Life, needlework and everything

Reading to Save the Planet

2009-09-11T13:22:00.002-04:00

One of the collections librarians at my public library must be interested in "green" books because I always find something new and interesting on the shelves. This summer, I've read three of the many books I've seen there, and I can heartily recommend them. Of course I've been frustrated, embarrassed, angry, and hopeful by turns as I've been reading these books. Despite thinking that I'm living carefully, I've realized how little I do to help and how much I do that can hurt, but I think I've got some ideas about what more I can do help people and the planet.

Early Spring: An Ecologist and Her Children Wake to a Warming World. by Amy Seidl, is an excellent book on global warming and climate change. Rather than quoting lots of climatological data, she makes things real by looking at how timing has changed for seasonal events. The change of dates for bird migrations and maple syrup gathering. The insects that appear early and late, out of sync with their bird predators. The lack of solid ice on many norther lakes and snow at northerly latitudes affecting ice fishing contests and winter fairs. It may be hard for some people to grasp the rise in temperature and sea level expected in 100 years, but most people can recognize a change in the seasons from childhood to adulthood. With lovely, sensitive writing about her family, home, garden and the woods around her in Vermont, Amy Seidl quietly brings people around to the problems of global warming and why we need to be concerned.

Along with global warming, I am concerned with all the chemicals people apply to their lawns, especially since we live next to the reservoir that supplies our drinking water. So I eagerly read 'A Weed by Any Other Name; The Virtues of a Messy Lawn, or Learning to Love the Plants We Don't Plant' by Nancy Gift. Despite starting out in a weed science program where she studied weed control in crops (i.e. pesticide use), Nancy Gift is now the acting director of the Rachel Carson Institute at Chatham University in Pittsburgh, PA. Nancy Gift lives in the suburbs so she understands the desire, and sometimes the need, to conform to the standard weed-free perfect lawns. But she is also a mother who worries about the effects of pesticides on her children and she loves many weeds and feels a green lawn can include them, along with grass.

I was especially interested in this book since our front lawn has been taken over by moss and a wonderful weed that is a perfect ground cover - it stops growing at about 3 inches, takes the shade, grows on the clay, and looks fine (I suspect this is mainly because the yard slopes down from the road and the strip along the road has some grass). I'm sure if my children were playing on it, it wouldn't work, and the backyard is not so great, but for the front it seems fine, and my DH has only mowed once the whole summer. So I'm all in favour of weeds.

I also have a fondness for small mammals - I did my honours thesis research on voles - so I like to see animal holes in the ground around our yard. And I'm happy our yard it filled with toads.

Anyway, Gift's book covers various weeds seasonally as she discusses ways to live without pesticides. She gives lots of ideas for ground cover and how to justify a weedy lawn to the community association and especially how children can learn so much from playing in a yard with a variety of plants. If you want to escape from the tyranny of feeding, watering and pesticide application, this book will help.

The final book I've had a chance to read is 'Confessions of an Eco-Sinner: Tracking Down the Sources of My Stuff' by Fred Pearce. Pearce has travelled the world to find out what really happens when food is grown and raw materials are harvested, and how things are really disposed of. It is frustrating that the fair trade coffee I buy to try and help is not quite a good as I hoped, although it is much better than regular coffee. And while some cheap cotton t-shirts are made by companies slaves and children, other companies provide women independence from their husbands and money to educate their children, despite the sweat shop conditions. It is all terribly confusing, but it also made me realize that we all need to be more concerned about where the things we buy come from. And as long as Westerners want cheap goods, Third World people will be exploited. Pearce also tells some more inspiring stories about people who are doing good things. WonderWelders (www.wonderwelders.org ) uses money from selling refurbished phones to support a workshop of polio survivors making beautiful sculptures from scrap in Dar es Salaam. Projects to green cities, especially with edible plants, are growing. So Pearce leaves us hopeful - although we all have to work at it.

I have more reading ahead. Jane Goodall's 'Hope for Animals and Their World: How Endangered Species are Being Rescued from the Brink' and 'Half the Sky: Turning Oppression into Opportunity for Women Worldwide' by Nicholas D. Kristof and Sheryl WuDunn. Both look wonderful.

A Happy Mistake

2009-09-02T17:19:00.002-04:00

A few posts back I showed the horse DD the elder drew for me to stitch for the top of another satin box. I used a nice chestnut silk I had in a few shades to give some dimension. I used the lightest to make the mane and tail using Turkey work, but then I had to stiffen the threads in some way to get them to go the way I wanted. Instead of looking in a book or checking the Internet for suggestions, I decided to make my own mistakes. I used hair products, reasoning that silk was protein like hair. So I sprayed a curl enhancer on, since it stiffens my hair. But, it was very wet and of course the colours in the silk bled all over the fabric. BUT, that was okay. It toned down the colour, which I wasn't completely happy with, and now the white fabric doesn't show at the edges after I cut the horse out. The curl enhancer didn't really hold the threads either, so I used hair spray in the end! So here is the satin box finished - only 4 more to make!

