Hopes and Dreams

Today, I completed this project using the first of my embroidered faces. It's an art quilt (appx. 14" x 14") made using a reverse applique technique with perle cotton, beads and star sequins used to further embellish it. This was my first try at a scalloped binding--it was easier to do than I expected and I like how it gives the quilt a different look.




I added a rod pocket to the back to insert a dowel rod for hanging on the wall.


The title is "Hopes and Dreams" and is listed in my Etsy Shop.



**********************************

On a different note, guess what THIS is!

It's Lucy's (Fantazya) Diary 2009 Project! My copy came in the mail today and I can't wait to sit and look at all 392 pages of it! Quickly flipping through it earlier, I saw pages contributed by some familiar blogging friends--what fun!


Lucy had the diaries assembled with plain card stock covers so we can personalize them any way we want to.

I contributed two pages to the Diary Project. My birthday...


and Rick's birthday...


I'm really glad I learned about this collaborative--so many creative people, and where to find them, all in one little book!

Marilyn

Winning a Giveaway is f-u-n, FUN!

Tina, Needles 'n' Notions celebrated her 100th post recently. I met Tina through Doll Quilt Swap 4. She's the sweet and talented quilter that created "A Day at the Beach", the beautiful doll quilt that I received in the swap.

To celebrate the event of her 100th post, Tina offered a really nice and generous giveaway--2 one yard cuts of fabric and a package of 20 flower head pins--and lucky, LUCKY me, I was the winner in her drawing! Isn't the fabric gorgeous? Both pieces have such a lovely vintage look to them and the flower head pins make me smile--they're such happy looking pins:)

Thank you very much, Tina! I'm excited and looking forward to thinking up with something fun to sew with my new fabric!

Marilyn

Works-in-Progress

The art blog world is full of special souls, isn't it? Artists encouraging, supporting, caring for each other--it's mighty wonderful. You've been encouraging about my stitching of this little gal and I thank you. Here she is, finished...


I had so much fun with it that I drew and stitched another...


and another...


I remember, growing up, I would draw girls' faces...influenced by my mom, I'm certain. She would draw pictures of women, some were faces only and some were full length. Her drawings were that great pin-up girl style of the 1940's and they were amazing. My older cousin and I, however, preferred to draw girls with more contemporary hairstyles such as a teased up Bubble or Flip! I hadn't thought about all of that in ages so reminiscing was part of the fun.

While stitching, I also wondered what I would do with the finished faces. I did come up with an idea and, so far at least, this pieced quiltlet is part of the plan.


I never know how a plan is going to come together, so I'll just call it a work-in-progress for now. Hopefully, soon, both you and I will see how it turns out.

Marilyn

Suddenly, There's Stuff Everywhere!

Sometimes, without warning, life takes on that crazy whirlwind effect, doesn't it? I do understand, for some of you, life is a constant whirlwind, not just for several days or a few weeks. I remember balancing forty hour work weeks and family, a wonderful family mind you, but a house with four kids and five pets IS a whirlwind. Thank goodness for my incredible husband--we made a good team. Still do, but things have slowed down some with just the two of us in the house.

So, the whirlwind...that's my dad, literally, for as long as I can remember and he hasn't stopped yet. A widower for five years, he went to his 60th high school class reunion in June where he met up with a woman, a former classmate, also widowed, for 11 years. In spite of her living 900 miles away, they were immediately inseparable and married on September 4th. My growing-up-house went on the market, sold in a week and they're packing up to move to Corpus Christi, TX. Whew!

After my mom died, my sister and I, over time, helped my dad look through some of her personal items. We kept special pieces and packed up the rest to move along. Because of Dad's big move, the past two or three days have been a re-living of that process. He isn't interested in taking a whole lot with him and I understand that, and my two brothers aren't interested in much either. So in we went again, my sister and I, with an eye out for the special things...photographs, books, dishes, knick-knacks, sewing supplies and some pretty linens made by who knows who. My mother did not crochet or embroider, but my grandmother did so perhaps they're her handiwork.

