Stitching taking place



Tabitha's pocket in one of her incarnations.

It has been a busy couple of weeks with stitching taking place on a number of things. I have been putting more stuff onto my Tabitha’s pocket – more needed according to the tutor.

I have also completed the pre-stitching for the Latvian class for next week and chosen some colours. I hope that they look good and I will take a photo of the class next week.

Also I attended our regional embroidery retreat and make a book using paper. It was really loads of fun and quick to do with lots of exciting things being done. I had a blast and think I may make a few more at some stage (great idea to use up old visoflix which is not working too great).
Also stitched a little more on my BJP but not certain if the February one is finished yet.
My Biscornu has three squares to go so wanting to get that done before our meeting on April 19th so I can sew it together at the meeting. It is looking good and I am pleased that I have done it. I will have to look into another way of displaying my pincushions as getting too many for the basket now.

Update on Stitching

It seems like a long time since I wrote anything and I feel as if no-one is watching. At night class we are doing a short class with Lee (www.notesfromunderthemountain.blogspot.com) and making her pocket for Titania. It was loads of fun last night and we have another night in two weeks so I will try and remember to take a photo of us all.

My pocket is for Tabitha as shown in the photo below. I have also been busy completing stitching for the Woman’s Institute Arts Festival - great expectations as mum keeps telling everybody about my work and I have finished several items, cushion, craft bag, knitting needle holder, one button bracelet with another on the way and two brooches.

I would like to get a prize but I am competing with lots of experienced ladies so fingers crossed. Tonight I will finish the button bracelet and then label everything so I can take it to mum’s tomorrow as the festival is on Thursday.

Beaded Journal Project
I am hoping to get another month done after this week. I have started the backgrounds for two more ATC's so one is done and I will photograph it to put onto here later this week.
This year I have been making ATC's which will go into the book I am now keeping. I decided I liked the size of that and inspiration for me will be words, poetry, songs that mean something to me at the time.

Another month

January 29th

March 2010 BJP "Snake eyed floozy" - line from Capricorn Sister by Mother Love Bone

Another month has nearly finished and I have completed the third page of my 2010 BJP. This one is attributed to Maree, a friend who has widened my music taste so it now includes things like malfunkshun, kings of leon and nine inch nails. This piece is from Mother Love Bone, song: Capricorn Sister and the line reads “Snake eyed floozy”.

I have printed a picture of Mary (Madonna or Magdalene) and then an eye. Maree is a fan of eqyptian gods and the eye I have turned into a snake with the addition of beads in a snake shape. Mary Magdalene is regarded as the world’s most famous fallen woman but is also a Madonna figure of the power of redemption. I found this piece quite a challenge as my initial piece had a snake bead on it but it would not sit right and I could not bead around it. I have shown it to Maree and she really liked it so that was great.

Starting on the 2011 BJP and I am choosing to do the ATC card size so I can do a swap with Karen (Florida). I have made the backgrounds for January and thoughts to go with it will come on the next posting. I will be using words that mean something to me each month but may also use quotes from other. I am hoping to get my computer sorted as i cannot always download pictures and can never get anything that needs an adobe product.



I have been keeping in touch with the BJP'ers and found this via bloghopping on Sue's Craft Cupboard. http://tammysprinkle.blogspot.com/ has a Pay It Forward activity. The idea is to promise something handmade to the FIRST 5 people who leave a comment here. To be eligible, you too must repost this offering something handmade by you to 5 other people. The rules are that it must be handmade by you and it must be sent to your 5 people some time in 2011.
So - I promise to send the first five people leaving a comment here, a hand-made-by-me gift - soon, but remember you have to do it too. It sounded like a fun thing to do and as I love "snail mail" and "surprises" - and the film "Pay it Forward" - I'm following Tammy's idea too.

A Busy day

I have had a really busy day today with starting to make icicles for my winter goddess, complete the background for an ATC and a beaded journal page. also I have spent 15 minutes at a time cleaning up my ipod and deleted over 500 duplicate songs and spent all day listening to the Kings of Leon. Think they will be my band of choice at the moment.
Also spent 15 minutes at a time cleaning up my desk area and have nearly taken every thing off it to dust off the dust bunnies (the power of 15 minutes at a time - http://www.flylady.net/)
Also I have spent time tidying up all my photos from seven years so they are all stored onto a remote hard disk and then hopefully I will be able to get my computer fixed or sorted as I am not able to do anything with adobe files, quicktime or flashplayer so I cannot download any e-books onto my e-reader.
two more days and work starts again so going to spend several hours beading and stitching now and then to bed. Shopping tomorrow for new clothes (since I have a stylist I have discovered a love of nice clothes) and then gardening and house cleaning weather permitting.
Enjoy the weekend.

Days at the beach

Mum and I have had days at the beach so that was great. We have done quite a bit of stitching on the light canvas of our ohio project "Walk on the Wild Side". I have completed six sections on this piece and am hoping over the next couple of weeks to get a flicker photo organised.

This is mum getting ready to start and the view from the cabin that we had each day. It was wonderful.

my section two nearly done. I cannot decide what to do in the gap whether to repeat the colour or to change it to the metallic thread. I will decide before I have to take it off the bars, I promise.

My progress to date. I have not quite completed the bargello stitching but I have made a start on the bottom three sections.

Good news

Just heard from my niece, Alice and she has got into medical school in Dunedin. This is the start of her dream. She has wanted to be a paediatric surgeon since she was in primary school. I am really pleased for her.

Merry Christmas to all

Just a few days before Christmas and the weather has really deteriorated. It has been wet for several days so the farmers are celebrating as the drought season has been delayed for at least a while. It has been colder as well so time to catch up with all the watching on the tv and am nearly up to date with a number of programmes.

School has basically finished for me with just a few more things to do and then I am off until at least ten days before school starts. Hoping to get some time at the beach with mum and a few days away with Stephanie to Wellington. We are going to the European Masters exhibition at Te Papa so that will be neat. Not certain what else we shall do.

Christmas wishes to all friends that read this blog. I have had a wonderful 2010 although not all things have been completed. Heart of the cabin has stalled due to our travel to san Francisco and attendance at seminar. I have completed one piece from seminar and have most of my pages ready for my notebook but nothing to put it into yet. Linda’s piece walk on the wild side is still just sitting and am hoping to do some over the holidays to get at least the first canvas finished.

Beaded journal project was not a big success this year as I only completed three months with another three designed and not stitched. On the beading plus side I did complete three of Laura McCabe’s kits that I bought. I also designed three new decorations (Neptune’s series) and taught them. This last three months I have done another Christmas ball which my group of ladies did one night. This last weekend I have borrowed a couple from a friend of mum’s and am hoping to make them and then also make the patterns for them. I have made 12 of these decorations for gifts so that was a busy time. See them in previous posts.
This year I made my first ATC and did a swap. It was fun. As well I swapped a biscornu on the swap-bot network as well as a couple of other swaps.
A challenge has been presented to me for next year with the invitation to enter an ANZEG exhibition in October. I have a number of thoughts and this holidays will find me starting on at least one of them.
So to all friends I hope that you all have a wonderful season and that the weather good and bad does not deter your festive times.
Diane