If it is the beginning of the month, there must be more geckos. Here is 6 - only one egg in this clutch. I've taken the photo with my new macro lens, but it is hard to work with a squirming animal.
This is the father Norbert. He has grown quite large - probably over 8 inches now.

Stumpwork Tudor Rose box done

2009-08-15T13:25:00.003-04:00

Once the rose and leaves were done, it was time for a butterfly - all the Elizabethan things seem to have a bug of some sort. I decided on a blue butterfly to be done in detached buttonhole lace. First I laid the wire, then I started the fill. I tried first with some filmy sort of thread from a kit I cannibalized, but it was horrible to work with as detached buttonhole, so I switched to silk. The bigger wings I did from the tip in, and the lower from the body out. I made sure there was enough separation between wings when I set out the wire so it would be easy to stitch, but later realized it might be a problem when I wanted to push them a bit closer. It actually turned out fine - though I'm sure there is a better way.

Here are the finished bits, ready to go on the box.
And here is my finished box. I'm rather pleased. Actually, it isn't really finished since I need to cover the wires with some material on the underside of the lid, but that will be easy (knock on wood - famous last words).

Stumpwork sepals close up

2009-08-06T16:23:00.003-04:00

I think I chose the wrong photo yesterday, so here is an in focus photo of the bullion picot edge on the sepals, and the long buttonhole I'm using to fill in the inner part of the sepals. You can see the material showing through in the center - I've since poked through it to put the flower together. Paula is mainly right, bullion picot and buttonhole, but the ends are buttonhole as well, since I wrap wire very poorly. Since I can't find bullion picot instructions online, I'll have to direct you to sharon b's bullion stitch instructions, but make it a very short distance between the in and out points on the stitch, and add lots of wraps. Mary Corbet has a video that might help as well. I've looked through my books and can't find the one where I learned how to do it, of course. Hope this helps.

Stumpwork Tudor Rose instructions - part 2

2009-08-04T21:52:00.004-04:00

A quick hint on tools for wire bending. I started out with the red handled size - a cheap kit for beading from the craft store - and then moved up to real tools from Home Depot. They aren't great tools, they came in a box with lots of hand tools and most were bigger, but the whole set was only $12 (around Christmas) so it seemed like a good deal to me. The larger pliers are much easier to use, so treat yourself to decent tools.So yesterday, I had a lovely stretch of time after work and completed my Tudor Rose. For the sepals, I used green paper wrapped florists wire. In this case, because of the sharp tips, I bent the wire first.
Then I tacked down the wire and started doing a long button hole over the wire to form the sepals.
I had to stop in the middle of it all because two more baby geckos were born. We are up to 9 babies, 2 adults (in separate habitats) and one egg, due to hatch in a month. The female seems to be gravid again - we found out they can store sperm for a year so who knows how many more eggs will appear.
Back to the stitching. I used bullion picot along the tips of the sepals to simulate the jagged edge of the sepals.
The cutting out was easy and it was no trouble getting close. I am very happy with the neat edges formed by my non-woven material, whatever it actually is called. I'll have to carry a sample with me so I can check whenever I go to a fabric store. (or I'll have to change the brand of sanitary napkins we use in the house) While you do have to be careful not to create huge holes in the material, it did form the nice edge I expected.
And here is the completed rose on the box top. Not the final placement, just a test, since I plan on adding more decoration and the rose would get in the way. I just poked a hole through the material, padding and cardboard base, for those who wonder how it got there. I'll glue a piece of felt to the underside of the lid to hide the wires when it is done. DD the younger pointed out that it was off center, but I actually meant it to be, part of the design I have planned, so stay tuned.

Stumpwork Tudor Rose instructions - part 1

2009-08-03T19:18:00.006-04:00

There was some interest in the Tudor-style rose I did earlier this year as a pin. So this past week I started a new one and I've documented the steps. It is also a bit experimental because I did it on an odd fabric. I have been hearing and reading about using dryer sheets for various stitching and craft projects so when some sanitary napkin samples came wrapped in some really neat non-woven material came in the mail, I saved the wraps. As I was starting the rose, I thought, What if you do stumpwork with a non-woven material so you don't have to worry so much about cutting the shape out? Well, here is where we find out.

It was very easy to trace the design onto the material. I put the wire down for all 5 petals with one piece of wire. I did this because I wanted 10 petals in total, but I didn't want 20 or even 10 wires for the stem to go in the posy holder. So I tried this. The one drawback is you can't overlap the petals very well, like you can in this single rose I did a while back. So here is the wire placement.

