Friday, October 02, 2015

Summing Up

It's been A Week.  Actually, it's been eleven days since I posted  at length...and a very full 11 days it was.

To whit:

  • Sept. 22 I worked my usual Tuesday at The Shop;
  • Sept. 24-26, it being "Creative Stitches" 2015 in Calgary, I filled in at The Shop;
  • Sept. 27 I made two pies for our church's annual Fall Supper;
    Saskatoon and Rhubarb, respectively!
  • Sept. 29 I worked my usual Tuesday at The Shop -- sorting and counting and putting away inventory that hadn't sold in Calgary.
  • Sept. 30 I finished quilting "Edging into Spring" and sent it off to EB, who's speedy turn-around assessment took my breath away.
Plain Vanilla
September Socks from Stash
(before wash-and-block!)
Yarn: Paton's Kroy Socks
4-ply in "Winter Eclipse"
Somewhere in that time I mowed my lawns (front and back), fertilized and watered the front (fall fertilizer); planted spring-blooming bulbs by the south wall at the back (tulips, daffs and some croci); cut back some of my perennials to prep for winter; harvested my green-now-turning-red tomatoes; finished my September Socks From Stash challenge socks; cast on a comfort/healing/prayer shawl for a friend who's very ill; jogged several kilometres; sang at church; kept up my e-mail correspondence to the SAQA Western Canada Region and beyond; painted the 'person door' to my garage that had been repaired in the spring; kept MOB up to date; sent out the 20th packet for MOB II: Making My Mark; ate some, slept some, cuddled the cat some, enjoyed my roses...

So.

RE: September's Master Class submission, "Edging into Spring" (Theme: Lost Edges):

Here's a photo of the quilted-but-as-yet-unfaced piece:

Edging Toward Spring - 18.75" W x 15" L (unfinished)
I really like the trees!  (Thanks again, arlee!) but was less happy with the fact that the hitherto 'lost' edges of the hills were now (having been fused and stitched down) far less...um...lost.

And I was uncertain about the grass.  Did it need more stitching?  How to do it without its looking over-done or cliche or stilted?

E.B. came forward with her usual wonderful helpfulness:
A very nice job!  That mould and dirt dyed fabric* is so nice for the tree stems - really makes it.  
Yes you did make  the hill edges a little more distinct with the stitching.  It is hard to find a way to stitch to keep the edge very soft...what I have done in the past when I was using silk organza to create a soft effect was to take one strand of embroidery floss in as close a color as I could to the fabric and take tiny little hand stitches along the edge.  With a small piece it wouldn't take you long... (emphasis mine)
[Here she inserted example from her own work.]

Re your foreground...I like the grass...you could just have a few more clumps - very similar but a little bigger to give a sense of depth...don't make them too orderly!
Totally agree with you, you don't need leaves and buds!  There's plenty there to look at.  Nice color scheme, great sense of place....very nicely done!
*Note to arlee: please forgive her description...E.B. really thinks your fabric is pretty special!

I'm not sure I'm going to add "a few more clumps" to the grass...I'm letting it 'sit' for a while on my design wall.  Any feedback from you, my Gentle Readers, is appreciated!

Meanwhile, I've added an outer border (plain) and pieced the back for the Magic Tiles quilt...which is now about 55" x 57"...

Pieced backing hanging over the ironing board

and I cast on my October Socks (from Stash).  This month's theme: use a variegated, self-striping or hand-painted sock yarn...

Yarn: Opal 4 fache / 4-ply, "Le Petit Prince" colour#7764
Pattern: "The Desert Planet Tatooine" by  Heidi Nick

I pieced my October "Block of the Month" from my "Zen" collection which, despite all the pieces, was the easiest thus far in this series. Fewer bias edges at last!

"Jefferson City"

And... today I ordered more mats, picked up some nice, thin batting and some new landscape fabric (fat quarters)...Prep starts this weekend, and creation starts Monday...I have at least a half-dozen 'minis' to make for "my" galleries, and another as a commission.

Good thing the weather is cooling and most of the yard work is done!

This week Nina Marie asks about reading material.  For fiction, I enjoy (murder) mysteries that require me to use a few of my own "leetle grey cells" (Hercule Poirot/Agatha Christie)...and right now, I'm enjoying a trio from Simon Brett's Fethering series that features "Jude" and "Carole Seddon", as unlikely a pair of sleuthing friends-and-neighbours as you'd come across.  Not as meaty as Ruth Rendell, P.D. James, Peter Robinson, Louise Penny or Deborah Crombie, mind you, but substantive enough and good for a slightly tired, idea-addled brain that wants to enjoy its end-of-day bed-time reading.

What about you?  Do you read to inspire your creativity?  Or to take a break from it all?

I'm linking up with Nina Marie's Off-the-Wall Friday to find out more...

P.S. If you're looking for some original artwork...check out the 2015 SAQA Benefit Auction.  My piece is on the block through October 3... :-)


6 comments:

Carolynn (www.indigostitches.com) said...

I am a huge fan of Louise Penny. Will have to check out Simon Brett's books as well. I love your "Edging into Spring" The fabric choice for the trees makes the quilt for me. Looks great!

MulticoloredPieces said...

Hi, Margaret. Came over from Nina Marie's blog. Your "Edging Toward Spring" is lovely and I appreciate your sharing ideas about how to get a softer edge. Gorgeous socks, too--there's nothing like handmade socks (wish I had the time to do them myself!).
best, nadia

elle said...

I can almost smell the pies! ;^0 Lovely trees and great ideas. I think a wee bit of random tufts would add a bit more depth but it is looking good!

Regina B Dunn said...

Edging Towards Spring is so nicely done! It can be difficult to do grass and I think you did it well. Rhubarb pie is my favorite. Yum.

Jo Ferguson said...

You have been busy. Yummy pies and cozy looking socks. I love reading E.B.'s comments. They're always insightful and I learn a lot from them. I think you're fine with the grass you've stitched.

Judy Martin said...

Hi Margaret

I love to read about ten to twenty pages of a novel as a break from my work and from my life. I go horizontal on or under a quilt and visit another world. Right now I am reading Ian McEwen's The Children Act.

And I love your pieced quilt back! Reminds me of folk art.xo