A Butterfly Flew By

While out walking and looking for something great to photograph, this beautiful large butterfly seemed to know what I was doing,.......

and stopped by to pay me a visit. My photograph does not do it justice, however, it was so much more beautiful than what the camera reveals.
In the work I do, I get most of my inspiration from nature, such as butterflies and flowers. I have had this set of pillowcases just waiting to be stitched for the longest time. I usually embroider butterflies in the traditional yellow with black. After being visited by such a beautiful creature, I turned to my blacks, peacock blues, and soft blues. You can't tell much by this photo, but the peacock blue running through the black center is striking. The spots on the outside wings are a much bluer soft blue as well.

A sprig of leaves flow on each side of the butterfly.

I need to now add an edging to the bottom and I will have one more set of pillowcases complete. I am still getting my stock ready to sell.

Now......

what color of butterfly do you like best??? The large yellow and black Tiger Swallowtail? The black and red Admiral? Or the tiny blue or yellow butterflies flitting back and forth among the flowers?

I would love to hear!

Embroidered Buttons

I love the small designs in embroidery.

a rosebud.......a tiny butterfly.....
a blossom, no larger than a nickel or quarter.

I have stitched and accumulated a good amount of these tiny works of art.......

but what should I do with them?? I have at times used them as patches on my children's play clothes, to preserve a shirt or dress for a little longer wear........

and then......I started making embroidered buttons.

the main reason......I want to one day learn how to knit a sweater....

and I can just imagine an embroidered button or two on it!

also, at times.....I have used the embroidered buttons as pretty bows on special gifts, such as Mother's day....baby showers....

I love the way they have a vintage charm to them....

now.....

how about you? Any ideas on what to do with small pieces of embroidery....

do you do something special when you wrap a present for someone??

I would love to hear!

Slowly Building My Stash

The work I do takes so long that sometimes I don't realize how much I have actually gotten finished........

but ever so slowly my crocheted cloths are piling up.......
and my embroidered towels are getting finished!

In high hopes of one day actually having enough to sell.... I made up labels.

However....

Christmas is fast approaching and I love giving these things as Christmas gifts.....

maybe I will hang on to these and "give away" something different.

Do you have the same delimma? Do you finally get things made up and then wind up giving them all away? Do you find it hard to accumulate things to sell? I would love to hear how you solve that problem!

My Cup Of Cheer

The stitches are all done and in place..........

the border is on.....

as well as the backing.....



the quilt is finished!

It is a little larger than my usual miniature quilts. I wanted a cheery wall hanging to greet guests as they walk in....this little quilt is 24 x24 inches. Instead of "my cup runneth over" ...I titled it..." My Cup Of Cheer". I really enjoyed designing and embroidering this quilt. When I finally decided on the border....it just popped..."cheery!" I am now thinking on something larger.....more for the bedroom. I have never finished a full size quilt....I think now I will! How about you? Have any of you made a full size quilt? How long did it take? Did you purchase the fabric or is the material from loved one's garments? I would love to hear!

Something For Baby

I have had this charming little pattern for baby slippers for the longest time.

I'm not sure where the pattern came from,.....there aren't even any instructions on putting them together. Just the pieces and the embroidery design.
I knew I just had to make the first pair with "PINK"!! I found the right lining in the perfect pink color and chose the best rose floss.

I had finished one side with the outside french knots in the rose color as well, but felt there was just a little too much rose on the design....

so I changed the outside french knots to the blue I had done the french knot flowers in.

The back also has cute little embroidered flowers...

and I just loved these little flower beads for the straps. I hope to make a few more of these bootie/slipper sets in different colors, along with matching bibs and bonnets maybe? I still have my children's booties, (many crocheted by grandmothers of the family) in storage. How about you? Do you have a special set of little shoes or booties? Did they belong to you or your children? Were they made by a loved one? I would love to hear!

Quilting, applique and embroidery

While searching for inspiration one day last year to start a new project, I came across a wonderful website that offers free quilt patterns. I fell in love with this "big mug" pattern.....as you can see reading further, there is so much one can do with it. You can get this pattern and many more free....just click on this link.....http://www.blockcentral.com/qb-pattern-mug.shtml
I made two blocks......this one in green, and another one I decided to use for my quilt in blue......shown later in this post.

My creative side kicked in and I filled the cup with pansies.....just draw whatever you like and in any way you like it.

I also made a butterfly pattern.....what are flowers without butterflies?

I added one of my favorite blocks.....the nine patch......

and here is the top almost finished. I started this over a year ago and now have decided to finish it. I have a couple of leaves to embroider still.

Here are the pansies. I used short and long stitch in various shades, and outlined it in closed buttonhole stitch. I let them and the leaves and vines run throughout the quilt top.

The leaves are done in short and long stitch as well. This kind of embroidery takes a while to do......why it took me so long. I hope to have the embroidery finished this weekend, and will quilt on it starting next week.......Now.....do you have something stashed away in your closet or drawers that needs to be finished? I would love to hear about it!

Hannah's Baskets

During the holiday weekend, I was able to finish the little quilt with baskets that I have previously posted about.

In our home, we have a large, long, hallway, with beautiful wood walls. There is not much light in there except when the light is on, yet light enought to catch a glimpse of what is on the walls. I had hung a puzzle that my family and I had put together years ago........I love the theme with the chickens and quilt......and thought this would be the perfect place to display my miniature quilts.

I finished the vine embroidery on the corners.......

and picked out a pretty backing for the quilt......

and finished it!
As I was working on it, my mind was filled with thoughts of my daughter, Hannah.......I embroidered the middle basket.....to me....... representing the basket of Hannah's life that I, as a parent, did my best to fill with beautiful and good things......the rest of the baskets......empty......in all directions....to me.......represent the baskets that she, herself will fill with what her life becomes. So I decided to title this quilt......

Hannah's Baskets