Erica's Stitches

No more excuses!  I finally started quilting "The Big Quilt". A long arm machine would be really nice right about now.  But I wouldn't use it enough to justify the cost.  So, I'm making do with my regular machine. I have to wrestle with the quilt, bunch it up, push, pull and drag it along all while attempting to put in a stipple pattern.  I try to do a mini session whenever I can fit in some time.  Slowly it will get done. Every time a safety pin lands in the pin container I feel a sense of accomplishment.  The quilt also gets one pin lighter and there's one pin less to snag. Meanwhile I dream of other quilted projects I can finish up as soon as the last of the binding is sewn down.

Bonus ornaments!  I found these 2 small stitched snowflakes.  I did them a few years ago while I was testing various color combinations for snowflakes.  In the shuffle of other projects they were set aside. I definitely like the one with the dark blue touches.  But the white was is nice too. I charted the top ornament and the pattern is for sale on patternsonline .

I'm creating bags out of the sheets of fused plasitc bags I made earlier . But first, I had to try stitching on the plastic. Yes, I can with a really sharp needle.  The plastic fabric is not like I expected.  It is surprisingly strong and doesn't tear.  It is supple, yet not as pliable as normal fabric.  That makes it harder to stitch on in the center of a big sheet.  But along the edge its easier. Also, once you stick the needle in there is a hole, whether you wanted it there or not.  So, I had to be very careful.  I ended up using the running stitch exclusively and used simple designs.  But, sometimes the stitched lines are not as straight as I would have liked. I added some sequins and spangles. The straps of the bags are the seams of some old black jeans. For one of the uglier pieces I simply added as zipper and sewed up the seams to make a bag.  Actually, it was my first zipper so I shouldn't say "simply".  I did this one first and it was very plai

It's a box! In June 2009 I started working on a mystery sampler from the Rocky Mountain Region of EGA .  It was a lead-up to their 2010 regional seminar and published on the web.  The link works now, but I don't know how long it will work. I stitched on the sampler every month until June 2010 and then the finishing lagged a little.  I didn't attend the seminar so I had to wait for finishing instructions (which I modified a lot). This was the best mystery sampler I've done to date. This isn't all of it but it is most of it.  The section with the motifs was the hardest.  We were given a page of motifs and instructions to do what we wanted.  I don't want to admit how much time I spent re-arranging my most favorite ones trying to get them all to fit.  I also experimented with adding an alphabet which I'm really glad I didn't do since the sampler got turned on it's side. The finishing suggestion was a box.  I used the best of the instructions rece

In the spring of 2001 I started stitching Nova by Genny Morrow.  I got through it by stitching one or two blocks every morning before going to work.  After I finished a block I noted the date on the chart before moving onto the next. On that morning the news was on in the background and I was working on block J-15 and had just started block J-16.  When I overheard the news my hands were shaking so badly I had to put down my work.  I always finished a block before putting the stitching aside.  Not this one.  I had to finish it later on that evening. That's the block in the center right.  The green one with some pick and rust. I don't always take notes as I stitch or keep I diary.  I'm glad I did in this case. I stitched the final block on January 14, 2002 and had it framed shortly thereafter.

Last June I received this doll shape with a challenge to have it embellished and finished by September. The doll, now known as the Green-Eyed Monster, is made of a bright batik fabric and is about 4.5 inches tall. It was quite the challenge because it wasn't the shape or the fabric I would have picked.  I covered it with outlines and swirls of a simple running stitch in really bright colors.  It still needed something more so I added some shell beads. I love shell beads.  They vary from pink to white to grays and they catch the light at different angles.  All but the eye's are attached with petite seed beads and the eyes are attached with regular sized green seed beads (hence the name). The doll has a pin back so I can use it to dress up sweaters and my jeans jacket. I'm off to the meeting. I can't wait to see how others embellished their dolls.

It's only 22 x 29 inches but its done! Nothing like hanging a quilt on the clothesline to cause the wind to start gusting.  Luckily it calmed down and I got a better picture. Small quilts are for experimenting.  The squares are flannel and came from a charm pack that's been sitting around for a while.  I lost the label so I don't know who made them.  The rest of the fabric is quilters cotton.  I've never tried mixing the two before. The rectangles are all Bliss by Bonnie and Camille for Moda and came pre-cut to 2 1/2 by 5 inches.  I have one flannel square left over and I used all of the Bliss.  There are 2 small pink squares I had to add.  I also had to find a binding fabric that looked good with the rest of the fabric. I had no problems blending flannel and cotton in one quilt.  The flannel feels luxuriously soft compared to the other fabrics.  I also like the combination of the darker flannels and the pastel prints. The other experimenting I did was on the qu

One of my goals for this year is to get things finished. This mini sampler has been hanging out in a drawer for years.  I don't know how many and I don't know who designed it.  I couldn't find the chart. I do admire the design - it's very simple, yet there's alot going on. At one point it was going to be a pincushion.  Then it was going to be framed.  Neither happened. Yesterday, I saw it and decided to be done with it.  The homespun plaid was from a fat quarter pack and for some reason I had never used that piece of it.  It's scary how close in color it is to the sampler.  I made it into a pillow because that's the easiest thing I could think of.  Normally, I get a pillow form (because my pillows always end up lumpy).  In this case I decided that since the design was rustic a lumpy pillow would be OK. Now it's sitting finished on my shelf and I'm happy.  Even with the lumps.

This is what I've been stitching on for so long.  It is finally done!  And the pattern is for sale on patternsonline . I like stitching pumpkins and have wanted to do a bigger design with them for a long time. It was inspired by all the rows of pumpkins that I've carved over the years. These are Ohio pumpkins so have to be at least 20 years old. And these are Colorado pumpkins and are probably only 10 years old.  I can still see the resemblance. Instead of filling the pumpkins in with lots of stitching that would take more time than I have I decided to turn the design into a maze.  There's no specific starting or ending place but you can wander across the design through stitched paths.  But beware, there are also lots of dead ends. That's it!  I'm done with fall now and ready to go back to summer.  Except I need to get back to Christmas ornaments.