And Now...the End is Near...

No, I'm not referring to my view of the world now that Mr. T. is ruling the U.S....that's a topic for another time and place.  ;-)

I'm referring to the status of several of my projects.  In other words, I'm on a finishing frenzy!  Yep; this week I've been working on facings, labels and sleeves.

Two pieces are now completely finished...

On the way to the finish line!

Another six have sleeves awaiting attachment -- and two of those need their facings (long in place) sewn down before that can happen.

Thus...much work to do yet to get them show-ready -- and by that I mean for possible touring with my 15 x 15 Group, or at the Lacombe Art Show and Sale at which I hope to have a booth again in April.

Still...there has been time for a little bit of play -- to whit, some snow dyeing with my friend and SAQA colleague, Mary Wilton.  She'd not snow dyed before, so a couple of weeks ago she spent the day here with me, doing exactly that.  The snow was still a bit powdery for my liking, but beggars can't be choosers when it comes to weather, and as it was a fair day, with slightly warmer temps (minus teens rather than minus thirties Celsius), we worked with what we had.

I did two tubs -- one with blues/reds and one with blues/yellows.  I was aiming for skies and fields.

Perhaps we could have left the batches longer, but Mary had a time limit (getting home before it got too dark as the highway conditions were tricky), so we left them for only about 5 hours.  For my part, the results I got were mixed.  The blues/reds turned out like this:

Fabric: heavy-weight cotton

Fabric: a scrap of medium-weight cotton

Fabric: a poly-cotton blend

Fabric: white-on-white quilting cotton

Fabric: bleached muslin

Fabric: more of the same medium-weight cotton
(as above)

There were also three small pieces of poly cotton blend that came out such pale shades of blue that I couldn't photograph them well, but they'll make lovely skies for "minis".  :-)

As for the blues/yellows...the results were so mixed that this past weekend I "snoverdyed" them!

There's been no fresh snowfall since Mary's visit.  Instead, there's been a warming trend with day-time melts and night-time freezes, so the snow is now "older" and more crystalline.  I still left the tub for only about 5 hours, but I like these results much better:

Fabric: heavy-weight cotton

Fabric: medium-weight cotton

Fabric: bleached muslin

There was a fourth piece -- medium-weight cotton -- which I'd deliberately folded for the first snow-dye, and which I decided to leave folded for 'snoverdyeing'.

Medium-weight cotton, folded for dyeing

I'm not partial to fabric manipulation as a rule, but in this case I threw caution to the wind...and have to admit I rather like it.  I will probably cut it up and stitch on it as I can't (at this point) envision it in a landscape...but one never knows, does one?!

More play is on the way as my Academy of Quilting class with Elizabeth Barton starts Friday...and I've purchased yet another Craftsy class -- "Inspired Modern Quilts" with Elizabeth Hartman -- to give me a foundation for designing them, using some concrete "patterns" (more like guidelines for fabric selection, quantity and placement).  I've plenty of fabric so hope I'll find the right stuff without having to do much (if any) shopping.  If I get the samples made, I'll have some nice pieces to give as gifts...

And knitting continues: one pair of Harry Potter House Socks half-finished, and these also under construction...

Yarn: Paton's Kroy Socks 4-ply
 from my stash
Pattern: "Yin Yang Kitty Ankle Socks"
by Geena Garcia (free on Ravelry)
modified to be made top-down, using
the "Rose City Rollers" pattern
by Mara Catherine Bryner
(also free on Ravelry)

Yes; the pattern calls for the second sock to have its colours reversed... ;-)

Now...it's time for some exercise, but before I go I'll link this up to WIP Wednesday over at The Needle and Thread Network -- and wish you all a great afternoon!