Progress on Placemats & Dear Jane....

I'm still working on these placemats. I finally got them pieced, and now I'm adding some outline stitching to the center panel -- through the leaves, around the crows and maybe outlining the flowers. I dug out my Embroidery Stitch Bible which is the greatest little book with step by step illustrations as to how to execute each stitch. I find that I am enjoying the process of stitching these little details very much. I would like to do more of that. Once I finish stitching in some detail, I will back these, do a little outline quilting, bind them and then they'll be finished and off to their new home.

I have NOT been diligently working on Dear Jane as I find these tiny blocks a bit err, uh ..........

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F R U S T R A T I N G! I do resolve to keep plugging away at them though -- because I do need to learn to ACCURATELY piece (as is evidenced by these horridly crooked blocks!!) so I am looking at this as a learning experience. I am trying to do at least 2 blocks (or more per week). Once school is out and Sabrina starts tennis over the summer, it will be great because I can bring a few with me and work on them at the court. Anyone else currently working on a Dear Jane??

Finally, time to PLAY! and a Mother's Day Surprise....

After a bit of a hiatus -- we are returning to the workroom as it's girl's weekend - once again - we have the house to ourselves for THREE WHOLE DAYS. The sewing machine is fired up, the paints, pencils and pens came out of hiding and we're gettin' busy. Sabrina is in school today so I'm working on a project that I've had lying around for a while - some placemats and a table runner (a gift for someone?!?!?!?) I'm not a fan of "pieced" placemats so I found this nice little example and have
modified it to suit my needs. Instead of fall colors and a pumpkin, I'm using a folk art crow/flower print for the center, complementing colors for the edges and am going to use a floral print for the backing so they are reversible. "Piecing" is not my forte' however I am enjoying the designing process along with combining colors and patterns. I'm using commercial prints, hand dies, tea dyed (that I dyed myself) and some really cool homespuns I bought when we went to Schoolhouse Fabrics after visiting the Mountain Comforts Quilt show a while back in Virginia. I should have these done by the end of the weekend and will post more pictures.

A Wonderful Mother's Day Surprise....
Finally, I just had to share with you what I received from my precious girl for Mother's Day. It seems my daughter has been following my blog and decided that the perfect gift for me would be (and how right she was!) this amazing Van Gogh -- A Self Portrait in Arts and Letters, coffee table book - wrapped in custom made wrapping paper and delivered with a lovingly made card.

This fantastic gift contains about 400+ pages of photographs and translations of the actual private hand written letters from Vincent to his brother, along with page after page of his private sketches, doodles and paintings. I know I've said this before -- knowing the background of an artist or writer or history behind a work of art or piece of literature makes the experience so much sweeter, the connection so much deeper.

Thank you little girl for your oh so sweet and thoughtful gift from the heart - you know me soooo well!! XOXO