July OMG Round the Garden Part B Interior 3

The original pattern has layered embroidered circles for blossoms in the basket.  I went off script and replaced them with die cut wool blossoms that were from Accuquilt's Round Flower die or Rose of Sharon dies by Sharon Pederson or Serendipity die Edyta Sitar.  My substitutions will detract from the moderne design of the original.  I hope I still like my version when it gets done.  I care naught a whit whether it is categorized as moderne, modern or traditional.  I just hope that my efforts come together in a pleasing rendition.  I am not sure I am done with the embroidery in this section.  I am going to let it alone for a spell to see if I wish to add some more.  I took out the stitching that I had place in the center of the pink blossom.

     

I did a heavy chain stitch in Ricky Tim's Razzle Dazzle and Sulky's variegated Overlock.  I purchased the Overlock thread by mistake.  I bought it because it was variegated. When I checked to see the weight when I got home I noticed that it was a serger thread.  I do not have a serger.  I was not sure about its characteristics but I decided it would be fine to embroider with so it made its way into my collection of threads.  

I couched a lazy daisy stitch around the heavy chain stitch in the blossoms center. I liked the stitching and the thread but I did not like the color choice so I removed it.  I may go back and fill it in with dark and light pink colonial or French knots.  Maybe  I will use some seed stitches as a filler.   I was trying to think of an outline stitch for this blossom that could smoothly surround this blossoms convex and concave exterior while fitting snuggly around the edge.  I wanted something other that the Pearl, Coral, Scroll stitching that I had already been using.  I pulled out an old publication by Coats and Clark's 150-A and found the double knot stitch.  This stitch is easy and it hugs both convex and concave.  I think you just need to keep the stitches even.  Increasing the stitch length could give a different look to this stitch.  I am sure I will start using this stitch again an again.

     

Come on over to Elm Street Quilts and join us by monthly goals for our quilting projects.  See what the others have accomplished.

July OMG Round the Garden continued

I need to do the blossoms in the green band under the houses in Quadrant 1.  I suspect I will need a change of pace and will work on the interior of Quadrant 2 which is a basket of flowers and some rabbits.  I also need to work on the tiny flowers growing at the base of the tree and across the lawn.  I will be away from this project and off to my other abode for a spell so I should not promise too much progress on this project.  I will miss it while I am away.  Come on over to Elm Street Quilts and join us by making monthly goals for our quilting projects.  See what the others have accomplished.

June OMG Round the Garden Progress

I am happy to report that I managed to get further than my goal this month.  I still need to finish some flowers at the base of the tree in the interior of quadrant 1 but I wanted to start working on the houses so I skipped to the exterior of quadrant 1.  This project is so much fun. come on over to Elm Street Quilts and join in the gang who make out monthly goals for our quilting projects.

Round the Garden Exterior 2

The thread assortment above is my choice for the red tree in Exterior 2.  I used the red silk to whip stitch the leaves. The reddish brown Sew Sassy was used to embellish the leaves with thorn stitch.  The other four spools of Sew Sassy are for the vein of the leaf under the thorn stitch.  I continue the couched vein and create a branch using stem stitch which then becomes the trunk of the tree.  The trunk is therefore multicolored.  I am happy with the result.  I through in the gold for kind of a highlight color.  My sister is in the process of making a quilt.  She had four different background fabrics- three grey taupes and a tan.  We were joking that the Sesame street jingle "One of these things is not like the others"  applied to the tan but thought that maybe it was okay.  Turns out that the tan added a sparkle to the quilt because it did not blend.  That was a good lesson.  I am using random lengths of thread.  Wherever the thread length ends I pick up a new color.  I am pleased with the result.  I am also very happy I bought all that Sew Sassy on sale.

