Since April....

You might wonder what the heck I've been doing since April when I last posted. Well, I have been busy with multiple things; work, stitching, relaxing, etc.  One new fun thing in my life is this little guy. His name is Hagol (hoggle) and he belongs to our daughter Trystan and her husband Matt. They were told he's half pug, but they're not sure what the other half is. I suspect as he grows it may become more apparent who his other parent might have been.

 

 It's really hard to get a photo of him, as he tends to be in constant motion or asleep. Not much in between.

 He's mostly still here; just the mouth in motion!

 Some cards I have for sale at Grand Valley Books....

 I am just starting a round robin this month with 5 other crazy quilters, with the theme of Birds, Butterflies, and Bees. This block belongs to Pat Freeman.

 I covered a clutch-type purse thing that I bought at Salvation Army. Not sure if it will be a needle book, a purse, or maybe I'll sell it. This is one side....

 ...and the other side.

A Yahoo Group that I belong to had a block swap with the theme of summer. This is the block I sent in. The fence and arch are made of crocheted lace.

Contest

I won 3rd place in an extended seam* contest on CQI this month. This was my entry, which has since been made into a notecard and is for sale at Grand Valley Books. Both the pink and green threads are variegated pearl cotton in size 8. I started with the herringbone stitch base, then added straight stitches for the stem of the rose, detached chain for the leaves, chain for the "handle" that swoops over the rose, and straight stitches for the cross. I added tiny feather stitch "trees" between the roses, and made each leg triple with added straight stitches. French knots made the blossoms on the trees. The roses are done with a large French knot center and 6 cast-on stitch petals circling it.

*Extended seams are elaborate seam treatments done with multiple stitches in thread (with the possible addition of ribbon, beads, etc.). By my count, I made 6 passes across this short seam.

Cards and more cards

If you think all I've been doing is cards, you'd be right, in the sense of crazy quilting anyway. These little blocks are so much fun and so addictive. I can put together a tiny block in a few minutes, using any color combo that appeals to me, and then the embellishing is so portable. I really do need to get into a round robin to do something different!

More cards...

....all of which have sold!