Bead on 23-29 September

week 39

bead on fabric

turned the corner

Something on Saturday

cow 90


You can hide your jammies in this one.

Ramshackle ideas 7

the next step...


cutting out houses



My back is playing up so,
15 minutes working then 15 minutes doing something else.Using the stop clock part of my phone.
Sometimes doing 10 and then 20 when the back is not very happy at all.
But it is getting it done.

I like Thankful Thursday

Some things I like this week...

I like getting to the drawing stage for the new Ramshackle work.

I sketch it straight onto the fabric. These are the mountain houses. I am working on the cutting now.

I like robins singing. On Sunday, in the pouring rain...this robin singing his little heart out. 😍

Soaking wet. Drenched. But he kept on sitting on the fence singing his cheerful song.

I like that shops are starting to think about food waste. Selling 'wonky veg' rather than tossing them.

Wonky carrots.

The best tool in my kitchen...
honey for my tea
Thanks to a gift from a Certain Young Man some time ago.
It opens jars I can't manage with my hands. Although I do have to go to him or the Thoughtful Man for help sometimes. Why so tight? I understand not wanting things to spoil...but sometimes you just want to open the jar and use the stuff!

Don't forget to go to LeeAnna's blog to see what the others like this week.

Ramshackle ideas 6

I am finally getting a start on my new Ramshackle piece and finding new houses in the process!

These houses are for the mountain area.

Trying out tree ideas for the forest area.

Stitch on it - 22

Half Chevron Stitch - 22
Stitch on paper


As I have said before, these are samples...many of these stitches I have never done before. This one takes a while to get your head round how to do it right.

Bead on 16-22 Sept

week 38 - 2018

bead on fabric


I tried photos from my phone this time.

Not being careful about lighting, just getting a photo of the progress. Should be turning the corner next week.

Something on Saturday

Cow 89

Very small... from top of his head to bottom of her feet is about 5in.


Awww!

still windy

It is still very windy out there. But, too cold to be leaving the back door open. So I wrapped a blanket round the WorryWort.

And at last she is actually sleeping.
Well, until I get up and go into another room. She has to stay with me in case of something...

I like Thankful Thursday

I have been making progress on the prep for my next Ramshackle piece. I like this very much. Why does it take so much effort to get started - destroying the words in my head like; this is not going to work, you will end up doing it wrong, and such.
So, I told myself, no one else is doing this, so when I am doing it, it is right. I need to write that on the wall or something!

I like this for when my body thinks it doesn't want to do the above work.

I like the unusual colours of this acer by the back fence. It is usually more of an over all colour, but the summer was so hot, it has come out a bit more variegated.

Design inspiration!

Holly likes safe places! It has been so windy just lately (you don't really have to send the left over winds here from America!). Holly gets afraid of the sounds of the wind inside. This is because doors bang shut. (sometimes the people can't live with all the doors having a doorstop!) The doors banging was her original fear, but now she has realised the wind causes it. So, she dashes outside if she can. Or follows me around like a lost sheep. Outside is Safe. She loves the smells the wind brings!

But sometimes you need a bunker, so this one has developed over the past couple of years. Originally the plants to the left were growing all the way to the plants on the right. But now it is Safe.
Since yesterday, there is a new one under the elderberry bush...quite deep.

I like finding shapes that look like other things.

I think this puddle on the table in the back garden looks a bit like a poppy head.

And so back to work.
If you want to see some of the other likes, go to LeeAnna's blog and check out the links.

Ramshackle ideas 5

Today I got the under layer cut (which will show through to the top when the houses are done.)
And the wadding cut for each section.

There is one problem...there was not enough of the dotted under layer fabric for all of it! To get past that for today, I cut all the pieces but the 'water' because that is different enough to give some options.

So, I have at least 3 choices...
1 - try to find more of the fabric. I did have a look online, but I think this was £4 a metre stuff and the shop might not have more. Also, the name on the selvage brings up something different altogether. So it would require a visit or phone call.
2 - use something similar, but what I have enough of is either plain or a bit more leaning to 'natural', which kind of dulls things.
3 - use something like a blue printed fabric which will add to the 'water look'.

But for now, I can get a start on one of the other sections while I deliberate.

Ramshackle ideas 4

Over the weekend I trimmed the fabrics to the right size. And today I finished fusing them with Mistyfuse®, fusible web.

The lightweight fusible is not glue adhesive. It also doesn't change the hand (handling) of the fabric.

Bead on 9-15 September

Week 37 - 2018

bead on fabric


plenty of friends, eyes, walks this week.

Something on Saturday

cow 87

A little wooden chest

at the moment holding some beads for a possible project.

Stitch on it - 21

Bullion stitch - 21
Stitch on paper

Well, I’ve not got on with this stitch before. Somehow doing it on paper made me persevere til I worked it out. What really helps is a needle whose eye doesn’t make the metal bow out at the sides. Slick and straight.
I used fine silk, hand quilting thread, sewing thread and crochet cotton. I intentionally loaded the needle with loads of wraps. around 30. I liked the bit of curl it gave to the line.

I like Thankful Thursday

I like it when solutions are easier than you thought. I like discovering sensible things when you thought it would be hard.
I liked the proportions of amount of fabric choices I had laid out on the table. How to translate that to larger on the design wall?
Oh, the Thoughtful Man says times it by 1 1/2. ok I can do that with my calculator.

and then tweak from there to get this.