Then I buttonhole the wire down. I try not to make all my stitches the same length so it blends better later when I do the needle painting on the leaves

Then I use satin/long and short/whatever works to sort of needle paint the petals. I usually make at least a couple of passes because I like the depth it creates and I don't feel compulsive about filling in every space the first time - since that leads me to build up too much in one place and leave others blank. This way I take my time and fill in what needs.
This is the back of the piece because I wanted everyone to avoid an early mistake I made. If you carry your thread from one petal to the next, go down to the center and then up the next petal or you have threads crossing the area you will cut out. Obvious I know, but I did it the first time.
So here are the petals all completed. You might not notice in this photo since there is a white background, but, the material in the center is barely there. While I had no problems with the buttonhole and satin stitch in the petals, the large number of pokes in the center almost removed all the center material - which could be a problem depending on what you do.
So, I had to get creative with the center and put bullion stitches across the center hole and then put French knots around and through the bullion stitches. Once I have the second set of petals in behind, I may add the beads I used in my other roses.

Hopefully I'll be able to post the rest of the steps later this week or next. The DDs get their wisdom teeth removed next week so I'll have a day at home nursing but I suspect the TV will be a better nurse. I'll just make milk shakes now and then.

Round Robin done and other fun things around the house

2009-07-23T17:53:00.005-04:00

I actually have some stitching to show today. I finished my band on a Sampler Round Robin. It has really been wonderful getting a close look at the lovely work of everyone in the group. And it has been a great challenge to figure out the best design to add to each sampler. I used a pattern from one of my Hungarian books, but I used overdyed floss for the flowers to spice it up.
The curls fit with several of the other bands, which I would like to say was on purpose, but I didn't realize it until I actually stitched the band and had a good look at the whole thing.

My next project is a needle painted horse for the top of a small satin box I picked up at Michaels for $1. The last time I saw satin boxes at Michaels I only picked up one and they were all gone when I realized their potential and when back. This time I bought 3 green and 3 white. The horse will be cut out like stumpwork and stitched on a green one. DD the elder drew the horse so I thought I would get it photographed before I covered up her lovely design. I'm not sure if my stitching will do it justice.

This is a mosaic table top make by DD the elder. She did it at school year this year and finally got the table spray painted. It was a glass tabletop so it make a good base for the mosaic and it is very nice the way the light under the table warms the colour of the mosaic.

The spoils of a plastic horse convention - DD the younger went off to Breyerfest in Lexington, KY on a father-daughter trip. They had lots of fun, ate lots of junk food, went on two trail rides, and came home with lots of horse models. Now we have to add new shelves to her bedroom to fit these in.

Telephoto at the Zoo

2009-07-20T21:00:00.003-04:00

I love taking nature pictures but I often get comments about them from my family - usually "Where is the animal?" It is a longstanding joke and I keep trying. Well, thanks to a lovely Mother's Day gift I have a very nice Canon camera with two lenses - a regular zoom and a telephoto zoom. I've used the telephoto a little at horse shows so I know it is nice. But today was the true test. DD the elder and I went to the National Zoo and I finally have some nice close-ups of the animals.

I love orangutans. (be sure to click on the pictures and get the full screen view)

And gorillas - this baby was born in January and the mother seemed to know the best spot to hide her from the view of the zoo visitors. Of course babies won't sit still so she peeped out now and then to the delight of everyone.
While not terribly impressive, this panda was at the back of the enclosure so it really is good - usually I just get a black and white dot.
And the telephoto is great for zooming in on elephant parts, because you really don't need a zoom to get an elephant.
I love otters too!
Now, I think I need a macro lens for the flower close ups!

BTW while we were in DC we went to some other museums (how could we not) and we saw a small but excellent exhibit Picturing Words: The Power of Book Illustration and the link is to an excellent online version - better in some ways because you can sit and really drink in the illustrations. Of course it is wonderful to see the original. Just like seeing some of Alan Bean's original space paintings at the Air and Space Museum is exciting.

Ginkgos and geckos

2009-06-23T22:18:00.004-04:00

There must be a warp in the time space continuum of my life because I can hardly believe that it is nearing the end of June. Despite reducing my expectations for what I want to accomplish this summer, I suspect I need to reduce my list even further. But I have finished a pillow. After getting the squares stitched down I decided on a palette of threads to embellish the pillow.
Here is the final pillow all sewn up, but without the pillow form inside so you can see the squares. It is not heavily embellished since it must cater to all the tastes of the household. DD the younger doesn't like it, but she may just be trying to bug me. I carried the ginkgo leaf theme to the middle left burgundy square.
I was really pleased with the way the burgundy outline worked on gold in the corners
Because I mixed up ginkgo and gecko one time while trying to explain the design, I decided a gecko should go in the plain square, but then it needed some background so I used more ginkgo leaves.
As it turned out, the pillow was too small and the colour not quite right for the couch it was meant for, but it looks perfect in one of our chairs. Of course, I make the girls take the pillow off the chair before they sit in it.
Here is our collection of baby geckos by the way - Baby 1, 2a, 2b, 3a, and 3b. Clutches 4 and 5 are in the incubator and we will soon find out if New Caledonian crested gecko females can store sperm!

