Friday, April 9, 2010

And the Winner is...

Chloe Patricia!

Thank you all for playing along. Chloe Patricia, I will get the temari in the mail to you within the next week.

C enjoyed picking out the name. I was going to take a picture of the process for you, but I had neglected to put my camera in my purse the last time I used it, and it ended up elsewhere.

I do have a couple of pictures today though. This is my grandma, taken in the 1950s.

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Whenever she was sitting she had her "work" in her hands, except on Sunday. On Sunday she would read a book when she sat down, since work was not allowed. She loved it when people asked her to crochet things for them. The requester would purchase the supplies, and she would have the fun of working them up. My mom has two crocheted bedspreads (in two different patterns) that on a single bed go down to the floor. They would work with a dust ruffle on a double bed. They are both gorgeous. I know she made many bedspreads, plus hankies, doilies, lace edged pillow cases and sheets, and curtains. (This is the grandma that made my autumn leaves quilt. My mom sent me this picture.)

This is just something beautiful to look at. I read an article about Kantha embroidery on a blog last month, and I was so moved by the story I went to eBay to see some more pictures. I found this item for an amazing price. The shipping was 3 times more than the item itself.

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I think this is so beautiful! The cloth is just covered with stitching. I'm not sure if it is cotton or silk, but I just love the shimmery color. There is some fading, but I know I will be able to find some way to use this, either in my home or wearing it. I also got a scarlet sari (5 yards of fabric) with the same type of embroidery. Beautiful!

Thursday, April 8, 2010

Thimble Thursday

I got a good picture of my latest thimble! I think the trick was to include something else in the picture. My camera does not like shiny, but finally, these pictures are clear. The thimble from last night is separate, the light blue and watermelon red one, and the gold and green one is in the corner of the box. You can see these both look quite nice.

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Here are all the thimbles in their little house. (I really like this little chocolate box!) This picture isn't quite as clear, but you can see on the left all the thimbles made with the Japanese silk thread. They are quite a bit smoother. The pink one, of course is the one Chloe Patricia gave me. The pink and blue one is with the larger thread that didn't work up as well, and the two on the right are with the buttonhole twist.

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The texture for the buttonhole twist isn't quite as smooth as the Japanese silk ones, but it is very acceptable. I think I'm ready to start playing with more patterns.

Wednesday, April 7, 2010

Ta Da! 100th Temari!

Here it is! I am very pleased by how this one turned out. It is a c10 (combination 10) division with 5 pentagons interlocked around each of the 12 centers. You divide each short diagonal in thirds to get your spacing.

Each center has a small orange pentagon, the largest in each series is black, and the three middle ones are stitched in different combinations of dark blue, yellow, green, violet, and lavender. When you list the colors it doesn't sound like it should work, but I copied a temari from Cosmo 6 (page 1), and this turned out very close. If I did it again, I would try to work on a larger mari so there was a little more negative space. The design looks just a little crowded.

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I love doing the weaving. There is a mistake on this ball, but I don't think I could find it, even if I went looking (and I know where to look). I did have to take out one set of yellow pentagons because of a mistake in weaving, and I changed the color of one set of pentagons after I thought I was done, but other than that this was very carefree to stitch.

As I mentioned before, this temari is up for grabs. You do not need to post again if you already indicated your interest, but if you have not, leave a comment (with a way for me to get in touch with you). C will pick a name during the evening on Thursday, so the last comment to be counted will be at 4 PM on Thursday. I will post the winner on Friday. Good luck!

Monday, April 5, 2010

Buttonhole Twist

The buttonhole twist worked great! I think the orange was just a little bit thicker than the green, so I had to make an extra round with the green, but the edges are even, the padding is covered, and the stitching is smooth. I just wish I had a good enough picture to show you.

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C keeps adding to her birthday list. (Her birthday comes in November. [Shoot, I'm going to loose grandma points for that one. Her birthday is in October.]). Every day or two she comments "I want (blank) for my birthday." It's getting to be a little bit of a joke. When DH expressed a desire for a "Nook" I told him I would get him one for his birthday (January! LOL), but now I have something I want for my birthday (February!). I want a camera that will take macro pictures! I'll get it for my birthday!

Sunday, April 4, 2010

Happy Easter!

Christ is Risen!

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Have a blessed Easter!

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