THE LIGHT WITHIN

Lots of beading and embroidery are in this piece.  I finished it about 18 months ago for a special exhibition at the gallery in Atherton.  Each year the combined churches held a week of art.  As well as the exhibition to a theme (always from the bible) the committee also arranged for tutors in the arts to teach workshops of all kinds and also special presentation at the church with both art and faith involved.  Sadly, the last exhibition was the final one as the driving force (the anglican minister) was moving away to fresh encounters.  The theme was "showing your light" but not sure now what book of the bible it came from.  I had been "toying" with the idea of intense tonal embroidery and beadwork for a while so the theme just fell in my lap!  Not sure if I have shown the pic before of a book cover I completed for a friend with the same idea, only smaller, in white.  If you go back a bit you will be able to find it I think. 


Along with a new friend, Cath, we have created a new blog with lots of interesting things to write about and also free patterns etc so, go to  http://jancathsbitsbobs.blogspot.com/ and have a look!  Only baby steps at the moment but we're working on making it exciting for everyone.  I'm busy designing a stitchery BOM for the new blog as well as more projects for Handmade AND myself!  :)  Until we meet again, happy stitching, love,


Jan

ALMOST FINISHED!!!

I was like a "woman on a mission" with the quilting and after the some 17 years between applique/embroidery etc for the quilt top it's a good thing. I finished the hand quilting probably almost a week ago but projects/instructions for the magazines and other thing got in the way and I've only just sewn the binding on just now. I had to take a pic of the whole quilt for one of my students who needs to collect her "bits & pieces" for it so thought I'd share. WILL take some close-ups of the individual blocks that I haven't shown yet and post them through the week. We're off, out to the lake tomorrow to have a BBQ lunch with Ross's Dad before he leaves for home on Tuesday so will take it and do the hand stitching. The men will be "man talking" so I'll enjoy the lovely day and sew! I will try to remember to take the camera so you can see how lovely it is out there. Ross is VERY lucky to actually have his office with lake views and where Dad is camped is the picnic spot for the Research Station where Ross has worked for the last, almost 20 years. The state government has decided to close down the research station which is a very sad thing so we're not too sure where our future will be. It's the most beautiful piece of real estate and has been the research centre for almost 75 years. Sad times!!!

I hope everyone else is enjoying a great weekend and maybe stitching as well. :)

Jan

MORE BLOCKS FROM VINTAGE VIGNETTES

I've had such a passion to complete this quilt I'm now quilting the outside border! Hand quilting is like that to me though - very addictive! It's; "I'll just complete this block" OR "Just one more length of thread" and I must admit, I've rather "sat" at it since I basted it and it's given me so

much pleasure as it's been quite a number of years since I've hand quilted a reasonable size project. This particular block utilises the old-fashioned, crocheted crinolean ladies that were often put into the corner of a ladies handkerchief. I added the lace under the skirt and when the quilt is complete AND washed I will stiffen the lace somehow so that the skirt stands out. As I've been quilting I've realised JUST how dirty it is! I guess being handled so much over the years in teaching the blocks etc it has to have become quite dirty.

I will photograph the remaining blocks and post them each day, all going well. I designed quite a number of blocks using this motif for all of the students - leaning against a wishing well; under an archway; in an arbour and walking down a path. They all looked wonderful and it was great to give that personal touch to each person's individual quilt.

The "delphiniums" each took me around 40 hours to complete! The are made-up of countless colonial knots with just 2 strands of a hand dyed silk thread. I let the thread give me the colour graduation.

Amidst all this hand quilting I've had a rush visit on Saturday afternoon to see the eye specialist as I had developed a "floater" plus flashes in my right eye. At this stage, all is well but I see him again this coming Thursday to double check that there is no tear in the retina. Apparantly the floater AND the flashes is relatively normal for "a woman of my age"!!! :)

I also have started my bag workshop at the shop in Mossman again and had a lovely time last Wednesday night with the ladies working on a range of different bags. Silly me forgot to take my camera! An unexpected pleasure on the Thursday was, a traveller arriving to show the girls his range of buttons and fabrics. I could have spent a fortune if it were me ordering but, thankfully, I had no say! lol I would go bankrupt very quickly if I owned my own store!

I must get back to my quilting - hope this finds you all well and happy and until next time; happ stitching!

Jan

"ALMOST FINISHED" UFO!!!

Waaaaay back in 1992 I had this idea to create a quilt - initially to be monochromatic but this changed! I was telling my students about the idea and, of course, they wanted to start NEXT WEEK PLEASE! Naturally I said yes and immediately created the first block. The idea was to work through all the possabilities with applique - as many techniques as possible and we started. I was only ever one week ahead of them and by the end (because the majority of them wanted to make a queen size quilt!) of the some 20 blocks I had gone from the monochromatic idea to bringing in "some" colour as the blocks progressed into more detailed ones.

The cottage above is one of the more heavily worked blocks and I'm ashamed to say that it's taken me this long to almost finishing a small number of the blocks. I've had the six 12in blocks plus three 6in x 12in. blocks put together into a quilt top probably since around 1993 but have never quilted it!!! As I progress through quilting the blocks I'll share with you the rest of them. The other blocks (ones that relate to our marriage and such) are to be put together into another wall quilt although I may turn them into pages for a fabric book now. Don't know what I'm doing with the remainder! :)

The other pics are details of the embroidered garden - a range of silk ribbon plus normal thread techniques were used - the rose vine over the roof and the tiny "Alissium" are some of the wonderful hand-dyed threads available. I used one of those newish propelling chalk pencils (which are wonderful by the way!) to mark the grid lines for quilting but not worried as it will have to be washed when I've finished it. It's been floating around for so long that it's really quite filthy!

When I taught the class quite a lot of students completed their quilts and it's now having a resurgence as more people see it. I'm starting another class, after all these years, next month but only the blocks on this particular quilt - NOT the full selection!

I definately find hand quilting very addictive and just could never contemplate machine quilting a quilt such as this. All the handwork in it deserves hand quilting I feel. Sore fingers though as haven't done a lot of fine hand quilting lately! I tend to make a larger stitch than what the traditionalists would do as I like to actually "see" the quilting rather than get caught up in so many stitches to the inch!!!

I have promised myself to post more often in this last half of the year so let's see how I go. I have been rather prolific over the past few months but mostly projects for the mags so can't really show them here yet. HAVE been working on some pieces for my Artistic Licence group's exhibit in the regional gallery next year so will take some pics and show them too. Until next time, happy stitching and stay safe everyone.

Jan