QS Red Hearts Update - March 2017

It is the first Monday of March - time for an update on my Heaven and Earth Designs QS Red Hearts based on artwork by Ching-Chou Kuik.  

The photo to the left shows my progress through February 4, 2017.

This photo shows how it looks now. I added 915 stitches this month, which put me over 20,000 stitches!

The project is 43.84% complete. 

Pages 1-3: 100% complete.
Page 4: 23.04% complete.    
Page 5: 7.11% complete.      
Page 6: 7.26% complete.

I am linking with the Monday Stitchery Link Party #100 at Super Mom - No Cape. I hope you will stop by to see the free embroidery pattern offered this week and to see what others have shared. If you do any hand embroidery and have a blog, I encourage you to join the party! There will be giveaways this month, too.

March 2017

And to think I thought January went by fast! Of course, February was a short month... It was also a busy one. I managed to finish about half of my goals for the month.

Review of February Goals:

1. InCoWriMo - Although I did not write every day, I did mail out 27 hand written letters or postcards and hand delivered one hand written Valentine. So, I finished 28 letters in 28 days! I will share a post soon. I want to thank those of you that agreed to exchange letters this month. If you have not received your reply, it is in the mail!

2. Finish CQJP 2017 January block. Done! You may see the final post here.

3. Piece and Embellish CQJP 2017 February block. It is pieced... (March is pieced, too!)

4. Add 2 items to my Etsy shop. Not quite. I have 2 near finishes. 

5. In February, the UFO Challenge 2017 item selected was #8. For me, that meant finishing my Winter/Christmas Round Robin Wall Quilt. I did not make it very far; however, I did have fun using some of the seam treatments my friend at Magpie's Mumblings shared here, here, here. I will keep working on it as time allows.

6. Continue working on a gift for my friend's daughter. - I did make some progress!

7. If time allows, make progress on my CQJP 2016 March block. - I finished one seam. You may see the blog post here.

8. Complete and mail CQI Valentine Fabric Postcard. Done - you may find the post here.

March Goals:

1. Number 12 was drawn for the UFO Challenge 2017. #12 on my list is this set of 3 blocks from my 2nd Crazy Quilting International Under the Sea Round Robin. I need to embellish one block and sew together a wall quilt. (You may see my blog post sharing these blocks here.)

2. Embellish CQJP 2017 February block.

3. Embellish CQJp 2017 March block.

4. Add 4 items to my Etsy shop.

5. Finish gifts for my friend's daughter.

6. If time allows, make progress on my CQJP 2016 March block.

Top 5 Viewed Posts in February

1. Completed CQJP 2017 January Block - here

2. 2017 CQI Valentine Postcard Swap - here

3. CQJP 2017 January Seams 11 & 12 - here

4. CQJP 2016 March Block Seam 3 - here

5. February 2017 & Blog Name Change - here

Thank you for stopping by! I hope you all have a fantastic March. 

Renee

TAST 43 & 44

TAST Stitch 43: Buttonhole Wheel Cup

I enjoyed creating the Buttonhole Wheel Cup this week. 

It was worked with DMC size 5 pearl cotton #4040.

The texture is so much fun!

TAST Stitch 44: Crossed Feather Stitch

I worked the Crossed Feather Stitch twice.

First, I used blue Finca size 8 pearl cotton with DMC size 8 #605 pearl cotton.

Then, I used just the DMC #605. 

I plan to work the Plaited Feather Stitch to share next week.

TAST stands for Take a Stitch Tuesday, a personal challenge to learn a new embroidery stitch each week (or one a month - you may go at your own pace.) TAST is offered by Sharon B. at Pintangle.com and you may learn more about it and find the stitches that have been introduced so far here. There is a TAST Facebook group here.

In celebration of TAST's 10th year, Sharon B. is sharing a series of interviews with TAST participants. The most recent interview was with Angela of Princess Bubbles Creates. I love seeing how Angela incorporates the TAST stitches into her work! You may read the interview here and find Angela's blog here.

Thank you for stopping by!

Renee

Completed CQJP 2017 January Block

CQJP 2017 January Block

My January block for the Crazy Quilt Journal Project (CQJP) 2017 is finally finished! Wow is it PINK!?!

You may remember, I planned to add more to Seam 1 and to add silk ribbon leaves to Seam 12. 

For Seam 1, 3 straight stitches were added with size 12 DMC #699 perle cotton and cross-stitches were added with size 8 DMC #605 perle cotton.

For Seam 12, River Silks #43 silk ribbon was used to make ribbon stitched leaves that I tacked down with a strand of DMC #704 floss.

