduced by Sharon B and I am excited to see what that one is.

On this sample, I did a shallow herringbone first, then a row of deep ones.
The third row of stitches has french knots added to it.
Next is a blue herringone stitch with straight stitches and gold beads.
#5 is a double herringbone stitch done in pink and blue.
Row#6 is a simple herringbone in pink with a piece of green velour yarn woven through it.
Row #7 is another row of simple herringbone with gold spacer beads and seed beads added. This is one of my favourite variations for seams.
Row #8 is another simple pink herringbone, ths time with lazy daisy stitches and french knots added in blue.
Row 9 is an elongated herringbone wth additions of straight stitch, lazy daisy stitch and french knots.
Row 10 is a herringbone variation from Pamela Kellogg's site.
http://kittyandmedesigns.blogspot.com/
I check Kitty & Me, Pamela's blog, regularly as she has such lovely stitches and motifs to share. Thanks Pamela!
Row 11 has another row of simple herringbone done in varigated green and lazy daisy stitch and pink french knots.

I could have gone on for quite awhile but ran into a time crunch. A lesson learned now is to start on next's week's stitch right away.

I am going to work these sample pages on oddments of counted cross stitch fabric as I have done here on Aida It is my intention to create a stitch reference for myself with these pages.

All in all, it was a very enjoyable week and a big thank you to Sharon B for organizing this!

Take a Stitch Challenge

2007-01-07T22:11:00.000-08:00

I wonder if it is just part of my character that I have to always slide into the finish line at the last moment? lol I had hoped to post the picture of what I have done on the herringbone stitch tonight but since my brain works faster than my fingers I will get the picture up after work tomorrow afternoon. Just one more row..... Just one more stitch....

Waste Canvas on CQ

2007-01-05T06:09:00.000-08:00

I am having a love affair with using waste canvas on my crazy quilting. In case you haven't discovered this tool yet, waste canvas is used to stitch counted thread embroidery to fabrics that are not evenweave. That makes it perfect for crazy quilting applications!

This sample is a blackwork butterfly stitched onto a crazy quilt block. The wastecanvas is held together with water soluable glue so after you are done embroidering using the holes of the canvas as your guide, you can then moisten and remove the threads of the canvas. They pull right out and you are left with just the design! I have never found it necessary to moisten the threads of the canvas as per the instructions. Because I have concerns about leaving water marks on some of the delicate cq fabric, I have always simply substituted patience for the water and used tweezers to pull each canvas thread out individually. I originally had concerns that the canvas theads would be too roughto pull out dry but have used it for cross stitch, blackwork and even beadwork on cq and there have never been any problems even with delicate silk fabrics.

A second thing to look at in this picture is the seam treatment. This combination of herringbone stitch, cretan stitch and straight stitch is my first exampe for Sharon B's TAST (Take a Stitch Tuesday) Challenge. I will be starting oni my sample pieces toay so will post more herringbone picures soon!
Hugs,
Kerry

Needlepoint, Etc. Christmas Ornament Swap 2006

2007-01-04T20:25:00.000-08:00

I took part in the Christmas Ornament Swap at the Yahoo group, Needlepoint, etc., this last year. I have just received my ornament from Gillian in Vancouver. The ornament is one of the Victoria Sampler's Christmas Virtues (Faith, Hope, Charity and Patience). I was fortunate enough to receive the Patience Ornament from Gillian. Thank you Gillian! The finishing on this ornament is flawless - the backing is a lovely matching pink moire and it is finished off with a matching braid. The counted work on it is a combination of cross stitch and specialty stitches stitched in soft greens and pinks as well as silver thread Kind of inspires you to start on next year's Christmas projects already, doesn't it??

Christmas Ornaments

2007-01-01T20:21:00.000-08:00

I am looking at my Christmas tree today and wondering how long I can put off taking it down - lol. I have so many handmade ornaments and it is a shame that they are only seen for a couple weeks a year.

This little cat is a new ornament this year - another item received from Connie in a swap. I have no idea where one finds a little wooden mouse this tiny! The cat is another example of Connie's fantastic dollmaking skills. It is one of my favourites on the tree this year. Thanks again Connie!