Just when I thought I had decided

2009-06-09T12:27:00.003-04:00

I have a bit of a break from going into the city for work this week because of school exam schedules and early release. So I'm puttering around the house doing all sorts of things. Today I decided to reduce my stash of fabric by actually making something. I mentioned to DH a while back that I should make pillows for the couch because it might detract from the dingy old couch - it is over 17 years old but it is still sturdy and it is a sofa bed. I'm not quite ready to try my hand at recovering the couch, but colourful pillows I can handle.

So today I pulled together a pile of fabric that seemed to go with the living room and started a pillow. I decided to use some green velvet from old curtains as the base for the front and also the back of the pillows. So after some playing around I came up with this.

With the help of DD the elder, we decided that the greenish pieces in the middle of the top and bottom would help tie things to the back fabric. But then I decided that I really liked the side pieces and tried it with all four center squares the same, but with a brown back.

I really like this one! I like the original as well, but I love the burgundy and gold batik fabric so much that I think I'll stick with the second colourway. Of course that means I've totally covered the green velvet, but maybe it will survive in the second pillow.

The ginkgo leaf piece in the center is a mystery to me. I purchased a huge stack of fabric squares at my EGA guild silent auction last year so DD the younger had some interesting things to quilt with. Well, since that hasn't happened yet, I went through the stack and found the gold leaves. So I can't tell you anything about how it was made. But it is really nice.

Altered tin ta-da

2009-05-01T15:02:00.003-04:00

I've finished the president's challenge for my embroidery group - early! Somehow this past week I had a few quiet evenings (don't ask me how) so I glued the top and finished the inside pillow for my Elizabethan embroidery altered tin.

Here is the top, done mostly in silks and gilt silk twist.
Here is the inside. As mentioned in the last post, I chose flowers based on a Shakespeare verse, so I stuck a copy inside the tin lid, using a lightened flower photo as background. The bottom embroidery is made up as a very thin pillow to set the pin on, to keep it from sliding around.
And this is the finished rose pin. I will be making another rose, in a different colour, although I don't know what that will be. I'm going to take photos for those who are interested in the process, since I forgot this time, I was just so keen on seeing if it would work.

All in all, I'm very happy with how things turned out and I think it will be appreciated by the recipient.

I still don't have a photo of the science fair project. It hasn't come home yet and I couldn't get a good photo at the science fair. But DD the younger seems to have explained it all well, despite her blase attitude going in, and received a 3rd place in the chemistry division. Which I figure is good for somebody who says she hates science. I was personally quite amused by all the 'specialty school parents' - a subset of soccer parents - who were trying to outdo each other with stories of applying for the various specialty schools offered in our county and state. Neither of my girls was willing to give up horses in order to deal with the longer bus rides and mounds of homework - which I'm actually quite happy with since it means they have a life and I do too - because who do you think would have extra work driving and supervising and buying supplies?

This and that and the other

2009-02-24T17:31:00.004-05:00

This, is a wonderful mini reef embroidered paperweight from Paula at The Beauty of Life. She sent it to me as a Pay it Forward gift. I will decide soon how best to pay it forward. In the meantime, if you want to make an undersea garden of your own, check out Paula Embroidered Paperweights post.

That, is another needlefelted creation. I forgot to include this in the last post. DD the elder made it for their riding instructor. It is made to look like the filly we saw born last spring.

Finally, the other is another altered tin, this time for the president's challenge for my EGA chapter. I'm not done with this, but it will be the top. I've based the tin on a quote from Shakespeare's Midsummer Night's Dream. "I know a bank where the wild thyme grows...
The top has thyme and oxlips.
Inside, are violet and woodbine (aka honeysuckle). I will finish this as a cushion.

And the cushion will support a rose/eglantine pin in a posy holder. I tried a new technique with the rose. There are 10 petals and I didn't want 10 or 20 wires, so I worked around all 5 petals in each whorl at one time, leaving me with only 4 wires. This had the added advantage of making it easy to embroider and bead the center of the rose.
DD the younger is still writing up her science fair project, but I think I can safely say it is not a good idea to dye anything with koolaid unless you won't be washing it. I'll post more later.

Needle Felting Dogs

2009-02-04T08:40:00.002-05:00

As promised, here is some artwork from my daughter. DD the elder has been slowly refining her skills at needle felting and we finally got her some glass eyes so she can really get creative with felted animals. This is our dog, made with real hair from the dog.