Motif 4 is a Bliss Beads Sterling Silver Plated Love Charm attached with clear quilting thread.

Motif 5 was a fun one. (It has been too long since I played with silk ribbon embroidery!)

Using a strand of DMC 818 floss, I created 3 sets of 5 spokes. River Silks #18 silk ribbon was woven between the spokes to make spiderweb silk ribbon roses. Next, River Silks #65 silk ribbon was used to create ribbon stitched leaves that were tacked in place with a strand of DMC #369 floss. Little feather stitches with a strand of size 8 DMC #954 perle cotton filled in the motif. And I added a few size 10/0 hot pink seed beads with a strand of DMC #604 floss.

Motif 6 was a simple butterfly created with size 12 DMC #B5200 perle cotton. 

The wings are 4 detached chain stitches, the body is a straight stitch and the antennae are 2 pistil stitches. A running stitch created the flight path.

Motif 7 is a bullion stitched rose. First, I attached 3 clear pink size 10/0 Czech beads in the center with a strand of DMC #818 floss. Next, I added bullion knots in a circular motion, with each round being larger than the last, using size 8 Anchor #01201 variegated pink perle cotton. 4 leaves were added using fly stitches made with size 8 DMC #954 perle cotton floss. 

I loved being able to plan this block in my bullet journal and being able to record how I created each seam and motif. (Note: I did not create each seam and motif in the same order they were numbered in my bullet journal, so on the next page, I kept records correlating to the numbers assigned to each step here on my blog.)

Not every addition matched the original plan, but the plan was definitely helpful!

CQJP stands for Crazy Quilt Journal Project. It is a personal challenge to create a crazy quilt block each month in 2017 that measures at least 8x8-inches. You may learn more about the rules here and see the blocks that have been completed this year here. 

Other posts related to this block include:

Piecing the block

Seam 1

Seams 2 & 3

Seams 4 & 5

Seams 6 & 7

Seams 8 & 9

Seam 10

Seams 11 & 12

Seams 13 - 15

Motifs 1-3

Every step of my CQJP 2017 project is being saved to this board on Pinterest.

Sneak peeks of my projects are sometimes shared on my Instagram account, here, and on my Facebook page, here.

This post is linked to the Monday Stitchery Link Party #98 at Super Mom - No Cape. If you do hand embroidery of any form and have a blog, I encourage you to join the fun!

CQJP 2017 January Block Motifs 1 - 3

The 1st motif completed on my January Crazy Quilt Journal Project (CQJP) block was the central heart applique. 

This seam was inspired by a heart my friend, Cathy, created in Crazy Quilting International round robin in 2009.

First, I made a lattice grid (as described in the first part of this tutorial) with a strand of size 5 DMC #B5200 perle cotton. Tiny cross stitches made with a strand of EdMar Glory #083 rayon floss couched down the intersecting sections of the grid. 

I wanted to cover the raw edges of the applique, so white pearl beads were then stitched around the heart. I sewed and secured each bead individually. To help keep the beads lined up, after stitching the 3rd bead, I brought the thread up behind the first bead and threaded it through all 3 beads and secured the thread behind the fabric. I added 2 more beads individually and then secured the next set of 3 and repeated the process.

The beaded shell chain stitch framed this central area. The seams were worked using small strips of waste canvas, size 5 DMC #B5200 perle cotton, a size 26 tapestry needle and clear white and clear pink size 10/0 Czech seed beads.

The camera could not quite capture the sparkle the beads added. They are lovely playing in the light.

The 2nd motif was a spider web. This was worked with size 12 DMC #B5200 perle cotton. I made 5 long straight stitches beginning in the upper-left-hand corner and extending to nearby seams. 

Then, I wove 4 lines of the same floss over and under to create the spider's web. (If my plans for the block were going to be functional - like a purse, rather than for a wall hanging, I would stem stitched the web.)

A small straight stitch of the same thread created the piece of web for the spider to dangle from. Then a single strand of DMC white floss was used to attach a large pearl bead for the body and a small pearl bead for the head of the spider. The same strand of floss was used to make the legs. 

For the 3rd motif, I simply tacked on a small ribbon flower I had in my stash, using a strand of white DMC floss.

CQJP is a personal challenge to create a crazy quilt block every month in 2017. You may learn more about the challenge here and see the work of others here.





Other posts related to this block include:
Piecing the Block
Seam 1
Seams 2 & 3 
Seams 4 & 5
Seams 6 & 7
Seams 8 & 9
Seam 10
Seams 11 & 12
Seams 13 - 15

Photos of each seam and motif may be found on this Pinterest board.

Thank you for stopping by!
Renee