All done but the facing- and a peek at a snazzy hat!

It is finished now except for the facing, sleeve and label. There is a LOT of stitching on this piece!

just some of the finished detail

and here

maybe the stitching shows better here?

You've seen these before but now they ARE finished. I hope the stitching shows.

This has been a long job somehow. It took so long to get back into the routine but I am ready to work now:-) I will spray this with fixative to preserve the pencil crayon touchups before I do the facing and sleeve.

And now, for something COMPLETELY different- a man with a new hat! ( Promised I would not do this too much - but I never said I would NEVER do it!)..

TA DA...........

Sorry folks, but you NEEDED to see this!

Who's a Happy Granny then???

I am posting this to the needleandthreadnetwork.blogspot.com  Technically, none of this really qualifies as unfinished work, but .... Enjoy the other posts.

Separation- not of sheep and goats but of leaves and background!

This did NOT want to move to the spot where I intended to put it! Anyway, here is the piece close to finished but note wrinkles at top and bottom. THAT is why I love my intense quilting. REALLY sets the details off.

OK, girls! Remember the Cross Your Heat Bra? "Lifts and separates. Suddenly, you're shapelier!" Well, that is kind of the stage I am at on Wire Fence II right now. I have everything tied down with stitching. Leaves have a good basic amount of stitching done but now, I want to flatten my background and leave the leaves, post and fruit sitting proud so they really POP!

I have taken to quilting tightly, intensively in my backgrounds and am LOVING the effect! It kills my neck and makes me really weary but it is SO worth it - to me , anyway. I did it on Bruce's Favourite-

I did it on Wire Fence I-

And now I am working on Wire Fence II--

These are repetitive but you get the idea.

Sorry this one is so fuzzy 

So there you have it... This is the progress to date. I will get dressed now, start my laundry and then.... QUILT!
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And I DID and the main quilting is now DONE! ( and so am I!!)

The whole half yard!

A couple of detail shots

There you go Folks, done for the day. Now, it is staring time again. The quilt will sit in the sitting room so that I see it every time I pass through the room and , in a blinding flash ( no doubt!) I shall see exactly what I need to do now. There is a bit of detail work burning in my brain so you may expect yet another post some day soon. Meantime, please excuse the fuzzy pics and enjoy the sharp ones. Pretty soon I will give you a break and not pester you with any more pics of this one. Bless you for your patience and your valued comments :-)

Ready to Quilt???

I THINK I may be ready to layer and quilt. I will look again in the clear morning light but by flash tonight in our dimly lit sitting room, I THINK it is ready. I can still touch up after it is quilted.So, here it is...

I will look again in the morning and then maybe replace the picture with a better one and post it to the needleandthreadnetwork.blogspot.com. I haven't looked there yet but there is bound to be some interesting stuff posted. There usually is :-)

There, I changed the picture and it is definitely better. Now, wounded though I am , I am going to TRY to layer it! When I was taking the pic this AM, I got my finger pinched in a slidey bit on my tripod and it is VERY sore and bleeding heavily! Poor me! At least it is my left hand but it is the middle finger so I will have to be careful where I put it ;-)

Here is the better shot taken in the sunshine in the dining room this morning. The colour is pretty close though a tad paler than in real life. That MAY be just the angle of the comp screen!

NOW we've got it!!

Ready - at last- to begin the detailed finishing on this piece. It has been an adventure!!

The background was a problem. I made two pieces but never quite got the balance of colours I really wanted. However, with some judicious and clever manipulations, I finally settled on this one and with a bit more fooling about, I BELIEVE I will like it. I have more grapes to do and some little background details and then- the lily gilding!This is always the hardest stage for me. You know how you have been so close to something for so long that you just don't really SEE it any more! THAT is where I am right now so Wire Fence II is pinned on my portable design wall and I am at the "stare at it" stage now. It WILL all fall into place ( she said, confidently!) I expect an epiphany very soon! Perhaps a number of little epiphanies.

Here is where I am just now. Many details to be added. Some highlights and some shadows and just generally making it POP! It should soon be ready to quilt.

Next time you see this, it SHOULD be better- more like what I am aiming for. Right now, I go to make more grapes :-)

This "W" is still " IP"

Still working on Wire Fence II. It IS progressing , but slowly. I keep changing my mind on things. Here is where I am "at" just now. Please bear in mind that I am only estimating leaf placements as much of the info I need is covered by the post.

Remember that the placement is not too accurate

This is coming along but I still have lots to do - not the least is deciding on and making a background in a colour(s) that I like. I am thinking darkish greens but part of me is thinking light and limey greens or chartreuses. However, it IS autumn and the paler background might not work. A bit dicey as I do not want to end up with a bunch of BIG pieces of fabric that I would not use. SOOO much to think about! 

Back in the saddle again

After what seems like an eternal hiatus, I have started working again. I am out of shape for it :-( Running up and down the stairs to the dye pots and laundry, leaning over by the hour drawing, cutting, fusing!!! Am I NUTS??? You betcha! It will be fine and it feels good to be back at it .My poor old back is very sore though today. I had to take a pill :-(

I am working on a new piece that has been in my head for ages. Every time we drive to Waterdown to shop, we pass a wire fence festooned with wild grape and Virginia creeper. Watching those vines as the season progresses is a favourite pastime of mine.( I don't get out much!)

Look at the profusion of grapes this past fall! I wait all year for the grapes to ripen with that dull slatey blue-black bloom and for the dark green leaves to go chartreuse- a stunning contrast.

SO beautiful this year- the Virginia Creeper was brilliant! I have already done one piece using another photo from this same series taken on the same day. I was fortunate enough to find VC with ripe berries on the twigs- a brilliant royal blue and shinier than the grapes.That piece is already on my blog under the title Wire Fence I.

The photo I am currently working on is this one-

The colours will be somewhat more intense and the busy background will be just a dark mottled piece of fabric- quilted, of course- allowing the fencepost, the wires and the gorgeous fruit and leaves to shine. I have my leaves all drawn, ready to assemble and one is already complete. I have the fencepost all ready to do but am short of the right colours for it so this will not be an instant piece to do. It is actually quite labour intensive, but that's what I love doing. I am working on some new dyed fabrics including fencepost grey! -GREY-S actually. Look at it. There are a zillion colours in that old post. Did I mention that I really like fences??

I have missed blogging and working but I AM enjoying being a far away Granny to a beautiful little boy. He just had his two week birthday and he is thriving. DD is looking and sounding wonderful too . She is one VERY hard working young woman - still trying to finish her doctoral dissertation on TOP of everything else. I KNOW she will do it because that's my girl! She used to really LOVE Wonder Woman when she was wee. Well, now she IS Wonder Woman!

I do hope everyone out there is well and starting to see signs of spring 2014. Thank you to all of the very kind people who sent congratulations to me on the birth of my darling little Grandson, Oliver. I really appreciate your kindness and thoughtfulness :-)

Here is the chaos that is the start of a new piece of work in OUR house!

And here is some small bit of progress being made!

And now that I actually have something to show, I decided to add to this post and to send it to the needleandthreadnetwork.blogspot.com . it feels like AGES since I posted last time but I HAVE paid attention to all of the other posts while I was "otherwise occupied". Anyway, like a bad penny, here I am again. Enjoy the entries this week.