What was especially nice about this, aside from it being a wonderful tribute to our dog Candy who died back in November, is that even though I knew she had made the dog, the girls kept the whole gift a secret. DD the younger sewed up the dog bed, and DD the elder used micron pens to add the pawprints, just like the real bed. DD the elder made the book they used as a photo album at school, but said she had to leave it there so I never knew what it looked like. They printed the photos and card while DH and I were at a Christmas party, after asking for dog photos on the pretense of needing a couple for a school project. You can see the complete gift below. I purchased the leather dog collar that holds the album closed but DD the elder said it was for an art project. My SIL took them out to get the engraved dog tag though, so I didn't have the wool pulled over my eyes on that one.
DD the elder also made a felted basset hound for my SIL. This one is wearing a t-shirt that says 'bad to the bone' because the real dog loves wearing dog clothes and she is rather bad.

Terribly cute post

2009-01-30T09:37:00.003-05:00

I finally came up with something to complement my woven baby blanket, which is a good thing since the twins are due any day now.

I tried to knit a blanket back in December but my heart was never in it. I don't mind knitting, but I don't love it, and the knitting never really took off. Then one day I was in Michael's with a 50% off coupon and I saw some baby afghan cloth for cross-stitching on and it was perfect. I went through my various pattern books and pulled out 8 designs. I simplified the colours and changed a couple of things - a zebra pattern became a horse motif. I had lots of fun, and finished fairly quickly, so now the blankets are ready to send to Canada.

Here is the blanket:

And here are all the motifs close up:

I did make a really lovely ornament for exchange at my EGA chapter holiday luncheon back in December, but forgot to take a photo. It was our Gentle Pursuits hand logo, with holly and mistletoe at the wrist, holding an angel charm - like a hand ready to trim a tree. But I didn't take a photo so you'll have to take my word for it.

I have a couple of things my daughters have done to show you soon. Some excellent needle felting and a science fair project testing the colour-fastness of food dyes on wool - which should be of interest to those of you thinking of doing your own dyeing at home.

And I'm the recipient of a Pay-It-Forward project, so I'll write more when the package arrives and I decide on what and how I will send on to others who want to participate.

Family Gatherings

2008-11-26T08:31:00.003-05:00

Being Canadian, I don't have the same baggage about family gatherings at Thanksgiving as my American friends. But I do enjoy family gatherings and we will have some extra company as well. One friend from Brazil and 2 from Malawi.

One of my favourite Thanksgiving memories is from my time at Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory in New York - a while ago now, since I was pregnant with DD the elder at the time. I was put in charge of the Lab Thanksgiving because my husband and I had no family around so we were the perfect people to organize things. It was a communal feast for all those who were far away from home, or in some cases, who didn't want to cook. The food services people provided turkeys and pies and a few other dishes, and everyone brought food, usually dishes from home, so it was an international feast. Imagine if you will, a nice, large dining room (the building had been recently renovated) looking over the Harbor. Lots of food and talking and good smells. Everyone gathered around loading their plates. My husband was in charge of carving one of the turkeys. At one point, he looked down and realized he was about to cut somebody's fingers because they were picking out a piece of turkey! He was horrified to think he might have cut somebody and looked up to see it was James Watson - the Lab director and Nobel prize winner for his DNA structure work! The turkeys were carved with no injury and no further close calls, but I still remember that day.

With our closest family member 7 hours away, we do sometimes miss going to family gatherings. I especially like the time after a meal when we can all sit around and talk, since before the meal, somebody is in a panic getting all the food out. But it seems to me that with computer technology, I can get some of that time back.

It all started when Candy died and my husband put an album of photos of her on his Facebook page. My mother joined Facebook to see the photos and she started having fun checking things out. Then she found my niece on there - I had only been using Facebook for work and never thought to look for family - what was I thinking? And then we got another family member to join, and found another one online, and so on...

So now we are leaving comments, sending gifts, and playing Wordscraper (very addicting) and now I am enjoying family gatherings online, albeit over several days. I agree that sometimes and hour long phone conversation is great, but some days, a stolen few minutes here and there to add a comment or view a status report or play a word are all I can manage, and those moments keep us in touch. I remember reading an article a while back* about texting and Twitter sustaining long distance relationships, and my husband and I have discovered that texting during the day is a great way to keep track of things, and I guess using the same tools to keep up with family on a day to day basis is a good way to feel a part of their lives. And when you know some of what is going on in a person's life, you can ask more questions when you do talk on the phone.

So this year I am thankful for all sorts of family gatherings.

*yes I am a librarian and I should have a citation here for the article, but at this moment I can't remember where it was at all and I have to get back to work, so maybe later I'll put it here, but in the meantime, you'll have to trust me.

Photo: see the original post

The best dog in the world

2008-11-17T14:31:00.004-05:00

Our wonderful and much loved Candy lost her battle with cancer over the weekend. She really was the best dog, both as a companion to the family and a playmate for our daughters.

Here she is, starting as a puppy in 1999 'til just this past fall.

