Monday Smiles!

This weekend I worked on a small piece from a design by Kindred Spirits. The book is called Homespun Stitcheries and is out of print, but you can still get used copies of their books.

I just love this design, it is simple and fun and the saying makes me smile. I made a small one that I can give as a gift and have another I am working on for myself in a larger version. I put it in a frame to show you, but I want to make it more like a postcard with a stiff back and maybe felt behind that, and with a hanger, it will be a nice way to send a gift.

I didn't put any batting in this one, I wanted to keep the stitchery look.

This weekend was low key, and it was too cold to get out for a walk, so we went for a drive and just enjoyed the views from the car. This is what it looks like in the winter, just footprints from warmer days.

The boys came over for dinner, and while the guys were doing things, Nick and I hung out, he was giving me attitude, he is such a smart alec.

If you remember the garden stitcheries that I have been working on, you can now get them for free again. Theodora Cleave is offering them again, a few each day, so if you are interested in making your own garden quilt, make sure you visit and get your copies.

Another free BOM is starting up with Dawn at Linen Closet Quilts. She is offering a wool BOM with baskets, this is another one that I really want to do. I hope I can keep up with all of them.

Friday Finishes!

This week I made two pieces, the first is an Easter piece that I made from Rebekah Smith's book, Wool Applique Folk Art. I made this pillow smaller by reducing the design so it is 9" x 10". I am not sure if I stitched right, my brain is still on hold so I just used what looked good. I also stitched around the designs to help tack down the two pieces.

It is a fun piece and a wonderful piece to decorate with. It was hard getting the colors right in the photo and trying to balance the light and dark so you could see the details.

The second piece is a smaller pillow, 4" square. I found this design online as a freebie, by Cheryl Seslar of Raggedy Scrappin. I found it on pinterest, but can no longer find it online, but you can get it from this pinterest link.

And just in time for Valentine's Day, I made a banner for my bunny. I found a stiff felt at the craft store and it is perfect for mini shapes. I cut out the hearts and stitched on the letters, then used yarn to hang them from bunnies arms. It is a fun idea and I can make an easter one, and one for Christmas, so she can stay out longer;)

I hope everyone has a nice weekend and a Happy Valentines!

Monday Finish!

It was a long weekend, a storm on Friday so Bill took the day off and then today we got another storm so he stayed home again. That is the benefit of being salaried, he doesn't lose money and it is not worth driving 45 minutes in this weather.

Of course that meant I didn't get much done and we did get out for a few days so that was good.
I decided to make something quick and simple and if you are looking for something to finish in a day, this is the perfect heart to make, just in time for Valentines Day.

The design can be found at All Free Crafts and it was actually a design to paint on a T-shirt, but I thought it made a nice Valentines bowl filler. I traced the design onto the backing and then went around the design to get the heart shape. When I sewed it to the backing, I used the end stitching as a guide to go around the heart. The leaves would have been nicer if i stitched them, but I was lazy and wanted to go quickly, so I used a lazy daisy stitch.

I added the stitched heart in the middle, it was an empty space and I could not find a way to fit a word, so I went with simple. I also used walnut ink and it was not working right and kept leaving large dark spots in a couple of spaces and the rest stayed light, so I had to rinse and redo a few times.

We went for a ride down the back roads and enjoyed the views of snow covered ponds and rivers. This was an old mill and they redid the area into a park so everyone can enjoy it.

Of course we headed to the stores at the south end of the state, you never know what you will find and this time I found some starfish lights. They are perfect to put in my beach room to add a little magic. I just put them around the planter for a photo, but I have another set and will be redoing the room a few times as I add new things and get a better plan on where I want things.

I hope everyone had a nice weekend and not too much snow in your  area. We are getting hit with snow this week, so a good week to stay home and work on projects.

Friday Finish!

This week I was in the mood to practice my needle felting. I wanted to try something with pipe cleaners to see who it worked. So, I made a simple stick figure for a base. Then I decided I wanted to try craft stuffing as a base to save on my roving. It worked and it felted together to stay on the pipe cleaners, but it didn't pack in and stiffen like roving does.

Next I wanted to try using wool yarn. I had some old yarn that had no tag, so no idea if it is all wool, but it has a nice texture and color for animals, so I used a method I say online. I cut pieces of yarn and then brushed them with my cat's brush, yes my cat's brush, I cleaned it first;) It worked nicely, it turned the yarn into a puffy roving that felted up nicely and quickly since it is coarser.

