A Branch of Blossoms

Bird on a Branch of Blossoms, originally uploaded by ivoryblushroses.

The snow is falling steadily outside, but inside I've been thinking of spring as I stitched this branch of apple blossoms with a little bird! The branch was created by combining several threads of pearl cotton and linen thread, twisting them together a bit and couching them down with the same threads. The little bird was stitched on felt first and then appliqued down with a bit of additional felt in spots to add dimension. The beak and eye were stitched last.


The lace above the branch was in need of something extra, so I added some little mother of pearl elements that added the finishing touches! Now I'm on to finish up Block 4! I've been working on this project for 3 years now. I envy those who seem to be able to start and finish multiple large projects within the timeframe of a year, as it takes me ages just to finish a 12" square block! I'm so glad to see this one getting close though!


A few days ago, I received Allie Aller's Crazy Quilting book! What a gorgeous book! Now she's not only one of my very favorite blogger's but author as well! I love that she took a slightly different approach to it and didn't focus on embroidered seams, but gave us a look at her methods of piecing and embellishing blocks with as well as how she finishes the backing of her large (and small) pieces. She also included some beautiful and inspiring work by other crazy quilters. I know this will be a book I will return to again and again! Thank you Allie for publishing such a great book!