Spending Time with the Austin Stitchery Guild

I'm sorry to be so remiss in updating my blog.  I got home from Austin last Thursday, and there has been a whirlwind of activities since then.  On Saturday we went to an antiques show in Indiana and to a party for our priest who has retired after 23 years at our church.  Then on Sunday we had a family birthday celebration for me in Yellow Springs.

The antiques show is always wonderful.  Of most interest to me were the textiles.  There were lots of quilts, coverlets, and samplers, and I was delighted to come home with one of the samplers, that of Janet Harvie.

 

What a pleasure it was to once again return to Texas to teach for the Austin Stitchery Guild.  Several years ago I taught Call of the Sea and Tokens from the Sea at their annual retreat.  This time I taught Long May She Wave and A Lady's Worke Box.  It was so nice to see old friends and make new ones. The bad news is that I was very negligent in taking class photos.  I'm hoping some of the class attendees will send me some of their photos, but until then these few will have to do.

The first two photos are from the second class, Long May She Wave.  I have none from the first class--phooey!

 Look at the progress one of the attendees made on the front of her flag needle case.  I wonder if she's completed this diminutive project yet.

Here I am after dinner on the first class day with Lauretta, who organized all the classes.  We had dinner at a yummy barbecue restaurant.  If we look a bit "spent" it's because this was after a long day of class (9am-5:30pm).  The room was quite warm, and after class we had to rearrange the room for the next day.

Several of the ladies brought in show-and-tell pieces for me to see.  I neglected to get photos of all the pieces; in fact, you'll only see work from Marilyn and Sheila.  I'm keeping my fingers crossed that those who don't see their work here will send me some photos please.

Below is Marilyn N.'s ES Floral Sampler and her Quaker Hornbook, which her guild did as a group project a few years ago.  On the ES sampler, Marilyn decided to stitch her own initials instead of those of ES. 

The next photos are of of Sheila W.'s Quaker Turtles.  Sheila wasn't in either of the classes, so she sent her pieces with a friend so I could see her work.  Here are her turtles in the basket that she so beautifully lined.

Here the turtles are after they escaped their basket.

And look what Sheila did for the lid of her basket.   I'm blown away by the creativity of some stitchers!  Sheila, thank you for sending your project for me to see in person.

And look at the "Texas gifts" the guild gave me!  At the top is a Texas snap-it pocket.  I love the creative closure on it.

On the left is a Texas scissors fob complete with Texas charms.  On the right is a necklace with a cowboy boot, complete with spurs.  In the middle in a tissue holder than Yvonne, one of the class attendees, made me.  How nice it is to have these wonderful reminders of my time in Austin. 

Thank you to the members of the Austin Stitchery Guild for the very nice few days and the thoughtful gifts.

I added a few extra days in the area after the class visiting such places as the LBJ Library, the Capitol building, and Homestead Heritage.  I'll share some of the photos in a few days.  I also got to meet my friend Anna one night for dinner.  Anna had already taken both of the classes I taught so there wasn't a need for her to go to Austin.  Since she lives in San Antonio, which is a couple of hours south of Austin, we met about halfway between in San Marcos.  On the way to meet her I was able to squeeze in a trip to the Vera Bradley outlet shop to replace my stitching bag, which after nearly twenty years of use is showing its age.

I'm looking forward to returning to Texas next April when I teach for the Tudor Rose Sampler Guild in Dallas.  I'll let you know which classes they choose.

A Weekend of Stitches!

I spent last weekend in LaPorte, Indiana teaching at House of Stitches' Weekend of Stitches.  What a great time I had with this wonderful group of women!

The drive to LaPorte on Friday was beautiful as the leaves are beginning to change here in the Midwest.  Even rain did not detract from the wonderful fall colors.

My first stop after getting to LaPorte was at House of Stitches.

I'm sorry I only thought to take a few photos inside this wonderful shop.  Linda, the shop owner, has been in business for 25 years!  Wow!  She certainly must be doing something right!  If she doesn't have it in stock, she'll get it for you, so check out her shop in person or on-line.

Here is a photo of Linda, who is always smiling.  This photo wasn't taken at the shop but at the end of the retreat on Sunday afternoon.  And look, she is still smiling for ear-to-ear!

I neglected to take any photos of the many models and charts she has available, but I did take these of her wall of fabric and her fibers (well, at least some of her fibers--there were too many to get even in two photos.)  Linda has to use a ladder to get to the top couple of rows of fibers and fabric! 