So, I started felting over the stuffing and what was going to be a person, turned into a bunny, then what was a boy bunny laying down became a girl bunny standing up. I just work like you might with clay, I just add and think as I go and I never know how it will turn out till I am done. I made her some clothes with a felted sweater and a few bunny features and this is how she came out. I made white boots since I wanted her to be a skater, but not sure about the skate bottoms, and for now I have decided that I want her to hold a garland. It will have four hearts that spell out love, so I can make that with wool and jute and it will be done this week. This way if I want, I can always change the garland and have a christmas one for next  year and use her for two seasons.

She stands about 9" tall to the pom pom. I have learned that stuffing is not good to felt with unless it is wool, it is too soft so I couldn't shape and form her the way I wanted and the pipe cleaners get in the way and don't really bend that well, too soft.

I hope you like her, it was a fun experiment and I learned some new things.

We got a lot of the snow from the storm, so we stayed home and watched movies. At the end of the day the sun came out just in time for a beautiful sunset and Bill got the fun of cleaning off the driveway. I hope everyone has a wonderful weekend and sunny days.

Monday Finish!

This year I plan on doing a Christmas piece when I get a chance and it is a great project to do in between projects or when I want to just relax and work on something while I watch movies on the weekend.

I received Kathy Schmitz's newsletter and she had a free Christmas pattern and it was the perfect project to do over the weekend. I love Kathy's patterns and she does offer more free patterns on her website.

I decided to make the stitchery into a pillow and add the word snow and snowflakes in the corners. This design was really fun to do and you could also do it in different mediums, so her patterns are great no matter what craft you do.

The pillow is 10" x 8" and I used walnut stain, once it was finished.
I hope everyone had a nice weekend and enjoying doing some winter crafting.

Friday Finishes!

I am slowly getting back into creating again, sitting and relaxing is just not in my nature. Relaxing to me is working on projects while I watch tv and with the cold weather, I will be doing more of that for a few more months.

I wanted to try a punched kitty, like the ones I did with cross stitch. I used one of my cats for this piece to see how it worked. I am not thrilled with how it came out. I used 6 strands on all of it and a higher height for the designs and face and It came out too sloppy looking and the design is too big for the area. So, I will make some new ones with new ideas and designs that I thought of, while I made this one.

I was thinking of making a pair and they could be used as Christmas ornaments or stand alone. If you have any ideas of what  you would like to see, in new patterns, let me know and I will see what I can create. If I use your idea in a pattern, you will receive the pattern for free!

I am also fighting off lyme symptoms again, so my joints and nerves ache, which makes it harder to do nice work, but I will still create. And my brain is on hold most of the time and I just noticed, I forgot to add his bell in the front, duh. I think for the next kitty I will make a collar to go around his neck.

I also finished another block from the garden stitchery. Only one more to go and then I can decide on borders and how it will go together. It takes me longer to stitch since I mess up a lot and have to take it out to fix stitches that are spaced apart, ones I didn't notice at first;)

I hope everyone has a nice weekend. I am hoping to get out and enjoy a ride to the ocean, even if I have to sit in the car, it is nice to just be at the ocean. We may get a warm up, over 40 is going to feel warm.

Monday Finishes from Freebies!

There are so many wonderful artists on the internet who share their talents with us, and there is something for everyone. I actually finished two projects but the bunny was finished today.

The bunny pattern is a freebie offered on Pattern Mart. There are a variety of projects on their site for free and thousands of patterns from different artists. Be sure to sign up for their newsletter, they send one out, once a week and also have surveys that offer free patterns, as well.

This guy is a creation by Catnap Primitives. He is one piece, except for the ears, so he was easy to put together and fun to change up by using what I had. I have a hard time focusing on instructions, usually after a couple sentences I get lost, so I just look them over and then cut out the pieces and put them together;) Check out her other patterns, lots of wonderful prims and most are under five dollars.

I stitched areas on the ears to get the bunching and then I inserted a wire to keep them upright. I basically messed with them, until I got the look I want;) I hope you like him, he makes me smile. I moved him and didn't realize his carrots are crooked. I tacked them on to the hands, so they do move.

My second project was to get my Buttermilk Basins BOM done. I love the first design and can't wait to see the next one. This is going to be a fun BOM and you will have a finished quilt for next Christmas, don't forget to get your copy of the first block.

I am using Primitive Gatherings line of seasonal fabric for the backgrounds. The wool I use is a mix of new and over dyed thrift wool. I realized I forgot to add the fringe on the scarf and the star on the snowman, so I will add those on.

I hope everyone got to work on projects this weekend. Snowstorms have their benefits.