Could not decide!

Normally, I do not post pieces of work I have done from patterns designed by others than myself. However, I have just finished this little one ( except for binding) and I think some people may be interested in this technique. I use the technique myself in my own landscapes but I made this as a sample for a class and thought I would post it. It is the Man in the Moon and the design is by Susan Carlson from her book, Serendipity Quilts . It is a really nice little book, full of fun ideas, well explained and clearly illustrated.

The technique is simple and is basically a mosaic done with fabric. You need LOTS of small scraps . The pattern is enlarged from the book and then traced onto plain muslin . Then, you use glue or a gluestick to put the right piece of fabric in the proper place.The pieces are not totally glued, just tacked into place. VALUE is more important than colour here. Pay attention to the light and shade on the picture and govern yourself accordingly! The pieces are all cut freehand and are left with a raw edge. When you are satisfied that you have done your best, the whole piece is then layered with a piece of net or tulle in a colour that enhances the piece ( you just have to try them out- this net is black)

Then, you layer your quilt with batting and backing , pin nicely and quilt . On this one, I used invisible thread ( smoky) to do the basic shapes and the background swirls( outside the circle) . The face itself is done with coloured threads.

The Moon is a companion piece to the Sun Face I did from the same book earlier this year. This is unfinished in this picture. The face is still on the muslin before being cut out and put onto a background fabric. Both pieces are about 19 inches square.

Fun, yes??

Shadow Inchies

                        "I have a little shadow that goes in and out with me"- RL Stevenson

We all have a shadow. Sometimes it is our only companion- like mine on a sunny morning in the summer, with my hat on, camera in hand.

Shadows have helped us to tell time too. Sundials rely heavily on sun and shadow. So, how did we tell time on a cloudy day?

Same as below but a different background . I could not decide which showed best?

Sorry for the picture quality. I needed a dark room and a flash to get the shadow of the gnomen.

The next Inchie is a copy I drew of  a silhouette of my Great Grandfather, GA Bell , 1860-1955. George Armstrong Bell was a twin and for a long time , until the death of his twin brother, Thomas Willis Bell, they were the oldest twins in Halton County- possibly even further afield. A pair of these silhouettes were done but , as they looked SO identical, I only made one for the EIM this week and , I confess, I flipped one ;-)

The Bell boys

Hairraising finish!

Benign morning sunrise on 14 Jan, 2011- very close to TN, KY border.

Parking lot at Wendy's, Geneva OH, later that evening! The snow was starting to mount up!

 We drove through fierce white outs, white-knuckled, as huge transport trucks hurtled past us, seemingly oblivious to the storm.

At long last, at Austinburg, OH, we took a hotel room for the night. The snow had eased  up by the time I took these pictures of the freshly plowed parking lot. The roads had not been plowed AT ALL! I was VERY glad to be inside, warm and dry at last.

The parking lot this morning (15 Jan) and brilliant blue sky. The gods seemed to be laughing at us all for our cowardice.

We headed back out onto the interstate this morning and the evergreens were PACKED with driven snow.

All along the highway until well after Erie, PA, the scenery was like a Russian fairytale! Magical, pure white, brilliant sky - and DRY ROADS- an American fairytale!

There IS, however, beauty in the bellow of the blast!  We thank heaven that we were alright and that we had a good sleep. Today's drive was a cakewalk.

Storm stayed in Ohio

It is my birthday! I have just had a LOVELY visit with our daughter. We are on the way home from our visit, AND THE WEATHERMAN DECIDED TO KEEP US IN OHIO OVER NIGHT!!! Nice work, Weatherman! Never mind, the nice lady at the front desk of the Hampton In. Gave us a bag of microwave popcorn for my birthday! Nice one, eh! Happy day to any Capricorns who share my day. Pictures later.

Rainy, snowy Tennessee

It never rains in Southern California- but it DOES in Eastern Tennessee!!!This was the weather here on 12 Jan. 2012.

Fred Cat looking quite happy on a springlike afternoon.

A nappy cat!

The weather has changed now to the point that we have decided to stay an extra day. It is cold and freezy here and the driveway may be lethal tomorrow but worse than that, the south shore of Lake Erie sounds really nasty tomorrow night, so we will stay put another day.