Libraries and needlework

2008-10-27T17:02:00.002-04:00

As you can see, last week was a great time to visit West Virginia. This is the view from my hotel room - don't ask me to spell the name of the river - but it was flowing through Morgantown and starts with M.
This is the view from the new medical library. The library was really great as well. I had a bad case of library envy. I did not expect to encounter any needlearts on the trip, but this amazing set of quilted panels was hung in the medical science building.
Of course, being a librarian, I had to ask for information so I could tell you about it properly.

Here is what the plaque says:

"A quilt of mountain colors created by Sally Rowe, Cottageville, West Virginia, for The Health Science Center at West Virginia University to celebrate Research, Education, Health Care and Service to West Virginia, 2007"

It was commissioned for the space - a large two story atrium and the panels must be at least 8 feet high. And the pieces that make up the quilt are small so it was an labour of love for sure. There is lots of lovely natural light which highlights the beauty of the quilt. The door to the library is opposite the piece, so you see it every time you leave the library. Lucky people.

Amazing videos

2008-10-13T17:01:00.003-04:00

I'm afraid there isn't much stitching going on here. I've been applying myself to work and so far I'm happy with the results. My genetics wiki is up and running, and I almost have my poster ready for next week. After the meeting in WV, I should have some time to stitch again - notice I say should, not will. I don't want to jinx myself. We've also been busy looking after our very ill dog. She is in the middle of chemotherapy treatments and we're all hoping she'll go into remission for a while. Here is her shaved belly for ultrasound.
I also have something to share with you. While not needlework related, I think it is art and really cool.

Beached from Keith Loutit on Vimeo.

What if ...?t for life

2008-09-15T08:17:00.004-04:00

I jumped back into work at the university right after returning from a visit to family in Canada, so I never really got to enjoy the end of summer. I was thinking last week that I really wasted my summer, but then I actually sat down and listed what I had been working on and realized that while I may not have done what I thought I wanted to do, I have done many, many things. I have woven a baby blanket and two linen table runners, I have taught a couple of groups (ornaments and mini-memory tins), I have written an article on the mini-memory tins, I have altered a wedding dress, I have attended a wedding in WV, I have visited family in Canada for a week, I have had carpet installed, I have kept up with the laundry, I have worked at least twice a week at the barn, and most importantly, I have supervised the girls all summer. It doesn't seem so wasted when I review it all.

For photo relief, here is the dog going to the wedding. She is not a great traveller, but she does like fast food.
The summer has also been a time for me to contemplate how I spend my time and energy. As much as I love needlework, I also love being a librarian, and I have opportunities now that allow me to be home for the girls while seriously pursuing professional goals.

On one hand I am inspired by Spirit Cloth and The Beauty of Life, especially Paula's fruit book ( I have been contemplating a cloth florigium book for a long time). I want to stitch like crazy and make wonderful new things.

On the other hand, I also keep up with the science and library blogs, and I'm very excited by all the innovations in teaching using web 2.0 and the ideas of open access for all research. I like to test all the new interfaces for MEDLINE and other geeky sorts of things.

I realized the other day that I haven't felt compelled to stitch every night. And I realized that the work I've been doing, creating teaching materials and wikis and presentations, has been fulfilling so I don't feel the need to stitch. Back in August, I had already cut back by finishing up at the weaving studio. I could see the dates for lectures and meetings piling up in my date book and knew I had to start focusing on work.

So what should I do with my time? It came to me yesterday, What if...I put the same creative energy into my library work as I have with my needlework? What if I threw myself into each project with the same excitement I have for a stitching project? What if I looked at my materials (computer programs and reference sources, say) and thought creatively about new projects? What if I started a library blog to share my ideas and get feedback and reach out, just as I have with my needlework blog?

So that is where I'm going now, to focus more on work. I will still do needlework and blog my progress, but there won't be so much going on. But I will keep up with all the blogs I've been following, because I enjoy seeing how all my stitching friends are doing.

This is my current project, the Tanja Berlin mouse I picked up at auction. It was started by somebody else at a class so there are lots of starts where there were special instructions. But I have gone back and started at the beginning. I've learned so much about this type of work from watching Elisabeth. I commented one time that I would have just started the animals in a piece she was working on, but she patiently explained that she was following the order in the instructions because it was important to the look of the piece. (I'm not sure the exact phrase, the message is on the old computer). So I have done each stem and leaf and now wheat-ear husk in the correct order and I can see the layers starting to show. By the way Elisabeth, best of luck going pro - your stitching deserves to be seen by a wider audience. I can hardly wait to see your future work.

Finished table runners

2008-08-13T10:51:00.003-04:00

Last week I was able to finish my second table runner and take the warp off the loom. I'm especially pleased with this project since it is really the first weaving that was totally my style. The first two projects were made with materials provided by the Visual Arts Center, so I was choosing from a limited pool of colours and materials. My third project, a baby blanket, had appropriate colours for a baby. But this time, I was doing exactly what I wanted so I chose a wonderful linen, Louet 20/2 variegated linen in lichen, and a couple of huck lace patterns from Anne Dixon's book, the Handweaver's Pattern Directory.