I used silk ribbon for the leaves.  I need to make more leaves, more insects a bird and some stitching on the light house.  I may want to use stabilizer under the lighthouse stitching.  I could not find the pattern for the bird and I have not decided how to work the insects.  I used a gold ribbon for the insect above the tree.  I only have a little left so I my want to use it in another quadrant.  I used black rayon perle  boullion knots for the honey bee rather than backstitch.  I still have not decided on the wings.  I have some organza 9mm ribbon that I am considering using.  I wish is was 4mm.  I do like the idea of using organza ribbon.  MaybeI I will look to see if Bucilla makes a narrower size.  I will come back to Exterior 2.  Now on to Exterior 1.  I am attaching the tree and I looked up how to properly pin a wool applique patch in a browser.  I did not find anything that addressed that issue.  All I saw was instructions for fusibles, fabric tac, and glue basting.  Interesting.

Round the Garden Progress

I still have a lot more to do before the end of the month to meet my OMG but I have made good progress.  This quadrant has some bugs in the design.  I will be using my Sue Spargo embroidery books.  I know they have directions for stitching bugs.  In the meantime I will be making a lot of circle flowers.

Wendy Williams Round the Garden June OMG

Here is the background I dyed for Wendy Williams Round the Garden wool applique quilt.  I hand painted this cloth with a blue in the center a Kiwi green circle and a mauve exterior.  I ran out of the dye paste for the exterior and had to remix.  My second mix was not quite the color of the first so it is a bit blotchy in places.  I was not sure if I should use it as I am not in love with the fabric.  I decided to go with it as the wool on top is to be the real star of the quilt.  We will see what happens,  I am attempting to complete the first interior quadrant of the circle this month.  This should be fun.

This stitch was created by bobbin work.  I put some Ricky Tims white Razzle Dazzle in the bobbin case and white Sew Sassy on top.  I used a 100 top stitch needle with stitch number 1328 on my Bernina. The stitch is one that emulates a running stitch.  The pattern indicates that you should use a running stitch to demarcate the sections.  I tried it on a sample thinking I would adjust the length of the stitch.  I was very surprised with the curly cue result.  I decided I liked it and proceeded to stitch.  Unfortunately I stitched one of the lines in the wrong place so I had to unstitch and restitch where it needed to be.  The holes from the stitching are quite large so I may have to add some stabilizer or something on the back.  Most of if will be covered with applique pieces so I will worry about that later.

The flying geese are all added and here is when I noticed that the horizontal line was misplaced.

 I fixed my mistake and added the wool for the tree along with stitching the edge of the green border.  I made the top edge wavy so I decided not to stitch it.  Now on to the isosceles triangles. 

The quadrants are now delineated.  Now to focus on upper right section. 

Sew Spooky Finished!

 This pattern is by Arlene and Melissa of The Quilt Company out of San Diego CA.  There is another shop in Pennsylvania called The Quilt Company but it is not the same people.  Sew Spooky was a BOM but you could also buy the complete kit, individual block patterns or  the complete pattern.  I bought the pattern and the fabric accessory packet.  I did not buy the buttons that went with the kit.  I substituted buttons that I happened to have already.  I did not have an owl button so I stuffed and appliqued an owl from my backing fabric in the window of the barn. 

I backing is based on Judy Sisneros book 9-Patch Pizzazz.  This is a great way to blow up a standard 42-44 inch yardage of cotton so that it can fit the back of a quilt.  I will do this again in the future. 

The designer used appliqued bats and stars in the border.  I opted to use the black chevron border and I quilted the bats in the border.  My bats are tilted this way and that to look like they are flying about.

I quilted a cow jumping over the moon along with some stars.

Next to the candy corn on top I quilted ghosts and next to the candy corn in the bottom I stitched owls.

I stitched pumpkins around the quilt house.  My quilt lifts up to reveal a spider and web underneath.

                     

Around the barn I quilted bats.

Around the Jack o' Lantern house I quilted candy corn and script that says Trick or Treat.

 The Ghoul School is quilted with skeletons.

 The raven topped pumpkin block has a quilted cemetery.

And the witch house has quilted script that says "If the boot fits cackle"  along with Lori Kennedy's Spooky Spiders hanging from the moon and the broom stick. 

I feel that after this adventure I have become much more confident in my ability to successfully free motion quilt.  I have gotten over the fear of quilting.  I know it is not going to be perfect and I am having fun quilting my quilts.  Now to decide what to finish next.  I encourage you to join in the fun at Elm Street Quilts and make progress on your UFO's and share your finishes while seeing what others are doing in that regard.