Fred and Paul E Dactyl, a couple of REALLY cool cats on the porch tonight.

 

 

 

It is odd because it is colder here tonight than it is at home.

Hello from Tennessee

Martin Scorsese looking at me doubtfully this rainy morning. He is named thus because of his long white eyebrows!

The view from the verandah on this misty, moisty morning in TN.

Raindrops - not on roses yet, but with these mild temperatures, maybe it will not be long!

 

 

We are here enjoying a brief visit with our daughter and son in law. pity about the rain, but it adds atmosphere- or that is what we are telling ourselves!

City Inchies

City with a pencil line :-(

City with a leaning tower. Yikes!!

COULD be London, England ??

Must be Karma! I am not fond of the Wizard of OZ so the Wicked Witch has made my Emerald City look messy and disorganized. Ah, well!

Cities on maps

Cities called City

And one more City called City

 

 

 

Cities are everywhere. Cities are proliferating, gobbling up the natural world around us. They are spreading like cancers . What on earth will be the eventual outcome of this growth? Maybe it will be one great Uber City. Heaven forfend!!!

More of the colours of winter

Berberis fruits like brilliant carved rubies

A MUCH happier Rhododendron in the mild temperatures of this day

Flower head of Hydrangea Quercifolia blown off by the strong winds

Hakone Grass all blowing in the same direction

Things happening indoors too. The Poinsettias are dropping leaves and bracts.

 So pretty curled and twisted like little shells in lovely faded colours.

Buds of helleborus - the early red one.

That surprise I mentioned earlier at our front door. Snowdrops, undaunted by cold winds and freezing soil are pushing through valiantly. See the little "beaks" on the leaves ! Like the sharp little beaks wee birds use to peck through their eggshells as they hatch. Life is never easy, is it ?

It was mild today and all sorts of things were happening in the garden. Some interesting things were happening indoors too.Here is another drying poinsettia leaf. I LOVE them . They are my favourite part of having Poinsettias!

Orange, purple and black. Nice blends.

Indoors and down in our cellar , interesting things were happening too. I have been dyeing . Great fun and only minor mishaps which I may , some day, confess :-)

Chino and black on white.

 Another interesting colourway. I have missed dyeing! Once upon a time , I used to do a LOT!

My favourite bit of this piece!

                              It has been a good, productive and very interesting day at our house.

The colours of winter

Leaves under the Rhody, keeping her feet warm

Dry leaves of all sorts.

A heavily textured, delicately coloured  protective tapestry.

On a cold, grey day , the subtle colours of winter are comforting. Everything is gentle, quiet and monochromatic.

I will keep the camera handy so I can capture some more of this sombre palette until the green starts creeping through. In fact, when the light is better, I must post pictures of  the little surprise at our front door! Maybe tomorrow.

Gotta Get Rolling!

Enough with the Christmas break, already! I want to get back to work. Time's a -wasting! I did these two little experiments in burned felt in the summer and want very much to do some more - serious stuff! These two were just for fun. It has been very hard to get good picures of them because of the sparkles but I think these are ok.

This is a little out of focus but I think you can see what it is . Burned and stitched acrylic felt , beaded, with Angelina fibres and melted Tyvek beads.

The whole piece

Just the centre

This is SO much fun to do. I have several more bits started but really want to do a serious piece - carefully. This is burned acrylic felt too, lots of beads and sequins mounted on silver foil organza and bits of old lace.

Cold Morning

Zowie! Suddenly, it is winter, almost snowless but ccc c cold! It is -14c at our back door and there is no snow cover to protect the garden. Thankfully, most of what I grow is hardy.This spindly little Rhododendron at the front door is my barometer. Look at the little leaves , quilled tightly to prevent moisture loss and freezing. As soon as it warms up, they will unfurl and look pretty again.

Here is my other favourite weather shot! This is right out the back door into the north corner of the garden and it has been shot over and over again in all sorts of weather. Look! Little or no snow. Devoid of animals,((but the bird feeders are full) The garden in general looks deserted, sere and miserable. What joy when spring comes and everything turns lush and green and flowery out there again. We shall enjoy each day though, in spite of and because of the weather. Good weather for starting things up in the arty department again after a Christmas lull.