Nativity Story

Nativity Story is my latest project. The artwork is done by Krista Hamrick.  The embroidery design is Nativity Story from OESD.  The designs are a combination of applique with thread painting and thread alone.  There are about 46 different thread colors in the 26 tiles.  I am having it framed and hope to have it back by Christmas.

FSL 3D Angel

I love this angel!  It has three separate parts that must be stitched: the body, the skirt, and the wings.  Then they are put together to make one of the cutest angels I have seen.  I found it at Sew Crafty in the Christmas Spirit Pop-Up Store.  I could not wait to see how it looked.  Did I say "I love this angel!"

FSL Angels

I love these free standing lace angels.  I recently purchased the patterns from Nancy's Notions. Mea Bernina was decorating a tree for the Lawrence Festival of Trees and was using a red, white, and black design.  So I revised the patterns so that I could choose where the red, white and black would be.  The bottom middle angel also has silver metallic thread on the wings and middle section of the gown.  The metallic seems to stitch fine in my 10-needle Babylock, but I do stitch at a slower speed.  I use two layers of Wash-N-Gone from Pellon for the stabilizer.  It washes out quickly and leaves the design stiff. Angels make wonderful Christmas gifts.

Ruler Keeper

This is the Ruler Keeper I made from a pattern of the same name by Cabbage Rose. I added three embroidery designs because this is a project for Bernina's Software Inspirations. The fabric is cotton duck in a gray color. There is a plastic hangar inserted in the top space and I have not stitched it closed as the pattern suggested.  You can make this project is a few hours. I really like this project and intend to use it.The pattern can be ordered from Mea Bernina.

Burp Cloths

The burp cloths are made with the OESD's Noah's Ark Designs.  I did modify each design slightly by deleting the partner so I only had one animal to applique.  They are really cute, easy, quick and fun. Some new mommy is going to love them.

Dyeing Project

I shopped in stores and online for a gold lacy top to go with this denim jacket and just could not find what I envisioned.  So I looked for a lace top and found this ivory colored one.  I had recently been to a workday with friends where different dyeing techniques were shown.  So I got out my Dye-na-flow dyes and mixed some colors.  I finally got just the shade I wanted.  It is much tooo yellow in the photo, but really it is more of a beige/gold.  It is close to the shade of the thread.  I dabbed the color on with a sponge brush and then let it dry.  This is the look that I wanted and I am happy with the result.  Thanks to my friends for the lessons.

Wednesday Sewing Group

These are photos that Kathy Delaney took Wednesday of the sewing group in action at the Overbrook Quilt Connection.  Vernis had tons of fleece and so she invited others to add to her stash.  We had four sergers going and made fleece blankets for charity.  We started around 10 a.m. and by the middle of the afternoon we had finished 31 blankets for a local women's shelter and 10 dog beds for the Humane Society.  It was a great day with great stitching friends. Thanks to all who helped with the effort.

This is What I am Doing!

One of my stitching friends is also an artist and pattern designer. She has a barn quilt that is beautiful.  She designed redwork-type barns and wanted them digitized so that she could sell the embroidery patterns.  This has been a year-long adventure that has had many twists and turns.  Needless to say the original digitizer has left her with designs that are less than perfect.  So we have been spending time working on the designs and then stitching them to make sure they are correct.  Well the designs finish at approximately 12" X 16", so this takes lots of time, stabilizer, and fabric.  Hopefully this will be complete by the first of October.

Jeans Jacket IV

Early this year, I was part of a jeans jacket challenge.  Our group had seen one in Paducah that we loved.  We found out that it was purchased at Chico's.  So we decided that in April 2016 we would all show the jacket that we had embellished.  I became a bit obsessed with the challenge and had so many ideas that so far I haven't found a stopping point.

This jacket is the fourth one I have finished--although it needs a little more work.  The design is called Garden Grace from OESD (#12633).  I loved all of the designs and wanted a big medallion for the back of the jacket. There were plenty of different sized designs so that a large grouping could be designed. I didn't know if the embroidery would stitch correctly over the seams on the back, but for the most part it is great.  I do have some loops on the seams.  I put one line of decoration on the front and decided it really needed the second one on each side.  I really am pleased with it and will wear it.  Not I just need a shirt the right color.

Yeti Cover

My son received a new Yeti bottle for Father's Day.  He was so pleased with it he did not want to get it scratched and wanted a cover for it.  Yesterday I made a quick cover for it from camo fleece and he really liked that.  But my DIL wanted a more substantial cover so she purchased some headliner and rip stop nylon.  She is not much of a stitcher but she did a great job making the "quilted" sandwich using my great Bernina tools.  Then I made a tube the correct diameter and serged away.  I cut a circle for the bottom and serged it together.  A little tube at the top with some elastic made the perfect Yeti accessory.

