adding colour

Thanks for the useful comments about my wall hanging.  It does help to "discuss" a piece if only to reinforce previously held thoughts. 

I have decided to go with my original idea and add some colour.  As I look out my kitchen window I see a lot of tree tops and the various branches, leaves, flowers and of course birds.

Although at first glance the eucalyptus
trees seem quite dull, in fact there is a lot of colour and texture within.  You just have to look for it.

Anyway I now have a clear picture in my mind of what this piece will be.  I want it to be something that reveals itself slowly.  I want it to be peaceful and calming.  Meditative.

flowers & leaves

I have added some red flowers and some green for leaves but I am not sure about the effect.  I really liked the look of it with the simple lines.

Maybe less is more.  Comments would be appreciated.

progress

I have taken advantage of the recent warm weather to catch up on a little stitching.

My hands feel a lot better when the days are not so cold.

The wall hanging is coming along nicely. 

I have added a few hand stitched branches and some french knots and other stitches.

 The warm weather is over for a few days now and we have gale force winds and rain which will last most of the night I  think.

works in progress

 At present I have several projects underway.  The one pictured on the left is a wall hanging for our dining room.  
I have had this piece of linen in my stash for quite  a while and it is ideal for this purpose.  


The inspiration is all around me: the tops of the gum trees that I can see from my kitchen windows.

The pic on the right is a small piece from one of the high trees.
When the galahs are feeding in the trees they often break off twigs and small branches.  I found this one on the steps one morning.  You can see the little buds and a tiny flower.  


I have made a start by doing some machine stitching, couching threads as I go.  I also wound some metallic thread onto the bobbin and turned the piece over to stitch some of the lines.  Some hand stitched branches will be added when I can manage it. 

The leaves will be made using organza and you can see there are two sitting on the fabric.  I will bond two layers of organza ribbon together, using mistyfuse and then cut out the leaves which will be stitched on individually.  The flowers and gumnuts will be added once the leaves are in place.

While Ally (grand daughter) was staying with us she drew a page of vases and other shapes while watching tv.  She cannot just sit and watch:  so she draws.  


Anyway we decided to scan the page and print it onto a piece of dupioni silk.  Before printing we bonded some light stabiliser to the back of the silk to give it a bit more body.


This will be stitched to a cushion for her bedroom.  I am so thrilled that she loves to create and is confident enough to want to preserve her drawings in textiles.

The piece on the right is made using more of the fabrics I received in the recent EG challenge.  It is the beginning of a needlebook.

some of my favourite things

These pics are some that I took recently when we went for a walk in our neighbourhood. Some are taken from my kitchen window. The area has lots of eaucalyptus and other indiginous trees. 

I have had a lovely week, some stitching, some babysitting, a special dinner with my husband, a visit from our beloved granddaughter and I have also managed to paint the dining room. 

Our grand daughter has been here for two days and will stay a couple more days.  Tonight she planned and prepared a lovely meal for her grand dad who has been away for 5 days.

The highlight was this delicious trifle.  What a treat.  We feel so pleased that at 14 Ally still loves to come and stay with us.

some things that I have learnt

When I set out to make the box I pictured in my last post I wanted to try something new.  The fact that the fabrics were ones I would not have chosen myself I felt free to try something different.

This was the beginning of lots of lessons.


On this journey I discovered that 


1.  If the project is described as "easy" that just means that the person writing the book had no difficulty doing it.

2.  A project that includes lots of small pieces of fabric and very little stitching can only be harder than one that requires lots of stitching.  Those little pieces just move around as they please.

3.  When creating a round element in a project figure out how you are going to do the outer edge before you commence.

4.  Cutting, folding and ironing small pieces of cloth is not easy when you have arthritis in your hands. 

5.  Trying new techniques is challenging and satisfying.

5.   Dropping your spectacles on the bathroom floor on a Friday evening is likely to cause considerable inconvenience.
Yes I did that and yes it does.

EG challenge box

I have been working on this box for a challenge through the embroiderer's guild UK forum.