Walking the Water's Edge FINISHED

Walking the Water's Edge by Diane Herrmann is finally finished.  I started this June 2014.  It was a class through Cyberpointers.  I managed to get all the Bargello done fairly quickly, but the eyelets - not so much!  I'm not a big fan of eyelets.  Oh, I like the way they look, just don't like stitching them.  Anyway, I pulled this out a month or so ago and decided I would finish it before the end of the year.  Whew, just made it.
A friend found the starfish charm for me, as I didn't plan on doing one in Bullions, since I've never been able to make one successfully.  Thank you!  Sure made the finishing easier!!
Someday I'll have it framed.

Walking the Water's Edge, Progress

Walking the Water's Edge is coming along nicely.  I am almost to the top edge, just about 2 more full rows, then filling in and compensating.
The progress isn't that noticeable now, but next time it will be!

Walking the Water's Edge

Walking the Water's Edge by Diane Herrman.  

This design is a workshop on the Cyberpointers chapter of ANG.  I have wanted to do this design ever since I first saw a picture, over a year ago!  So, I am enjoying it immensely.

The picture is right side up; however, we are stitching it upside down.  We started with the white.  This pattern continues all the way to the top, with compensation to square it off.  The Bargello is all in floss and is blended shading.  The bottom edge becomes the surf and will have decorative stitches.  It is an easy stitch so far, and will be a stunning picture!

Young Man's Fancy FINISHED

Young Man's Fancy is finished.  Once I got the #8 Kreinik I wanted for the center, it didn't take long.
YMF was intended to be a box top, and I had the Betsy Box on hand.  To fit, it only needed a border of Slanted Gobelin over 2, all the way around.  I used the darkest overdye for the border since it matched the box pretty well.
Below are photos of the finished box.  DH is using it to hold guitar picks & other guitar paraphernalia.
Thanks, Jan, for a great project!

 

Young Man's Fancy, Progress

I have done a bunch of research, deleted temp files & cookies, downloaded Google Chrome tor browser.  It seems to be working again, but we'll see...

I have nearly completed Young Man's Fancy.  I just have to fill in the last set of stitches in the center and do the border.  I have to get thread for the center, it will be the same metallic I used in the brown triangles, but I need a lighter weight.  I used #12 Kreinik in the triangles, but want #8 for the center.  I will be making a trip to my LNS this week!

I won't be doing the border until I see how it fits in the Betsy Box I have.  It may not need a border at all, or just a small one.

Young Man's Fancy

Don't you just love quilt block names?

Anyway, the Cyberpointers meeting has started for January and Jan Fitzpatrick is doing the program for us.  You probably know Jan more for her wonderful rugs, but she also does delightful designs from quilt blocks.

This is my version.  It is supposed to have 2 color families and I originally had chosen all Watercolours, blues and brown/golds. 

I liked the scotch stitches, but as soon as I started the triangles, I knew I didn't like the blue, so I took it out.  I am now going with all browns & golds.  The triangles are now pearl cotton and Kreinik.  I like it now! 

Puzzle Piece, FINISHED

It's finished!  My Puzzle Piece (not a purse) is finished!  Happy, happy dance!!!

 

I concentrated on this piece in an effort to finish it before the end of the year and I've just made it.

 

This was an incredibly intense project.  Every section required multiple decisions.  Even though I sort of planned out a lot of it, deciding where to use the different area designs from the Puzzle Purse book, I still had lots of decisions to make all the way.  And towards the end, I couldn't fit any of the area designs into my remaining shapes, so I pulled out all my Jean Hilton books and chose stitches from those.

 

I think the biggest mistake I made on this piece, was not to see it as a whole.  I tended to focus on each area individually and that was a mistake.  It is going to be a very busy piece no matter what, but if I had been looking at it more as a whole, I would have arranged the colors differently and used fewer colors so that the center Bargello diamond would be set off more. 

 

That being said though, I do like this piece.

 

Puzzle Piece, Progress #4

I have been working on my Puzzle Piece, hoping to get it finished before the end of the year.  I don't think I'm going to make it, but I'm still trying.
I didn't work on it for several months and just got it out again a few weeks ago.  It is a fun project, but it does require me to make constant decisions about stitch placement, color & thread.  Sometimes I just don't have the energy for all that!
I have two bags of threads for this project - one has the threads I've used so far and the other has possibles.  More & more threads are migrating to the "used" bag!  I can't believe how many different threads I've used so far.

A Little Bit of Happiness, FINISHED

A Little Bit of Happiness is finished!  This project turned out to be a "bigger" project than I

thought it would be.  Jan  also has finished hers, do take a look at her lovely finish!

I have used heavier threads than the designer suggested for most of this project, and, therefore have run out of threads twice!  I also ran out of beads. The joys of working from stash!

I did not want to go across town to my LNS just for a few beads, so instead I used a different color for the beads in the center diamond and a different thread color as well. 

And, I didn't care for the look of these very shiny Magnifica beads using the pattern that Peggy designed for the center diamond area.  Instead, I redesigned it to be the same style as the corners.   I actually like that though and DH says it looks like it was supposed to be that way.  High praise indeed.

A Little Bit of Happiness, Progress #2

I have made considerable progress on A Little Bit of Happiness.  So has Jan, check hers out too!  It's so fun to watch the different color schemes develop!
I've had a bit of trouble with this pattern, figuring out the positioning of the different elements.  I made a mistake somewhere and didn't want to spend hours trying to find it & fix it, so I'm just adjusting everything to compensate.  So, mine is a bit different, but probably not really noticeable.
I had to go back & put in the borders, which took awhile!  But now I'm on a roll. 