Beaded Dragonfly from Lynn

2006-12-31T17:52:00.000-08:00

I wish I took pictures well enough to show
just how much this little guy sparkles.
The beads are so lovely. His wings are
made of tiny gold bugle beads and the
tiniest pale green seed beads. His body
and tail are of different shades of green
in varying sizes, and he really does
sparkle! He is about two and a half
inches across and three and a half inches
long. I received him as a Christmas pressie
from Lynn and I love him! Thank you Lynn!

Isn't it interesting how often insects in
different lace, beaded or stitched forms
find themselves onto our crazy quilts? It
has been this way since the early
Victorian quilts. Other than the spider in
his delicate web who often appears for
luck, the dragonfly is the next most likely
to appear on our quilts. Is it because the insect world is a source of the exotic no matter how commonplace its inhabitants might be? He is surely as near to the fierce beauty of a dragon as we can get outside of our dreams!

UFO's or WISP's

2006-12-30T22:36:00.000-08:00

I have just been on Sandy's blog, http://abeautifulcraft.blogspot.com/, and read about her UFO (UnFinished Objects) and WISP (Works In Slow Progress) Challenge. Very inspirational! As the self-proclaimed queen of UFOs, or WISPs if I am being kind to myself!) I thinki this will be great fun. So, I am resolving to work on them in 2007 and post my progress here on the Blog. Wait for updates....lol!
Hugs,
Kerry

Angel from Connie

2006-12-30T02:39:00.000-08:00

I want to share a picture of an angel I received from Connie in this year's CQI Christmas Swap. My photo does not do her justice but she is made in beautiful shades of pink and beige silks. I think Connie's first calling is as a dollmaker and it certainly shows up in the wonderful workmanship and the attention to detai in everything she makes. Thank you Connie!

Sharon B's Take a Stitch Tuesdays

2006-12-30T02:22:00.000-08:00

Only a few more days now til Sharon B' s Take a Stitch Tuesdays start - I can't wait! I will be following along and intend to post pictures here of my work on the stitches. I am really looking forward to this so I will have a reference of ideas for new seam treatments. I seem to get in a rut and do the same few seam treatments over and over. Sharon's 100 Details in 100 Days was a great learnng experience and I am sure this will be just as enjoyable! Thank you to Sharon for so generously sharing her knowledge and inspiration!

kerrykatiecakes

2006-09-24T04:19:00.000-07:00

Sunday, September 24

Itsy Bitsy Teenie Weenie Quilt Challenge

The challenge put out by the quilters in Carbon, Alberta, this year is to make a quilt with the dimensions of 2-1/2" X 3-3/4". So some of the members of the High River Handicraft Guild went ahead and made some. I think my favourite was the one by Joy made of tiny yoyos! Of course I had to make one too and went ahead and made a little crazy quilt. It ended up too small so I had to find some lace of a suitable size, dyed it and added it to the edge to bring it up to the correct size. It was a lot of fun and a fun little project!

DYB Block

2006-08-02T06:44:00.000-07:00

August 2, 2006

This is a 6" block I have just embellished for Debbie in a Round Robin at CQI. This is a DYB, or Do Your Block, Round Robin. Each participant has made six little 6" blocks and sent them out. As they progress though the five members of the Round Robin each participant chooses one block and completely embellishes it before passing it on. I enjoyed stitching this little block more than any other I have done recently. I was unable to put it down! So, thanks to Debbie for making such lovely blocks!

This block had a Victorian feel to it and seemed to call for flowers and insects so that it what I did. I used waste canvas to cross stitch a little butterfly on the pink square. Up at the top I made a dragonfly - this is one of my favourite little beaded motifs from an older issue of CQMagOnline. On the central fabric I followed the lead of some of the already completed blocks in this set and outlined the roses and leaves with a highlight of beads. A spider and her web as well as a couple dizzy little butterfly beads completed the wildlife of this block. I had a lot of fun experimenting with seam treatments - different colours and combinations of stitches. LOL - can you tell how much I loved this block?

Patience please.... work in progress! lol

2006-07-28T07:40:00.000-07:00

Good morning!
I have so enjoyed the blogs of others I finally decided I had to try it myself! I will use this space to share pictures, etc. of works in progress, etc. particularly those having to do with my continuing addiction to crazy quilting.
Be back soon!
Hugs,
Kerry