What I mean is, I can't keep up with my blogging because I'm too busy making.
Blame it on Lent. I gave up Facebook for the duration...except for the automatic links to various blogs for which I'm responsible (including this one)...and somehow...I've stumbled into a beautiful, gentle, rhythmic routine. Come Palm Sunday, I'm not sure what I'll do. I'm seriously thinking of stringently limiting my FB time -- and praying I won't get 'hooked' again!
To fill the "void", I've been stitching...to the point where I'm ahead of my photos...so the ones I'm showing you today are a bit of a 'retrospective' of the past 9 days since my last post!
First, I finished this for my sweet DIL-to-be, whose birthday was last weekend. My daughter will be driving through here later this week and will pick this up to take to C as a belated birthday 'hug':
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| C's Birthday Hedgehog |
Doncha just luv it?! I began it as an extra Christmas gift and when time ran out on me, decided to save it for her birthday. Pattern: King Cole #9015. Yarn: King Cole Tinsel. For the head and paws, I just used a small amount of sock yarn -- Patons North America Kroy Sock 4-ply. Stuffing: 100% clean, uncarded Shetland fleece! Now, I'm not all that fond of making "stuffies"...but this one! I confess -- I'm smitten. And yes, D, there's one in your future... Just sayin'! ;-)
I've also made a kitty coat for dear ol' Princess, my daughter's elder cat, who is now cold much of the time. Here's the back; the photo was taken while it was under construction...but it's now finished and ready for assembly. Gina will be able to pick it up on her way through, too...
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| Kitty Coat : back, WIP |
Yarn: Patons "Diana" from my stash (now discontinued). Pattern: "Easy Dog Sweaters" from "Talking Tails" (I found it on Ravelry). Princess is the size of a tiny dog, so it works. 100% acrylic, with a hint of pink in the mix, so it should work fine.
Work is proceeding on the hexagons mentioned in my last post...in that I've cut out all the rest I needed and am now stitching them together. They'll form the background for my next contribution to the 15 x 15 Group, with the theme of "East Meets West". Carrying on with that theme, I'm working on the Japanese Taupe Quilt for my son and his fiancee.
Section 1 (of 4) is almost all quilted -- with only 3 of the six whole-cloth blocks remaining for sashiko-style hand-quilting:
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| Hand-quilting motif: "Nowake" (pampas grass in the wind) from Sashiko Quiling by Kimi Ota, Seattle, WA, 1981 |
Each of the four corner sections has 6 whole cloth blocks to be quilted in this fashion. I'm using #12 perle cotton but, unlike the Japanese tradition of high contrast between stitching a background, I am toning in the colour of the thread.
Here's what Section 2 looks like, under construction:
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| Quilt on a quilt! |
I've had to spread it out on the guest bed (twin size) and keep that room's door closed against Miss Pookie-cat. :-) The gaps you see in the above photo have now been filled with other pieced blocks. My task this week will be to join all the blocks and sandwich them for quilting that section.
In other wedding prep...I decided it was about time I got back to knitting the linen tunic I plan to wear on The Day! Discovered that I'm only 1" from finishing the back...and all that's left after that will be the front (another plain rectangle) and the finishing, so I feel as though I've got somewhere even before I begin! :-)
Oh...and I've almost finished a hooded baby cape for the soon-to-be-born grand-baby of a dear old friend. All I need to do is sew in the ends, add the ribbon ties at the neck, and wash it -- before putting it into the mail. Again, another WIP photo...back when the hood was still in the making...
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| Yarn: Sirdar Snuggly "White Whispers; Pattern - Sirdar Snuggly Baby Bamboo DK #4591 Size: 6 - 9 months |
Mark on the Body continues...as does the second sock of a pair...with another pair to begin in March...And there's a mini ready to be stitched... Life without Facebook is very good indeed!
Linking belatedly to Nina Marie's Off the Wall Friday...Have a blessed rest of the weekend, Gentle Readers, and I'll see you again soon...