Fun with Fiber, Finished

Fun with Fibers by Marilyn Owen was a CyberPointers program a few months ago.  I had planned to make a bookmark of the project,  however, it was too thick for a bookmark.  So, after staring at it for a week or so, I presented it to my finisher and said, "here, do something with this".
Here is the result!  Isn't it cute?  It is quite tiny, about 2" x 2-1/4".  I'm thinking it will be a zipper pull for one of my project bags.

A Little Bit of Happiness

Peggy's colorway

"A Little Bit of Happiness" by Peggy Carstens is the CyberPointers meeting project for the meeting we just had.  This project is from ANG's Chapter Project Book.  I don't have much of a start, but I did choose my colors (in my comfort zone), got the basting done & got a fairly good start on the center diamond.  The canvas is Vintage Sage Green/Green. 

My colorway

 

 

 

 

Fun with Fiber

The program for the last CyberPointers meeting was called Fun with Fiber.  Marilyn Owen designed and presented a scissors case and the idea was to experiment with fibers that you hadn't used before. 
 
I don't use scissors cases, but it was an opportunity to try out a new thread I had just received.  It is Dinky Dyes "Jumbuck", a new silk/wool blend that looked like it would work for Bargello on 18-count.  It does!  It is a lovely thread, hand dyed.  So it is like an overdye, but very subtle. As you might expect (smile), I started with 4 shades of aqua/teal.  It is quite nice to work with and I'm sure I will use it again.

I also used Waterlilies#197 Monsoon and an overdyed #12 Kreinik that I had laying around.  I did not make it quite like Marilyn's pattern.  Hers has a different pattern on the 2nd side, but I chose to just mirror image the Bargello.

Now, what will I do with this little project?  I had thought I might fold it in half & make a bookmark, but it is just too thick.  Any ideas?  It is only2-1/4 x 4-3/4.

Illusions & Menagerie FRAMED

I finally had a couple of things framed.

 

Here is Illusions by Ro Pace.  This turned out better than I expected.  We had the mats & frame all picked out and then they told me the cost.  Whew!  Back to the drawing board & picked a simple ordinary mat, but with the same frame.  Done.  I picked it up yesterday and I think it looks great!  This piece will go in our guest room with all the other "blue" things.

And here is Menagerie.

This was CyberPointers' year long project for 2012.

I'm only a little behind (ahem!).

This technique sampler was fun to figure out & stitch, but I'm not sure I really like it.  I think my colors are too much the same value and the background overwhelms.

Oh well, we learn by doing, they say!

Menagerie, Finished

Menagerie is finished!  It only took me a year & a half to do this year long project...  Of course, there were some pretty long stretches when I didn't work on it at all.  It is finally finished and I'm quite happy with it. 
It is somewhat of a departure for me.  I'm not completely thrilled with the shaded blackwork background, but it does set off the "blocks", which is what I wanted.  I also backstitched around each block with #4 Kreinik.
One of these days I might even have it framed!

Menagerie, Progress #3



I've got a good start on the background and a border for Menagerie.  The background is shaded blackwork, working from light in the corner to dark at the center, the thread is an overdyed silk and I'm using just 1 strand.  (The squiggly lines in the upper right are my shading guidelines & will come out.)  The border is a Crossed Scotch variation in Watercolours and FyreWerks.  I'm lucky that the stitch just fits!

Menagerie Update #2

Menagerie is done except for the large amount of background.  And I may need to add a border.  The photo is dark on purpose so you can see the sections better.  The canvas is actually Eggshell. 

I only worked 16 of the suggested 19 blocks plus background, which will be the 17th "block". 

I chose not to do Whitework, Redwork, Couching or Beading. 

But I added Assisi work (the years 2012 & 2013, lower right), a plaid, and a Darning Pattern. 

The background will be shaded Blackwork.  I think it will go fairly quickly once I figure out what to do!.

 

Puzzle Piece, Progress #3

 

While we were in Reno, I worked on my Puzzle Piece.  I have completed 4 sections in

addition to the large Bargello section.  After the first two sections, I decided not to follow the order of the sections as written in Jean Hilton's instructions.  Instead, I spent a couple of hours with the book choosing stitches for my piece according to the size of the various sections to be stitched.  So now I have sort of a roadmap to follow.  It isn't set in concrete and I still have to decide which threads to use in which sections.  But at least I have a starting point!

 

 

Walk the Wild River, Progress #4

Since we've been in Reno, I have worked on Walk the Wild River a bit.  This is Sections 12 & 14.  Section 12 is just the three little corners.  I chose to do each one in a different color. 
Section 14 is the medallion. It went pretty easy, just required constant attention to the count!  It is a little brighter than I had planned, but it will do. 
Next up is a section that involves cutting the canvas.  Yikes!
(Sorry for the poor photo, all I have with me is my phone.)

Menagerie update

It has been almost a year since I have posted about Menagerie.  Or worked on it!  Menagerie is last year's year-long project for Cyberpointers. 
I brought it with me to Reno and have actually completed one section.
This is the second Rhodes stitch section and I decided it would be fun to try to do my name in Rhodes stitch variations.  I spent a couple of days with computer and graph paper, and finally came up with a design.  It turned out OK!  I used 2 shades of Splendor and one overdyed Waterlilies.  I don't know if I will fill in the background or not.  I'll decide later.  Most of my sections have a border, but I could just fill it with whatever I do for the overall background.  Here's the whole thing so far.  Again, sorry for the poor photos, I just have my phone with me.