September OMG

I am making progress on Round the Garden.  This month's adventure included a lot of stitching fun.  The pine tree next to the lighthouse in the pattern looked like it was stem stitch, but a closer look at the original in the magazine showed me that the designer had actually used another stitch.  I decided to due laced herringbone. Part of the pleasure of this pattern is the room for one to do their own thing.  I also decided to design a different lighthouse than the one in the original. I went looking for images of actual lighthouses using my browser.  I found one that had diamonds with an anchor on it.  Here is my rendition in wool of that lighthouse.  I wanted to do something other that a tan lighthouse.  I quite like it.  

My New Favorite Thing

 I went to JoAnn Fabrics recently to look for a variegated Perle Size 5 for Quadrant 3 leaves and stems.  I decided to take advantage of the current sale on sewing supplies.  I found this hummingbird threader.  So cute and it works!!

This threader has a notch like the ones I used to use for crewel work or needlepoint.  They were much larger and meant for chenille or tapestry needles  This one works with small needles.  Hooray!  Hooray! Hooray!  I have been having trouble threading my needles and even my most thinnest wire threaders were not working with the needles I was using for my 100 weight silk thread.  The wires would break or get stuck when trying to thread my needles.  I did not think protuberance was small enough for my needles, but look.  It is.

Wow Halfway or Not

Things are moving right along Round the Garden.  I was thinking I was halfway around so I thought I would note the progress.  However, I just realized that I have yet to stitch the door knobs and window panes on the houses.  I cannot claim I am halfway done with all that stitching left to do.  I have been using quite a bit of DMC Size 5 Perle Cotton.  I am thinking about buying a set of all the variegated.  I need some green variegated for quadrant 3 to finish that off.  I decided to check out my local sewing store and look to see if I can find a skein before I invest in another hunk of money into 36 skeins just to have in case I want them.  My mother already thinks I am nuts for my current thread inventory.   Back at it.

Lighthouse Substitution in Round the Garden

The lighthouse in quadrant 3 pattern was created from stacked alternating light and medium tan trapezoids. Quadrant 4 lighthouse pattern is stacked white and red trapezoids.  That would mean that it is similar in color to quadrant 2 in color and similar to quadrant 4 in shape.  I went to my browser to search images of lighthouses.  I saw a blue and white stacked trapezoids with an anchor painted.  I saw another blue and white diamond patterned lighthouse.  I  decided to make a diamond lighthouse with an anchor.  I drew my version of a lighthouse so that it would conform in height with the pattern.  I used the top section of the pattern and placed it on top of my diamond patterned column.  I have still to add the embroidery elements to finish it off but I quite like the result.  Now to fill in the houses and blossoms from the lighthouse in quadrant 2 to the lighthouse in quadrant 3.

I have been working on this for 3 months.  I anticipated completing a quadrant a month but that is not happening.  Now I am hoping to be done before Thanksgiving.  That seems like a reasonable target.  So far I have most of the interior of quadrant 3 completed.  I decided to wait on the blossoms until I get the exterior  of the quadrant done so that the color choices work well.  I am headed back to quadrant 2 to work on the exterior houses and their associated blossoms.

Quiltville

I joined Quiltville this week and found out that they have too many requests.  I answered the questions in the quiz.  I mentioned in one of my answers that I enjoy listening for my sister's name to be mentioned during Quilt Cam.  I was approved this time.

I also added the Quiltville button to my blog in honor of my acceptance.  I forgot how to do that.  After a few failed attempts. I managed to figure it out.  I am certaininly not a bloggin' expert but I do like learning how to do some things.

Birds Eye

The background looks so pink....it is not.  The directions on the magazine insert pages say that the eyes are made with a lazy daisy stitch.  The picture shows a circle with a dot in the center.  That does not look like a lazy daisy stitch.  Hmmmm.  My first attempt was a small circle of white wool with a colonial knot of blue in the center.  The piece of wool is miniscule.  I decided to attach the threads by stitching from the center to edge.  I pierce the wool where I want the off centered pupil will be. located in the end.  I go over the edge of the wool and come up 180 degrees from where the needle went down.  I thought if the stitching lines were visible that would look like the radiating lines of an iris.  At some point in time I may try that an choose a thread color and weight that is meant to be seen.  For now I am sticking to matching silk.  

 I made the mistake of placing the knot in the very center.  It looks much better off center.  Even though the white patch was little I thought it stood out too much.  I looked up pictures of eyes on blue birds and saw that the irises were colored.  I saw this bird with yellow eyes so I made a bird with a yellow iris and a blue pupil.

I liked it.  I also added a tail to this bird.  There is not one in the pattern but the other birds all have tails so I made one for this guy as well.  I liked the yellow better that the white.  Then I saw the bright green in with my florescent wools so I switched to green,  I realized that in the grand scheme of things NOONE will ever notice white or yellow or green.  It will make no nevermind.  But I say to  it is all about the process and in this case it was worth my time to learn how to better make eyes.  Back to birds on a branch.

September OMG Making my way Round the Garden

I am making my way Round the Garden.  Quadrant 1 is mostly done.  There is embroidery on and around the houses that is not complete.  The pattern calls for stitching on the windows and doors and I there are some butterflies and bees that are yet to fly around there.  I am going to work on the interior of quadrant 3 and the exterior of quadrant 2.  I have commented previously that I am going to work on the blossoms under the houses as I go along.  The process is more enjoyable for me that way.  I am going to skip over to the interior of quadrant 3 because I need some blue for the birds and I want to use some of that same blue on the exterior of quadrant 2.  I will continue to contemplate the quilting.   There is very little open space in this quilt.  I am contemplating tying the quilt.  When I first started quilting that is how I quilted all my quilts.  I used yards of six strand DMC.  I am wondering if I could knot by burying thread as I make sequential colonial knots.  I also wonder what bat I should use.   I bought a board of a silk bat.  I think that would be a good choice.  The wool on top and the silk innards need the same laundering care.  I think that would be a good choice.

Come on over to Elm Street Quilts and join us by committing to monthly goals for our quilting projects.  See what the other goals are being made this month.  This process is essential to my completing all my UFO's and which includes all those projects that I purchased fabric and supplies that are residing in containers.  While I have not ruled out making purchases for future projects, this is helping me to be realistic about how much one can accomplish is a lifetime.  Enjoy your passions.  Having too many projects in the pipeline can cause undue stress.  Thank you OMG.