It felt like a really really good week. I got three pieces off my WIPlist (TAST #83, Bling it On! and August BJP butterfly) and actually got in some cross-stitching - and the Ajisai blackwork "Puppy Dog": All other items in my work bag were ignored but since there is an October butterfly to take the place of the August one (and September hasn't even been designed yet!) and an October Crazy Quilt block coming up as well, I'm really no closer to clearing the decks than I was last week.
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All of my stitchery done this week was done this weekend, which also happened to be International Hermit and Stitch Weekend for September. In addition to tackling the week's TAST assignment on Friday and visiting the Needlework Show on Saturday , I made a concentrated effort to work on "Bling it On": which is now ready for beads, and on the August BJP butterfly: which now has an outline in place.
No completions but I am getting closer... Yesterday, my husband took me to see the annual Needlework Show at the Sanger Branch of the Lucas County Library (after a wonderful presentation by a great speaker, on ferns, at his Hosta and Daylily Society, so we only had about 30 minutes before the show closed and I didn't take notes.). It was the first time I've been to any sanctioned EGA show. Apparently even non EGA members can enter but the entries were primarily from the Great Lakes Region... The are judged and there are awarded, in addition to the usual first, second, third and honorable mentions, a Best in Show, a Judge's Choice, a Guild Choice, a Popular Choice (the public votes but we whipped through there so fast I didn't really form an opinion as to MY favorite), Triathlon (best average score in at least three categories), First Timer's Award, and the Joyce Merrill Award (for creativity in an original or adapted design). It wasn't clear how these major awards worked across categories, of which there were several. And within each category, a work could be divided into commercial (totally professional chart/kit based), interpretation (change colors, threads, stitches form an original/commercial design), adaptation (inspired by a non-needlework piece like a photo or a Christmas card or...), and original design by the stitcher. Husband had his good camera with him so he snapped a lot of photos but this is only about 20% (if that much) of what was being exhibited... Cross stitch... LOTS of older charts represented in Cross stitch --- Lavender and Lace, TW and Mirablia for example. and I've seen that lady in ads in British magazines before!: Embroidery Silk and Metal work - what can I say but WOW! Canvas Work - guess I was drawn to this, given all the canvas work I've been doing lately! Many of these designs were from classes offered by EGA, as near as I can tell from what I read on the cards... open work and beading And then there were these gorgeous silk ribbon embroidery ornaments... Their judging critera are spelled out on their web site and use a point system, and I think they are much more rigorous than what I've encountered at the county fair level--- I truly don't think I could compete at this level, although Husband claims I could.
This chapter meets in nearby Maumee every second Wednesday of the month, Trouble is, with my regular Tuesday night papercrafting get-together in Toledo and with Quilt Guild meeting every second Thursday, I'm not sure I'm up to three nights in a row "out on the town"... Stitch #82 is the Spanish Feather Stitch and here are two attempts --- which didn't quite work: I might attack this one again later this week...
The themes for this lunar cycle are Designer – Heaven and Earth Designs, Style – Specialty Stitches, Colors – Brown and Green. I have to say I have never stitched a HAED piece (nor do I own any, although I've been tempted). They are just to BIG a project for me, I think... As for Speciality stitches, I suppose blackwork could be considered speciality and I finished Elizabeth Almond's "Midnight Garden" and am currently stitching an Ajisai Designs piece called "Puppy Dog" which is blackwork. As for brown and green, I have nothing in my project bag at present with those colors. Since the last WIPocalypse check in, I have completed the following:
I worked on (but didn't complete)
It looks like I completed a lot but there are still some online classes I have yet to start: a background stitch journal (needs to be kitted up) and a stitch guide practicum from Janet Perry (the design needs to be transferred to canvas and I HAVE to come up with a color scheme and stitch selection) and Tracy Horner's "Roll Your Own" mandalas (there are currently seven, with fabric and threads selected but that's as far as I've gotten), to say nothing of a kitted but not started August Bead Journal Project butterfly and a yet to de designed, let alone kitted up, September Bead Journal Project butterfly. Of course, October Bead Journal and Crazy Quilt Journal pieces as well as more weekly TAST assignments are also waiting in the wings for their entry cues.
I finally beat the cough, although a permanent throat-clearing irritation is still hanging in there. And the stitching mojo, once I forced myself to pick up that needle and stitch, came back, sort of... It's just that the pieces I'm stitching aren't interesting any more and I don't have anything in my stash that really really is calling to me. I suspect I've burned out on online SALs, but we shall see --- sign-up time is coming up for Crazy Quilt Journal and Bead Journal 2014 and I expect I will register again for both. I did attend quilt guild's work day on September 14, hoping it would stimulate me to get back on track, and am signed up for retreat October 11 - 13 for the same reason. Also, I'm hoping to go to the local EGA annual show either Friday or Saturday and have plans to stitch, stitch, stitch this weekend because it's International Hermit and Stitch Weekend! This past week was another catch-up week but with quilt guild obligations, I didn't get as far as I wanted, I fear. Still, one day at a time! I had two completions --- the July Bead Journal Project butterfly and the September Crazy Quilt Journal Project block: I stitched on the new blackwork piece, "Puppy Dog", and got an eye done: And at quilt guild, I finally cut and sewed strips for a quilt I promised to do way back in 2010 (it was called the "unstarted project" or USP)... It will eventually (I hope) become a throw-sized quilt of the Chinese Coins pattern. right now, the strip set is 50 inches long by roughly 40 inches wide, but it will be cut into three smaller strip sets of 50 inches by 5.5 inches... This will probably end up a VERY large throw! LOL
Meanwhile, I kitted up the next BJP butterfly (August) which will be in greens with a touch of crystal...and I want to start on the "Bling it On!" block for quilt retreat as well... MyJuly Bead Journal Project butterfly. He did end up a tad wonky, one side being a slight bit smaller and his body something of a tortured curve, but he is patriotic, as July butterfly should be:
Here's my take on the second variation of Raised Chain Stitch (Stitch # 81 of Take a Stitch Tuesday): and here is page 4 for 2013, which includes stitches 74 - 81 (Zig Zag Chain, Woven Zig Zag Chain, Vandyke Stitch, Woven Cross Stitches, Cloud Filling, Chained Cross Stitch, Raised Chain Stitch version 1 and Raised Chain Stitch Version 2):
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AuthorBorn in New Jersey, I grew up in Southeastern Ohio. Attended university at Bowling Green State University (B.Sci in biological science, 1964), University of Southern California (M. Sci in biological science, 1967) and University of Florida (Ph. D in zoology, 1971). Archives
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