After a quick dinner, it was time to meet the retreat stitchers at the hotel.  They were from Indiana, Michigan, Illinois, and even one from Alabama.  That evening I showed them the class model as well as other models I had brought.  Unfortunately, neither I nor any of them thought to take photos. 

We began the class the next morning.  We spent the day working on the back of the Jacob's ladder-style needlebook, which is part of the A Lady's Worke Box project.

Here are some photos from day 1.  As you can see, our room had lots of both natural and artificial light.

One of the ladies, Sharon H., brought in some of her completed With My Needle projects for me to see.  She was so sweet to let me photograph both the pieces and her. 



Sharon and her Quaker Turtles



Here are some more photos of Sharon's beautiful work.



Quaker Turtles, Floral Needleroll, Crown and Needle Etui, and Acorn Sampler Sewing Case



I wish I had thought to take a photo of the inside of Sharon's Acorn Sampler Sewing Case.  She chose such a pretty lining fabric.

view of the inside of Floral Needleroll



Quaker Turtles



Sharon, as you can see, is a very talented needleworker.  Her friends call her the Queen of Smalls. Like Linda, Sharon is always smiling.   I don't think she'll mind if I tell you that next month she will celebrate her 75th birthday!  Wishing you an early 75th birthday, Sharon!

And here are some photos of day 2 of the class.  Look at how much progress the ladies made on the back of their needlebooks!



Janet and her work



Terry's work



Gwen's work


In all my classes I demonstrate the assembly process with mock-ups.  In this particular class, the attendees were able to also make their own needlebook mock-up to take home.  (They used glue on their mock-ups, but will be stitching the ribbons down on their actual needlebooks to create the Jacob's ladder binding.)

And last but not least, we finished the day by looking at images of beautiful antique work boxes and their contents.  It was truly a feast for the eyes!

Here I am with Penny and Terry after we had packed up and were ready to go home.  In the bag in front of Terry is a parting gift from Linda.  (I got one too!)  I'll try to remember to take a photo of mine tomorrow along with two other gifts I received from class students.


Thanks everyone for a great "weekend of stitches".  Also thank you to those who sent me photos to use here.

And a very special thank you to Linda for hosting such a wonderful weekend!  I'm honored and thrilled to be returning next fall to teach two more classes!

Delaware beauties!

Here are photos of some of the "show and tell" projects members of the Delaware Valley Historic Sampler Guild brought to class last weekend.

First are six versions of A Petite Sampling Etui.  Some of you may remember that the guild chose this project as their 2009 group project.  The etuis in the next three photos were stitched by  Pat L., Robin T., Debi S., Marnie B., Jane G., and Stacy S.  (I think we'll soon be seeing some more completed etuis.)  If some of the etuis look familiar, it is because I showed some of them in previous blog posts here and here.  The ladies brought them in for me to see in person.  Thank you!!  I think they all decided that this is certainly not a petite project.  Someone in class also made the comment that each side of the etui could be stitched separately and framed as a sampler.  Oh, so many possibilities!

  

Did you notice Debi S.'s Mrs. Waddelow's Needlework Basket in the corner of the previous photos?  Here is Debi with both her basket, her huswif, and the companion pieces.  Debi is a beautiful stitcher and finisher, and she is quite prolific in completing projects.  I think she is now working on My Favorite Things Stitching Basket.

  

Here is a better view inside Debi's basket. (You can also get glimpse of her Quaker Hornbook on the table.)

And here is another view of Debi's projects.  She chose beautiful fabrics!  Debi added beads to her needlebook and ruler--what a cute touch. She also added a second small bag.  Debi, you are amazing! 

Another amazing needleworker I met was Ginny W. who drove in from New Jersey.  Look at all her completed WMN projects!  In the next photos you can see her completed Maidens of the Sea, Ackworth Friendship Book, Petit Carnet d'Ouvrages, Quaker Schoolgirl Needle Necessities, Quaker Hornbook, and Quaker Turtles.  WOW!! Incredible, Ginny! 

Here are some close-up views of Ginny's work.

Earlier I showed you Debi's completed Mrs. Waddelow's Huswif.  Several more guild members brought their "works in progress" for me to see.  Here are good friends Marnie B. and Jane G. with their stitched pieces and wonderful lining fabrics.

Here is a close-up of Jane's stitched pieces and beautiful lining fabrics.  Jane decided to stitch her needlebook over two linen threads instead of over one like I did on my model.

And here are Marnie's stitched pieces and her gorgeous lining fabrics.

And last, but not least is Michelle's huswif in progress.  She brought in two different sets of lining fabrics, but I forgot to photograph them.

Thanks ladies for bringing in your beautiful work for me to see in person!!

