Crazy Quilt Day 1

A few years ago, I saw a picture of a cream-on-cream crazy quilt and fell in love.  My first thought was that I had to make one some day.  Then I wondered when I would ever find the time.

For Mother's Day, my wonderful husband bought me a new sewing machine.  (Yes, he was wonderful before he bought it for me, too!)  So, I spent this weekend digging through my fabric and pulling out projects I began before my last machine died.  Let's just say there are more than a few...  I actually finished one project last Friday.  It turned out better than I hoped (as I had no clue what I was doing), and I'd love to show it off; but, it is going to be a Christmas gift, so those pictures will have to wait until the end of the year.

Having finished one project, I justified starting another.  (There is a reason I have so many works-in-progress!)  Today, I began my first crazy quilt.  It is not cream-on-cream, though I still hope to make one of those in the future!  This one will consist of 12 9-inch blocks.  In order to use scraps I already have on hand, I decided to make one block for each month of the year.  I love the contrast of my orange and black Halloween fabrics, so I began with the October block.

This is the "naked block" (before adding embellishments.)  The spider webs on the gray are glittery, and the eyes glow in the dark.  (Sorry.  If I were tech savvy, this photo would not be sideways.)

While researching crazy quilts on-line, I discovered http://crazyquiltinginternational.blogspot.com/ and was simply amazed by the imagination and talent displayed.  The blog posted pictures of quilt blocks made by the members of the Crazy Quilting International Yahoo Group.  (I was so impressed, I had to join their group in hopes I might some day be half as talented!)

Today, I spent a fair amount of time embellishing this block.  I opted to begin in my comfort zone by cross-stitching.  I basted on waste canvas and completed the following:

I think the candy corn are shaped a bit too much like Hershey's Kisses, but my kids thought they were cool, and that is all that really matters!

Next, I opted to try a satin stitch.  I covered the moon using four strands of a shiny white floss and added a black bat.  Then I stitched in "BOO" using two strands of black and one strand of silver metallic floss.  The B is a bit scary looking.  I thought about tearing it out, but I decided scary fit the theme. 

My last stitch of the day is called a Chevron stitch (according to the little embroidery book my mother gave me years ago, when I doubted I would ever need it.  Little did I know what a treasure it would be!)  I used four strands of white for this stitch in the lower-right corner.

This is how it looked by the end of the day.  I cannot wait to see how it transforms tomorrow!