Cream CQ Block 2

Cream CQ Block 2, originally uploaded by ivoryblushroses.

This had been languishing in the bottom of my work basket for a while. You may remember the first Cream CQ block I did last year. Eventually, there will be 4 cream blocks, each with a bird and flower "silkie" that will be combined to make a wall hanging.

Needing a break from beading, I pulled this out and finished all the seams. Like the first block, some seams will be embellsihed a bit more and all the patches will be filled with various types of embroidery, lace and a touch of beading. The sunflower makes me think of harvest and early autumn, so many of the embellishments will be along that theme. It's good to be working on this once again. I do love working in these soft white tones!

Bead Collage

Bead Collage, originally uploaded by ivoryblushroses.

When I started this 4" block, I had no idea how long it would take to cover the whole thing in beads and embroidery! I've gained a new appreciation for those expensive beaded garments! There is just a small space left to fill, but it will be a couple hours work at least.

There was no plan when I started this so it's been fun meandering along the path of free-form creativity. I've found bits of things in my stash to add, like the little bird button that came from a jumper of mine when I was young, old pearls from a broken necklace, buttons from the button jar, a pretty glass and gold button that I've had in my "treasure box" since I was a girl, a bunny button that I've been saving for something special, and lots of beads, both old and new.

Now that this is nearing completion, I've been thinking about what to do with it. Maybe I'll use it as the top of a pretty box. I've also thought about incorporating it into a heavily stitched bell-pull. If you have ideas, I'd love to hear them!

Snippets...

Bead project, originally uploaded by ivoryblushroses.

It has been a sad week in our family with the passing of my Aunt Jean. As a result, I haven't accomplished much but rather have just been working on snippets of things.

One small project has been the bit of beading above. It's an experiment, simply to see what I could do with beading. I marked out a 4" square on a piece of linen and just started stitching. It didn't seem very big when I started, but seems bigger now that I've been stitching on it daily for the last several days! I had no plan in mind, just wanting to build a collage of sorts in shades of white and cream. One thing I've learned ~ clear beads don't show up very well on a white background! I'm liking the combination of embroidery stitching with the beads and sequins for the texture it adds.

A while back, I signed up to swap some crazy quilted Altoid Tins. We received our partners names a while back and were able to look at a list of their preferences for colors and types of embellishments they like. This week I've finished the tops for each tin.







Now I have to attach the tops to each tin and finish decorating them before sending them out at the end of the month.

Pretty in Pink

Pink roses, originally uploaded by ivoryblushroses.

This old ironstone pitcher of pink roses is one of my favorite things at the moment!

Working on Round Robins

Bonnie's block, originally uploaded by ivoryblushroses.

I've been stitching like mad, trying to finish up some round robins so that I can work on my own projects! This is Bonnie's block. It is one of six 6" blocks. Each person in the round robin embellishes one entire block. The soft neutral colors she chose are soothing to work on!


Bonnie asked for the embroidery, beading and buttons to be done in neutral colors. I added some small mother of pearl button flowers and a spider web rose in shades of taupe and cream.


Meg is making a clutch purse out of her block. I am the last to work on it. There was just one seam left open and as it will mostly be under the flap, I didn't want to add too much bulk to it.


A bit of blue rick rack couched down with some lovely hand-dyed embroidery thread carries through the colors everyone else has used on the block. With a bit of space left, I added a seam treatment of varigated pearl cotton with blue fargo roses and SRE leaves. Can't wait to see what this purse looks like once Meg finishes it!

Bits and bobs

Wendy's Block - My work, originally uploaded by ivoryblushroses.

While in Colorado, I finished my work on Wendy's round robin block. I love her colors on this! My favorite pinks and greens! I pushed myself to continue the fan theme of this block while also using the pink roses from the fabric as inspiration. My biggest challenge was tatting the fan to go on this and then embellishing it with beads! I trimmed a couple seams with lace and rick rack with a bit of extra embellishment, added the big silk ribbon embroidery rose and the little lace fan.


Here is the block altogether. Gerry K did the lower right corner and Ati did the central fan. Now it heads to New Jersey for Meg to add her work on it.


While in Colorado, I got to spend a day poking around a large antique mall with my daughter. We found lots of lovely little treasures ~ small bits of lovely lace and some faux old pearls whose patina I love!


I even found a bag of mother of pearl buttons to add to my stash!


I picked up some other bits of trim, beads and fabric to use in crazy quilting as well. Funny how they ALL turned out to be in shades of purple and green! I think a purple and green CQ block is in the works!
Sending Happy Birthday wishes to my Mom today!