My Spring Block......

I went with bright greens and yellows as they just seemed to make me think of spring.....bright sunshine and new green growth.

The smaller sized block was much easier to deal with as the embellishments were just little snippets instead of major productions:)

At first I got out all my yellow and green trims and beads but then I realized that it was all wrong and very boring. I had some pretty variegated pinky peachy DMC embroidery thread that I won from So September in October 2012. I made some little "flowers" with some iffy (don't look too close) French knots and that was it. Away I went:)

By the way, if you want a few ideas on how to couch rick rack and ribbon, Corinne at So September has just done two tutorials recently that you might find interesting.....here and here.

I made a cardboard window frame of sorts so you can see what it will look like once I bind it. I stole this idea from my buddy Vee over at The "Bearister" Bookcase. She made one so she could pick out areas on her white work for her pin pillows. I thought it was a brilliant idea:)

I have no idea how to describe my crazy quilting style...it's different from what I see in Bloggerland. I haven't learned the "rools" yet.

Lean to the left to view:)

Forget me whats.

The flowers are all different...don't look

I really really REALLY need to practice some embroidery stitches. I've been doing cross stitch so much that I've gotten out of the way of doing other stitching.

The next block is Summer.....sun, bright colours, buzzing bees...no snow...no freezing temps...heat:) 

Asian lilies in my garden... summer 2013.

I'll leave you with that image.

Take care:)

WIP CQA 2014 - The Four Seasons Wall Hanging.........sorta.

So here I am after a week of not posting anything. The ongoing saga of my foray into crazy quilting. I'm not all that inspired with my first block. I like it and I enjoyed doing it very much but I can't see my next step forward with it. I'm stymied. Stuck at first.

If I commit to a project and it really doesn't make my heart sing then I feel stifled creatively.  I tend to waffle and then I end up not doing anything creative for days on end........even months.

For me this is not a good space to be in. So the best thing I think with this project is to start again. My mistake was that I didn't look at the BIG picture.....the finished piece of work...the four seasons as a cohesive whole.  I can only say that it was because I'm new to this type of project. I have never made a wall hanging in my life or anything even remotely close to being described as a wall hanging......LOL.

So a rethink is required. Hmmmm. Do I make four CQ blocks that somehow flow into each other as seasons do? Is some kind of common element or a crossover element of some sort required?  Maybe when they are put together? Am I wrong about this? Can I even do that with crazy quilting blocks?

I suspect that I may be making this into a difficult task by over thinking it....as I do...frequently.....sigh.

After it's finished will people understand that it's supposed to be the four seasons? Do I care?

To be honest it would be nice to make something that represents what I intend and that people understand and get it. But, lets be honest...it won't happen. It's my first attempt. If I'm happy with it then that's all that matters.

First it has to be started and most importantly finished.

One thing I know. Instead of making four 12 inch squares for my wall hanging I'm going to make smaller blocks. I found it very daunting as a new CQer to cover such a large expanse of space.

I'll be back soon. Stay tuned:)

Link

Crazy Quilt Along 2014......

I joined up with Carli from Good Earth Quilting for her Crazy Quilt Along 2014. We are going to be doing a wall hanging representing Winter, Spring, Summer and Fall.

I am not a quilter at all....never did one in my life. I love them and admire the work put into them but I'm a small project type of person. So my mindset is that this CQA project has four small pieces and then the finishing to make it a wall hanging. I figure that I can handle that...hopefully:)

I'm very new to crazy quilting so I'm a bit nervous. 

Just deciding on what fabrics to use was my first hurdle. Carli has a free spirited approach to crazy quilting which I like but the conformist in me is really having a hard time putting the crazy into the quilting....LOL

I have a shoebox of small pieces of fabric that I have been gathering up for awhile......satins, brocades, velvets, laces...that sort of stuff. I got some of my bits from Diane's Etsy store when she had a fabulous sale last year. I also won some from her in a blog giveaway too:)

The first square we are doing is winter. So Carli asked us to gather together bits and pieces that suggest the colours of winter to us and build a block to work on.  I have a ton of white pieces......I'm thinking winter is mostly whitish isn't it?

Just for fun...while I was considering my options.... I found a stock photo of winter scenery on Google and  loaded in on Palette Builder at Play Crafts.

Lots of blues and grays. It even gave me the Kona cotton colours!

Source

Well after fooling around with winter themed pictures for awhile I put some bits together. Lots to ponder:

I think it should have some shades of white, blue and gray.......I also found a piece of bluey purple which is very pretty.......decisions........decisions:)

Once I get it all together I'll post my nude block for you to see. Stay tuned.