Here are the two table runners, hemmed and wet finished and ironed.
Here is the close-up of the two patterns. It is so hard to get a photo to show how really nice these look. The depth of colour just doesn't show up.
Despite the selvage flaws and the odd mis-treadle here and there, I'm pleased with my work and I loved doing it, which in the end, is how it is supposed to be.

We had a laugh over that in the class I helped teach over the weekend. We all just do embroidery for fun, and yet sometimes it can be very frustrating. One woman mentioned how her husband reminds her she is doing it for fun when she gets upset with a piece. Of course some people are able to recognize when it is no longer fun and give up. I have a wonderful Tanya Berlin needle painted field mouse to work on because somebody in the group decided it wasn't for her and put the whole kit in our silent auction. Little did she know that I have been dying to work on a Tanya Berlin embroidery. And yet there is such a fine line between giving up too soon, and recognizing that you can't really do something. When DD the younger was doing the metalwork jewelry she wanted to quit after the first day. I encouraged her to give it another chance and she tried again and really enjoyed it, although she loved beading from the moment she started it. Of course if your embroidery/weaving/painting, etc. is your work, that is another story.

White or red background?

2008-07-30T14:29:00.005-04:00

The carpet is in, the computer is back up and I'm getting used to the new keyboard and operating system. I was able to finish up some ornaments I'm making as samples for a Christmas in August program I'm helping to teach for my EGA chapter. But I need some opinions on the backing for this stocking. I've used the needle card blank from Tokens & Trifles but used my own designs and a couple of other motifs from various ornaments. I can't decide if this should have white or red backing. What do you think?

I also need an opinion on this piece. It is weighing me down. I charted out some motifs from the ballroom rug in the Governor's Palace in Colonial Williamsburg. Somehow I slightly miscalculated so the ribbon that joins the motifs doesn't fit. I'm also tired of the cross-stitch and colours and I now hate the light blue linen I purchased for the ground fabric - this was going to be a pillow by the way. But I love the center motif. So I'm considering cutting things up for crazy quilting. What do you think?

By the way, this is the other ornament for the class. This is actually the shape we are using in class but not the chart. I used the blank chart on the web site to take another chart and adapt it to this shape - again just to show the group how it could be done.
Finally, another Tokens & Trifles project. I've just written an article about this one (and other tins like it). I call it a Mini-Memory Tin. It is an Altoids tin decorated up - in this case as a vacation memory with pink sand and shells inside. I'm really pleased with the top design.
Off to attend the wedding I fixed the dress up for. I'm hoping West Virginia is cooler than Virginia or I will be a puddle of sweat at the end of things!

Waiting for carpet

2008-07-29T08:15:00.002-04:00

I realize that I should be doing something more substantial than a blog entry today, but I'm waiting for the crew to come and install the carpet so I don't feel that I can start something big since I'll have to unhook the computer when they come. I also have the excuse of needing to practice on our new computer. I needed to upgrade for work and since my DH is a Mac person we went with this lovely new iMac. What swayed the balance for me was the huge number of cables and the two pieces of computer hardware under the desk, as compared to the photos of this iMac on the website with just two cords! Of course I have to learn a new operating system but I've used Macs before (our first computer back in the 80s was an Apple with a 5x7 screen) so it hasn't been bad. I'm finding some things much easier, once I figure out where everything is. My address book is another thing, but since I get to use the iTouch that we end up getting free once the rebate comes in, I figure I can live with that.On to something more substantial. DH the older chose stained glass instead of jewellery making for art camp last week and this is her first attempt. She made some really nice choices for the glass so there is lots of texture and movement.

With all the time I had to weave while the kids were at the arts center, I was able to finish my first linen runner. I'll hemstitch then start on the next one, after leaving some length for fringe.

And their are some new additions to the family. DD the older now has two crested geckos. We went to a reptile show, which was fascinating, and she finally decided on these two, about 3 and 4 months old. This is the older gecko - we think it might be female.
This is the younger one. It has a really nice flame pattern along the back.
They hide for much of the day but their tongues are so neat it is lots of fun to watch when they do come out and so far the cricket colony has not been noisy!

Some More Stitch Along and Weaving

2008-07-24T11:02:00.004-04:00

I received the book Wessex Stitchery by Gay Eaton a while back from a friend and I've been contemplating what I could make using the patterns. I first saw Wessex work done on a band round robin piece by Christine. When you look through the book you realize what a huge range of patterns there are. I worked this biscornu for a larger project but I thought I'd include it here because the center of the flowers is Algerian Eye and the petals are really a form of eyelet stitch - 5 straight stitches coming from a single point. The border is the next stitch in the alphabet of the Stitch Along - the Arrowhead stitch. There is arrowhead in many of the Wessex stitches, including a border stitch where it is called a 'stacked wave stitch'. I plan on doing a sample of some of the more complex Arrowhead stitch patterns for my stitch book.
I was able to get my loom up and running so I could start weaving in class last night. I love the look of the linen warp!