Mom did love dolls, though, and we knew we would find some of her old favorites in a cedar chest in the basement. I just love these three and chose them to bring home with me. They need a little TLC but I enjoy doing that. And take a look at that great old doll quilt!


We also found a box of doll clothes and accessories. So adorable! Do you see the "Monday" undies, on the right hand side underneath the "Dolsox"? Heehee, kinda makes you wonder what happened to Tuesday through Sunday.


Do any of you know anything about the doll on the right? I never saw this particular one prior to Monday and haven't taken the time yet to do any research. It's very unusual--the arms and legs seem to be a bendable metal coil and her hands and feet remind me of Mickey Mouse's. I'm quickly becoming attached and would love to know something about her:) (Thurs., Sept. 18 - UPDATE - Last night, I was able to find this information online: "1938 Fanny Brice as Baby Snooks, 12" tall, flexy doll with wire mesh torso and a metal cable thru arms & legs. IDEAL DOLL." Interesting.)



As I go along, I'll try to share some more of my fun finds with you. Thanks for coming along with me on my little trip down memory lane.

Marilyn

Rainy Day Reflections

What is it about a rainy day that makes this so appealing?


Curling up on the loveseat with some stitching or a good book...or, in Emma's case, napping. I understand the attraction to napping--it's cloudy and the sound of rain is soothing.

I do wonder, some, about the attraction to stitching or reading on a rainy day. The same cloudiness seems to make it more difficult to see, or would that be my aging eyes? Is there a connection between stitching or reading and the soothing sound of raindrops? Hmmm. I suspect it could be the coziness of the rainy day matched with the low energy needed for stitching or reading...

Really no need to do a lot of analyzing...kind of useless, actually, because it really wouldn't change my perspective about how comforting the combination can be.
****************
This is what I'm stitchin' up. I sketched the face a couple of days ago without any real plan. But yesterday, I did the ol' "I wonder..." and this is where it went. Still no real plan, just enjoying the process.


****************
Now, about the rain... It's not even a cool rain. It's warm and muggy. Yuck. But with the a/c turned down low, I can pretend, right? And by the looks of these first fallen leaves on the lawn, cooler temps could be a possibility before too long.


****************
OK, just one more "wonder". Why did this little leaf fall to this side of the tree all by itself while all the other leaves are in a group on the opposite side? You can make up your own story.


For now, I'm taking my curious self back to the loveseat where I'm pretty sure Emma hasn't moved a muscle since I left.

Marilyn

Cut, Paste, Embellish...Repeat

Staying true to my A.D.D. way of crafting, I've been playing with paper and photos quite a bit lately. (Wasn't I just showing you my latest fabric project?!) Don't get me wrong, I'm perfectly fine with bouncing around my little craft world (from paper to fabric to paints/inks/pencils and all of the various sub-categories), working on whatever my mood dictates. I can say, the only thing that might pose a problem would be the storing of lots of different supplies. But, being empty-nesters makes that a non-issue for me.

So this is what my playing has produced...

First, these two mini-albums (they're both the same--you're seeing the front of one and the back of the other) are gifts for two special women in my life, ones I spent a fun weekend with recently. LOL, how's that for a hint! For now, I'll leave it at that, but the idea was from this tutorial I came across.


Then, of course, the vacation photos...the sheer number of them keeps me from doing anything too clever--I'm thrilled to have them in an album so soon. I did do this paper weaving for the title page. That was fun and I like the result.


The photos are in an 8x8 inch album, which I thought would be a nice size. However, putting more than one 4x6 print on a page proved tricky.

I turned that challenge into an opportunity--one print per page with a different color of cardstock for each page. And, for the most part, I was able to use paper I already had on hand. It's definitely a colorful album. My prints were ordered from Shutterfly.com and I really like this particular border and caption option.


Last, but not least, I so enjoyed putting together this photocube for John, Quilt Dad, my swap partner for Doll Quilt Swap 4. I made it using pictures of his adorable children on a recent family day at the beach. John has posted some great photos of this project on his blog.



I'm not sure what's next for me, but I wish you lots of joy and satisfaction in your creative world!

Marilyn