Collage Clutch

This purple clutch is made using Frond fabric, the punchwork tool for my Bernina 830, and a clutch frame from Pink Sand Beach Designs. Using Designer Plus V7 made it easy to use the punchwork tool.  The design for punchwork is much like a very close stipple stitch and is part of the digitized design.  This was my first attempt at using this tool and it is easy to use.  It does leave some fuzz in the bobbin area that must be removed. 

This is the project for the May lesson of Software Inspirations.  I did enjoy using the punchwork tool although I am not sure how much I would really use it.  Many of my stitching friends have a machine dedicated to felting.  I have a lot of projects that are in need of completion, so I will think about this for a while.

Jeans Jacket Challenge II

If you read my last post, you know my friends and I enjoyed a jeans jacket decorating challenge.  This is the second one that I finished.  The jacket was found in a thrift shop, so it was a reasonable price for tinkering.  The design is from OESD and is called Henna.  The design itself has the different sections of colors which is why I chose it.  The project was stitched on my Babylock Enterprise (10 needle) and did not have any trouble stitching over seams.  I used aquamesh plus and washed it out after stitching so there was not any stabilizer to make the jacket heavier.  This jacket has been a hit with people who have seen it.  Fun to make.

Jeans Jacket Challenge

One year ago seven of us when on a trip to the Paducah Quilt Show.  We saw lots of sights, beautiful quilts, vendors that made us drool, and purchased yards and yards of fabric.  One day we were walking along the street and saw a lady with a beautiful "crewel work" denim jeans jacket.  That evening we saw her at the night show and asked her about the jacket.  She had purchased it a Chico's several years before.  But we loved it.  We sat in our seats and decided we needed to make our own jackets.  So the rules were few but it had to be a denim jeans jacket and it had to be decorated by April 1, 2016.  Last week we had a group meeting and unveiled our jackets.  This is one of my jackets.  I have to say that I have never enjoyed a challenge quite so much.  I also have not completed my first idea for the jacket.  But this is the first one I completed:

I found it on e-bay and it was a large for $20, but certainly not large enough for me. It was a great fit for my neighbor who is a barrel racer.  It is done with Belagio crystals which come in sheets or rolls.  They are heat-set with a very hot iron.  The jacket sparkles with amazing beauty.

The back is as pretty as the front.  She has received amazing compliments on her new jacket. My friends also loved it.  And this has become somewhat of an obsession for me.  I have a couple more to show you this month.
 

Embroidery on Umbrellas

Umbrellas are unbelievably hard to photograph.  The top one is aqua and the bottom is black .  But they are beautiful.  They are a special project for a drama company.  To embroider on a umbrella it is necessary to cut some of the thread sites that hold the fabric to the ribs.  Once that is done, it is easy to find the center of the fabric section.  I used aquamesh plus as the stabilizer so I could stick  the fabric to it and then wash out.  It seems to have worked well.  It does take some time to reattach the fabric to the ribs, but I only cut the thread from two ribs-thank goodness.  Ready for April Showers!!

Name Above All Names Quilt #3

In 2013, my friend purchased this pattern for me when I agreed to make her this embroidery quilt.  So I made one for her and one for me.  Mine was given to my church.  The pattern for the  small alphabet wall quilt came from OESD and was an original poster design by Krista Hamrick.  I googled Krista's web site and saw many of her other beautiful designs.  OESD has digitized several of her ABC posters, including a Christmas design and a family design and several others.  Her lastest OESD design includes each of the states of the US. (You should also see her Bible journaling artwork!) I have embroidered three of her designs.

Fast forward a couple of years and I found Beth Willis Miller who wrote several devotionals covering blocks on this quilt. The blocks cover 26 different names for Jesus that are used in the Bible.  She agreed to allow me to use the devotionals with a women's group in my church.  That led her to write a book of devotions covering all the blocks in the quilt. I am so blessed to have been even a teensy part of this inspirational effort.

Interlace XB2

This is the quilt I am working on right now.  The pattern is Interlace XB2, a free pattern from Frond Design Studios.  The quilt I saw originally was made with a white background and I think it made the colors a little brighter.  My background is Basicgrey from Moda.  It really is black with a little gray throughout (like a grunge fabric).  The bright colors are Life Goes On from Frond Fabrics. I decided to made it bigger and so it will end up to be ample queen sized. 

FSL Church

The little white church is from OESD.  I made it in December for our pastor and his wife. They both loved it.  The fabric is a white taffeta for the church and a sparkly taffeta for the snow on the roof.  It was easy to make, with the hardest part being putting the pieces together.  There is a hole in the bottom for a tea light and it gives off a glow at night. I really like it and have another one started.