Here is the tabby start with hem stitching - please ignore the blip where I stepped on the wrong treadle.
Here is the huck lace pattern I'm doing. This is really one of those things where a photograph doesn't do justice to the texture and colour of a piece. Again, there are a few places where the pattern is a bit off because the linen threads stick together and the shed doesn't open fully in some places. I've slowed down a bit and I'm being more careful. This will be a table runner for my home so I'm not worried. Hopefully I'll have everything perfect for the second one which will be a gift.
I wonder if every weaving project is a learning experience no matter how long you weave. This is only my fourth project, but this time I've learned about working with a high epi (ends per inch) piece, adding heddles to a frame, fixing a misthread and weaving with linen (lovely but challenging). I'm sure I'll learn another lesson soon, something is bound to happen!

Keeping Busy Despite the Heat

2008-07-22T20:39:00.003-04:00

I thought I'd start with some bling. DD the younger is taking metal jewelery design and beading in art camp this week and these are her Monday creations.

It is funny how she has no patience to do cross-stitch but was able to create and join all these swirls into a bracelet. I guess we all have patience for what we really like!

No photos of DD the older's stained glass or graphic design because nothing came home. Maybe later in the week.

I love the new linen I'm dressing the loom with. I'm making a table runner and it will look so good on the black table we have in our living room. This is really a peaceful green. I've had lots of time at the weaving studio. The girls art camp is near the studio so I have some extra weaving time this week. I threaded all 420 heddles yesterday and sleyed the reed today and tied up the pedals. I will wait now to see if I did everything right before starting the weaving. I'm doing a huck pattern using the same green as weft.

I did have some excitement while starting yesterday. I had to add 50 heddles to two of the frames. Cherri tried to show me a way to thread them on but I hadn't paid attention to the direction the heddles were facing well enough so it couldn't be done, so I had to put heddles on by hand. I mention this because even though I couldn't get the threading technique to work at first, I had to use it later because I didn't do a good job keeping the tops and bottoms of the heddles straight as I put them on. As I started threading heddles I discovered that some were crossed. I should have realized that it must be me because I had used the same frames for the baby blanket, but at first I wouldn't admit it. After finding three crosses and realizing that I wouldn't have enough heddles if I had to skip all the problems, I decided I had to fix it. For those who might find themselves in the same predicament, here is what I did. I tied together all the heddles I had threaded so they wouldn't slide off. Then I tied one end of a piece of yarn to the frame and after pulling out the top heddle rod, I started sliding the tops of the heddles off onto the thread until I had removed all the crossed heddles. I put them back on a few at a time to be sure the were straight, and when I reached the good part, I was able to easily slide the heddles on with the thread next to the rod and then pull the thread out. I wish now I had taken pictures, but at the time I was embarrassed that I had been so careless. The main thing is, it worked, and now I have even more appreciation for how the loom works!

Sunday, DD the older and I finished her bedroom painting. She really wanted to get rid of this peachy colour. So here is the room all taped up and ready to go. We had to start with primer so the peach wouldn't affect the blue. After the first coat of blue DD was agitated by all the spots that weren't perfectly covered so I told her to put a bit of blue tape by the bad spots after the paint had dried for a day, so we would be sure to get them with the second coat. The room looked diseased! My husband thought she was maybe trying to see what it would look like Dalmatian-style, since that was her favourite movie as a child. I never realized what a perfectionist she was. I don't recommend anyone doing the same thing by the way. It took some time and was occasionally awkward to get the tape off, and a couple of times it pulled off the new paint!
And here it is done, but without the new Roman shades that are on order, or the furniture back where it belongs. The main thing is, the painting is done and she is very happy with the colour.

Another eyelet and some finished work

2008-07-11T09:22:00.003-04:00

I started the stitch along with Algerian eyelet stitch and late last week I found another variation on Jenny's blog. It is called a single cross eyelet from Mary Fry's Pulled Work.
I think Jenny's have more threads around than mine do, but I like the floral look of these two.

Here is my big finish! The baby blanket is almost done, except for some hem stitching, which I must do soon since things are unraveling!
This is my mini-tapestry done. Rather meager but I do have a better feel for technique and where things can go wrong - lots of places actually! This will soon be a lavender sachet. I will be sending it to my MIL. It was going to be an ornament, from the Just CrossStitch ornament issue, but I didn't have it done for Christmas and I don't want to try to find (and pay for) the special holly leaf beads that were supposed to decorate the ornament. So it will be sewn up and sent of just plain. Don't be too impressed by the blackwork. The back is horrible but because the linen is dyed and I've used dark brown rather than black, the errant threads don't show. I have great respect now for those who can create perfect front and back blackwork!