I certainly have great memories of my time with members of the DVHSG.  It was good to see old friends and to make some new ones.  Thank you for your very warm hospitality.

More turtle fun!!

What a treat it was to receive these photos from Texan Barbara M!

Barbara wrote that she and her friends had a Quaker Turtles finishing class recently.  Here are two of the completed sets.  She hopes to send photos of more turtles soon .

The green version was stitched using Weeks Dye Works Juniper thread and wool on 32-count Olive Green linen from Zweigart.  The pink turtles were stitched  using Weeks Dye Works Bubble Gum thread and wool on 30-count 18th Century Sugar Plum from R & R.  Barbara described the two sets of turtles as  Just too yummy.

Speaking of yummy, look at the other photo Barbara sent me.  Aren't these cookies cute?  They make me smile just looking at them.  Barbara said that one of her friends brought these special cookies for the class attendees to enjoy.  Some folks are just so clever!  It sounds like Barbara and her friends had a fun time with their turtles.



Barbara, please thank the two ladies (I don't know if you are one of them)  for letting me show photos of their assembled turtles. They look so adorable, and what a great job the ladies did!   

I'm certainly looking forward to seeing more turtles as your friends finish them.

LOTS of "eye candy" from Anke! (Part 1)

Oh my goodness!! Look at the photos Anke from Australia sent me of some of her needlework!!  In this post, I'm showing you photos of her Busy Bee Sewing Case, Maidens of the Sea, and Quaker Turtles.  I'm saving her photos of Strawberries So Faire Sewing Cases for later in the week so that you aren't on overload.

Anke wrote, I came to realize that by now I’ve stitched -and finished!- a few of your designs. A bit of a surprise as it is either the design itself or the way it's finished that makes me choose a project and not its designer. But then again your "Acorn Sampler Sewing Case" was one of the very first charts I bought when I started cross stitching back in 2005. Daunted, I put it aside, and now even with some finishing experience and a few projects that incorporated specialty stitches done, I’ll savour the chart some more.

 Loved doing the "Busy Bee Sewing Case" -not only because my grandfather kept bees. Did it in 2008 using a mix of over-dyed and DMC threads; stitched the bees because I don’t like charms.

At the beginning of 2010, it was the "Maidens of the Sea" turn. Used HDF silk floss on 32 ct linen tinted a light antique blue. The needlepage is made from flannelette tinted grey and it’s closed with a freshwater pearl. The mermaids got eyes -didn’t add them to the "Busy Bee"women and find that without eyes they look somewhat soulless.

Got a very soft spot for tortoises, terrapins and turtles; add to that a love of stitching smalls and one cannot possibly go past your "Quaker Turtles". Stitched one set using the recommended materials and, as I liked the design so much, stitched it again over 2 -gives the design room to breathe. While I like the petite finish working over 1 effects, to me it sometimes blurs the finer details. The other set is worked with ‘Imperialosity’ HDF silk floss over 2 on tinted ~40ct unevenweave. I adapted the backstitch pattern to be worked over 3 threads -wasn’t brave enough to even consider picking up regular backstitches.

Remembered a stitcher cum lover of these ancient reptiles and made another scissor weight from scraps left over.  In case you’re familiar with Dr Suess' "Yertle The Turtle"… click here.




Oh my goodness, Anke!  So many wonderful pieces!  I love the extra turtles you added to your set!  Looks like you have quite a bale of turtles.  ( I have to admit that I had to look up what you call a group of turtles.)

Part 2 of Anke's beautiful needlework will be in my next blog post.

Last week we stopped by Keepsakes, a needlework shop just a couple of miles from our home.  The owners are Barb Hils and her husband Joe.  Every nook and cranny of this old house is filled with cross stitch goodies.

Approaching the front door via the sidewalk, we passed the cutest cat nestled among the flowers.

Here is Barb, with her beautiful smile, and with My Favorite Things Stitching Basket, Quaker Turtles, and Mrs. Waddelow's Huswif, which she stitched as shop models.

Now here is a close-up.  I wish I had taken the needlework accessories out of her stitching basket so you could see them.

Next is a close-up of her turtles.

And last, here is the inside of her huswif.

Barb told me that one of her customers made a wonderful rendition of Mrs. Waddelow's Huswif using beautiful reproduction fabrics for the lining.  She is now working on the basket.  Hopefully she'll send me photos to show you.

On the home front, our kitchen is now back in order.  This time, we went with a glossier floor finish than in the past, and I love it!  The dust wasn't too bad--the refinisher told us that thanks to new improved equipment they are able to eliminate most of the dust.