But something is not quite right...and...after thinking about it, I think it wants the sea on top. Oh dear. a lot of unpinning and possible loss of the proportion...wait!
I have the image in my view screen on the camera. Turn the camera upside down. and there we are!

Ta Da!
Still dreading the unpinning thing in real life.
And duh, it is pinned to a sheet hanging from skirt hangers...just flip the sheet over!
Ok it just looks like fabric to you, but I am now confident for the next step.

I like discovering the wonderful sunsets. We have had quite a few lately.
over the houses in front of ours

including reflection on solar panels

walk down past the houses for a wider view

I like that swirl bit towards the middle.
and turning around towards the east a bit

My Grandfather's favourite colour was skybluepink.

Then, walking back to the house in the dusk, I see the roses in the same colour as the main part.

cool!

Today's colour is brought to you by orangeyellowpink.

Also liking that my cataract surgery date is in about a month rather than January as they had implied.

Looking forward to losing the one-eyed pirate view of life - especially my work!

Ramshackle ideas 3

So - Fabric.
I want to have forest, mountain, desert and sea. As I say, these fabrics are darker than I am used to working with.
I have had a bit of back and forth deliberation about the sea.

The one to the right was chosen along with the others because it worked colourwise. It is meant to be waves. Yes...up close. Further away it looks like rocks.
So, turn it over...middle in the photo. Not as bad, I could work into it to make it more wave-like. But still. It shouts too much compared with the others which are muted.
Look through cupboard...oh! This really does say waves and in a more subtle way.

So, here it is with the others.
However, there was not enough of it to work when I scaled up. I wanted this whole thing to be large, and that piece wasn't large enough.
Eventually, I realise it wanted a darker fabric...perhaps blue? But it had to be a blue that worked with the sepia mountains, desert and the forest.
Then I looked for darks and found this.

a close up. From a distance you can't really see the swirl colour. So, it works with the others and can be suggestive of the sea.

The fancy name for this kind of thing is 'auditioning' the fabric. So, the cast is chosen!
I am trying to ignore all those 'make it complicated' ideas. Simple, my friends, is not simple.

Ramshackle Ideas 2

Next was finding a fabric which worked for the background. (meaning what shows up as lines.)
I tried the idea of a different colour to add to the mood of the story. But it would have been quite complicated. The reason the pieces work is because the look is simple.

Then I tried this one and it looked good for both. Besides the fact that there is enough to work with and not need fiddly pieces behind individual houses. So it will keep the simple look and yet be seen even with dark fabric.
The viewers can then discover the story from their thoughts and experiences.

Ramshackle ideas

The new Ramshackle I am sampling for development is coming along.
I am working on the idea of showing emotion through house 'characters'.

Here are a couple of samples (not fused, just the cutting so I can try backgrounds.)

Because the other fabrics I want to use are darker, I used the brown print for the sampling.

Now I am trying out different fabrics to see which would work for the background that shows through the line. I don't want to make it too complicated, but I do want to tell a story.

Bead on 2-8 September

week 36 - 2018

bead on fabric

Something on Saturday

cow 86
and the last badge

I really like this one a lot! She is cute.
Maybe meant to be Ermintrude from the Magic Roundabout?

I had forgotten these badges/pins were in my jewellery drawer until a few weeks ago.

Stitch on it - 20

I have revived a project involving stitch. I do want to get on with the daily stitch idea I mentioned a few weeks ago but...

Some time back...well a few years ago, I was taking part in Take a Stitch Tuesday from Sharon Boggon's blog. Taking up the challenge to do something more with a stitch, I was embroidering these stitches onto paper. I had got to number 19 when I stopped. Not sure why by now! But I already had loads of paper squares cut.

So, since it is easier for me to start a new daily project, I will keep the daily stitch with the InStitches Threads for the New Year. And will give my mind a bit of practice by picking these back up. I will aim for 1 a week, but not restrict myself. (If I can't stay away from it. Ha. There are too many other things to do!)

So, starting where I left off.
no. 20 Crossed Buttonhole

I have never done this before. I looked on YouTube. Then I did about 3 of them and got lost. So, I got out one of my embroidery books and figured it out again. It took a while to work out how to get the cross parts to stand up rather than slant.
I used several different colours and types of blue.

The next square is blue with yellow thread. and a stitch I have never managed to do well at. So, we will see!

I like Thankful Thursday

Some things I have to mention that I like this week.

The African Lady I found in a charity shop ages ago.

I just wish I knew which country or people group.

more Jenny Colgan books to read.

I just returned the Loveliest Chocolate Shop in Paris. Very Special. Warning: you need tissues!

Still thinking about the gallery Ruth Singer had at the Festival of Quilts. 'Criminal Quilts'.

Criminal Quilts is an art and heritage project inspired by photographs and documents relating to women held in Stafford Prison 1877-1916, in partnership with Staffordshire Record Office.

and I really like using my tiny snizzers.

This one lives by the bead station - most of the time.

This one lives by the sewing machine - most of the time.

This one lives by the overlocker - all of the time. I tied this one down so I could always find it.

and these are my precious!

Called Chinese scissors. They fit round your fingers just right. They also are very sharp and pointy.
 open
I bought them at Whitchurch Silk Mill some time back. They are so very good for cutting out the Ramshackle Houses.
Funny how showing them makes you think how long you have had them. Most, except for the ones with the pretty handles, I have had for over 10 years.
I do use big ones, but these all are wonderful for snipping thread and cutting out little bits.

As usual go to LeeAnna's blog to see what others like this week.